1. Invited Experts and Collaborators at the Consortium.

The Consortium benefits from the participation of external participants in Consortium activities. Such participants are invited, at the discretion of the Director, because of demonstrated expertise with a topic or external community relevant to a W3C activity. 

2. Participation as an Invited Expert or Collaborator.

The Participant hereby agrees to participate in the relevant coordination group, interest group, or working group. Participants receive access to Member only areas of the W3C site specific to the activity for which they were invited. Invited Experts have read access to the internal documentation, drafts, and notes of the working group. A Collaborator receives, in addition, edit access to specific areas necessary for fulfilling the duties of his or her position in the group.

3. Term of Participation.

The period of the Participant's participation in the Consortium shall last the duration of the activity as defined by the charter or W3C activity lead. Any party may end the relationship at their discretion. The relationship of the parties under this Agreement shall be that of a voluntary association. The Consortium is not a separate legal entity, and this Agreement does not create a partnership or joint venture. Neither MIT, nor ERCIM, nor KEIO nor the Participant can bind the other or create any relationship of principal or agent.

4. Confidentiality.

The proceedings of Member activities are W3C confidential. Capabilities are granted to individual Participants, not the organization with which they may be affiliated. Participants should limit communications relevant to the proceeding of Member activities to others bound by the member or participant agreements unless a part of their role is sharing selected information with the public or external communities.

5. Use of Names.

The Participant will not use the name of W3C, MIT, ERCIM or KEIO and W3C, MIT, ERCIM or KEIO will not use the name of the Participant in any form of publicity without prior permission. This is often determined by the policy of the Working Group with respect to contributions to a deliverable or press release attribution.

6. Intellectual Property Rights.

a. Rights of Publication.

MIT, ERCIM and KEIO and the Participant shall be free to use and publish any research results, ideas, algorithms, techniques and other information developed under the auspices of the Consortium during the term of this Agreement except that intellectual property described in (b) and (c) below shall be subject to the licenses specified therein.

b. Ownership of Copyrights and Patents.

The Participant agrees that all right, title and interest in and to any and all software and documentation created or developed, and in and to all patentable inventions conceived or first reduced to practice, by the Director, MIT staff or industrially-employed visitors when working at MIT for the Consortium shall vest in MIT. To the extent necessary, Participant agrees to execute such assignment documents as may be required to vest title in MIT, at no expense to the Participant.

The Participant agrees that all right, title and interest in and to any and all software and documentation created or developed, and in and to all patentable inventions conceived or first reduced to practice, by the Deputy Director, ERCIM staff or industrially-employed visitors when working at ERCIM for the Consortium shall vest in ERCIM. To the extent necessary, Participant agrees to execute such assignment documents as may be required to vest title in ERCIM, at no expense to the Participant.

The Participant agrees that all right, title and interest in and to any and all software and documentation created or developed, and in and to all patentable inventions conceived or first reduced to practice, by the Deputy Director, KEIO staff or industrially-employed visitors when working at KEIO for the Consortium shall vest in KEIO. To the extent necessary, Participant agrees to execute such assignment documents as may be required to vest title in KEIO, at no expense to the Participant.

Except as provided above, patentable inventions and copyrighted materials developed jointly by MIT, ERCIM and KEIO and the Participant pursuing Consortium activities, shall be jointly owned. Each joint owner shall be entitled to exercise all rights of ownership as provided by law without, however, an obligation of accounting from one to the other. Participant understands that MIT, ERCIM and KEIO will make all such jointly owned inventions and copyrights available to the general public for unrestricted use.

c. Licenses.

MIT, ERCIM and KEIO agree to grant and hereby grant to Participant a non-exclusive royalty-free, irrevocable, right and license to use, reproduce, modify, translate, distribute, publicly display and publicly perform all computer software and documentation described in Section 6(b) throughout the world, subject to the notices with respect to copyright, trademarks, and disclaimer of liability which shall appear on all copies of the software and documentation provided to the Participant by MIT, ERCIM or KEIO and which must be reproduced on each copy reproduced or distributed by the Participant.

It is the intention of MIT, ERCIM and KEIO to grant to Participants of the general public as well as to Participant license rights as described above, including rights to use MIT, ERCIM and KEIO trademarks, if any, relating to W3 products and services provided they conform to W3 specifications established by MIT, ERCIM and KEIO.