Does the Bath Tune Up franchise agreement license the use of data back to the franchisee?
Bath_Tune_Up Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
s, or (iii) which are otherwise offered or sold under the Marks. Franchisee may, however, use the Marks to sell goods or services through the Internet in compliance with the Manuals or with Franchisor's prior written consent, but then only in the manner and in accordance with the procedures, policies, standards, and specifications that Franchisor establishes from time to time.
Franchisor is the owner of, and will retain all right, title, and interest in and to the domain name "BATH TUNE-UP®", the URL, all existing and future domain names, URLs, addresses and subaddresses (including the Franchisee Page subaddresses), all computer programs and computer code (e.g., HTML, Java) used for or on Franchisor's Web site, excluding any computer programs and computer code owned by third parties (collectively, "Software"), all text, images, sounds, files, video, designs, animations, layout, color schemes, trade dress, concepts, methods, techniques, processes and data prepared for, used on or in connection with, displayed on, or collected from or through Franchisor's Web site (collectively, "Content), and all intellectual property rights in or to any of them.
(c) Franchisee must participate in programs and/or adhere to any then current policies or specifications Franchisor develops, maintains or requires from time to time with respect to the use of Artificial Intelligence in connection with the development and operation of the Franchised Businesses generally or the Franchised Business. For purposes of this Agreement, Artificial Intelligence means a field of science concerned with building computers and machines that can reason, learn, and act in such a way that would normally require human intelligence or that involves data whose scale exceeds what humans can analyze.
**6.8.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD page 52)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
The 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document for Bath Tune Up specifies that the franchisor retains ownership of all data collected through their website. Specifically, Bath Tune Up owns all data prepared for, used on, or collected from their website. This includes all intellectual property rights related to that data.
Bath Tune Up franchisees are required to participate in any programs or adhere to any policies the franchisor develops regarding the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in their franchised businesses. The agreement defines AI as systems that can reason, learn, and act in ways that typically require human intelligence, or that involve data exceeding human analytical capabilities. This indicates that Bath Tune Up may utilize AI and data analysis in its operations, and franchisees must comply with the franchisor's policies in this area.
While the FDD does not explicitly state that franchisees are licensed to use the data, it does state that franchisees may have the opportunity to participate in joint marketing efforts with other Bath Tune Up franchisees. If a franchisee declines to participate, the participating franchisees must offer any leads generated in the non-participating franchisee's territory to that franchisee on reasonable terms, including maximum lead fees. This suggests a system where leads (a form of customer data) are shared under certain conditions, but it does not constitute a full license to use all data collected by the franchisor.