VUW’s Intellectual Property (IP) Policy

Information for Students

Introduction

Students generally own IP produced by them in the course of their studies, but in certain circumstances they may be asked to sign an agreement regarding some or all of that IP. The circumstances when this situation may arise are influenced by the following considerations:

Whether placement with an external organisation is involved;
The likelihood that IP which must be notified under the University’s IP Policy will be created;
The extent to which pre-existing IP may be used in the creation of new IP;
The extent to which University resources may contribute to the creation of new IP;
The extent to which research is part of a larger research programme;
The contribution of supervisors to the development of new IP in the course of research;
The impact of existing IP agreements with third parties.

In as much as the above factors apply, students may be required to sign an Agreement with the University assigning all or some of any IP that may result from theirstudiesor research to the University. Further, they may be required to sign an agreement with any external party associated with their studies or research. Refusal to sign an agreement may result in students not being allowed to pursue a particular course of study or research project, although alternative courses or research projects will be explored to enable students to complete their degrees.

What IP needs to be notified under the IP Policy?

All IP which is considered likely to be of commercial interest or value to the University, which was developed as commissioned work for the University, or which is software that has been specifically identified as restricted and not for open source distribution must be notified by the creators to the University as soon as that IP has been identified by or drawn to the attention of the creators.

What if students create IP that should be notified?

Students should complete the notification form (Appendix A of the IP Policy) and submit it to the IP Committee of Victoria Link Ltd.

IP Committee

Viclink Ltd

PO Box 1762

Wellington

.

Within 60 working days the University will then either:

Claim ownership of the IP;
License the IP to the creators;
Decide to share the IP under Joint and Several Ownership with the creator(s);
Decide to share the IP under Joint Ownership;
Decline ownership of the IP, in which case the ownership may be assigned to the creator(s).

What happens to the benefits arising from commercialised IP?

The IP policy provides that one third of net revenues derived from commercialised IP will be shared with the creators of that IP.

Where can the IP Policy be found?

The IP Policy is on the University’s policy web page. Go to Once there, type “intellectual property” in the search box at the top of the page, and click on Find Now. The Intellectual Property policy is the first policy on the search results page.