0.4 Managing rights  (Page 3/11)

Shrinkwrap licenses and EULAs are often limited to the specific user of the material, and do not extend to an organization of which the user may be a member. Both shrinkwrap licenses and EULAs contain pre-set terms, and are almost always non-negotiable.

While many legal systems have not fully addressed the effect of these types of licenses, courts in some countries have ruled that a valid consent, giving rise to a binding contracts, can be formed in these fashions. In most countries, however, the terms of such agreements will be subject to consumer protection laws and other limitations on unconscionable provisions.

Content of a typical license: the example of an online database

Let's now examine the terms of license more closely. Imagine that you are a librarian negotiating the terms of a license -- for example, to an online database. What issues will or should the license address?

Identification of the parties to the agreement

It is important not only to identify the parties to an agreement, but also to confirm that the persons negotiating actually have the legal authority to make agreements on behalf of their organization. If a library is part of an educational institution or is funded by the local government, for example, not every librarian may have this authority. A licensor might want proof that the person claiming to negotiate on behalf of the licensee is in fact permitted to bind the licensee by contract. The librarian might want to make sure the same is true of the person negotiating on behalf of the licensor, and that the licensor is entitled to exercise the rights of the copyright holder. This should be clearly addressed and included in the agreement.

Definition of terms that will be used in the agreement

Because libraries often obtain licenses from copyright holders from other countries and from various industries, similar terms can have different meanings to the negotiating parties. For example, one important term in licensing agreements is  “material breach.”  A material breach is an action by one of the parties to a licensing agreement that permits the other party to terminate the contractual relationship. Because of the importance and ambiguity of this term, the librarian should specify in the agreement what actions by a each party would amount to a material breach.

For instance, suppose the library were to negotiate a license to access materials from an online database. In this case, it might be a material breach if the database is inaccessible for long periods of time. Likewise, the staff should consider what potential failures by the library to live up to its end of a licensing agreement might legitimately be considered material breaches.

Subject of agreement

Parties to an agreement should be very specific about what copyrighted work is being licensed. If it’s an online research database, for example, a licensee should make sure that the license entitles patrons to view the full text of articles, rather than just abstracts or summaries. If the resource is something that should contain a table of contents, index or images, the licensee should ensure that these are included in the license as well. If there are images, one might even want to determine whether they will be viewable and/or printable in black and white or color.