SaaS agreement

Do you offer your clients Software-as-a-Service? Combine all your legal agreements into one SaaS agreement.

Different terms are used for this type of agreement. In addition to a SaaS agreement, this agreement is also written in full as a Software-as-a-Service agreement or as a Cloud Agreement or Cloud Service Agreement. The most important feature is that the user of the software no longer has to install the software himself on his own computers or servers.

The software runs on the provider’s computer(s). The software is offered as a service via the Internet. SaaS can therefore be described as software that is offered as a service online or via another network. The Provider is responsible for updating, maintaining and upkeeping both the software and the hardware on which the software runs. The user usually pays a (periodic) fee for the online services and then receives a licence to use the software. From a legal point of view, it has not yet been fully established whether there is a shared rental agreement or assignment agreement. Because an online service is offered in the form of software, this looks more like an assignment agreement than a rental agreement. Rent is the enjoyment of a good as if it were your property. When using software in an online environment, it is very clear that it is not or will not be your property.

Service Level Agreement (SLA) and SaaS Agreement

Features of the SaaS agreement include the use of the software, its availability, maintenance, updates, ownership, periodic payment and a multitude of other clauses. A separate or integrated Service Level Agreement (SLA) is often concluded with the SaaS agreement. This includes matters such as the availability of the service, the agreed quality level, incident management, response and resolution times, maintenance schedule and helpdesk facilities. Other important components that are usually part of the agreement are security and privacy standards and requirements, a disaster recovery plan, and exit process.