Overview of the Guidelines

Guidelines for Treatment of Intellectual Property Rights in New Zealand State Services ICT Contracts

An overview of the structure and content of these Guidelines is explained below. To view this in graphical form, download the pdf.

Scope

These Guidelines are principally concerned with new Intellectual Property in ICT contracts.

Context

These Guidelines are intended to complement existing government advice with IPR implications, including:

• Cabinet Guidelines for IP from Public Service Research Contracts
• Policy Framework for Government-held Information
• Open Source Software Licences

Assumptions

• All of government approach
• Consistent procurement approach
• Pre-existing IP not affected; access permissions set out in contract
• The Customer Agency negotiates usage rights for all State Services agencies to the IPR created

Aim Statement

The Government has set goals for achieving economic transformation and sustainable development for New Zealand. The Government sees commercialisation of intellectual property rights (IPR) arising from ICT contracts as an important way to create benefits for New Zealand. Generally, it sees commercialisation of the IPR as best achieved by the commercial sector. The Government wishes to see IPR created under government ICT contracts become more readily available to the commercial sector.

Statement of Policy

When entering into an ICT contract, agencies should apply the principles set out in the Statement of Policy.

Guidelines: Ownership and Commercialisation Options

Three options are recommended for the treatment of IPR in ICT contracts:

Option One

Customer Agency owns the new IP and decides whether to and who may commercialise

Customer Agency owns all new IP in the contract deliverables. Contract does not contain a licence allowing the Supplier to use (except to provide services) or commercialise the IP.

Option Two

Customer Agency owns the IP but licenses the Supplier to use and commercialise

Customer Agency owns all new IP in the contract deliverables. Contract contains a licence allowing the Supplier to use and commercialise the IP.

Option Three

Supplier owns the IP but provides licences to the Customer Agency and all other State Services agencies

Supplier owns all new IP in the contract deliverables. Contract contains a licence allowing the Customer Agency and all other State Services agencies to use the IP.

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