NovelNetwork® Terms of Use
Last Updated: November 1, 2017
Adventures by the Book, LLC, dba NovelNetwork®, (“NovelNetwork®”) operates www.novelnetwork.com, including any and all associated domains (“Website”). Any reference to NovelNetwork® includes any and all affiliates, successors, assigns, and respective officers, directors, agents, representatives, and employees of NovelNetwork®.
These Terms of Use and the NovelNetwork® Privacy Policy, Member Program Terms and Conditions for Book Club Members and Author Members, and any other terms or policies published on Website, if applicable and as amended from time to time, (collectively “Terms”) is incorporated by reference herein and governs the access to, use of, and interaction with Website by all Website users and visitors (collectively “User”).
YOU, THE USER, MUST READ THESE TERMS CAREFULLY BEFORE ACCESSING, USING, OR INTERACTING WITH WEBSITE, INCLUDING ANY CONTENT, PRODUCTS, OR SERVICES PROVIDED ON WEBSITE AND THROUGH RELATED CHANNELS SUCH AS EMAIL. THIS IS A LEGALLY BINDING AGREEMENT between YOU and NOVELNETWORK® AND CONTAINS IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT USER’S LEGAL RIGHTS, REMEDIES, AND OBLIGATIONS RELATED, AND IS A CONDITION, TO YOUR ACCESS TO, USAGE OF, AND INTERACTION WITH WEBSITE. BY ACCESSING, USING, OR INTERACTING WITH WEBSITE, YOU, OR ON BEHALF OF AN ENTITY WHERE YOU HAVE PROPER AUTHORITY, REPRESENT, ACCEPT, AND AGREE TO COMPLY WITH AND BE BOUND BY THESE TERMS. Additionally, YOU represent And warrant that YOU ARE at least 18 years of age and haVE the legal capacity and authority to enter INTO These Terms UNDER APPLICABLE LAWS AND REGULATIONS. If YOU ARE under 18 years of age, YOU MUST EITHER BE an emancipated minor or possess legal parental or guardian consent, and MUST BE fully able and competent to enter into, abide by, and comply with this Agreement under applicable laws and regulations.
If YOU DO not agree with THESE TERMS in full, YOU may not, under any circumstances, access, use, OR INTERACT WITH website.
SCOPE OF SERVICES
Website is a neutral online platform that connects registered book clubs and book club members with qualified and registered author members and enables each of them to: (1) create a member account and profile and publish certain identifying information about him/herself, and (2) identify, select, communicate, interact, and transact directly with each other to schedule and book in-person and Skype author visits and speaking engagements. Additionally, NovelNetwork® provides certain member-exclusive benefits to current and validly registered members.
Membership qualifications, registration requirements, and benefits are defined and provided on Website and subject to additional terms and conditions specific to each member program, as amended from time to time.
CONDITIONS AND RESTRICTIONS ON USE
Subject to these Terms, NovelNetwork® grants User a non-exclusive and non-transferable revocable license to access, use, and interact with Website and such access, use, and interaction is solely for individual and non-commercial use and is non-transferable.
User shall abide by these Terms, any technical restrictions on Website, and with all applicable laws and regulations, including provisions and regulations regarding online conduct and content, while accessing, using, or interacting with Website and interacting with other Users. User may only access, use, and interact with Website for lawful and intended purposes and shall not engage in any activity or conduct which would violate these Terms and any laws and regulations. Prohibited activity or conduct, or assisting others in such activity or conduct, includes the following: (1) any illegal, fraudulent, harmful, abusive, threatening, obscene, defamatory, or libelous activity; (2) intent to misrepresent, falsify, omit, or delete information; (3) attempts to impersonate any person or entity or intent to disguise User’s or others’ identity or contact information; (4) violations of personal privacy of and/or victimizes, harasses, humiliates, or intimidates others; (5) infringement or misappropriation of intellectual property, as defined herein; (6) unauthorized disclosure of confidential or insider information; (7) creation of, or attempts to create, a similar or competitive website, content, product, or service through the access to, use of, and interaction with Website; (8) bypassing the measures NovelNetwork® may use to prevent or restrict access to Website; or (9) implementation of any viruses or other programs that disrupts or interferes with the access to, use of, or interaction with Website by NovelNetwork® or others or intercepts or steals data or information.
