An OpenAd idea is a fresh, unpublished, unbranded advertising, marketing or design idea.
OpenAd ideas can be entered in the form of sketches, audio visual files or more finished work, but authors must own any visual or audio files submitted, or have the relevant permission to use them. Corbis allows photostock use under the terms of our agreement with them. More on the Corbis agreement
Ideas may consist of a single element or a combination of elements. These elements include (but are not limited to) TV and radio ad scripts, press and poster layouts, web design, direct marketing, industrial design and ideas for mobile phone content. Ideas are entered into one of the 14 product/service categories in The Gallery, or directly to any of the currently open pitches.
Level of execution
First and foremost, buyers should judge the quality of the ideas and their potential for development into an eye-catching ad or piece of design, or an integrated campaign using several elements. Some authors may create work that could almost run straight off the page; others may create a short film clip, or choose to deliver their idea in the form of scamps. All ideas pass through a process of technical evaluation which asks authors to state clearly that they own the rights to all the elements/images being made available for sale, or have the relevant permission to use images that could eventually be bought separately. The OpenAd.net evaluation process also ensures that ideas submitted to The Gallery or in response to a pitch meet a certain level of quality. Before any idea is displayed in the gallery or passed to a pitch holder, it is checked for clarity of message and functionality. Ideas will be returned to the author for revision if any part of the idea is unclear or is thought to need further work.
The Gallery
For ideas submitted to The Gallery, it is up to the author to decide which and how many elements to include in the idea, how they are to be combined and the level of their execution. The Gallery contains ideas that are free of any branding; buyers that browse the gallery will be looking for ideas that could be adapted to the requirements of their brand. This means that they might be interested in a single image or concept contained within the unbranded idea, which they will further develop and adapt after they have licensed it. Or they might be interested in the whole idea, all its elements, as presented by the author in the gallery; taken together, the elements included by the author might go on to serve as a blueprint for an advertising or marketing campaign that draws on all the elements (for example, print, radio, web design, packaging and direct marketing) submitted by the author.
OpenPitch
For ideas submitted in response to a pitch, authors must read the brief carefully to establish the pitch holder's precise requirements. Most briefs will define which elements the pitch holder would like included in the idea; obviously, a pitch holder looking for ideas for an SMS viral campaign will not be interested in receiving print ads or web design ideas. The brief might also include a specification of the required level of execution of any ideas submitted.
Further production of ideas
When an idea is licensed, OpenAd is not involved in any further production. It is entirely up to the buyer to decide whether it is to be produced by the buyer or in collaboration with the author.
However, both buyers and sellers must be aware of the following in relation to the licensing and further production of OpenAd ideas.
When a buyer licenses an idea from OpenAd.net, they are licensing only the concept – that is, the author's presentation and combination of the elements of the idea – rather than the elements themselves. Those elements (photography, music, illustrations, layout, etc) must be licensed separately by the buyer and are not covered by the licence fee paid by the buyer to the author.
Here are two examples to illustrate this:
1. An author uses a photograph from the Corbis photostock library (which they are entitled to do free of charge under OpenAd.net's agreement with Corbis) as part of a print ad idea, and a buyer decides to license and produce that idea. The buyer must purchase that photograph from Corbis before any further production using that photograph can take place.
2. An author owns the copyright to a piece of music used in a radio ad idea (i.e. he composed it himself, or purchased it) that is licensed by a buyer. The licence fee paid by the buyer does not include any further licence fee for that piece of music; this must be negotiated separately. As buyers and creatives are aware, music copyright is a particularly complex area of law. No music that is not fully owned by an author may form part of any idea submitted to OpenAd.net. Authors may, of course, suggest a piece of music to accompany their idea, but they may not upload the music itself. If the buyer decides to follow the author's suggestion, they will have to license the music in question separately.
If you have any questions regarding this, please contact legal@openad.net
