Commissioning Terms
Unless agreed otherwise in writing, the following terms apply to contributors engaged by the Publisher on an irregular basis as freelance contributors (excluding casuals which are governed by different terms) to the Publisher’s print and digital products (Contributor).
These terms are in addition to the terms which the Contributor receives from the Publisher when work is commissioned and are not a contract of employment.
1. Commissioning
The Publisher may (but is not obliged to) commission the Contributor to undertake work on its behalf. The scope and nature of each commission shall be agreed between the commissioning editor and the Contributor.
2. Production of material
Having accepted a commission, the Contributor shall produce original work of a professional standard for an agreed fee. By submitting this material to the Publisher, the Contributor is accepting these commissioning terms.
3. Licence and rates
3.1 The Contributor is the copyright owner of the Commissioned Content.
3.2 In consideration for the fee, the Contributor grants the Publisher the following worldwide, irrevocable and sub-licensable rights:
- a) the right to reproduce the Commissioned Content in its Publications; and
- b) the worldwide right in perpetuity to use, copy, reproduce, store, publish, print, adapt, save and archive the Commissioned Content in all its Publications, in archive and storage products, via content aggregators, digital and print archives, clipping services, and the NLA
Media Access (formerly the Newspaper Licensing Agency) on any and across all platforms in any medium, and to allow customers and subscribers to any of these products to do the same and includes multiple usage when published in the context of its original use on the same day.
3.2 The Contributor should contact the Managing Editor’s office for current rates for usage.
For the Sun Publications, the Publisher pays different rates for ‘live’ images i.e. pictures which were taken at an event and submitted to and used by the Publisher within 3 days of the event and standard ‘stock’ images i.e. images which were taken at an event and submitted to and then used by the Publisher after 3 days of the event. A single fee is payable for the use of the Commissioned Content irrespective if the article is published in more than one of the Publisher’s Sun Publications and irrespective if the Commissioned Content is used more than once in the same article.
4. Ideas
Any ideas that are submitted by the Contributor may be developed by the Publisher independently.
5. The law that governs a Contributor’s commission
These commissioning terms and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with them (including non-contractual disputes or claims) shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales and will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.
Other information
In these commissioning terms the following words and expressions will have the following meanings:
“Publications” means the Publisher’s titles and products in all forms including digital and print clipping services (including the NLA Media Access service, formerly the Newspaper Licensing Agency), articles, derivative versions and branded and unbranded news services (whether known now or created in the future) in any media and on any and all platforms and/or any magazine or supplement published for the Publisher’s titles from time to time.
“The Publisher” means News UK & Ireland Limited (News UK) and News Group
Newspapers Limited (NGN) whose registered office is at 1 London Bridge Street, London SE1 9GF, and any subsidiary or associated company from time to time of, NGN or their holding company.
“Commissioned Content” includes any text, files, images, photos, graphics, video, sounds, musical works, or any other materials that the Publisher commissions from a Contributor.