User is solely responsible, and accepts all liability, for his/her own acts, omissions, and conduct while: (1) accessing, using, and interacting with Website; (2) registering for and maintaining a member account, including submission of incorrect or incomplete, or failure to maintain current, information on Website; (3) creating, uploading, posting, submitting, transmitting, displaying, or otherwise providing content, information, or data on and to Website, which may be done so unencrypted and over various networks; and (4) interacting with other Users on Website or elsewhere.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
NovelNetwork® is the sole owner with all title and interest in Website and any and all intellectual property, as defined herein, related to such. NovelNetwork® reserves all rights in and to any and all intellectual property. Any rights, licenses, and transfers of ownership, if any, may only be expressly granted pursuant to a written agreement and never by implication. If any intellectual property right vests in User, his/her representatives, or in an entity he/she represents, User hereby, and causes any such representatives or entity to, irrevocably and completely assign and transfer all such right, title, and interest to NovelNetwork® without royalty or any other consideration.
Intellectual property includes: (1) all trademarks, trade dress, and service and design marks, including domain names, logos, slogans, and uniform resource locators; (2) all trade secrets including business practices, operations, applications, techniques, processes, procedures, methods, know-how, ideas, research and development, business and marketing plans and proposals, financials, pricing, costs, member lists, author lists, customer lists, vendor lists, supplier lists, hardware, software, systems, technical data, source codes, formulas, specifications, and drawings; (3) all patents and pending patents; (4) all works of authorship and copyrightable works; and (5) any and all inventions and improvements regardless of status, condition, and patentability.
Intellectual property also includes any and all work product, goodwill, applications and registrations, renewals, reissuances, extensions, modifications, improvements, additions, derivative works, and all related documents and matters.
User may not use, sell, license, transfer, remove, alter, duplicate, translate, reverse engineer, reproduce, distribute, transmit, obscure, commercially exploit or take any other action regarding Website and any intellectual property, proprietary marks, or right notices incorporated in or accompanying Website, in whole or in part, without express prior written consent from NovelNetwork®.
User-Submitted Content
User may choose to, or NovelNetwork® may invite User to, create, upload, post, submit, transmit, display, or otherwise provide content, including text, photos, audio, video, or other materials, information, or data on and to Website (“User Content”). User shall grant NovelNetwork® a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-fee, irrevocable, perpetual (or for the term of the protection), sub-licensable, and transferable license to such User Content to access, use, store, copy, modify, prepare derivative works of, distribute, publish, transmit, stream, broadcast, and otherwise exploit in any manner such User Content to provide and/or promote NovelNetwork® and Website, in any media or platform. Unless User provides specific consent, NovelNetwork® does not claim any ownership rights in any User Content and nothing in these Terms will be deemed to restrict any rights that User may have to use or exploit his/her User Content.
User is solely responsible for all User Content and represents and warrants that he/she either is the sole and exclusive owner of all User Content provided on Website or he/she has all the rights, licenses, consents, and releases necessary to grant NovelNetwork® the necessary license to User Content as contemplated under these Terms. User will not create, upload, post, submit, transmit, display, or otherwise provide User Content that: (1) is fraudulent, false, misleading, or deceptive, either directly or by omission; (2) infringes, misappropriates, or violates a third party’s patent, copyright, trademark, trade secret, moral rights, or other proprietary or intellectual property rights, or rights of publicity or privacy, or result in the violation of any applicable law or regulation; (3) is defamatory, libelous, obscene, pornographic, vulgar, or offensive; (4) promotes discrimination, bigotry, racism, hatred, harassment, or harm against any individual or group; (5) is violent or threatening or promotes violence or actions that are threatening to any other Users; (6) promotes illegal or harmful activities or substances; (7) is intended to spam or is an unauthorized commercial communication and promotion; or (8) violates these Terms, other NovelNetwork® policies, or applicable law or regulation. NovelNetwork® may, without prior notice, remove or disable access to any User Content that NovelNetwork® determines, in its sole discretion, violates this provision or otherwise may be harmful or objectionable to NovelNetwork®, other Users, or other third parties.
