Fonts and stock imagery are governed by licenses. As the premier legal authority on fonts intellectual property, Frank Martinez Esq. of The Martinez Group shares how font licenses function, how images are covered by intellectual property, and how your organization can stay on the right side of the law with your licensing strategies.

1. FONTS:
LICENSING &
INTELLECTUAL
PROPERTY LAW
Frank J. Martinez, Esq.
THE MARTINEZ GROUP PLLC

2. COPYRIGHT
Acceptable Subject Matter
(1) Literary works (includes Font Software);
(2) musical works, including any accompanying words;
(3) dramatic works, including any accompanying music;
(4) pantomimes and choreographic works;
(5) pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works;
(6) motion pictures and other audiovisual works;
(7) sound recordings; and
(8) architectural works.

3. COPYRIGHT
Acceptable Subject Matter
LITERARY WORKS
BOOKS
POETRY
PLAYS
SHORT STORIES
COMPUTER CODE

4. COPYRIGHT
Acceptable Subject Matter
musical works, including
any accompanying words
Orchestral Works
Opera
Musical Plays
Modern Songs

5. COPYRIGHT
Acceptable Subject Matter
pantomimes
choreographic works
Dance
Choreography
Dance Notation

6. COPYRIGHT
Acceptable Subject Matter
pictorial, graphic,
Sculptural works
Graphics
Painting
Sculpture

7. COPYRIGHT
Acceptable Subject Matter
motion pictures and
audiovisual works
Movies
Television Shows
and others

8. COPYRIGHT
Acceptable Subject Matter
sound recordings
Records
vinyl
digital

9. COPYRIGHT
Acceptable Subject Matter
architectural works

10. COPYRIGHT
Acceptable Subject Matter – Again!
LITERARY WORKS
BOOKS
POETRY
PLAYS
SHORT STORIES
COMPUTER CODE
Fonts are Software!

12. making a font decision is a
DESIGN DECISION
not a legal decision

13. TYPE
DESIGN
font formats
and the use
of type has
evolved

14. DIGITAL IS
THE RULE.
ALL FONTS ARE
SOFTWARE

15. digital fonts mean
NEW DESIGN
OPPORTUNITIES
EMBEDDING
FLASH TYPE
ANIMATION
WEBFONTS

16. MOBILE
SMART PHONES
TABLET DEVICES

17. E-READERS

18. IS MY USE
ALLOWED?

19. the End User
License Agreement
READ
(EULA)

20. (hint: it’s a contract)
EULA?
SO, WHAT
IS THE

21. yes, but not
THAT
KIND
of contract.

22. ask your
MANAGER
or the
FOUNDRY
don’t be
surprised with …

23. THE CYCLE OF MISERY

24. A LAWSUIT
oh,
sh!#t.

25. Okay, how do I do that?
FOR YOU
MAKE THE
EULA WORK

26. MAKE THE EULA
WORK FOR YOU.
STEP 1: KNOW YOUR NEED
STEP 2: INVESTIGATE OPTIONS
STEP 3: TECHNOLOGY
CHANGED EVERYTHING
STEP 4: BUY THE LICENSE
YOU NEED

27. How many workstations?
Do I need webfonts?
Do I need to distribute to outside designers?
Do I need to distribute to the client?
Do I have more than one physical office?
Should my client purchase the license?
KNOW YOUR NEED
STEP ONE

28. Does the font have a design analog?
Where are the other choices?
Not every license option is posted.
Will my needs change over time?
INVESTIGATE OPTIONS
STEP TWO

29. Fonts are virtual
Fonts never sleep
User habits drive uses
User habits drive needs
TECHNOLOGY
CHANGED
EVERYTHING
STEP THREE

30. Posted license options address common needs
A license is a contract
Contracts are cooking—season to taste
Is your need limited by types of uses or time?
Is your use solely for “pitching”?
Who really needs the license?
BUY THE LICENSE YOU
NEED
STEP FOUR

31. Develop software use guidelines
Publish the guidelines
Make them a part of the employee handbook
Conduct a survey of workstations
Is software stored on servers?
BE
PROACTIVE

32. UNLICENSED
SOFTWARE?
WHAT DO I DO
IF I FIND

33. MANAGER
SEEK THE ADVICE
OF YOUR
or
IN-HOUSE
COUNSEL