Memery Crystal
2 Experts
1 Contributions by Memery Crystal Experts
PRACTICE NOTES
This Practice Note
This Practice Note explores the use of non-contractual mechanisms by software suppliers to halt or restrict the operation of on-premise software in business-to-business licences, the resulting legal considerations, and the real-world impact on drafting relevant software licences. It introduces a range of disabling tools:
Time bombs
Logic bombs
Back door/trap door
Fork locks
Remote control and switching off, or ‘deprovisioning’
Where a customer breaches licence terms, or fails to pay licence or support charges, the supplier can pursue legal action. Yet litigation brings expense and uncertainty, and may strain the customer–supplier relationship. As a result, a supplier may favour a more immediate, practical approach: deploying disabling devices to stop the software from running, triggered remotely or automatically by the supplier. For most developers, such features are straightforward to create and embed. Activating (or
TMT
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