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Collaboration

Any arrangement under which DSTO funds, or contributes to, the development of IP by other organisations (including their employees) are to be covered by contractual or statutory provisions. These arrangements may take the form of contracts, consultancies, research agreements, collaborative agreements, staff placements and industry alliances.

All such arrangements incorporate conditions that define the ownership and control the disclosure of any intellectual property that is developed under the particular arrangement.  (Such IP is generally referred to as foreground IP.) Where either party brings its existing IP into such an arrangement (generally referred to as background IP), use of that IP by the other party must also be addressed in the arrangement.

In order to undertake its research role, DSTO generally requires unfettered access to IP in which it has an interest. Accordingly, with some exceptions (e.g. Cooperative Research Centre Agreements), arrangements entered into with other parties will normally provide for Defence ownership of the IP that it pays to have developed (the foreground IP). This will usually include a royalty free, irrevocable licence to use, or have used, for Defence purposes any necessary background IP brought into the arrangement by the other party. 

Any variation from this position would require DSTO to have strong evidence of it being in the best interests of Defence to adopt an alternative proposal.

DSTO promotes the transfer of technology to industry though commercial agreements and licensing. DSTO commercial agreements address access to the participants’ Background IP, access to and ownership of developed (ie Foreground) IP, exploitation arrangements for developed IP, and publication rights. From time to time, Defence will give industry the opportunity to license Defence-owned IP developed through DSTO’s research programs

For further information on Defence’s IP policies, see  Defence Intellectual Property Policy 2003 at http://www.defence.gov.au/dmo/gc/ip/main.cfm