Within how many days after termination or expiration of the Buona franchise agreement must the franchisee assign the Identifiers to the Franchisor?
Buona Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
- (d) Franchisee acknowledges that all telephone numbers, facsimile numbers, telephone directory listings, e-mail addresses, social media accounts, websites, internet addresses, listings or other presence on the Internet (collectively "Identifiers") used in the operation of the Franchised Business constitute Franchisor's assets, and upon termination or expiration of this Agreement, Franchisee will take such action within five (5) days to assign to Franchisor or Franchisor's designee as determined by Franchisor, all of Franchisee's right, title and interest in and to such Identifiers and will notify the telephone company and all listing agencies, internet service providers, domain name registrars, social media platforms or networks of the termination or expiration of Franchisee's right to use any Identifiers, and to authorize a transfer of the same to Franchisor, or at Franchisor's direction, to its designee.
Further, Franchisee shall deliver to Franchisor any passwords or account manager access information for any Identifiers.
Franchisee acknowledges that Franchisor has the sole right to, and interest in, all Identifiers used by Franchisee to promote the Franchised Business and/or associated with the Marks.
Source: Item 23 — RECEIPTS (FDD pages 78–356)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Buona's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, a franchisee must assign all Identifiers to Buona within five days of the termination or expiration of the franchise agreement. Identifiers include telephone numbers, fax numbers, directory listings, email addresses, social media accounts, websites, and internet addresses used for the Buona franchise.
This means that upon the end of the franchise term, the franchisee is obligated to transfer all online and telecommunications assets related to the business to Buona. The franchisee must also notify all relevant service providers, such as telephone companies, internet service providers, and social media platforms, about the termination or expiration and authorize the transfer of these Identifiers to Buona or its designee.
Furthermore, the franchisee is required to provide Buona with any passwords or access information needed to manage these Identifiers. This ensures that Buona maintains control over the brand's online presence and customer communication channels, preventing any potential misuse or confusion after the franchise agreement ends. This is a fairly standard practice in franchising, as it protects the brand's identity and goodwill.