Freelance contributions
Helpful information for contributors providing work to The Independent or Independent on Sunday and their associated magazines, plus special guidelines for contributors to The Independent Traveller
Published: 01 January 2005
Independent Newspapers' terms of business for freelance writers
The Independent and the Independent on Sunday are happy to publish work produced by freelance writers, and their work is showcased in the titles daily and appreciated worldwide by our readers. Some contributors, including readers whose letters and reviews are published, don't receive a fee, but do get the opportunity to have their work published in a national newspaper.
It is very important for both parties that there is a clear understanding early on over what rights in the material are owned by which party. As is the case with other newspapers, we need to have certain rights to allow us to do things with all the material in our titles.
One example is that since the early days of the internet we have put the paper online, on our own group's websites and those of other third party hosts. This gives our material much greater exposure and ensures that the quality writing which we publish in The Independent and the Independent on Sunday is widely available to interested readers in a variety of archives and sites on the net.
We also license photocopying, and feed the contents of the paper to a range of associated papers and other outlets.
Writers will note that apart from our own right of first publication, which is exclusive, all INM's other rights are non-exclusive which means that writers can also freely exploit the works themselves in these marketplaces.
Accordingly, freelance writers should be aware that the Terms set out below are the terms of business that will apply to all material you may provide to us, however supplied - commissioned, sent on spec or whatever.
There can be no variation of these Terms. The only exception to this rule would be in the event that a Director of INM has expressly varied the Terms by a prior agreement in writing. If any writer is not happy with the Terms then they should not offer us any material, nor accept any commission from us.
TERMS
1.The important point for you is that you retain copyright in the material.
2.For its part, INM has the following rights over the material:-
2.1 *the exclusive, worldwide right to first publication in newspapers/magazines;
2.2 *the non-exclusive right to publish, syndicate, distribute and exploit the material in all present and future media and formats, including print, electronic, online and others. If your material is syndicated by us to an end user customer as an individual piece of work in print ("spot sale") you will receive 50% of the net revenue attributable to that sale;
2.3 *the non-exclusive right to include the material on any website and in any database, archive or library on- or off-line or in any other present or future media; and
2.4 *non-exclusive reprographic rights
3. All the rights detailed above may be exercised by INM or by others to whom we have licensed these rights. You will note that the rights we get under points 2-4 are non-exclusive so you are also free to exercise these rights, but the INM syndication department is set up to handle all enquiries for spot sales in print so we ask you to pass on to them any such enquiries that may be directed to you.
INM's continuing ability to commission material from freelance writers is dependent on us holding the necessary rights. Therefore any material a freelance writer submits to us is deemed to have been supplied in full knowledge and acceptance of these Terms.
Revised 4 December 2006
