2-14 Clarify Data Rights and Intellectual Property Issues

Data rights are the rights the Postal Service obtains for technical data or computer software that suppliers deliver after completion of a project. Data are recorded information, regardless of form or the medium on which they are recorded. Data in this regard include technical data and computer software, but do not include information incidental to contract management, such as financial, administrative, cost, pricing, or management information.

Intellectual property is the ownership of ideas and control over the tangible or virtual representation of those ideas. It is a product of the intellect that has commercial value, including copyrighted property (such as computer software) and ideational property (such as patents, business methods, and industrial processes). Data rights are intellectual property.