You worked hard on the software that you’re getting ready to release, and you want to make sure that your product is protected. Countless hours have gone into its creation, and the last thing you want is for it to be stolen or shared illegally, costing you and your team money.
It’s essential that anyone in your position safeguards their intellectual property before releasing it to the market as well as throughout the creation of the software. The world is highly competitive today, so being able to protect your assets will help you keep up with competitors (or have the edge in competition).
With intellectual property, one thing you need to do is to make sure you license it. You may want to consider a few types of software licenses, too. Some that are common for businesses such as yours include:
- Source code licensing
- Trialware licensing
- Shareware licensing
- End-user licensing agreements
- Reseller agreements
- Click-wrap licensing
- Shrink-wrap licensing
Each kind of licensing specifically details how that software may be used when it’s in the hands of the other user. This helps protect your software’s code and integrity, minimizing the risk that it could be stolen or copied. This step also helps protect you against unfair lawsuits from other companies that may believe that you’ve copied their software coding.
If you’re new to creating software or just want to make sure that your licensing agreements are as strong as they can be, it’s a good idea to speak with your attorney about setting up the right kind of licensing and protecting your product. You worked hard, so now it’s time to make sure others can experience your product without negatively affecting your profits.
