Is a Monicals Pizza franchisee required to contribute to a System-wide marketing fund?

• 1. We may develop a System-wide marketing fund, and you must contribute to the fund. (Franchise Agreement, Section 11.3) We will set the exact percentage that you must contribute and we may adjust the percentage periodically. We will administer the marketing fund as follows:
• (a) We will control the creative concepts and the materials and media to be used, and we will determine the placement and allocation of advertisements. We may use print, television, radio, Internet or other media for advertisements and promotions. We do not guarantee that any particular franchisee will benefit directly or in proportion to their contribution from the placement of advertising by the marketing fund.
• (b) We may use your contributions to meet or reimburse us for any cost of producing, maintaining, administering and directing consumer advertising (including the cost of preparing and conducting television, radio, Internet, magazine, direct mail and newspaper advertising campaigns and other public relations activities; developing and/or hosting an Internet web page of similar activities; employing advertising agencies to assist therein; providing promotional brochures; conducting market research; and providing other marketing materials to franchisees). We will maintain your contributions in a separate account from our funds and we will not use them for any of our general operating expenses, except for our reasonable administrative costs and overhead related to the administration of the marketing fund. We will not use marketing fund contributions for the direct solicitation of franchise sales.
• (c) We expect to use all contributions in the fiscal year they are made. We will use any interest or other earnings of the marketing fund before we use current contributions. We intend for the marketing fund to be perpetual, but we have the right to terminate it if necessary. We will not terminate the marketing fund until all contributions and earnings have been used for advertising and promotional purposes or have been returned to our franchisees on a pro rata basis.
• (d) All Monical's restaurants owned by an affiliate or us will make similar contributions to the marketing fund as required of franchisees.
• (e) We will have an accounting of the marketing fund prepared each year and once completed, we will provide you with a copy if you request it. We may require that the annual accounting be audited by an independent certified public accountant at the expense of the marketing fund.
• (f) The marketing fund is not a trust and we assume no fiduciary duty in administering the marketing fund.

We have not collected any marketing fund contributions. As a result, we have not spent any money from the System-wide marketing fund.

Source: Item 11 — FRANCHISOR'S ASSISTANCE, ADVERTISING, COMPUTER SYSTEMS AND TRAINING (FDD pages 20–27)