Additionally, User may choose to, or NovelNetwork® may invite User to, submit feedback, suggestions, or comments (“Feedback”) regarding access to, use of, and interaction with Website. When User provides Feedback, he/she agrees that such disclosure is truthful, gratuitous, unsolicited, and without restriction and he/she hereby assigns and transfers all rights to Feedback and related information to use in any manner NovelNetwork® decides pursuant to applicable law and regulation, including screening, modification, deletion, disclosure, or loss of such Feedback. Because Feedback is non-confidential and non-proprietary, User should not submit any information or ideas considered to be confidential or proprietary unless he/she expressly waives his/her right to confidentiality or proprietary protections.
User hereby waives and releases NovelNetwork® any claim or cause of action, whether known or unknown, for defamation, copyright infringement, invasion of the rights of privacy, publicity, or personality, or any similar claim arising out of the access to, use of, and interaction with Website and submission of any User Content that includes User’s name, image, persona, or likeness.
PRIVACY POLICY
NovelNetwork® may require User to submit certain information, including personal, contact, and billing information, in order to fully access, use, and interact with Website. By submitting such information on Website, User agrees to let NovelNetwork® contact him/her and share such information as needed and related to his/her access to, use of, and interaction with Website, including any and all disclosures, notices, and other communications that may be legally required or for marketing or other business-related purposes. NovelNetwork® reserves the right to determine how and when NovelNetwork® provides notifications to User, provided that he/she may opt out of certain notifications as permitted and applicable by law.
NovelNetwork® collects, uses, and discloses User’s information according to the NovelNetwork® Privacy Policy, as amended from time to time. For more information, please refer to the NovelNetwork® Privacy Policy.
DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES
NovelNetwork® does not make any warranties, representations, or promises, and User does not rely on any such warranties, representations, or promises, other than what is provided in these Terms when accessing, using, or interacting with Website. NovelNetwork® expressly disclaims all warranties, representations, and promises, express or implied, including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and workmanlike quality with respect to Website and any content, products, or services provided on Website and through related channels such as email. Specifically, NovelNetwork® makes no warranty that: (1) Website will meet any specific requirements; (2) Website will be uninterrupted, timely, secure, or error-free; or (3) the quality of Website and any content, products, or services provided or facilitated on Website or through related channels such as email will meet his/her expectations. Website is provided “as-is” and “as available” and User accesses, uses, and interacts with Website at his/her own discretion and risk.
NovelNetwork® has implemented physical and technical measures commercially reasonable and necessary to secure User’s personal information from accidental loss and unauthorized access, use, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. However, NovelNetwork® cannot guarantee that these safeguards are absolutely secure and that unauthorized third parties will not be able to defeat such measures and access User’s personal information for improper purposes including unauthorized access, misuse, alteration, disclosure, or destruction by third parties. NovelNetwork® is not liable for any interruptions, errors, omissions, or vulnerabilities beyond its control. User acknowledges that he/she provides personal information at his/her own risk and is solely responsible and liable for any data breaches resulting in the theft and misappropriation of such information.
NovelNetwork® controls and operates Website from facilities in the United States. NovelNetwork® makes no representations that Website is appropriate or available for use in other locations. If User accesses, uses, or interacts with Website from other jurisdictions, he/she does so at his/her own volition and is entirely responsible for compliance with local law, including but not limited to, import and export regulations. Unless otherwise explicitly stated, all content, products, and services provided on Website, and through related channels such as email, are solely directed to individuals and entities located in the United States.
To the extent NovelNetwork® cannot disclaim any warranty, representation, or promise as a matter of law, the scope and duration of such shall be the minimum permissible under applicable law and regulation.
RELEASE OF LIABILITY
NOVELNETWORK® IS not liable to USER or any third party for any and all special, indirect, incidental, punitive, or consequential injuries or damages, arising from or related to THESE TERMS OR his/her access to, use of, or interaction with Website, including bodily injury, death, loss of revenue, loss or corruption of data, profits, or opportunities, and claims by any third party. NOVELNETWORK® IS not liable for any failure or delay OF THESE TERMS due to matters beyond its reasonable control, including force majeure. This applies to all causes of action in the aggregate, including breach of contract, breach of warranty, negligence, strict liability, and other torts.
Under no circumstances will NOVELNETWORK® be responsible for any damage, loss, or injury resulting from hacking, tampering, or other unauthorized access to, use of, alteration to, disclosure of, or destruction to website or the information and data submitted by User and contained therein. Additionally, NOVELNETWORK® shall not be responsible for any inaccurate, defamatory, offensive, indecent, or objectionable content or information CREATED, UPLOADED, posted, submitted, TRANSMITTED, displayed, or otherwise PROVIDED by other users on website and any alleged damages resulting from such content.
