What are pre-sales?
Pre-sales are customer commitments — payments, deposits or signed contracts — made before a product has actually been shipped or fully developed. Pre-sales validate demand, fund development, reduce inventory risk and create early revenue.
Pre-sales raise specific legal considerations: clear disclosure of fulfilment timelines, refund and force-majeure terms, consumer-protection compliance for B2C pre-sales, securities-law risk if the pre-sale resembles an investment, and tax-recognition timing (deferred revenue under accrual accounting).