Losing Rights to Business Assets Through the use

The growth of the Internet and its uses has enabled business to operate in new and profound ways. Businesses can now use online services that allow them to sit across the conference table from people around the world (Skype) or have multiple people work on a spreadsheet at the same time (Google Docs).

Capabilities aside, one of the greatest benefits about these online services is the price point. Many great online services are free or very cheap to use. However the savings received as a user of an online service forces the business behind the service to seek alternate means of monetizing it.

The most popular way to monetize an online service is through effective advertising to its users. This process generally involves a degree of information sharing to the advertiser. If that information happens to be internal documents, potentially filled with ideas and trade secrets, so be it.

In fact, in the fall of last year there was a brief scare that Google, by way of their user agreement, was claiming the right to reproduce and distribute the documents created with Google Docs. This however turned out to be false - it only applies to documents specified as 'public' (see article resources for more information).

Still there is a lesson to be learned. Businesses must exercise great caution when using online services, especially when it comes to free ones. Be sure to thoroughly read all user agreements before agreeing or using a service. It would seem that this is common sense, but the truth is that many people and businesses use things like online email services and document sharing services without giving it a second thought.

If ever unsure about what a section of a user agreement implies, have a lawyer look at it or ask for clarification from the service provider. Historically speaking online agreements have been proven enforceable; be sure not to agree to something that may be regretted down the road.

All in all online services can be a great asset to business as long as care is taken in what services are chosen and the types of information shared.