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System 7 Version 1.2 Due 30 June 2002
2002 is an exciting time for System 7 Universal Rights
Management. Four years of collaboration and development have culminated
in a completely original system that takes the functionality of Jaguar’s
industry dominating Release 5.5 to a dramatically higher level of
performance. While the technology used is a sparkling example of what is
currently possible today, the real value is in the day to day experience of
actual system users.
Jaguar’s Technical Team and the System 7 Design
Council spent eighteen months completely reengineering every
aspect of Release 5.5’s operation. A precise global vision was agreed upon
before a single programming keystroke was authorized. System 7’s clean new
design is built upon the hundreds of person/years of experience of this
exceptional team. The lessons learned from 16 years of supporting and
customizing Jaguar systems at more than 100 intellectual property
organizations were carefully incorporated into every specification decision.
The overriding goal of this visionary process was
power with simplicity of use. A single Universal Contract Database
replaces three equivalent databases in Release 5.5. The Custom Rights
Framework organizes core contract elements into a precise match for each
department’s unique operating and reporting style. Browser Access,
controlled by advanced security features, for executive queries, workflow
management and royalty processing create many new opportunities for sharing
information with key partners and clients. The Multiple Document
Interface makes it easy to simultaneously view as many contracts,
assets, customers… as the power of each workstation will allow.
Interestingly, despite many powerful new features, the number of data tables
in System 7 actually dropped by 68%.
System 7 Overview
This revolutionary system uses the best in software
design and technology to pull together all types of agreements, business
relationships and intellectual assets into a single, flexible,
enterprise-wide contract administration and finance system. System 7 uses a
unique contract-centric framework built upon the unparalleled 16 years
industry expertise of Jaguar and its Design Council partners Hallmark
Entertainment, NBA, National Geographic Society and
Sesame Workshop.
With exceptional database configurability, XML
integration and Web accessibility, System 7 reaches far beyond the back
office to enable creative, legal, sales and finance executives all over the
world to instantly understand their business from any perspective. System 7
delivers:
Intelligent Contract Rights
Management for the Intellectual Property Enterprise
Rights, Royalties
and Receivables - Trademarks, Copyrights, Patents, Permissions
Television, Music,
Books, Magazines, Advertising, Photos, Agencies, Manufacturing
Film, Toys,
Software, Apparel, Sports, Franchises, Bio-Technology, Electronics
System 7 Version 1.2 Due
30 June 2002
System 7 Version 1.2 represents the third major
release of System 7. Four core modules will be available for immediate
delivery to Jaguar clients in July 2002: Contract Administration, Rights and
Restrictions, Revenue Accounting and Royalty Management. These modules set a
new contract rights management standard for enterprise-level performance and
built-in adaptability. The following is a summary description of their basic
functionality:
Contract Administration –
Universal Contract Database, Action Management
Contract Administration’s most outstanding new feature is a highly
configurable Universal Contract Database that stores information about all
types of contracts in a single format to provide consistent data entry and
unlimited analysis opportunities. Creative Agreements, Employment Contracts,
Profit Participations, Production Agreements, Overall Deals, Negative Pick
Ups, Distribution Deals, Library Acquisitions, Patent Agreements, License
Agreements, Royalty Contracts, Agent Agreements, Sub Distributor Contracts,
Output Deals and Internal Usage contracts are all supported in a single
database. Each department and division precisely manages their information
sharing and coordinates their communications with other groups while taking
maximum advantage of opportunities for company-wide consolidation. Action
Management provides event-driven calendaring, exploitation, invoicing
and revenue recognition triggering and control.
Executive Web Queries
build from this powerful contract-centric base to integrate information from
all modules in an instantly accessible dynamically linked, pivoting,
graphing and drilldown window on the world. Acquisition and Development
Contracts, Sales Contracts, Cash Flow Projections, Invoice History, Payment
History, Receivables Aging, Royalty Performance, Agents, Divisions,
Licensees, Rights, Salespersons, Territories and many more viewpoints
provide entry points to every vision from the grandest to the most granular.
Rights & Restrictions –
Collision Testing, Availability Analysis
Availabilities provide a view of the
world from many different angles. Acquired rights, sold rights, unsold
rights and available rights defined in the Custom Rights Framework are
organized either by Asset or Territory as required by the viewer.
