Kavitha Gupta's blog

Reselling Microsoft SPLA & Cloud    https://youtu.be/Fb8xYuAM9KY Software Audit Defense | A Legal Perspective    Understanding Autodesk Software Audits - what you need to know.    Published on Feb 14, 2016 http://www.SoftwareAuditLawyers.com If you have received a letter from Autodesk asking your company to submit to a “voluntary” self audit, you should watch this video from start to finish. This video will help you understand the ins and outs of how Autodesk and their attorneys handle software infringement cases. The legal and reputational risks to your organization cannot be understated. You could be facing damages from $750-$150,000 for “willful infringement” of copyright software. Your company, and its officers and directors may be labelled or accused of being a “software pirate” and if a federal copyright lawsuit is filed, serious damage to the goodwill of the business is at stake, and these can possibly emerg...

Negotiating Contracts: 12 Key Terms to Negotiate in a Software as a Service or Cloud Service Agreement by Stephen F. Pinson in Blogs Software as a Service and Cloud Service offerings have become ubiquitous digital platforms for many enterprises and small businesses in their quests to provide a single unified platform to their employees and customers. Providers offering Software as a Service and Cloud Services allow end users to access software and infrastructure remotely from any location and storing data with a provider. Because of the risks associated with storing data in the cloud and the need for uninterrupted access to the data, businesses want to be sure that they understand their requirements when entering into a cloud service agreement with a provider. The following is a list of suggested requirements when negotiating Software as a Service or Cloud Service agreement (these are not in any particular order): Demarcation A demarcation point is typically ...

Storing Export Controlled Data in the Cloud - What’s the Latest? Braumiller Law Group prev next USA August 16 2016 It is common these days for individuals and companies to store data in the “cloud”, which means that a server, or sets of servers located here, there, and everywhere are connected via the Internet. Is there a problem if that data is export controlled? Example 1 – A company has technical data controlled under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). It wants to store that data on a server located outside the U.S. Is that OK? Example 2 – A company has technology controlled under the Export Administration Regulations. It is currently stored on a server in the U.S., however the cloud storage service wants to move it to a foreign server. Is that permissible? Will any of these transactions require an export license or U.S. Government approval? Will the companies get in trouble if they try? Let’s take a look. First: Ca...

Can a Software Publisher Force You to Audit Your Customers? by Christopher Barnett in Blogs Many software-solution vendors utilize third-party infrastructure or application programs as frameworks for embedded solutions that they sell to their customers and install on their customers’ computers. Licenses for those third-party products typically can be acquired by a vendor and passed to its customers pursuant to the terms of an Independent Software Vendor (ISV) or Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) license agreement. Under those agreements, the third-party publisher often receives a set fee based on the number of licenses for its software that are distributed to the vendor’s customers. This licensing model is a relatively old one in the software world, but it is one that retains a number of pitfalls for unwary solution vendors. One of the most significant problems that can arise is associated with the audit clause in the ISV or OEM agreement. Almost all such ag...

Cloud Computing Agreements: Negotiating Privacy Issues with Large Cloud Vendors By David Y. Chen and William F. Wilson  |  2016-Jun-24     A s in NCAA basketball, where the three-point shot has been deemed the great equalizer by which mid-major teams can slay a potential Goliath, modern-day cloud computing has played a similar role for startups. Now these small and medium-size companies can compete with large corporations in ways that they never imagined possible. The primary benefit of cloud computing is that most cloud-based contracts use a subscription model with small or no initial fees, and startups can obtain the benefits of various administrative and technology-related services without a large upfront infrastructure investment. This article is focused on reviewing privacy-related issues in vendor form agreements. Contrary to the eight- or nine-figure deals in the Wall Street Journal, which involve armies of lawyers that sp...

Saas, PaaS and the Cloud? Part 2: Top 5 Considerations for Purchasing Hosted Services Posted By Christine Wahr and Sarah Hogan  You’ve read part 1 of our series , and you’re now armed with the knowledge about hosted services and cloud computing that you’ve been too embarrassed to ask.  To help you bring it home – virtually – we offer our top 5 considerations when purchasing hosted services for your organization: Implement processes for agreement to non-negotiable terms.   Many lower priced hosted services providers will present terms of use in a “click-through” or “click-wrap” agreement.  These “take it or leave it” terms are intended to avoid a costly negotiation over legal language where this is low profit margin for the services.  While the vast majority of click-through terms will be acceptable for the services being purchased, your organization should make sure individuals with purchasing authority are trained to recognize provisions that raise your...