By accessing, USING, AND INTERACTING WITH Website, USer agrees not to sue or institute any cause of action or any legal proceeding against NOVELNETWORK®. the sole recourse available to USer, or his/her beneficiaries or legal representatives, shall be termination of hi/sher MEMBER ACCOUNT WITH NOVELNETWORK®, IF ANY. In no event shall any of NOVELNETWORK® liability related to thESE TERMS and USer’s access to, use of, OR INTERACTION WITH Website exceed ANY fees paid by him/her to NOVELNETWORK® during the 12 months immediately preceding the claim or evenT giving rise to such liability.
IF USER IS A CALIFORNIA USER, HE/SHE HEREBY WAIVES CALIFORNIA CIVIL CODE SECTION 1542, WHICH STATES: “A GENERAL RELEASE DOES NOT EXTEND TO CLAIMS WHICH THE CREDITOR DOES NOT KNOW OR SUSPECT TO EXIST IN HIS OR HER FAVOR AT THE TIME OF EXECUTING THE RELEASE, WHICH IF KNOWN BY HIM OR HER MUST HAVE MATERIALLY AFFECTED HIS OR HER SETTLEMENT WITH THE DEBTOR.”
THE FOREGOING SHALL APPLY TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED, AND SHALL NOT APPLY TO THE EXTENT PROHIBITED, BY APPLICABLE LAW OR REGULATION.
INDEMNIFICATION
User agrees to release, indemnify, defend, protect, compensate, and reimburse NovelNetwork® and holds NovelNetwork® harmless from and against any and all claims, damages, losses, costs, fees (including reasonable attorneys’ fees), liabilities, or injuries suffered arising out of, or relating to, this Agreement and User’s access to, use of, and interaction with Website to the fullest extent provided by applicable law and regulation. This includes User’s breach of any warranty, representation, covenant, or other provision of these Terms, violation of applicable laws or regulations, negligent, willful, or fraudulent acts or omissions, and any content created, uploaded, posted, submitted, transmitted, displayed, or otherwise provided on Website.
NovelNetwork® will promptly notify User of any claim for indemnification and he/she agrees to cooperate with NovelNetwork® in the defense of such claims. NovelNetwork® reserves the right to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter subject to indemnification under this provision and User shall not settle any such claim or matter without the advance written consent of NovelNetwork®.
All provisions of these Terms regarding indemnification shall not apply to the extent prohibited by applicable law or regulation.
THIRD PARTY WEBSITES
These Terms are only applicable to Website and not to any websites of any third parties, which may have terms and policies of use that differ materially from these Terms. Website may contain links to other websites or applications, or display content, such as advertisements, that are owned, operated, or controlled by unaffiliated third-parties, including social media platforms, that may collect information about User. NovelNetwork® does not review, monitor, approve, endorse, warrant, or take responsibility such third-party websites, applications, or content and does not make any warranties or representations regarding such websites, applications, or content and any resulting data collection practices, privacy policies, content, products, or services whatsoever. Once User leaves Website, he/she is subject to the terms of use and privacy policies of other third-party websites. User clicks links and accesses, uses, and interacts with these websites and content at his/her own risk and are encouraged to do so with caution. NovelNetwork® recommends that User reviews the privacy policies for each website he/she accesses, uses, and interacts with to understand how personally identifiable information is collected, used, processed, stored, protected, and disclosed. User expressly relieves NovelNetwork® from any and all liability arising from his/her access to, use of, and interaction with any third-party owned and operated website or content.
For more information, please refer to the NovelNetwork® Privacy Policy.
DISPUTE RESOLUTION
Any dispute, controversy, or claim between User and NovelNetwork® arising out of or relating to these Terms shall be reported to NovelNetwork® by contacting NovelNetwork® directly on Website. NovelNetwork® will try to promptly and amicably resolve any disputes.
If NovelNetwork® is unable to resolve the dispute, such dispute shall be settled by final and binding arbitration in San Diego County in the State of California before a single arbitrator in an individual capacity as permitted by applicable law.
