Chapter 27 - Software Licensing and Maintenance Contracts

27.7.1 Unlimited

The Commonwealth and its executive branch agencies as defined by § 2.2-2006 usually obtain "unlimited rights" in acquired software/technical data. Under certain circumstances the Commonwealth or an agency may be willing to accept "government-purpose rights." Under other circumstances, the Commonwealth may be willing to accept "limited rights" in technical data or "restricted rights" in software. "Unlimited rights" mean the rights to use, modify, reproduce, release, perform, display, or disclose software/technical data in whole or in part in any manner and for any purpose whatsoever and to authorize others to do so. Such "unlimited rights" are so broad that they are tantamount to ownership rights.

A supplier's grant of unlimited rights in a deliverable precludes the supplier from making any further sales of that particular deliverable to anyone. Moreover, the Commonwealth may freely disclose the deliverable to supplier's competitors. An unlimited license grant also limits the contractor's ability to commercialize the deliverable.