All contracts

Software License Annex

Key points and template

In Cooperation With

Key Points Included in This Software License Annex

Swiss-wide recognized, industry-standard contractual provisions – compiled and reviewed by business associations Swico and swissICT
detailed description of the licensed software, including the possibility of uploading the software documentation as an attachment
modular definition of the license fee, including the possibility of uploading the price documentation as an attachment
detailed regulation of the usage included in the license fee, including the definition of the customer’s reporting obligations and the licensor’s control options
possibility to include supplementary maintenance services for the licensed software by including a software maintenance agreement

Use This Software License Annex if …

… you have already set out the contractual framework for the usage of software and would like to specify the conditions and the scope of use

… you are the owner or rights holder of software that you wish to make available to a customer in return for payment of a license fee and therefore want to set specific provisions

… you need a fair and industry-established contractual framework to govern your business relationship

What is This Software License Annex?

The license annex provides for specific regulations on the usage of software and the corresponding fee. Thus, it supplements the framework agreement regarding the software license, in which the general provisions are set.

Having a framework agreement separate from the specific license annex is efficient because, at a later point, the parties can agree on another software license without having to renegotiate the framework agreement again. Furthermore, the license annex can be terminated without terminating the framework agreement.

The software license annex is designed to grant rights to the use of large application packages for lengthy periods, subject to the payment of a one-time or periodic usage fee. The licensed software usually consists of standardized program modules that are suitable for use by customers from a particular sector of industry or field of application. The programs can be adapted to the customer’s specific needs under an agreement for IT works and services or an IT-services agreement (mandate relationship). The licensor may provide maintenance and support for the licensed software under a software maintenance agreement. The licensor owns the rights to the software or has been granted to the licensor by the legal owner for the purpose of issuing licenses in accordance with this agreement.

Unlike a SaaS cloud service agreement, the licensee (customer) usually puts the software on a computer or has to copy it. In a SaaS deal, the software is hosted on the provider’s servers and the customer accesses it. Because the licensee (customer) places a copy on a computer – if it is on-premise software – the contract must include a copyright license.