Deal terms
Licensing vs selling your company data
"Sell your data" sounds permanent. Owner-focused offers actually license a scrubbed copy, and the originals and ownership stay with you. A few contract clauses decide what you truly hand over.
01
Everyone says "license" now
Ads now use it as a stock reassurance, and a few buyers talk about licensing on a revenue share. Treat every such line as a sales pitch until the contract matches it.
02
What changes hands
The buyer ends up with a treated duplicate in which every name is swapped for a placeholder. After processing, the raw files are deleted on a timetable, and you approve samples before anything goes out. The copy is used to train and test AI models, and those models are what the buyer's customers use.
03
The five terms that decide what you give up
Exclusivity
Can I license these records to anyone else?
Term
Is there an end date, and what becomes of the copy afterwards?
Sublicensing
Can the buyer pass the data to other labs?
Use
Training only, or evaluation, products and resale too?
Payment
One amount, instalments or a revenue share?
| Term | The question to ask |
|---|---|
| Exclusivity | Can I license these records to anyone else? |
| Term | Is there an end date, and what becomes of the copy afterwards? |
| Sublicensing | Can the buyer pass the data to other labs? |
| Use | Training only, or evaluation, products and resale too? |
| Payment | One amount, instalments or a revenue share? |
Revenue shares and recurring fees bind you to the buyer for a longer stretch, so give those clauses extra attention. See one-time or recurring.
FAQ
Questions, answered
Licensing versus selling: how do they differ?
With a license, the buyer may use a scrubbed copy under set terms and you hold onto the originals. With a sale, ownership of the records would pass to the buyer.
Do I keep my company?
Yes, in every owner-focused offer we found. No equity or debt is involved.
Do licenses ever last forever?
Some do. Look at the stated term and at what the buyer must do with the copy once it expires.
Find the buyers that fit your company
Answer a few questions about your size, tools and history. We show which buyers want a company like yours. Free, no files.
Keep reading
Sources
Every number on this page links back to one of these.
- 1micro1, Data License Master Termsmicro1.ai
- 2Troveo, exclusive vs non-exclusive data licensestroveo.ai
- 3Polyshares, company websitepolyshares.com
- 4Frankfurt Kurnit, selling company data for AI training: what to knowtechnologylaw.fkks.com
- 5WG CPAs, licensing or sale of intellectual propertywgcpas.com
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