Does Aw or its affiliates currently hold any patents material to the franchise?
Aw Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
Currently neither we nor our affiliate hold any patents material to the franchise. Currently neither we nor our affiliate hold any copyright registrations; however, we do claim copyrights in the Operations Manual and other written materials containing proprietary information regarding the System and may seek copyright registrations as we deem appropriate.
If you, your owners, managers or employees develop any ideas, concepts, methods, techniques or improvements relating to your Papa Ray's Pizza Restaurant, you agree to disclose that information to us and all of that information will become part of our confidential information. You must also assure that all corresponding intellectual property rights are assigned to us.
You may not use our confidential information (as defined in the Franchise Agreement) in any unauthorized manner. You must take reasonable steps to prevent disclosure of our confidential information to others, including having your managers and employees sign a confidentiality agreement. All of your managers and other employees who attend our training programs, seminars or conferences and/or have access to the confidential information must maintain the confidentiality of that information and sign a confidentiality agreement in a form approved by us. You must provide us with copies of the signed confidentiality agreements before the manager or employees receives training.
There are currently no effective determinations of the Copyright Office (Library of Congress) or any court regarding any of the copyrighted materials. There are no agreements currently in effect which significantly limit our right to use or license the use of any copyrighted materials. There are no infringing uses actually known to us which could materially affect a franchisee's use of the copyrighted materials in any state. We are not required by any agreement to protect or defend copyrights, trade secrets or confidential information, although we intend to take whatever action, we deem necessary to protect the best interests of Papa Ray's Pizza Restaurant System.
Source: Item 14 — PATENTS, COPYRIGHTS AND PROPRIETARY INFORMATION (FDD page 32)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Aw's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, neither Aw nor its affiliates currently hold any patents material to the franchise. However, Aw does claim copyrights in its Operations Manual and other written materials containing proprietary information regarding the Papa Ray's Pizza Restaurant system. Aw may also seek copyright registrations in the future as deemed appropriate.
As a franchisee, if you, your owners, managers, or employees develop any ideas, concepts, methods, techniques, or improvements related to your Papa Ray's Pizza Restaurant, you are obligated to disclose that information to Aw. All such information becomes Aw's confidential information, and the corresponding intellectual property rights must be assigned to them. This is a fairly standard clause in franchise agreements, as franchisors want to maintain control over improvements to their systems.
The FDD also states that franchisees may not use Aw's confidential information in any unauthorized manner and must take reasonable steps to prevent its disclosure. This includes having managers and employees sign confidentiality agreements, with copies provided to Aw before training. While there are currently no effective determinations of the Copyright Office or any court regarding the copyrighted materials, Aw intends to take action deemed necessary to protect the best interests of the Papa Ray's Pizza Restaurant System.