Writer's Contracts

Here’s the June ’09 Transcontinental Contract that’s caused many Canadian writers to blackban the publisher.

For a detailed understanding of the many problems with this contract, check out the Bad Writing Contracts blog here:  http://badwritingcontracts.wordpress.com/the-contract-2/

AUTHOR MASTER AGREEMENT

[Note that this is a Master Agreement and is only required to be signed once to be applicable to each Work provided by you thereafter.]

You are being commissioned to produce original works (each, a “Work) for use in association with a Brand owned or operated by the Publisher. A “Brand” as used herein refers to the brand under which your Work will first be published and also to its associated brand(s) language counterpart(s), in any form or medium.

You retain the copyright ownership of each Work that you provide subject only to the rights granted to the Publisher below.

RIGHTS GRANTED

1. In consideration of the basic fee agreed upon at the time each Work is commissioned and subject to Section 3 (Additional Fees) where applicable, you grant to the Publisher the following rights in association with a Brand:

1.1 the right to first publication of the Work and subsequent ongoing non-exclusive right to publish the Work;

1.2 the ongoing non-exclusive right to do in respect of the Work any other act that is subject to copyright protection under the Canadian Copyright Act (including, without limitation, the right to produce and reproduce, translate, develop ancillary products, perform in public, adapt and communicate the Work, in any form or medium) as well as to authorize others to do so on behalf of or in association with the Publisher;

1.3 the ongoing non-exclusive right to edit and otherwise reasonably modify the Work.

2. You acknowledge that all rights granted herein are applicable to all media (including, without limitation, all digital and electronic media now known or hereafter created) and also includes the Publisher’s ongoing non-exclusive right to archive the Work (including in digital databases and abstracting/indexing services) and to make the archived Work available to the public, either directly by the Publisher or through third parties.

ADDITIONAL FEES

3. In addition to the basic fee, the Publisher undertakes to pay you the following additional fees if the Work is used in the manner described hereinafter:

4. (Optional) Please check and initial if you agree to grant to the Publisher the ongoing non-exclusive right to use the Work as provided in Section 1 above under any other Brand owned or operated by the Publisher, that is different

than the initial Brand under which the Work was first published, provided that the Publisher undertakes to pay you 15 % of the basic fee as an additional fee should the Work be used in the aforementioned manner.

Initials

5. You acknowledge that no additional fee is payable

(i) when the Work is used for promotional purposes relating to the Publisher or Brand under which the Work is published; or

(ii) when the Work is published on a web portal which provides a single point of access to different Brands owned or operated by the Publisher (as, for example, www.mochasofa.com, the web portal of the Publisher’s consumer publications).

* “Publisher” as used herein means Transcontinental Media G.P., its subsidiaries and affiliated companies as well as their successors and

assigns.

** For Québec Authors: This Agreement has been drafted in English at our express request. Cette convention a été rédigée en anglais à notre demande expresse.

The Publisher’s accounting department will not process payment for your Work(s) unless your invoice is preceded by a signed Master Agreement. Should your invoice conflict with this Master Agreement, the terms of this Master Agreement will prevail.