A licensing agreement is usually the biggest document you'll sign for a business that isn't a mortgage. It sets out what you get, what you owe, and how long you're tied in for. Before you put your name to one, you need a clear list of questions to ask a licensor, and you need the answers in writing, not just a friendly chat on a phone call.
This matters more with licensing than with most purchases, because you're not buying a thing. You're buying a relationship that's supposed to run for years, built on a brand, a system, and games or products you'll be selling under someone else's name. If the relationship is wrong, the contract is what you're left holding.
What questions should you ask a licensor before signing?
At minimum, ask what the fee actually covers, who owns your territory and for how long, what training and support you get after launch, what happens if the licensor changes the product, how you get out of the agreement if it stops working, and what proof exists that other licensees are actually making money. Everything else is detail. Those six questions cover most of the ways a licensing deal can go wrong.
Go through each one properly before you sign anything, and ask the licensor to confirm the answers in the contract itself, not in an email that gets forgotten once you've signed.
What exactly does the licence fee cover?
Licence fees vary enormously in what they include. Some cover nothing more than the right to use a name and logo. Others include a full package: games, a booking system, training, marketing materials, and ongoing support.
Ask for an itemised list. If a licensor can't tell you exactly what's included for the fee you're paying, that's worth noting before you sign, not after. Compare what's on offer against what you'd need to build yourself, and be honest about how much that would actually cost in time as well as money.
Who owns the territory, and for how long?
Territory is where most licensing disputes start. Find out exactly what area you're being given exclusive rights to, whether that exclusivity is guaranteed in writing, and what stops the licensor selling the patch next door to someone else six months later.
Also check what happens at renewal. Some agreements let the licensor redraw territory boundaries when the contract comes up for renewal, which can quietly shrink a territory that took years to build. Ask how renewal works before you're the one asking after the fact.
What training and support come with the licence?
Training that happens once, in the first month, isn't support. Ask what ongoing help looks like: whether there's a person you can call, how quickly they respond, and whether support is included in the fee or charged separately as you go.
It's also worth asking what happens when something goes wrong on the ground, at an actual event, on a Saturday night. If the licensor's answer is vague, assume you'll be solving that problem yourself.
What happens if the licensor changes the product?
A licence usually gives you the right to sell what the licensor is offering today. It doesn't automatically protect you if the games, the pricing structure, or the brand itself change further down the line.
Ask how often the product is updated, who decides what changes, and whether you get any say or advance notice. A licensor that treats licensees as partners will usually explain this without being asked twice.
How do you get out of the agreement if it doesn't work?
Read the exit clauses before you read anything else. Find out the minimum term, whether there's a notice period, what happens to any deposits or fees if you leave early, and whether you're free to walk away afterwards or tied by a non-compete that outlasts the agreement itself.
A licensor confident in what it offers won't need to lock you in with harsh exit terms to keep you. Long, punishing tie-ins are usually a sign the product has to be forced on people rather than chosen by them.
Should you speak to existing licensees before signing?
Yes, if the licensor will let you. A short conversation with someone already running the business tells you more than any brochure: how support actually responds, whether the numbers in the pitch matched what happened in practice, and what they'd do differently starting again. If a licensor won't put you in touch with anyone currently running the licence, ask why.
What proof is there that the model actually works?
Ask for specifics rather than a general assurance. How many licensees are currently running the business elsewhere? How long has the company been running events directly, rather than just licensing them? You can see how the public-facing side of the business operates through our public events by city before you decide whether it's something you'd want to run in your own area.
A licensor with nothing to show beyond a slide deck and a sign-up form is asking you to take a lot on trust.
None of this is about being suspicious for its own sake. It's about treating a licensing agreement like the multi-year commitment it is, and getting the answers on paper rather than assuming good faith will cover the gaps.
We get these questions from people looking at our own licensee program, and we'd rather answer them before someone signs than after. You can see how our private events are priced through our pricing and availability page, check general answers on our frequently asked questions page, browse the blog for more on how the games and licence work in practice, or get in touch directly through our contact page if your question isn't covered anywhere else. If the answers hold up, the licensee application is the next step.