Is a Floyds 99 franchisee allowed to patent the Program?
Floyds_99 Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
The Franchisee shall not, and shall not allow its employees or agents to: (i) sell, assign, lease, license, market or commercially exploit, in any way, the Program, any component thereof or any data generated by the use of the Program; (ii) disclose or grant access to the Program, any component thereof or any data generated by the use of the Program, to any third party other than one whom the Franchisor has approved in writing and who has agreed in writing with the Franchisor to keep the Program confidential; or (iii) copy or reproduce the Program, any component thereof or any data generated by the use of the Program, in any manner, except for one copy of the Program for normal back-up and operations thereof; provided nothing contained herein shall prohibit the Franchisee from using the data generated by the Program to the extent reasonably necessary to comply with local, state and federal law and for usual and customary business purposes.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD pages 57–58)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 Floyds 99 Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees are explicitly prohibited from commercially exploiting the software program provided to them. The "Program," which includes the software itself, related documentation, tangible media, and database file structure, is licensed to the franchisee for use in operating their Floyds 99 shop.
The agreement states that franchisees cannot sell, assign, lease, license, market, or commercially exploit the Program in any way. They are also restricted from disclosing or granting access to the Program to any third party without the franchisor's written approval and a confidentiality agreement. The franchisee is only allowed to make one copy of the Program for backup purposes.
These restrictions ensure that Floyds 99 maintains control over its proprietary software and prevents franchisees from profiting from or sharing the technology with unauthorized parties. This is a common practice in franchising to protect intellectual property and maintain brand consistency.