| Author: | Alasdair Taylor |
| Updated: | 31 January 2023 |
| Length: | 14 pages (min.) |
| Notes: | 15 pages (min.) |
| Format: | MS Word (.DOCX) |
This software development and maintenance agreement template may be used to document an agreement between two parties concerning the development of software, where the rights the software will be assigned, and where the developer will provide maintenance services on an ongoing basis.
This template comes in basic, standard and premium versions.
As you would expect, the basic version covers the fundamentals, including the manner of performance of the development services, the timetable for the development of the software, the developer's approach to source code and the ongoing supply of code to the customer. As with all of three versions, copyright and other intellectual property rights in the software are assigned (not licensed) to the customer. The basic version also takes account of the possibility that third party intellectual property may be incorporated into the software, and this is subject to a separate licensing clause. The maintenance services provisions in the basic version may be adapted to cover either the supply of updates, or the supply and application of updates by the developer. Optionally, maintenance services may be terminated independently from the rest of the agreement. Of course, the basic version also includes a range of boilerplate provisions covering charges, warranties, liabilities and similar matters.
The standard version of the software development and maintenance agreement builds upon the basic version, with additional provisions covering set-up services, acceptance testing, expenses, timesheets, confidentiality and indemnities. A separate maintenance services SLA is also included with the standard version.
The premium version goes further still, with clauses covering additional development services, change control processes, contract management, publicity and personal data processing. Another key difference is that the premium version comprehends the possibility that the developer will be licensing framework code (for example, the developer's own custom application development framework) to the customer, alongside a licence of the new code created in the course of the project.
If you are looking for a software development agreement under which all of the developer's code will be licensed rather than assigned to the customer, please consider our software development and licence agreements in place of this template.
