Feedback Licence Clause
Also called: Feedback Assignment · Customer Suggestion Clause
A feedback licence clause gives a vendor the right to freely use any suggestions, ideas, or feedback a customer provides about the product — without payment or attribution — and without the customer retaining any ownership claim over resulting improvements. It prevents disputes over who owns an idea once the vendor builds on it.
In more detail
Without this clause, a customer who suggests a specific feature that the vendor later builds could arguably claim some ownership or compensation interest in that feature — a broad and unlimited feedback licence forecloses that argument upfront.
The clause is one-directional and low-friction by design: it doesn't require the vendor to use any given piece of feedback, just clarifies that if they do, no separate compensation or rights are owed to the customer who suggested it.
This is standard, low-controversy boilerplate in most commercial software contracts — it rarely gets negotiated, but its absence can create real ambiguity in the rare case a customer's suggestion turns into a significant, valuable feature.
A customer suggests a specific workflow improvement during a support call. The vendor builds a similar feature into the next product release. Under a feedback licence clause, the customer has no ownership claim or right to compensation for that feature, regardless of how directly it was inspired by their suggestion.
What our lawyers check
- Whether a feedback licence clause exists at all
- Whether it's broad enough to cover all forms of feedback, not just formal suggestions
- Whether any exceptions exist for feedback given under a separate confidentiality arrangement
- Consistency with the broader IP assignment and licence scope clauses
Contracts where this clause matters
Related terms
This definition is general information about commercial contracting practice, not legal advice. How a clause operates depends on the specific wording of your agreement and the law that governs it. For advice on your contract, have it reviewed by a lawyer.
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