USER HEREBY ACKNOWLEDGES AND AGREES THAT HE/SHE IS WAIVING THE RIGHT TO A TRIAL BY JURY AS TO ALL ARBITRABLE DISPUTES AND EXPRESSLY ACKNOWLEDGES THAT HE/SHE HAS READ AND UNDERSTANDS THE TERMS OF THIS SECTION AND CONSENTS TO RESOLVING DISPUTES WITH NOVELNETWORK® ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS THROUGH FINAL AND BINDING ARBITRATION.
The parties must agree on the arbitrator and the rules and procedures of arbitration. If the parties are unable to agree within 15 days, arbitration shall be administered by the American Arbitration Association pursuant to its Consumer Arbitration Rules, then in effect. Judgment on the award outcome and award rendered by the arbitrator may be entered in any court having jurisdiction thereof. The award shall determine the prevailing party, allocate all or part of the legal costs including the arbitrator fees and reasonable attorneys’ fees of the prevailing party, and require payment by the non-prevailing party. The foregoing shall not preclude NovelNetwork® from seeking injunctive relief in state or federal courts to protect respective intellectual property rights.
GOVERNING LAW
These Terms, and the respective rights and obligations of the parties hereunder, shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of California, without regard to conflict of law principles.
MODIFICATIONS
These Terms are effective as of the date indicated herein. NovelNetwork® reserves the right to and may update or amend the provisions of these Terms at any time, from time to time, without notice to User. NovelNetwork® will reflect any and all modifications to these Terms by indicating herein the date it was last revised and post the updated or amended Terms on Website. Any such update or amendment shall go into effect immediately upon posting on Website unless otherwise provided. The current version of these Terms shall apply on the date User accesses, uses, and interacts with Website but shall only apply to information collected thereafter. User’s continued access to, use of, and interaction with Website after an update or amendment is made to these Terms and posted on Website constitutes his/her acknowledgment and acceptance of such update or modification and consents to abide by and be bound by the updated or amended Terms.
If User does not agree to any of the current or future provisions of these Terms, he/she shall not access, use, or interact with, or continue to access, use, or interact with, Website.
GENERAL
These Terms, except as it may be supplemented by additional terms and conditions, policies and procedures, standards, and guidelines, including all documents identified and referenced herein, constitute the entire understanding and agreement between User and NovelNetwork® with respect to its subject matter and supersedes all prior and contemporaneous agreements, understandings, inducements, or conditions, express or implied, written or oral, between the parties, preceding the effective date herein. If any part, term, or provision of these Terms are held to be invalid, illegal, unenforceable, or in conflict with any valid controlling law in any respect, the remaining Terms shall continue in full force and effect without being impaired or invalidated in any way. If applicable, such part, term, or provision shall be modified and interpreted which most closely approximates the original intent and purpose of such. Failure or delay, at any time, to enforce any term or condition of or to exercise any right or remedy under these Terms shall not be construed to be a waiver of the right to enforce or exercise such term, condition, right, or remedy. A waiver of any one term, condition, right, or remedy of these Terms or any breach shall not constitute a permanent waiver of such term, condition, right, or remedy or any subsequent breach thereof in the future. Section headings are strictly for reference and convenience and shall not be used in any way to restrict the meaning or interpretation of the substantive language of the terms. The content contained in these Terms are applicable to the singular and the plural forms, and to the masculine and feminine usage of gender, of such terms. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as making either party the partner, joint venture, agent, legal representative, employer, employee, or contractor of the other. Neither party will have, or hold itself out to any third party as having any authority to make any statements, representations, or commitments of any kind, or to take any action, that will be binding on the other. These Terms, and any rights and licenses granted hereunder, may not be transferred or assigned by User, but may be transferred and assigned by NovelNetwork® without restriction. These Terms shall be binding upon, and for the benefit of, User and NovelNetwork® as well as the successors, assigns, subcontractors, executors, heirs, administrators, and other representatives of User or NovelNetwork®.
CONTACT
NovelNetwork® cannot guarantee receipt of any email sent to NovelNetwork® until and unless User receives a written email response from NovelNetwork® or a representative of NovelNetwork® confirming such receipt. NovelNetwork® is not liable for any correspondence, mail, or email that is lost, delayed, or misdirected.
If User has any questions regarding these Terms, he/she may contact NovelNetwork® directly on Website.