Question: Our company is a technology enterprise currently intending to provide funding and assign experts as mentors for student startup projects at several universities. We are highly concerned about protecting intellectual property (IP) rights for the technological products created, as well as the mechanism for sharing commercial benefits in the future. Are there any specific current legal regulations or guidelines from educational management agencies on this issue to ensure a secure partnership for businesses?
Answer:
Hello, according to the Implementation Plan of the Program “Supporting Students to Start a Business in the 2026 – 2035 Period” of the Education sector (issued with Decision 1112/QD-BGDDT), cooperation between enterprises, investors, and universities is specially encouraged by the state with clear mechanisms to protect rights. Specifically:
- Mechanism for managing Intellectual Property (IP) rights and benefit-sharing
The Ministry of Education and Training requires educational institutions to guide the implementation of regulations on establishing, managing, and sharing intellectual property rights, and sharing benefits for research products and startup projects of teachers and learners. This creates a legal framework for businesses to negotiate IP ownership ratios and profits commensurate with the capital and mentoring efforts invested.
Legal basis: Point c, Clause 1, Part II of the Plan (Issued with Decision 1112/QD-BGDDT).
- Encouraging the establishment of on-campus enterprises (Spin-off) and testing mechanisms (Sandbox)
The law permits and provides guidance on the implementation of a controlled testing mechanism (sandbox) for startup enterprises and science and technology enterprises (startup, spin-off) directly within educational institutions. Your company may directly contribute capital to establish these spin-off enterprises alongside the school and students to facilitate the commercialization of products.
Legal basis: point b, clause 1, Part II of the Plan (Promulgated together with Decision 1112/QĐ-BGDĐT).
=> Our advice: Notwithstanding the existence of such policy, to avoid subsequent disputes regarding IP and capital, prior to injecting capital or providing platform technology to students, the company should proactively execute a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) and a tripartite Investment Cooperation Agreement (Enterprise – School – Student group). Wherein, the owner of the patent/copyright, the shareholding ratio upon the establishment of the startup company, and the right to commercial exploitation of the product shall be clearly stipulated.
If your business requires legal advice on intellectual property and benefit-sharing arrangements, please contact SB Law for detailed guidance from our legal experts.
