An end-user license agreement, also known as a EULA, is the contract established between the licensor and the licensee of a product. The licensee likely thinks of themselves as a purchaser, but the EULA establishes their right to use a piece of proprietary software as a license – not ownership.
For a software developer, the EULA defines the ways in which a copy of its software can be used and the rights of the buyer (licensee).
EULAs may be referred to as the software license but they always boil down to the fact that the user has agreed to pay for the ability to use the software and by accepting the terms of the EULA, the user is agreeing to the terms that the software author or publisher has set with regards to restrictions on usage. To learn the differences between shrink-wrap licenses, click-wrap licenses and browser-wrap licenses, check out our blog post specifically on these different types of licenses. For examples of recently updated EULAs in the gaming space, check out Mojang’s EULA for Minecraft or Blizzard Entertainment’s EULA.
The enforceability of some provisions in EULAs has shifted over the years in the United States. Some EULAs have been deemed invalid because of overreaching provision, but most are viewed as valid and enforceable.
If you need assistance creating a EULA for your company’s software or game, contact us. If you are selling a piece of proprietary software, you should have a EULA established to protect your business and the future of your software.
