A quick overview of the contract in plain English:
- Non-exclusive rights to distribute the provided content as a stand alone app, as part of a collection app, or as an In App Purchase (download into an App) (For the upcoming ‘bookshelf’ app)Â You have the right to re-release the content to other app developers, and this does not extend to things like selling a PDF of your content
- This agreement can be with the creator of the work or with a representative of the work (for instance, a publisher who has exclusive rights to the work, or a publisher with a standing agreement for electronic distribution)
- Initial contact period is four years
- Royalty is: (Retail Sale Price – Distributor Royalty – 20%) (At the time of this writing, Apple AppStore apps would result in a 50% royalty – Apple takes 30%)
- Payment is 30 days from receipt of payment.
- While the contract is for four years, you can at any time (with 30 days notice) terminate the contract for any reason.
Full text of the contract appears below the form – when you complete and submit the form an executed copy of the contract will be sent to you via email within a few minutes. Â If a contract does not appear within an hour, please contact Davis for another copy of the executed agreement.
By clicking ‘Send’ you agree to all terms of this agreement.
(The ‘fill in’ portion will be filled in automatically from the form below when you receive your copy of the contract via email.)
AGREEMENT made on <DATE> between <AUTHOR>, whose address is <AUTHOR’s ADDRESS> (hereinafter called the Author or Representative), the creator or legal representative of <THE WORK> (herinafter called the Work), and Midnight Ryder Technologies of Wichita, Kansas, United States of America (hereinafter called the App Publisher). In consideration of the mutual covenants herein contained, the parties agree as follows:
1. GRANT
The Author or legal representative of the work (for instance, a publisher with the legal right via ownership, contract, license, or inheritance to allow further publication of this work in the formats mentioned later – from here on referred to a Representative) grants to the App Publisher for a term of five (5) years from the date of this contract non-exclusive right to publish and sell the Work throughout the world in digital format for mobile, portable, desktop, or other electronic devices in stand alone application format, as part of a collection, or as part of a ‘digital bookshelf application’ or ‘in-application purchase’. Such term shall be automatically renewed for additional periods of one year each unless terminated by written notice by either party at least 90 days prior to the end of the initial term or any renewal term. This Grant does not include rights of distribution for stand alone file formats (including .PDF, .DOC, .HTML, .TXT, or other currently known or unknown stand alone format), it only grants publication as an executable application format or download into an executable application created and distributed by the App Publisher.
2. REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES
The Representative warrants and represents that this Work is legally accessible to be licensed from the the Representative, that the Author is sole author and proprietor of said Work with full power and right to enter into this agreement and to grant the rights hereby conveyed to the App Publisher; that said Work contains no matter which infringes right of privacy or copyright; that the Representative has not heretofore and will not hereafter during the term of this agreement enter into any agreement or understanding which would conflict with the rights herein granted to the Publisher. Written permission from previous rights owners may be required. If the Work includes quotations or illustrations in which the copyright does not belong to the App Author then the App Author shall obtain permission for its use from the owners and shall pay any fees or costs involved, and on request the Author will send to the App Publisher copies of the permissions obtained and proof of copyright fees paid by the Representative, or provide proof of licensing. If the Representative shall breach this warranty, the App Publisher shall be entitled to injunctive relief in addition to all other remedies which may be available to it. The Representative further agrees that the publisher, its distributors, and any retailer will be held harmless against any recovery or penalty finally sustained arising out of this breach of this warranty, and in this event the Representative will reimburse the App Publisher for all court costs and legal fees incurred. Any out of court settlement of any suit filed jointly against the Representative and the App Publisher shall be made only by mutual agreement in writing between same.
3. ROYALTIES
TheApp Publisher will pay the Representative royalties based upon net sales as reported by the App Publisher and their distributors as follows: App Publisher takes 20% of the total retail sale price of the Work, then provides the Representative of the Work with the remainder that was paid to the App Publisher by the distributor. No advances will be paid.
4. SUBSIDIARY RIGHTS
No subsidiary rights are granted in this contract, and remain with the Representative or original Author of the Work.
5. STATEMENTS AND PAYMENTS
The App Publisher will provide payments via PayPal (or similar electronic payment system of the App Publisher’s choice) 30 days from date the App Publisher receives the payment. Any amount under $1.00 USD will remain unpaid until payment amount exceeds $1.00.
5. PUBLICATION
The App Publisher agrees to publish and commence distribution of said Work in digital or electronic format as defined in clause 1 above within twelve (12) months of delivery of the Representative’s final manuscript, unless prevented by circumstances beyond the App Publisher’s control, or unless otherwise agreed with the Representative. In the event the Representative fails to publish and distribute the Work by said date, the Representative shall have the option to terminate this agreement upon seven days notice from the Representative to the App Publisher. The mandated publication date may be extended to any other date, and any number of such extensions may be made, upon mutual agreement between the App Publisher and the Representative. The App Publisher undertakes to design and create the electronic book to a high standard within the technical limitations of the electronic book format at the time of publication, and to take full advantage of any enhancements to the standard book format, such as the use of hyperlinks and color, where possible and appropriate.
6. PROMOTION
The Publisher agrees to promote the Work on through the App Publisher’s own channels that the App Publisher deems appropriate, possibly including websites, app distribution sites, press releases, and any other marketing effort. However, the App Publisher is not responsible for all marketing, and the Work’s Representative should additionally perform marketing efforts they deem to
7. NON-ASSIGNMENT
The App Publisher shall not assign the rights granted in this agreement or the benefits thereof without the Representative’s prior written consent.
8. INHERITANCE
This agreement shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the heirs, executors, administrators and assigns of the Representative, and upon and to the successors and assigns of the App Publisher.
9. DISPUTES
If the App Publisher is in any way in breach of this contract and fails to remedy the breach within 30 days from written notice by the Representative, or if the App Publisher ceases business as an electronic publisher, then all rights assigned to the App Publisher under this agreement will revert to the Representative. In the event of any dispute or disagreement regarding this agreement, the parties agree that common sense should prevail, and that if necessary an independent person or persons mutually agreed upon by both parties can be called upon to make a decision which is binding upon both parties. This agreement shall be governed by and interpreted in all respects in accordance with the laws of the State of Kansas, USA.
10. Termination
This agreement between the Representative and the App Publisher can be terminated at any time with thirty (30) days notice in writing by the Representative.