Agreeing who owns creative files and campaign accounts

Agree ownership before an agency creates campaign work or opens accounts. In Australia, copyright, editable files and platform accounts can have different owners, so agree each separately in writing.

Separate assets by type

Under the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth), copyright in literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works generally belongs to the author. For work created as part of an employee’s job, the employer generally owns copyright; specific exceptions also apply to commissioned works, including some photographs, portraits, engravings, sound recordings and films.

For other commissioned work, the author generally owns copyright, and paying for the work does not automatically transfer it. Identify who actually creates each item, including agency staff, freelancers and subcontractors, and confirm the agency can provide the rights the client needs.

An assignment transfers copyright; a licence lets someone use the work while the copyright owner retains it. State which applies and, for a licence, define the permitted uses and any limits on duration or geographical area.

A drafting starting point is: “The creator assigns copyright in [listed deliverables] to [client].” If the creator retains copyright, specify a licence instead: “The creator retains copyright and grants the client a [non-exclusive] licence to [uses] for [period and territory].”

State whether an assignment or licence takes effect only after payment. Do not rely on a payment record or a short description of the work as a substitute for written terms about copyright.

Treat delivery of files separately from copyright ownership: copyright is separate from the physical or digital copy, and source files should be dealt with expressly. List existing client materials, new creative work, editable files, templates, fonts, stock media, data and platform accounts.

For each item, record who owns it, what use is permitted, any third-party licence limits and whether rights transfer. Identify reusable agency tools and third-party images or other assets so a client-owned final design is not mistaken for ownership of every element within it.

Moral rights belong to individual creators and are separate from copyright ownership; they cannot be sold or assigned. Agree attribution and intended changes, and obtain informed consent for specific handling where needed.

Key Legal Points from Australian Sources on IP Ownership

Test the exit path

Copyright ownership does not decide who controls an advertising or social account. Account ownership depends on the platform’s terms and whose name is on the account, so check those terms before choosing who will hold it.

For each Instagram account, Meta ad account or Google Ads account, record the account holder’s name, billing owner and administrators. Also identify pixels or measurement assets and agree who can export data and reports.

Choose whether the client will hold and control the account while the agency receives delegated access, or whether the agency will use its own account. Agree the choice before launch because it affects continuity, historical reporting and the ability to change provider.

Set out the handover steps in the agreement: which files and formats, folder structure, campaign settings and documentation the agency will deliver; who will change account access; and what audience data may lawfully be transferred. A new authorised team should be able to operate the accounts without a personal login.

Test that the client can access the agreed files and accounts and obtain the records needed for audit. After handover, remove agency access while preserving those records.

For valuable creative work or complex licences, have an adviser review the written assignment or licence, third-party asset limits, moral-rights arrangements and source-file delivery terms.