RPM

Title:	Software Disclosure and Distribution
Publication date:	12/3/2012
Effective date:	2/1/2008

BRIEF

Policy Summary

Employees and affiliates who have written software that will be distributed to any third party or that will be useful either commercially or for other government contractors must submit a Software Disclosure and Abstract form to Technology Transfer and Intellectual Property Management (TTIPM). It is the developer's responsibility to report all software prior to distribution, and to obtain the appropriate license agreement from TTIPM.

Who Should Read This Policy

All Berkeley Lab software developers, including full- and part-time employees and those with faculty appointments and affiliates

To Read the Full Policy, Go To:

The POLICY tab on this wiki page

Contact Information

Licensing Manager
Technology Transfer and Intellectual Property Management
ttd@lbl.gov

Title:	Software Disclosure and Distribution
Publication date:	12/3/2012
Effective date:	2/1/2008

POLICY

A. Purpose

Employees and affiliates who have written software that will be distributed to any third party or that will be useful either commercially or for other government contractors must submit a Software Disclosure and Abstract form to Technology Transfer and Intellectual Property Management (TTIPM). It is the developer's responsibility to report all software to TTIPM prior to distribution, and to obtain the appropriate license agreement from TTIPM in order for Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) to meet Department of Energy (DOE) requirements, ensure that Berkeley Lab has the appropriate rights to distribute the software, and to distribute software under contracts that are appropriate for the particular software and type of distribution.

B. Persons Affected

TTIPM staff and Berkeley Lab software developers, including full- and part-time employees and those with faculty appointments and affiliates

C. Exceptions

Berkeley Lab's software-disclosure requirement does not apply to a bug fix, which for this policy is defined as a change to existing software that:

Comprises less than 5% of the existing software
Does not add any new functionality to the existing software and
Does not improve the performance of the existing software in a novel way

D. Policy Statement

Berkeley Lab software developers must report software to TTIPM before it can be distributed to anyone outside Berkeley Lab, the University of California, or DOE. This includes software shared with other academic institutions and software given away for free.
Software that must be reported includes both software developed at Berkeley Lab and derivative works of software obtained from third parties (other than bug fixes).
To facilitate distribution of Berkeley Lab software, avoid inserting code written outside Berkeley Lab, such as freeware, open-source code, shareware, and especially commercial packages. Using non-Berkeley Lab code in Laboratory software without written permission to do so may make it difficult or impossible to distribute your software outside Berkeley Lab.
If a project requires third-party software, Berkeley Lab software developers must document where the code was obtained and what legal terms apply to its use, i.e., download and keep a copy of the software license. Berkeley Lab software developers must also keep records of the individuals who contributed work on the code and the funding source that supported its development.
After disclosing to TTIPM, the Berkeley Lab software developer and TTIPM staff will discuss the software, and if the software will be distributed to third parties, TTIPM will seek requisite approvals from DOE and will provide the text of the appropriate license agreement and accompanying instructions to the software developer (for some types of no-cost licenses) or will directly provide licenses to interested external users of the software.
The Berkeley Lab software developer must track the number of licenses/downloads of software arising from a Web site managed by the developer and report that number annually to TTIPM upon request, for TTIPM's reporting to DOE.
TTIPM directly handles all licensing transactions in which Berkeley Lab is receiving compensation for the license, and will distribute a share of net licensing income to Berkeley Lab software developers annually.

E. Roles and Responsibilities

Role	Responsibility
Berkeley Lab Software Developer	Sends a written report of new software (i.e., a completed Software Disclosure and Abstract form) to TTIPM prior to distribution to third parties, and provides a copy of the software as requested by TTIPM Keeps records of (1) software licenses for third-party software incorporated into the Berkeley Lab software, (2) individuals who contributed work on the code, and (3) funding supporting the software development If authorized by TTIPM to distribute the software from the developer's Web site, tracks the number of annual licensed downloads
Berkeley Lab TTIPM	Notifies the DOE Patent Counsel of new software Reviews licenses for any incorporated third-party code, and assesses any other encumbrances on the software Obtains DOE approvals prior to distribution Deposits software with DOE's Energy Science and Technology Software Center (ESTSC) Selects or drafts appropriate software license agreement Provides instructions to the Berkeley Lab software developer for developer-distributed software Reports annually on software to DOE

F. Definitions/Acronyms

Term	Definition
Affiliates	Non-Laboratory employees engaged in on-site Laboratory activities. Affiliates are subject to training in safety and other subjects. They are also issued a Berkeley Lab identification badge. Affiliates may receive system accounts, research access to facilities, and a per diem allowance for housing and living expenses. Examples: Facility users, scientific collaborators, students
Bug Fix	For the purpose of this policy, a change to existing software that (1) comprises less than 5% of the existing software, (2) does not add any new functionality to the existing software, and (3) does not improve the performance of the existing software in a novel way
Developer	One who writes software code
Net Royalty or Licensing Income	As used in this policy, royalties received by Berkeley Lab after deducting (1) amounts payable to non-Berkeley Lab owners or licensors of the intellectual property; and (2) patent or other intellectual-property protection costs (including litigation), reserves for bad debt, and licensing costs
Policy	Statements or directives from the federal, state, or local government; the University of California; or Berkeley Lab senior management that set a course of action, define acceptable conduct, or implement governing principles.Example: Berkeley Lab Site Access
Software Disclosure	A description of the software that will be transferred. The Berkeley Lab Software Disclosure and Abstract form incorporates the DOE OSTI Software Disclosure form.
TTIPM	Technology Transfer and Intellectual Property Management

G. Recordkeeping Requirements

The Berkeley Lab software developer keeps records of (1) software licenses for third-party software incorporated into the Berkeley Lab software, (2) individuals who contributed work on the code, and (3) funding supporting the software development.
TTIPM keeps records of all software disclosures submitted to and software licensed through TTIPM.
If TTIPM authorizes the software developer to distribute software electronically, the developer must record the number of licensed software downloads annually.

H. Implementing Documents

Document number	Title	Type
10.04.007.001	Software Disclosure and Abstract Form	Form

I. Contact Information