Participant and Component Asset restrictions are also considered.
Sophisticated Availability reports provide complete flexibility in selecting
which combination of assets (individual, package or list), territories
(individual, standard group, specialized group or list), right, distribution
channel, language, contract status (pending, deal memo, executed, finalized)
and cut off date. Summary Availability, Detail Availability, Component
Availability, Disposition of Rights and Timeline reports each provide
distinct rights management insights.
Collision Testing is the inverse viewpoint of
Availabilities. Collision Testing provides notification when sales contracts
attempt to sell un-owned or restricted rights, or rights whose exploitation
dates overlap with other sales contracts. Sales contracts must successfully
pass this test before they can be posted to Revenue Accounting Accounts
Receivable and invoices may be issued.
Revenue Accounting – Accounts
Receivable, Contract Revisions, ERP Integration
Accounts Receivable leads two lives: one as a quiet unassuming
general purpose invoicing and collections tool and the other as a
contract-driven, exploded detail invoicing, revenue recognition and cash
allocation masterpiece. Accounts Receivable provides four tier
multi-currency accounting (corporate, division, contract, royalty) and fully
allocated (title, territory, right and distribution channel) cash receipts.
Forms produced include Invoices, Statements and Customer Labels. Key reports
include A/R Aging, Cash Flow Projection, Contract Receivables, Transaction
History, Contract Payment Status and Cash Summary. Executive Web Queries
integrate billing and payment information with contracts to provide
exceptional visibility.
Contract Revisions
allow tremendous flexibility to change the titles, territories, rights,
languages, contract amount, revenue allocations, payment schedule or
exhibition dates while providing a detailed audit trail of the before and
after situation. To ensure maximum audit support, no transactional
information is ever deleted anywhere in the system. ERP Integration
sends two simultaneous flows of transaction information to the corporate
general ledger, cash basis and accrual. Accrual basis provides
availability-based, royalty-based and invoice-based revenue recognition
options. Cash basis transactions are provided as an option to feed
corporate participation reporting systems the appropriate revenue
information.
Royalties Receivable –
Royalty Processing, Guarantee Shortfall Billing
Retail and wholesales, units, returns,
allowances and other authorized expenses (in any currency) are recorded by
licensee, contract, property, territory, right and SKU (optional). Prior to
posting royalty statements to Revenue Accounting Accounts Receivable for
invoicing, the system compares its internal calculation of royalties owed
with those reported by the licensee. Any problems such as overlooked sales
tiers or cross-collateralization effects are highlighted in the Royalty
Statements Journal and offending statement is rejected. The efficiency of
this system makes it easy for licensors to enter into more sophisticated
agreements with greater revenue potential than are presently practical to
administer otherwise.
Royalties Receivable features a Web Interface for
Electronic Royalty Imports and for direct Royalty Entry by licensees and
staff. Non-recoupable Fees, recoupable Advances and Guarantee Milestone
Shortfall Billing are all highly integrated and efficient functions that
ensure effective enforcement of cumulative and non-cumulative guarantees
over any time period and even the most complex royalty terms, including
“better of” decisions.
Additional System 7 Modules Due in 2002
Workflow Management - Product Approval, Contract
Approval
Materials Tracking - Vault Operations, Contract
Fulfillment
(Replacement for Release 5.5 WRAP-UP Materials Tracking)
Participation Statements - Royalties Payable,
Licensor Relations
(Replacement for Release 5.5 ACE
Participations)
Release 5.5 Conversion Campaign Launched
For most Jaguar clients, System 7 Version 1.2
represents delivery of the equivalent functionality to that which they now
enjoy in Release 5.5. A few exceptional clients must wait for Version 1.3,
due in December, to incorporate recent customizations or special
requirements. For the majority, System 7 is now just an automated data
conversion process away from activation, starting in July. Interested Jaguar
clients are encouraged to contact their account representative to confirm
that they are candidates for Version 1.2 conversion.
About
Jaguar News
Jaguar News is published by
Jaguar Consulting Inc.
Pasadena,
California
Lincoln Center, New York
London, UK
For additional information: Visit http://www.jaguartc.com
Or contact
Nympha Singh 626/796-1955 x221
nsingh@jaguartc.com
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