I see a lot of presentations. Every month at the NY Tech Meetup I see at least 7 or 8 presentations, in the other community events I attend I see more, and as a VC, first at Rose Tech Ventures and now at Flybridge Capital Partners, I see even more.
Last month, while I was attending another meetup, I saw almost every “demo sin” imaginable… so I took notes.
Sunshine’s very own Sheheryar Sardar of the Sardar Law Firm has written an excellent piece about social media and contract law, and we’re thrilled to bring it to you here:
WHAT SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANIES SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THE CONTRACT
By Sheheryar Sardar, Esq., Sardar Law Firm LLC www.sardarlawfirm.com
Social media has grown exponentially in the last decade, with enterprising companies creating uncontested market space in the world of online and digital industries. Whether its new search engines or unique services offered to niche markets within the browsing population, social media has transcended all ages, incomes and geographic regions. Due to the fast-paced nature of social media, ambitious entrepreneurs often overlook the need for contracts for their business. While staying ahead of the competition is paramount, creating and maintaining contracts will only enhance your edge.
Before you even start a company, or else plan on developing professional relationships with external agencies, prospective partners and employees, it is critical to understand the laws of contract. When there is a dispute, and often there is at least one during the development phase, all parties will look to the contract. As such, having a lawyer on board from the outset will always be an advantage for your business. Here is a brief list of issues to consider:
• Non-Compete Clauses: you want to protect your business by impeding your partners’ or employees’ rights to directly compete with your business if they leave. This would be framed within a specific time period, limited to a geographic area, but is very important because they possess inside knowledge of your competitive advantage.
• Non-Solicitation Clauses: you don’t want your partners or employees soliciting your colleagues or your customers away from your business.
• Non-Disclosure Agreements: NDAs are no unreasonable, so long as the language in the contract is clear on protecting your right to confidentiality.
• Moonlighting and Loyalty: This may or may not be necessary, depending on the nature of your business. A lawyer could assess its need once you discuss your goals.
• Ownership of Intellectual Property: You may want to protect any processes, templates, systems, or methods created by an employee by retaining any IP rights over them. A contract on the outset will provide necessary protections so that work product created under your business does not ultimately go to a competitor.
• Use, Licensing, Technology Transfer: Social media companies will likely need to outsource its products or services through other digital or online mechanisms, usually other companies. Often, partnerships are created to facilitate such business development. In this context, having contracts to protect the use and licensing of your work product, so that it doesn’t leak or be misused, will make your transitions to the next stage much more efficient. Similarly, if you are interested in commercially exploiting your methods, processes or inventions (Technology Transfer), you will need contracts to protect your financial interests.
Spending a little time on developing a legal structure through contracts, while slightly time-consuming, is a real investment in your social media business. Your business will make or break based on the contract, often when you must make strategic decisions for the success of your business. Retaining a contract lawyer will only enhance the probability of that success.
Sunshine recently put out the call to all our Shiners to create quick, fun content about themselves, their businesses and what they do at Sunshine for our blog. We’ll be posting this in different format-text blogs, vlogs, podcasts-in the coming days and weeks.
Up first: Hedgeable, the online trading and portfolio management company who base themselves out of our NoHo office. In their own words:
Are you feeling frustrated that you have some money, but have no idea how to manage it? Don’t have time to look after your current portfolio? Tired of paying for a broker that you never talk to, and who is content with letting you lose money? These are questions that everyday Americans with IRAs and 401Ks are increasingly asking themselves as they review their retirement in the wake of the financial crisis. There are really no good solutions for those looking to get cutting edge investment advice, while not shelling out a large amount in fees.
This is why we created Hedgeable.com. We bring sophisticated and powerful investing tools to everyday Americans to help them manage their portfolios. Hedgeable’s tools are easy to use and cover the entire lifecycle of investing, from investment education, to portfolio construction, analysis and management. Investing can be a very confusing and daunting task, which is why all of the resources on the site are extremely simple to understand.
Hedgable has the following three product offerings:
Portfolio Analyzer- 100% Free
• HPH Score Report™ acts similarly to a credit report, and provides an instant analysis on the health of a portfolio.
• eQuant™ tool provides detailed performance and risk reporting as well as interactive charts.
• Flash Advisor™ provides simple trade recommendations and fee savings.
Portfolio Builder- $49.99
• Custom built ETF portfolios based on our investment team’s market expertise
• Users aren’t placed into predetermined “buckets” like most products on market
Portfolio Manager- Free for 30 days; $19.99 per month thereafter
• Powerful technology platform giving those who want expert advice the ability to manage their own money, with professional oversight.
• Users receive periodic trade alerts to protect and grow their portfolio, which they execute at their discount broker.
• The platform also provides real-time performance and risk reporting, commentary, and dedicated customer support.
Hedgeable has been featured in The Economist, and on MSNBC, NPR, and numerous technology and finance blogs.
I am unable to wrap my head around the fact as to why any
entrepreneur in NYC would not be in this building
considering the price and networking opportunities.
Alex van Klaveran
Founder, LifeStageMedia Inc.
We will certainly never find a better price and I would be surprised if we will ever find the same service we get at sunshine.
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