Rights to the Localized Product

You need to keep an eye out for TRM ("translation management rights," a term I've just coined), because they may not be enforced just for hopeful thinking.

If you're creating software, documentation or a Web site in English, who owns it? Your company, of course. True, the words that went into the product came out of your brain and fingers, and not those of your company, but it's work you've done for hire, so your company owns it. This is probably spelled out in your employment agreement.

Most of the time, this will apply to the localized version of your product as well, but it's worth being clear about it with your vendor. True, the translated words came out of the brain and fingers of the translators, but you wouldn't want the translators to own it even if they were in your employ, let alone when they're outside contractors, which they usually are.

I hadn't thought about this for ages until a recent project took me to the site of Association of
Finnish Translation Companies - SKTOL. Since a prospective vendor referred to them in his estimate, I took the time to read their General Terms and Conditions and found the following among them:

7. COPYRIGHT

The company holds the copyright as referred to in the Copyright Act (404/1961) to the translated text unless otherwise agreed. The company assigns the right of use to the translated text in the extent and for the purpose required by the commission.

Unless otherwise agreed, the company holds all rights to the translation memories generated in conjunction with the work it carries out.

This struck me as odd, and either stunningly progressive or hopelessly out of date. Of course, they don't claim "exclusive copyright" or "exclusive rights to translation memories," so they wouldn't likely withhold either from the client, but these struck me as singular rights for a contractor to try and claim.

None of my clients would have any part of this. Would your company?