Does the Kidokinetics agreement grant the franchisee the right to establish an independent website?
Kidokinetics Franchise · 2024 FDDAnswer from 2024 FDD Document
Franchisee shall not establish any website or other listing on the Internet except as provided and specifically permitted herein.
- 11.3.8.
Franchisor has established a website that provides information about the System and the services offered by the Kidokinetics franchises (the "Website").
Franchisor has sole discretion and control over the Website, including whether to discontinue the Website.
Franchisor will provide Franchisee with a dedicated page on the Website for Franchisee's Kidokinetics Business.
Franchisor may require Franchisee, at Franchisee's expense, to prepare all or a portion of the page using a template that Franchisor provides.
All such information will be subject to Franchisor's approval prior to posting.
Franchisee has no ownership or other proprietary rights to such page and will lose all rights to such page upon expiration or termination of this Agreement for any reason.
- 11.3.9.
Franchisor may use a portion of the Brand Development Fund Contributions or the Technology Fee to pay or reimburse itself for the costs incurred in connection with the development, maintenance and update of its website.
- 11.3.10.
Franchisee acknowledges that Franchisor and/or Franchisor's affiliates are the lawful, rightful and sole owner of the Internet domain name www.kidokinetics.com as well as any other Internet domain names registered by Franchisor and/or Franchisor's affiliates, and unconditionally disclaims any ownership interest in such Internet domain names and any Internet domain names similar thereto.
Franchisee agrees not to register any Internet domain name in any class or category that contains words used in or similar to any brand name owned by Franchisor or Franchisor's affiliates or any abbreviation, acronym, phonetic variation or visual variation of those words.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD page 59)
What This Means (2024 FDD)
According to Kidokinetics's 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees are generally prohibited from establishing independent websites. The agreement states that franchisees cannot establish any website or other listing on the Internet except as specifically permitted by Kidokinetics.
Kidokinetics maintains a central website and will provide franchisees with a dedicated page on that website. However, Kidokinetics retains sole discretion and control over the website, including the right to discontinue it. Franchisees may be required to prepare their page using a template provided by Kidokinetics, and all information is subject to Kidokinetics's approval before posting. Franchisees do not have any ownership or proprietary rights to their page on the Kidokinetics website and will lose all rights to it upon termination of the agreement.
Kidokinetics also reserves the right to access and manage a franchisee's Kidokinetics Business social media accounts. Furthermore, franchisees are prohibited from registering any Internet domain name that contains words used in or similar to any brand name owned by Kidokinetics. These stipulations ensure that Kidokinetics maintains control over its brand's online presence and marketing efforts.