A client had developed an app and asked us to do some minor work on their existing app. I told him that we would need access to the source code so the client went back to the original developer to get the source code only to find that the developer claimed the source code as his intellectual property and refused to provide it. Unfortunately, this is not the first time I’ve seen this source code ownership issue. Here are some of the implications of not owning the source code to your app:
- You are forever tied to the developer. Any modification, bug fix, or upgrade has to go through that developer. This is problematic because the developer could raise the price of development and is problematic if that developer becomes sick, busy with other projects, etc.
- Raising funds or selling your project becomes more difficult because there’s a question of who owns the intellectual property.
Common Law
(Disclaimer: I’m not a lawyer; if this is a concern, please get good legal counsel). In general, the author of content owns the copyright. For example, if you hire a photographer for your wedding, the photographer owns the copyright for the photos and you’ll need to pay her for it. In the case of a software developer, it’s the person physically typing on the key board to create the code. An exception occurs under the “Work for Hire” doctrine where the work is developed by an employee within the scope of their employment. However, when contractors are used, this becomes a little more unclear.
Personal Opinion
If I hire someone to buy a house, at the end of the project, I want the keys to it. In a similar fashion, if I pay someone to develop an app for me, I would expect to have the source code upon completion. At Apptology, this is our general policy. The exception is when we develop an app based off one of our templates. In which case, the template is our intellectual property.
Recommendations
If you are having an app developed by a contractor, have an open discussion about the source code ownership as part of the vetting process. If you don’t agree with their source code policy, move on. If you decide to go with that developer, make sure the ownership of the source code is spelled out in the contract.
If you are forming a startup, make sure that a legal entity is formed and that the code that is written belongs to that entity. That way a founder or team member that writes the code can’t claim the source and IP as their own (this personally happened to me on my first startup).
