Intellectual Property
VectorBuilder is a contract manufacturer that creates custom DNA vectors as specified by its customers. The manufacturing of such vectors does not imply that VectorBuilder own any intellectual property rights to the vectors or can transfer said rights to its customers. Instead, we consider that the customers own the designs and all the intellectual property rights associated with their custom-built vectors, except when the vectors contain specific intellectual properties owned by VectorBuilder as described below.
Vectors containing any customer-specified sequences not available as standard components on VectorBuilder’s online vector design platform will not be shared with any third party unless instructed by the customer. Vectors designed on VectorBuilder’s online platform and consisting entirely of standard components available on the platform are considered as belonging to VectorBuilder’s design repertoire and may be made available to any customer needing such designs (e.g. a vector designed with one of VectorBuilder’s backbones containing one of VectorBuilder’s popular promoters driving a RefSeq gene). VectorBuilder may collect, analyze, and publish statistical properties of the vectors in its custody such as categories of vectors encountered (e.g. percentage of lentiviral vectors among all the vectors created), error rates in vector sequences, feedback on customer satisfaction, etc. Such information will be sanitized to completely remove any identifying information and proprietary properties of individual vectors and the customers they belong.
Any intellectual property such as data, discoveries and inventions generated by the customer utilizing vectors, viruses or other reagents provided by VectorBuilder belong entirely to the customer unless stipulated differently in the service agreement. All customer information such as customer identity, experimental design and order history is kept strictly confidential.
Some vector components may involve third-party intellectual property. VectorBuilder may provide publicly available sequence information of such components to its users solely as a reference for the users' convenience. Utilization of such components in custom-built vectors are done solely at the customers' discretion and liability. By purchasing vectors containing such components from VectorBuilder, the customers acknowledge that they have obtained all the necessary intellectual property licenses including the rights to be able to contract VectorBuilder to manufacture the vectors.
VectorBuilder owns the intellectual properties relating to certain proprietary vector systems and components, certain proprietary reagents, and certain manufacturing methodologies, including but not limited to the miniVec system, the pBACYAC system, novel promoter sequences, novel AAV capsids, codon-optimized gene sequences, proprietary virus packaging plasmids, and a number of engineered cell lines. Their use may be subject to restrictions and may require separate licenses from VectorBuilder.
The Tet inducible system is off-patent except for Tet3G. VectorBuilder has a license from TET Systems to create vectors containing the patented Tet3G sequences. Academic research institutions are granted an automatic license with the purchase of such vectors for internal academic research. Commercial users or academic users sponsored by for-profit organizations need a license from TET Systems in order to use such vectors.