Does Mr. Sandless claim copyrights on its social media content?
Mr_Sandless Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
Upon termination or expiration of this Agreement, you shall:
- 23.1.2 Immediately cease using the Proprietary Marks, Copyrights and Confidential Information and refrain from referencing any past association with us;
You acknowledge that, as between us and you, we have the sole rights to and interest in all , social media accounts, electronic mail addresses, telephone numbers, and other listings associated with the Proprietary Marks.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD page 42)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 Mr. Sandless Franchise Disclosure Document, upon termination of the franchise agreement, franchisees must immediately cease using Mr. Sandless's copyrights. Mr. Sandless retains sole rights to all social media accounts associated with its proprietary marks.
This means that while a franchisee may operate social media accounts to promote their Mr. Sandless franchise during the term of the agreement, they do not own the content or the accounts themselves. Upon termination of the franchise agreement, the franchisee must discontinue using any copyrighted material and transfer control of the social media accounts to Mr. Sandless.
This is a fairly standard practice in franchising, as franchisors need to maintain consistent branding and control over their intellectual property. A prospective Mr. Sandless franchisee should understand that the content they create for social media as a franchisee ultimately belongs to the franchisor, and they will not be able to use it independently if they leave the Mr. Sandless system.