L51 Improvements Licensing inevitably involves learning. Learning and the discovery of improvements are an inevitable consequence of any licensing agreement and are of key strategic importance. A licensor is always at risk of licensees 'leapfrogging' them and gaining a competitive lead on them as a result of developing improvements to technology that has been licensed. Equally a licensee does not want to be left behind with what becomes 'old' technology as a result of improvements made by the licensor. A usual solution to this problem is a requirement for both parties to give the other access and non-exclusive licences to know-how, improvements or inventions, made during the course of the agreement by each other. Such terms are known as 'Improvements' or 'grant-back' clauses. The precise definition of the term improvements can lead to disputes. Non-exclusive grant back of licenses to its own severable improvements by a licensee is exempt under the TTBER but exclusive grant back licences or assignment back of improvements to the licensor or third party are not exempt from Art 81(3) under the TTBER. The guidelines to the TTBER do not address the issue of grant forward of licences to improvements made by the licensor.