5. How can you make the most of your know-how?

Despite the absence of private rights, know-how is transmissible. It can therefore be the subject of contracts for communication to third parties (commonly known as know-how licenses).

The communication of know-how may be the main, or even the sole, object of the contract. In a franchise agreement, for example, the provision of know-how from the franchisee to the franchisor is the central element of the contract.

More often than not, however, it will be an accessory to a contract with a different main purpose, such as a subcontracting agreement, a distribution contract, or a contract for the exploitation of a creation or innovation protected by an intellectual property right, such as a software or patent license. In the latter case, the aim will usually be to disclose to the co-contractor the optimum way of implementing the patent and the...