Does Engineering For Kids have any patents material to the operation of a franchised business?
Engineering_For_Kids Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
No patents (or pending patent applications) are material to the operation of your Franchised Business.
Copyrights
We claim copyright protection covering various materials used in our business and the development and operation of Franchised Businesses, including the Manual, the Proprietary
Materials, marketing, advertising and promotional materials, and similar materials. We have not registered these materials with the U.S. Registrar of Copyrights but we are not required to do so.
There are no currently effective determinations of the U.S. Copyright Office or any court, nor any pending litigation or other proceedings, regarding any copyrighted materials. No agreement limits our rights to use or allow franchisees to use the copyrighted materials. We do not know of any superior prior rights or infringing uses that could materially affect your use of the copyrighted materials. No agreement requires us to protect or defend our copyrights or to indemnify you for any expenses or damages you incur in any judicial or administrative proceedings involving the copyrighted materials. The Franchise Agreement requires you to notify us of claims by others of rights to, or infringements of, the copyrighted materials. If we require, you must immediately modify or discontinue using the copyrighted materials. Neither we nor our affiliates will have any obligation to reimburse you for any expenditures you make because of any discontinuance or modification.
Source: Item 14 — PATENTS, COPYRIGHTS AND PROPRIETARY INFORMATION (FDD pages 42–44)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 Engineering For Kids Franchise Disclosure Document, no patents (or pending patent applications) are material to the operation of an Engineering For Kids franchised business. This means that franchisees do not need to be concerned about patent infringement issues related to the core business operations as defined by Engineering For Kids.
However, Engineering For Kids does claim copyright protection on various materials used in their business. These include the Manual, Proprietary Materials, and marketing and advertising materials. While these materials have not been registered with the U.S. Registrar of Copyrights, Engineering For Kids asserts its copyright protection.
The Franchise Agreement requires franchisees to notify Engineering For Kids of any claims of rights to or infringements of the copyrighted materials. If Engineering For Kids requires, franchisees must immediately modify or discontinue using the copyrighted materials, and neither Engineering For Kids nor its affiliates will have any obligation to reimburse franchisees for any expenditures due to this.