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Deal economics
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AI disruption and software valuations in 2026: does proprietary data help?
AI disruption and software valuations in 2026: what acquirers question, which data evidence supports value and how to license without losing your moat.
Appraised value vs licensing value: why the numbers differ
Data appraisal vs licensing value: why an appraiser's figure and a buyer's license fee rarely match, and which number to use for which finance decision.
Assignment and change of control: what happens to a data license when you sell
Change of control data license terms decide whether fees, rights and deletion duties follow you in a sale. See how stock, asset and merger deals differ.
Can a dissolved company still license its data?
A dissolved company can often still license its data while winding up. Learn who can sign, which deals fit winding up and where the proceeds must go first.
Can directors be personally liable for a data licensing decision?
Director personal liability for a data licensing decision: how the business judgment rule protects an informed board process, and which records to keep.
Can you put company data on the balance sheet?
Can company data go on the balance sheet? Why internally generated data stays off, when acquired data is capitalized, and what you can disclose instead.
Contract red flags in a data license offer
Data license red flags to catch in a first offer: unlimited derivatives, perpetual retention, uncapped indemnity and payment terms that shift risk to you.
Cost of keeping legacy systems for record retention: a CFO view
Legacy system retention cost hides in licenses, hosting, staff and risk. A CFO table for keeping, archiving or licensing old helpdesk, CRM and ERP records.
Data license term sheet: what to include and what is binding
A data license term sheet template with every field annotated: what to write, what stays non-binding and which clauses should bind both sides from signing.
Data licensing and QSBS: does royalty income risk Section 1202 status?
QSBS royalty income questions for software founders: where a data license sits under the Section 1202 active business test, and what to check before you sign.
Data licensing in a private equity value creation plan
Add data licensing to a value creation plan as one gated line item: a template covering the data screen, rights, licensing and approvals across the hold.
Data licensing proceeds in an assignment for the benefit of creditors
In an assignment for the benefit of creditors, data license fees follow a set order. See how liens, assignee costs, priority claims and creditors share them.
Does your credit agreement allow a data license? Negative covenants explained
Credit agreement license covenants decide whether a data deal needs lender consent. Check these definitions and carve-outs before you sign a data license.
Generative AI insurance exclusions in 2026: what data suppliers should check
Generative AI exclusions are showing up on liability renewals. The policies, phrases and endorsements a data supplier should check before licensing records.
Go/no-go criteria for a data licensing opportunity
Data licensing go/no-go criteria for CEOs weighing a live opportunity: score rights, effort, brand risk, buyer interest and control, and know the hard stops.
Gross or net: recording data license revenue when an intermediary is involved
Principal vs agent in data licensing: why a supplier licensing its own records usually books revenue gross and expenses the intermediary fee.
How data licensing income flows to S corp owners' personal taxes
S corp licensing income passes through to owners. Follow a data license fee from the company's books to each K-1 and your personal return, with CPA questions.
How to calculate net proceeds from a data license
Calculate net proceeds from a data license with a line-by-line worksheet: gross fee, intermediary fee, preparation, legal, holdbacks, ongoing duties and tax.
How to negotiate liability caps in a data license
How to negotiate a liability cap in a data license: cap structures compared, the carve-outs AI buyers request, and the positions a supplier can hold.
Indemnities a data licensor should resist
Licensor indemnification checklist for data deals: which indemnities to accept, which to narrow and which to refuse, from model outputs to uncapped privacy.
Licensing data as a liquidity step before owner succession
Succession planning liquidity for trade business owners: how licensing job records compares with a sale or recap, what control you keep and what buyers see.
Licensing data vs using it for your own AI: an opportunity cost view
License data or use it internally? An opportunity cost view for CEOs: what each path consumes, when both fit together and which terms force a choice.
Perpetual vs term data licenses: economics and control
Perpetual vs term data license: compare fees, renewal income, retained rights and what happens to trained models when the term ends, with decision rules.
Preferred stock protective provisions: do investors need to consent?
Do preferred investors get a veto over your data license? The charter and investor-rights clauses to read, what triggers consent, and how to ask for it.
Publicity clauses: can the buyer announce your data deal?
A publicity clause decides whether an AI buyer can name you, show your logo or issue a press release. Clause options from full silence to a joint release.
Quality of earnings: how diligence treats data licensing revenue
How quality of earnings reviews treat data licensing revenue: recurring or one-time, upfront multi-year fees, costs, concentration and the records to keep.
Renegotiating a data license at renewal
Renegotiate a data license at renewal with evidence: what the buyer used, which scope changed, and which rights to re-check before you sign another term.
Revenue share on AI model revenue: how it works and how to verify it
How a revenue share data license on AI model revenue works, when attributable revenue can be measured, and the reporting and audit rights needed to verify it.
Right of first refusal on future datasets: what it costs the licensor
A right of first refusal in a data license can chill rival bids and expose your terms. Compare ROFR, ROFN and options, and see how to narrow or price each.
Sales tax on data licenses: which states tax data and digital products
Sales tax on data licenses depends on whether a state sees a digital product, a taxable service or an intangible. Six questions to settle each state.
SBA loans and data licensing: when you need lender consent
SBA loan lender consent: when licensing your job and customer records may need your lender's approval, which documents decide, and what to ask before signing.
Should you accept equity instead of cash for your data?
Equity for a data license: a decision rule for founders weighing cash, shares, warrants or a hybrid, plus the valuation, liquidity and tax questions to ask.
Should you agree to most-favored-nation pricing in a data license?
Should an AI buyer get most favored nation pricing? A CFO's rule for when to refuse, narrow or accept an MFN clause, with drafting limits and alternatives.
Should you share data licensing revenue with customers in the records?
Should you share data licensing revenue with customers in your records? Compare no share, credits, opt-out and opt-in options, and what contracts decide first.
What buyers check before a data license offer becomes binding
Data buyer due diligence explained: the source, rights, privacy, sample and signer checks AI buyers run before an offer binds, mapped to the Evidence Packet.
Withholding tax on data license payments from foreign buyers
Withholding tax on royalty payments from foreign buyers can shrink what a US licensor receives. Steps for treaty claims, forms, gross-up clauses and credits.