Who owns the copyrights to all material on any Burneys Sweets More Online Presence?
Burneys_Sweets_More Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
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- (f) Copyrights and Patents. Franchisee acknowledges that as between Franchisee and Franchisor, any and all present or future copyrights and patents relating to the System or the BURNEY'S SWEETS & MORE concept, including, but not limited to, the Brand Standards Manual, menus, construction plans and specifications, and marketing materials belong solely and exclusively to Franchisor. Franchisee has no interest in Franchisor's copyrights or patents beyond the nonexclusive License granted in this Agreement.
- (g) Ideas and Innovations. All concepts, recipes, inventions, ideas, applications, trademarks, service marks, enhancements, modifications, improvements or other processes, methods and designs, technologies, techniques, materials, computer software, electronic code, original works of authorship, formulas, patents, copyrights, marketing and business plans and ideas, and all improvements and enhancements thereto that Franchisee or any of its Owners, affiliates, guarantors, managers, directors, officers, employees, or contractors may develop, invent, discover, conceive or originate, alone or in conjunction with any other person or persons during the Initial Term or any Renewal Term that relate in any way, either directly or indirectly, to the Franchised Business and/or the System (collectively referred to as "Inventions and Ideas"), either
in whole or in part, shall be the exclusive property of Franchisor. Franchisee must promptly disclose the existence of any and all Inventions and Ideas to Franchisor. To the extent any Invention or Idea does not qualify as a "work made-for-hire" for Franchisor, Franchisee and all its Owners and guarantors of this Agreement hereby assign to Franchisor, without compensation, all right, title and interest in such Inventions and Ideas, and agree that they will execute any and all instruments and do any and all acts necessary or desirable to establish and perfect in Franchisor the entire right, title and interest in such Inventions and Ideas. Franchisor may incorporate such Inventions and Ideas into the System. As Franchisor may reasonably request, Franchisee shall, at Franchisor's expense, take all actions reasonably necessary to assist Franchisor's efforts to obtain or maintain intellectual property rights in any item or process related to the System, whether developed by Franchisee or not.
- (h) Customer and Other Data. Franchisee shall maintain a current list of the names, addresses, email addresses and telephone numbers of the customers and past customers who have provided such information to the Shop ("Customer List"). Franchisee shall provide the Customer List to the Franchisor upon request. Franchisee shall also use the Computer Systems that Franchisor designates to create, store, maintain, and share the Customer List. The Customer List shall be the property of Franchisor and Franchisor shall have the right to use the Customer List for any purposes, in Franchisor's sole discretion. Franchisee shall not collect, use, process, store, share, or sell any information from the Customer List to or with any person or entity other than Franchisor without the express written consent of Franchisor. Franchisee shall not delete any information that is in the Customer List without Franchisor's prior written consent or unless doing so is in accordance with the Data Protection and Security Policies. Likewise, other data collected by Franchisee or Franchisee's Computer Systems in connection with the Shop (Customer List and the other data collectively referred to herein as "Franchised Business Data") is deemed to be owned by Franchisor, and Franchisee agrees to furnish the Franchised Business Data to Franchisor at any time that Franchisor requests it.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD page 50)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 Burneys Sweets More Franchise Disclosure Document, Burneys Sweets More retains ownership of copyrights and patents related to the Burneys Sweets More system. This includes, but is not limited to, the Brand Standards Manual, menus, construction plans, specifications, and marketing materials. As a franchisee, you acknowledge that any present or future copyrights and patents relating to the Burneys Sweets More concept belong exclusively to the franchisor.
As a Burneys Sweets More franchisee, you have no rights to the franchisor's copyrights or patents beyond the nonexclusive license granted in the franchise agreement. Furthermore, any concepts, recipes, inventions, ideas, trademarks, service marks, or other intellectual property developed by the franchisee that relate to the franchised business or the Burneys Sweets More system automatically become the exclusive property of the franchisor.
Moreover, the franchise agreement stipulates that franchisees must assign to Burneys Sweets More any online presence that uses the brand's marks or that the franchisee uses in connection with the operation of the franchised business. This assignment includes all rights, title, and interest in the content of any online presence, whether existing or adopted in the future. This ensures that Burneys Sweets More maintains control over its brand and online representation, even if franchisees contribute to the content.