S101
09-26-2007, 12:14 AM
I am in a very unique situation, at lest it feels unique. I am scaling back my business and have asked several clients to move on. Of course they would like to obtain their original layout files. I have told them that I would give them a quote for those files, but have no way to figure out what to charge for them.
My contract is very clear about who owns what (they sign it but don't read it). This is what my contract states:
We subscribe to the Trade Customs of Graphic Design. If your terms and/or conditions of doing business differ in any way, please notify
_____________(our company name was here) immediately. The client is responsible for sending an authorized representative to the photo shoot. If no representative is present, the client must accept the photographer’s judgment as to the execution of the photograph. Estimate is good for 30 days from the above date. Unless credit is established in advance, all work is C.O.D. All approved accounts are payable net 30 days. After 30 days all amounts due will be subject to a 3% per month finance charge. All works of art, including photography, design and layout, is copyrighted to the creator by United States law. Unless noted otherwise on this form, first reproduction rights are licensed pending receipt of payment. In all cases the transfer of copyrights can only occur when the job is completely paid for. All other rights are reserved. Photographic images, electronic files, design files, and any creative work created by _____________(our company name was here) are maintained at our facility and shall remain the property of _____________(our company name was here) , unless stated in writing and agreed upon by both parties. Estimate does not include authors alterations or CA state sales tax.
With that in mind, it is pretty clear that our firm owns the files. Rather my clients believe that or not.
Here is my question. I have released these clients to go and look for a new firm. I don't want to make their lives more difficult and charge them a fortune for their files. On the other hand, I believe they are worth something and shouldn't just be handed over. How would you handle this situation? I have read through a lot of old threads and know you can't talk numbers. It is also a different situation because the client didn't first ask me for the files. . . I am fireing them, so to speak.
Also, because we are a photography studio as well as a graphic design studio we work with a lot of images, which we are not wanting to sell outright. We are not sure how to handle that. If I release the design files with all the support files (fonts, images, etc.), how to I controll that? A lot of our support files are layered photoshop files that are then flattened as eps files before inserting into the layout file. Do I need to give them the original psd files???? So many questions.
:confused:
My contract is very clear about who owns what (they sign it but don't read it). This is what my contract states:
We subscribe to the Trade Customs of Graphic Design. If your terms and/or conditions of doing business differ in any way, please notify
_____________(our company name was here) immediately. The client is responsible for sending an authorized representative to the photo shoot. If no representative is present, the client must accept the photographer’s judgment as to the execution of the photograph. Estimate is good for 30 days from the above date. Unless credit is established in advance, all work is C.O.D. All approved accounts are payable net 30 days. After 30 days all amounts due will be subject to a 3% per month finance charge. All works of art, including photography, design and layout, is copyrighted to the creator by United States law. Unless noted otherwise on this form, first reproduction rights are licensed pending receipt of payment. In all cases the transfer of copyrights can only occur when the job is completely paid for. All other rights are reserved. Photographic images, electronic files, design files, and any creative work created by _____________(our company name was here) are maintained at our facility and shall remain the property of _____________(our company name was here) , unless stated in writing and agreed upon by both parties. Estimate does not include authors alterations or CA state sales tax.
With that in mind, it is pretty clear that our firm owns the files. Rather my clients believe that or not.
Here is my question. I have released these clients to go and look for a new firm. I don't want to make their lives more difficult and charge them a fortune for their files. On the other hand, I believe they are worth something and shouldn't just be handed over. How would you handle this situation? I have read through a lot of old threads and know you can't talk numbers. It is also a different situation because the client didn't first ask me for the files. . . I am fireing them, so to speak.
Also, because we are a photography studio as well as a graphic design studio we work with a lot of images, which we are not wanting to sell outright. We are not sure how to handle that. If I release the design files with all the support files (fonts, images, etc.), how to I controll that? A lot of our support files are layered photoshop files that are then flattened as eps files before inserting into the layout file. Do I need to give them the original psd files???? So many questions.
:confused: