Who Owns Your Website?

Common sense suggests that if you hire a Web developer to build your site, whatever they create belongs to you. But that isn't always the case.

According to U.S. copyright law, if you hire a Web design firm as an independent contractor, that design firm owns all of the content that it creates. In a case such as this, the law treats the contractor as an "author" and automatically grants them ownership of the work. Even if your business works together with a design firm on your Web site, the design firm might be able to claim joint ownership of the site's design and content. Obviously, this could create a major problem for your business.

Make sure your contract or agreement with your design firm includes a clause that assigns the ownership of the firm's work to your business. This agreement must be in writing — oral copyright assignments aren't enforceable. Most standard Web development agreements assign the copyright to the client, but you should always make sure the assignment clause gives you complete, unquestioned ownership over every aspect of your Web site. If you don’t you risk if you ever leave this web designer, he keeps your website design and all of its content. Worse yet, your hands will be tied if you ever want to use integrated marketing, having an ad or other marketing efforts designed to look like your website. Without written permission from the web designer, you open up liability to a lawsuit from him for copyright infringement!

If it’s not spelled out in a written contract for your web design, play it safe and require them to sign a copyright assignment form.