Your SLA does not replace your warranty
This week’s musings on tech contracts… An article I read recently says, “Traditional warranties that cover product defects for a set time are giving way to SLAs [service level agreements], which focus on service availability and performance.” I’ve heard similar arguments elsewhere, in most cases citing the rise of software-as-a-service (SaaS) as the driver behind […]
How Long Should a Warranty Last?
Students and trainees often ask me how long a warranty of function should last. And contract negotiators regularly debate it. Someone should do a thorough survey, but in the absence of good data, I’ll offer my experience. Duration I don’t often see software warranties shorter than ninety days. Thirty days seems to be the bottom. […]
New Clause Library!
We’re excited to announce that we’ve posted a complete new library of clauses here at TechContracts.com. ABA Publishing is about to release the 3rd edition of my book, The Tech Contracts Handbook, and the new clauses match those in the new edition. (The prior clause library matched the 2nd edition.) The new clauses included terms […]
SLA terms may be more negotiable than you think
Cloud services providers often say they can’t negotiate their SLAs. All customers get the same SLA, so customizing terms for one customer would require changing procedures used for everyone. That’s often true, but customers should test the limits of SLA flexibility. Not all SLA revisions require that the provider change its procedures. Terms addressing “legal” […]