The University of Warwick

Intellectual Property

“Intellectual Property” (IP) means any discovery, creation, invention, design, get-up, trademark, commercially licensable technologies, database rights, confidential information, trade secrets, know-how or any research effort and all rights pertaining thereto whether registrable or not, including patents, copyright, trademarks, designs, utility models, or other such rights in any country, and applications for any of the foregoing. Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) are legal rights protecting the creator of IP, giving him / her economic rights and control in his / her creations.

Applicability of Intellectual Property Policy to Students

VTC’s Policy on Intellectual Property is applicable to all students, whether full-time or part-time, who are registered students of programmes offered by VTC or its institutions / centres, whether the programme is solely offered by VTC or jointly offered with other partner institutions or is commissioned to be offered.

Ownership of the Intellectual Property

In the course of study, students will make use of the equipment, facilities or resources owned by VTC, including but not limited to drawings, data, sketches, documents, laboratories, stationery and consumables, and will receive guidance from teachers in generating ideas for assignments and projects and may, therefore, generate Intellectual Property which might be adopted for commercial use. Whilst the student will maintain ownership of the Intellectual Property in the materials he or she creates, each student irrevocably grants VTC a perpetual, royalty-free, world-wide and non- exclusive right to reproduce or use (in whole or in part) any Intellectual Property materials (including adaptations of such materials) created solely or jointly with other persons during his / her course of study. Such right to use will include but not limited to, for example, the followings:

VTC will acknowledge the materials as the student’s Intellectual Property.

The exception to the rule on ownership set out at the above clause is that in cases where a student is working on a project that is sponsored by an external company and/or the VTC, the right to the Intellectual Property generated from the project should belong to the Company or VTC or student as stipulated in the prior agreement of the parties concerned. In this context, “sponsor” means support from the company or VTC, which could include financial assistance (cash or in kind), use of company’s or VTC’s equipment and facilities, and access to company’s or VTC’s confidential data, drawings, sketches, and documents relating to the project.

Student’s Obligations and Warranty

Notes and programme materials provided to students by teachers or Departments are works protected by copyright and shall be used by students only for private study.

Students are not permitted to make copy of any textbooks, notes and programme materials either in printed or electronic format, or to redistribute to other people in any ways, such as uploading to servers, etc. Video taking or recording during lessons without permission is prohibited.

Each student should ensure that the Intellectual Property materials created by him or her shall be original and do not infringe the Intellectual Property rights belonging to any other person especially copyright, moral rights, patents or registered designs of any person and, in particular, that it does not contain anything defamatory or libellous.

Each student undertakes to promptly report to VTC if he / she knows or has reason to believe that the right of the Intellectual Property materials belongs to someone else solely or jointly with him / her.

Each student should, at the time when he or she completes registration for a programme offered by VTC or its institutions / centre, undertake to agree to follow the policies, rules and regulations issued or to be issued or revised by VTC from time to time. Each student acknowledges his or her understanding that adherence and compliance to the policies, rules and regulations is a condition of continued enrolment and graduation. Any violation of VTC’s Intellectual Property Policy is considered as a serious misconduct, which may be referred to Student Disciplinary Committee, or any counterpart in respective member institutions handling student disciplinary matters, for investigation and consideration.