Non-Disclosure Agreement

YouBuyLocal

newmug wrote: »

Well thank God for that.



Its YOU who are confused. There was no arguement. The OP asked about NDA's, and by the third post you dragged things off topic. Let me remind you of your very first sentence of the whole debate:



So to sum up, the OP specifically asked about NDA's, and with your first input you completely diverted the conversation away from what he wanted to know.

Then the issue of protecting names, domains etc. arose in the flow of conversation. It was an acceptable departure from topic because its a related issue. The consesus was that its common sense to protect these, especially seeing as it costs so little. Again however, you went against the grain and suggested that:



You were provided with TWO examples of businesses who failed to protect themselves legally in terms of ideas, methods, models and names, who are now being burned financially, yet you still persist with your economically-nonsense point of view that its not worth doing. There's a term for what you're doing there. Its frowned upon on Boards.




Why do you keep raising the issue of cost? The OP never said anything about being hard-up. He wants to sign agreements, commission web developers, he is prepared to spend money on his idea. He is simply looking for info on NDA's. Get your head around that. I have no idea what the last sentence regarding your tongue is about.



Again, off topic, primary school level stuff about costs. Do you actually know anything about NDA's or not?



Who are you to hijack someone elses thread? I will post here as long as I the thread is open, and as long as I can offer the OP some friendly, on-topic, assistance. You didnt legally protect the rights on who can post here.

Too much time on your hands

john2984

Thanks for all the responses on this. I've been away a lot since Christmas.

When i searched for this thread again i came across another two threads on the subject. They are short but the first one in particular has a similar theme to this and may help somebody else reading this with a similar issue:

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=76636722

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=58216194

What i was looking for is anybody has used one in the past and had any knowledge on what it is that makes them legally binding. I don't really think a solicitor is a necessary expense at this stage - i would imagine that would only come into play where a breachment of the agreement occurred.

Has anybody come across this crowd? They seem to be offering a comprehensive document for a small fee of €9 that can be edited to suit your needs. This is it: http://www.netlawman.ie/bizdoc/confidentiality-agreement.php

YouBuyLocal, i agree with the sentiments of a lot of what you're saying in terms of getting out and doing things rather than planning each step too much, but if somebody steals my idea and runs with it on their own the last thing i'll be saying is "good luck to them".

smemon wrote:

If you believe your idea will work and you're the only person who can make it work, that will come across in conversation.

If you're holding back too much info, that will come across too. Just be honest and talk to someone about the general concept but don't go in to too much detail until you've established they're (a) reputable and (b) interested.

True but i'd also like a bit of freedom to be able to discuss the merits of the idea and the different areas in which it could potentially branch off without being overly vague. Obviously elements of that will give away the uniqueness of the idea so it is a balancing act i suppose.

newmug wrote: »

I know. But thats the whole point of the thread: HOW can you legally protect the right to a name/idea/product if you want to?

I fully agree with the rest of your post, but there's no harm in giving your idea a fighting chance at the start if you can.

Exactly. Even if it were to create enough doubt to deter someone from taking the idea and running with it it would be worthwhile. If you do a good pitch and have no intention of protecting the idea, which is relevantly easy to copy for someone in that area, then they can start thinking of how to do it themselves. I don't think they could do as good a job as they wouldn't understand the essense of the purpose the business serves but that wouldn't stop them trying if they were that way inclined.

smemon wrote:

Nobody can build your idea by you telling them what it is in a few sentences. You need to remember that and be confident that this won't work without you and your input.

Completely agree.

irish_goat wrote: »

On a similar note, I'm assuming any of the Enterprise Ireland events/meetings involve a pretty decent non-disclosure agreement?

Not sure but would like an answer to this if anyone knows.

Chet Zar

OP,

Please, please do not get yourself tied up thinking that people are going to steal your idea. The chances of it being unique are extremely slim, the chances of someone dropping everything they are doing and going 'ya know what, I'm gonna do his idea!', are also extremely slim. It just doesn't work like that.

It's understandable when starting out, I was actually like that with an idea, saying to people - 'don't tell anyone what I told you'! And looking back it was misguided, and in fact NOT telling lots of people is actually worse! You need people to give you feedback, and you need to get lots of feedback - generally speaking. In fact, talking to others is bound to throw up stuff you hadn't even considered. It may even surface some elements that make you rethink, change or pivot the idea slightly. So it's really important to talk to people.

By all means get your NDAs signed - and what's more, any reputable web developer will mention it upfront as something you both sign from the outset. You can simply get one online and have them sign it - check out some business forums and the like.

But to focus on this as being of critical importance is just flawed thinking

Now, feel free to ask us for feedback on the idea itself, only if you want - and without revealing too much

YouBuyLocal

My thoughts exactly

I wouldn't go shouting it out to every Tom, Dick and Harry who you would have no dealings with but who might be in or around the sector, for example, but then if you slow down development of the idea for security reasons then that is not a wise trade off because 99% of the time the people you are worried might steal it are the people who can help you, and they are much more likely to help you than drop everything they are doing.

Ideas come and go - for smart people, if you only have one idea in you then God help you - its all about implementation.

Better to be burned once than to lose trust in your fellow man.

Chet Zar

YouBuyLocal wrote: »

My thoughts exactly

I wouldn't go shouting it out to every Tom, Dick and Harry who you would have no dealings with but who might be in or around the sector, for example, but then if you slow down development of the idea for security reasons then that is not a wise trade off because 99% of the time the people you are worried might steal it are the people who can help you, and they are much more likely to help you than drop everything they are doing.

Ideas come and go - for smart people, if you only have one idea in you then God help you - its all about implementation.

Better to be burned once than to lose trust in your fellow man.

Exactly. Ideas come and go and people who are entrepreneurial have a new one every week - it's the execution that counts, and whether there is a real demand and value attached to your idea.

OP, just remember that before you go out and secretly spend 5,000-10,000 quid or all your savings on a website or app, just remember that there could be someone out there that you are not talking to out of fear they might 'steal your idea' who, after a short conversation, could save you thousands and instead send you off in another, better direction with your idea. Or even help you come up with a new one that trumps it!