Idea Ownership in Research Communities
Posted by Jeffrey Henning on Thu, Oct 30, 2008
Two recent questions to me were about who owns ideas submitted to online communities. Dionne asked, "How did Starbucks overcome the legal hurdles of idea ownership with ideas submitted through their community?" Joyce asked, "How is the issue of intellectual property ownership typically handled if a great idea comes from a customer?"
Typically, once a community member submits an idea, they give up any rights to that idea and may not even be credited if the idea is implemented. This is usually made clear in the Frequently Asked Questions section of the community site, as well as in the terms of use. For instance, here's the MyStarbucksIdea FAQ:
If you implement my idea will I get credit?
If we implement your idea, we may give you credit on the site, but we won't be compensating customers if their ideas are chosen. To learn more about this, please take a look at our Terms and Conditions.
The referenced Starbucks' "Terms and Conditions of Use" covers this in a detailed and legalistic way. See especially the eight points under SUBMISSIONS OF IDEAS.
This is about as fun as pouring a hot cup of coffee into your lap. While the legalese is unfortunately a necessity, a good community will go out of its way to recognize and acknowledge community members who submit ideas that are acted upon.
Hope that answer helps, Dionne and Joyce. If you have a question that you would like me to answer in the blog, feel free to comment below!
See also: When Instant Feedback is Like Instant Coffee