The terms of a SaaS agreement should always include a clause limiting the SaaS supplier’s liability to the customer. The specific details of the liability clause will depend upon the type of SaaS software being supplied, the value of the SaaS agreement and what is usual in the business sector in which the parties operate.
The following issues should be covered by the limitation of liability clause in most SaaS agreements.
Tag: SaaS expert
SaaS Agreements – Data Protection – German Customers and Data Processing Agreements
If you are negotiating sales of SaaS solutions with German customers, you may be surprised by their insistence on having a separate written data processing agreement in addition to your SaaS agreement. This is a mandatory requirement under German data protection law (The BDSG) which imposes onerous obligations far beyond those found in most other EU data protection laws on the SaaS customer and the SaaS supplier.
Continue readingSaaS Agreements – Terms and Conditions – Subcontractors and Outsourcing
The terms of your SaaS agreement must include the right to use sub-contractors as 99% of SaaS suppliers use at least one sub-contractor – a third party data centre – to host their SaaS software. SaaS customers often try to prohibit the use of sub-contractors or place severe restrictions on their use by insisting that they must give prior consent to each sub-contractor. This is not acceptable for practical reasons as often numerous sub-contractors are used in providing the SaaS services and these sub-contractors will change over time.
Continue readingSaaS Agreements – FAQs – IPR and Intellectual Property
When negotiating a SaaS agreement you will come across the term intellectual property, IPR or intellectual property rights. It is important to protect your IPRs in the SaaS agreement to prevent any transfer of ownership in your IPRs and to limit the use of your IPRs by a SaaS customer.
Continue readingSaaS Agreements – SLA – Proposed EU Model Terms
The European Commission has recently released a paper on cloud computing stating that it will develop model terms for SaaS agreements which should be available for use in service level agreements (SLAs) by the end of 2013.
Continue readingSaaS Agreements – The Advantages of using English Law
If you are a SaaS supplier who often deals with customers located outside of the UK, you will have experienced customers insisting on their local law applying to your SaaS agreement. Many SaaS suppliers agree to this by simply removing “English law” from the SaaS agreement and replacing it with, for example, “German law” unaware of the consequences this will have upon their SaaS terms and conditions.
Continue readingWebsite Legal Requirements – Privacy Policy – Basics for your Website
If you are operating a website and require users to register in order to use your website or you are simply using Google analytics on your website then you are collecting and processing personal data. Under the Data Protection Act 1998, if you collect, store or process personal data you must provide specific information to the persons whose personal data you are using. This information is usually provided to users in a privacy policy which should be published on your website.
Continue readingSaaS Agreements – Data Protection – Policies and Procedures
SaaS suppliers must have adequate data protection policies, procedures and checks in place when employees or third parties are handling SaaS customer data or face the risk of being heavily fined by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) for breaches of the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA).
Continue readingSaaS Agreements – Terms and Conditions – Exit Provisions
Increasingly SaaS customers are asking for detailed exit provisions to be included in the terms of SaaS agreements. Such requests usually cover the return of data, the provision of transition assistance and non-solicitation clauses. If such terms are not already included in your SaaS agreement it is advisable to add these in order to protect your interests upon termination of the customer relationship.
Continue readingSaaS Agreements – Liability – Covering the Risks with Insurance
Below is a summary of the mandatory and optional insurance options that SaaS suppliers should consider when selling SaaS products and services via a UK based company. Employers Liability Insurance This insurance is mandatory. It covers claims relating to injuries to your employees. All businesses in Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) who have employees working in Great Britain must have this insurance in place. Failure to do so could result in a fine of 2,500 GBP per day. The insurance must be: an approved policy; with an authorised insurer;
Continue reading