Service Terms Agreement (STA)

The SayWhatClub is committed to providing a forum for the hard-of-hearing, deafened, and those otherwise concerned with hearing loss.

We are dedicated to maintaining an environment promoting hope, self-worth, knowledge, and growth, with consideration for individuals and the SWC community. To that end, we ask all participants in SayWhatClub activities to abide by the following Service Terms Agreement (“STA”).

SayWhatClub is a nonprofit corporation organized under the laws of the State of Washington. Use of any services provided by the SayWhatClub, “membership” in SayWhatClub, or monetary contributions do not confer any legal or ownership rights with respect to the SayWhatClub. The term “member” is used only in the general sense of identifying people who participate in SayWhatClub activities.

A. SCOPE OF THE AGREEMENT. The SayWhatClub (SWC) provides its online services to you as a subscriber subject to the terms of this agreement. This is a binding agreement and we shall refer to it as the “SWC STA.” The SWC STA comprises the entire agreement between the SWC and you, and supersedes any prior agreements between you and the SWC or its predecessors with respect to this subject matter.

B. KNOWLEDGE OF CURRENT TERMS. You agree to review the SWC STA periodically to be aware of changes. If any change is unacceptable to you, you may terminate your membership. Your continued use of the SWC services following the effective date of any such change to the SWC STA constitutes acceptance of all such changes.

C. AGE OF PARTICIPANTS. You certify that you are at least eighteen (18) years of age.

D. COPYRIGHTS AND REUSE OF MATERIAL. By becoming a subscriber, you agree to not pass on any information by quoting or reporting what any other subscriber wrote or said without obtaining prior approval from the author(s) of that material. You agree that all original material is copyrighted by the author of such material. You agree to accept full responsibility for any copyright violation by anyone who has access to your email account. The SWC reserves the right to remove any subscriber who reuses or reposts any material that may appear in SWC listservs, chatrooms, or other SWC publications unless the original copyright owner has given permission for such re-use or reposting.

E. CHARGES AND FEES. At the present time there are no charges or fees for being subscribed to any of the services offered by the SWC. It is possible that in the future a fee may be charged for some or all SWC services that are now free, or for participation in new SWC services. Your continued use of such services following the effective date shall constitute your acceptance of such fees.

F. CONTENT. Each subscriber to the SWC must evaluate and bear the risk associated with any reliance on the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any content. The SWC does not pre-screen content as a matter of policy. However, the SWC shall have the right, but not the responsibility, to remove content that is deemed harmful, offensive, or otherwise in violation of the SWC STA or applicable law. Accordingly, you acknowledge that the SWC shall not assume or have any liability for any action or inaction with respect to content on any of its listservs, chatrooms, or publications.

G. PROPRIETARY RIGHTS. You acknowledge the following: SWC permits access to content that is protected by copyrights, trademarks, and other intellectual and proprietary rights. These Rights are valid and protected in all media and technologies existing now or later developed.

H. CONDUCT AND COMMUNICATION. You acknowledge that the SWC may contain material that may be inappropriate for minors. You also recognize that communication within SWC often occurs in real time or is posted on the Internet or the SWC Newsletter and that the SWC cannot and does not intend to screen such communication or conduct on the part of participants in advance for accuracy or conformance to the SWC STA or any laws. Accordingly, you acknowledge that the SWC shall not assume or have any liability for any action or inaction with respect to the conduct of participants or the content of what is posted on SWC lists or other publications. However, any conduct by a SWC subscriber which is deemed to restrict or inhibit any other subscriber from using or enjoying the SWC may result in the member being unsubscribed at the sole discretion of the board of directors of SWC.

SWC subscribers agree not to:

post, transmit, or promote any unlawful, harmful, threatening, abusive, harassing, defamatory, vulgar, obscene, hateful, racially or ethnically or otherwise objectionable content;
harass, threaten, embarrass, or cause distress, unwanted attention, or discomfort upon another subscriber to the SWC;
post transmit, promote, link, or facilitate the distribution of sexually explicit or other content which is deemed by the SWC to be offensive;
disrupt the normal flow of dialogue in a chatroom or on a message board or listserv, or otherwise act in a manner that negatively affects the other subscribers’ participation in posting email or participating in SWC activities;
post or transmit, or cause to be posted or transmitted, any unsolicited advertising, promotional materials, or other forms of solicitation to other subscribers without permission.

Any person who is affiliated with, or receives remuneration or benefits in any form (including, but not limited to salary, wages, commissions, expenses, and honorariums) from a company or business that has a marketing program aimed at hoh/deaf individuals must disclose that relationship in his or her signature line on every email posted to SWC lists. Failure to disclose such a relationship may result in removal from SWC at discretion of the SWC Board.

Failure to abide by these terms and conditions may result in termination of membership.

I. PRIVACY POLICY. Because protecting your privacy is very important to SWC, we have established a policy whereby the board of directors will not share or sell membership lists, biographical data, or other personal information with anyone outside the SWC.

Individual members also agree not to redistribute any information or content from SWC without specific permission of each author quoted or referred to. Members also agree to restrict access to their accounts to those who agree to these terms.

We will limit the collection and use of personal information, to what is necessary to administer SWC business. Personal information about our subscribers will not be disclosed outside SWC membership except in limited circumstances including when such disclosure is required by law or legal process served on the SWC. The SWC reserves the right to make exceptions to this policy on a case by case basis in extreme circumstances, such as a bomb or suicide threat, or suspected illegal activity which will create harm to others. SWC will make available to its subscribers a roster, email addresses, and member-written autobiographical information of its subscribers.

J. TERMINATION. Either you or the SWC may terminate your membership at any time. This is your sole right and remedy with respect to any dissatisfaction with the SWC including, but not limited to any SWC STA term, policy or practice of the SWC Board of Directors in operating the SWC. In the event that your account is terminated or canceled for any reason, no refund, including any membership fees or donations will be granted.

K. LAW. If any part of these terms are held to be invalid or unenforceable, in fact or in law, that portion shall be construed consistent with applicable law to reflect, as nearly as possible, the original intentions of the parties, and the remaining portions remain in full force and effect. The laws of the State of Washington, as well as applicable United States Federal Statutes and Laws, and common law principles, govern the Terms of Subscription and your membership. As noted above, member conduct may be subject to other local, state, and national laws. You expressly agree that jurisdiction over SWC, for any claim or dispute resides in the Courts of the State of Washington. You further agree and expressly consent to the exercise of personal jurisdiction in the State of Washington over SWC and /or its officers, or directors in connection with any dispute or claim involving SayWhatClub.

Upon request of the SayWhatClub, you agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless SayWhatClub, its employees, contractors, officers, directors, telecommunications providers and ISPs from all liabilities, claims and expenses including attorneys’ fees, that arise from breach of the Service Terms Agreement by use of or in connection with the transmission of any content. SWC reserves the right at its own expense to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by members hereunder. In such event you shall have no further obligation to provide indemnification for SWC for such matter, but may still be responsible for your own legal expenses arising out of your actions. In the event that SWC waives its rights for indemnification, it will do so in writing by certified mail.

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