NMK has joined forces with ISBA, the representative body for UK advertisers, and the IPA, representing communications agencies, to develop and launch a specialist ‘Model Contract’ for website design and maintenance. The contract is available free of charge to members of the NMK community - see below for details of how to obtain your copy.

The Model Contract provides a template for web developers, interactive agencies and their clients to pick and choose legal clauses tailored to their relationships. The aim is enable all parties to develop sound commercial agreements easily, cheaply and quickly, thereby encouraging good business practice and reducing the risk of conflict and disagreements between agencies and their clients.

The detailed legal terms suggested in the Model Contract have been developed with the help of Margaret Briffa and Paul Randle at Briffa, the specialist interactive and property rights lawyers - both regular contributors to the NMK programme over the years. A number of major UK advertisers and interactive agencies were also consulted during the development process.

The contract is designed to be flexible, so that companies can adapt the terms to suit their circumstances and the details of specific projects (developing a DVD rather than a website, for example). Notes providing explanation and advice are included throughout, to help you make sense of the document. And while the model contract does not necessarily remove the need for professional legal advice altogether, it will make the preliminary stages of agreeing terms smoother, quicker and more efficient.

Paul Randle, the Associate Solicitor at Briffa who helped to draft the contract, believes the contract will also promote more harmonious relations between clients and their interactive agencies. “Experience has shown that contract negotiation can discourage a smooth and effective transfer from the briefing process to specification. The Model Contract is specifically designed to address this area and so promote good relationships between UK advertisers and web development agencies,” he says.

As well as offering relevant legal terms, the contract provides practical advice on how to brief interactive agencies. The aim is to help clients gain a better understanding of what the web development process actually entails, and to encourage them to take a more active role in preparations for the brief and the development process itself. Debbie Morrison, ISBA’s Director of Membership Services, believes that the guidance included with the model contract will be enthusiasically welcomed by client-side companies. “Briefing is a key area when starting out on a relationship with any agency, the impact of which can be felt throughout the lifetime of the relationship – possibly for years to come. Feedback from the industry suggests there is great call for definitive industry-negotiated guidance in this area,” she says.

Ultimately, a better understanding between clients and interactive agencies can only be good for our industry. As NMK Director Zoë Black says, “if developers and their clients start negotiations with a mutual understanding of both requirements and responsibilities, then not only will their projects succeed, but their long term business relationships are also more likely to flourish. We are looking to 2004 to be a year of steady growth within the industry, and we hope that iniatives such as the model contract will play a small part in sustaining that.”

Download the Model Contract for Website Projects

The model contract is available, free of charge, to members of the NMK community. A zipped, PDF version of the suggested plan and contract for website projects is available for download. This contains the full model contract, but the document itself is not easily adapted to form the basis of your own agreements.

Register Now to Receive the Editable Version

If you would like to receive a fully editable copy of the model contract (in Microsoft Word), which can be adapted to suit your requirements, please email your request and your NMK website username to editor (A) nmk.co.uk.

If you do not yet have a username for the NMK site, you can register for free at www.nmk.co.uk/me/add.

Becoming a registered user also allows you to comment on articles, submit your own content to the NMK site and create your own online personal profile.

Thanks to:

• ISBA (www.isba.org.uk)
• IPA (www.ipa.co.uk)
• BRIFFA (www.briffa.com)