Resolving co-ownership and dev costs for custom equipment rental software

Your partner is taking the easy way out. They're hiding behind the "open source" excuse to get a free ride on your 12k investment. If the company isn't officially covering the bill don't just hand over that custom code; keep the dev agreement under your own name and simply license it back to the business.

edit: typed from phone, sorry for typos.

Check the core software's license type. If it's AGPL and you run it over a network for users, you might have an obligation to open-source your modifications. But if it's MIT, BSD, or Apache, you can keep the add-on modules completely closed source and register them as proprietary assets owned by the company.

Talk to your accountant immediately and have that 12.000 sterlin recorded as a director's loan to the company. That way as the company turns a profit, you get paid back first. And sign a quick two-line agreement stating that you retain the IP rights to the modules until the debt is fully settled.

To avoid future disputes, settle these three points: 1) Keep custom-developed modules in a separate repository from the open-source core. 2) Record the 12.000 sterlin expense in the official books as a shareholder loan. 3) Put it in the contract that in the event of a split, the customer database stays exclusively with the active operating company.

We went through a similar ownership dispute in our car rental business. When things came to a split the company was completely paralyzed for three months fighting over "who owns the software." You can always rewrite the code somehow but if you lose customer records and booking history the business collapses. Get it sorted out now.

Edit: asked below, I wrote the answer in the second message.

people think open source means nobody owns anything but the real value is in the modules that plug that code into your workflow. make sure you get an invoice for the out-of-pocket money and book it to the company or you won't have a leg to stand on if you ever split up.

Did you have your partner's written approval or an email confirmation when spending that 12.000 sterlin? If you did it entirely on your own initiative, your partner could refuse to acknowledge the debt, arguing, "I never approved this, it doesn't bind the business."

The exact same thing happened to us running an event equipment rental business in London. My partner wrote the code and I brought in the clients. When we split we ended up in court over code ownership and paid a whopping 8.000 sterlin in legal fees. Looking back, I really wish we had just drawn up a two-page notarized agreement right at the start.

We need to take it step by step. Start with a small trial; don't commit to everything at once.

If I were you, I'd go this route.

This is exactly what we experienced. The real issue isn't the number, but what it's based on.

If you're offering equity instead of salary, also state what you're offering in return. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Thanks a lot I'll try it today. Partnership isn't a decision to make without working together first.

Of course, it varies if your situation is different.

I'm a small business, let me explain from my side. If you don't write this down from the start, it leads to arguments later.

If you have questions, write them; I'll answer as best I can.

Let me speak from the other side; I'm on the supplier side. I mean valuation methods for exits must be defined by formula; "market value" isn't enough.

Of course it varies if your situation is different.

Here's how it went for us. When making a decision, first look at what data you have on hand.

Everyone rushing into co-ownership of software gets stuck at the same point. If you have questions, write them; I'll answer as best I can.

I agree.

to get into the details: Just because everyone does it doesn't mean it's right.

proveen by experience.

Timely topic.

Thanks a lot, I'll try it today.