Matchnet.com: Terms of Use

Terms and Conditions of Service

This online personals service (the "Service") is a way for adults to meet each other. The Service is provided by Spark Networks® Limited, whose principal office is located at 8383 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 800, Beverly Hills, California 90211 ("Spark Networks").

This legal agreement ("Agreement") is made between You and Us. This Agreement, as it may be amended from time to time, applies to all users of any Spark Networks site, including but not limited to: AmericanSingles.com, Relationships.com, JDate.com, and BlackSingles.com (the "Websites")

You may not use the Service if you are under the age of 18 or you are not able to form legally binding contracts, or if your membership on a Spark Networks site has been suspended by Us. Please read this Agreement carefully before registering for the Service. By using the Service, You become a Spark Networks member (a "Member"), and You agree to be bound by the terms and conditions of this Agreement for as long as You continue to be a Member. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE WITH THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THIS AGREEMENT, DO NOT USE THE SERVICE. THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THIS AGREEMENT ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE BY US AT ANY TIME, EFFECTIVE UPON NOTICE TO YOU, WHICH NOTICE SHALL BE DEEMED TO HAVE BEEN PROVIDED UPON OUR POSTING OF THE CURRENT VERSION OF THIS AGREEEMENT ON THE SERVICE.

In this Agreement the following terms have the following meanings unless the context requires otherwise:

"Agreement" means the agreement between You and Us incorporating these terms and conditions for the provision of the Service, as amended from time to time in the manner set forth herein;

"We, Us, Our" means Spark Networks® Limited; and

"You, Your, Yourself" means the person who uses the Service and accepts the terms and conditions of this Agreement.

ELIGIBILITY: MINORS MAY NOT BECOME MEMBERS. By becoming a Member, You represent and warrant that You are at least 18 years old. By using the Service, You represent and warrant that You have the right, authority and capacity to enter into this Agreement and to abide by the terms and conditions of this Agreement. Your membership for the Service is for Your sole, personal use. You may not authorize others to use Your membership, and You may not assign or otherwise transfer Your account to any other person or entity.

REGISTRATION AND SUBSCRIPTION: Although You may use the Service for free, if You wish to use the Service to initiate most communication with other members and use certain other elements of the Service, You must register as a member and then become a Subscriber on the applicable Spark Networks site and pay the fees that are set out on the subscription page for such Spark Networks site and agree to all terms and conditions of the applicable site. We reserve the right, at any time, to change any fees or charges for using the Service. Although we aim to verify the accuracy of the information provided by Our Members, We do not verify information in profiles, and We have no control over, do not guarantee, and are not responsible for the quality, truth, accuracy, legality or safety of Our Members.

TERM AND TERMINATION: This Agreement will remain in full force and effect while You use the Service. Even after membership is terminated, this Agreement will remain in effect.

PROPRIETARY RIGHTS: Except for that information which is in the public domain or for which You have been given express written permission, You will not copy, modify, publish, transmit, distribute, perform, display, or sell any proprietary information that may be posted on our site.

We maintain this website for Your personal entertainment, information, and communication. You should assume that everything You see or read on the website (such as images, photographs, illustrations, texts and other materials) ("Content") is Our copyrighted property, and is protected by U.S. and international copyright laws as such. None of the material may be reproduced without Our prior written permission. This copyright includes, but is not limited to, Our original created material, raw compilations of profiles or search results, any edited and filtered compilations of profiles that we may sell or distribute. The right to download and store or output the materials found through using the Service is granted for viewing use only. Materials may not be reproduced in any form. Any reproduction or editing by any means mechanical or electronic without Our explicit written permission is expressly prohibited. Without Our prior written permission, You may not sell, reproduce, distribute, modify, display, publicly perform, prepare derivative works based on, repost, or otherwise use any of Our Content in any way for any purpose, including using Our Content on any other website or in a networked computer environment, database or other publication. However, You may electronically copy or print pages from this website for Your personal, non-commercial use, provided that You include a copyright notice on each page. Any violation of this Section may constitute a violation of national and international copyright laws for which We shall be entitled to take appropriate legal action including, but not limited to, seeking injunctive relief, an accounting of profits, damages, legal fees and costs.

Content from this website, including but not limited to any member profile information such as member names, email addresses, member contact information, or member-personalized profile information, may not be taken from the website and used for any purpose. Names, email addresses and other contact information from member profile information or the pages and postings on this site may not be used by outside vendors or other third parties for purposes of solicitation. Unsolicited emails to Our members or vendors may constitute misrepresentation, misappropriation of Our business name and reputation, unfair competition, and may also violate laws that prohibit unsolicited email, for which We shall be entitled to take appropriate legal action including, but not limited to, seeking injunctive relief, an accounting of profits, damages, legal fees and costs.

YOUR USE OF THE SERVICE: As a Member, You agree that:

(1) You will use the Service in a manner consistent with any and all applicable laws and regulations. You will not engage in advertising to, or solicitation of, other members to buy or sell any products or services through the Service. You will not transmit any chain letters or junk email to other members. You are solely responsible for Your interactions with other members. We reserve the right, but have no obligation, to monitor and/or mediate disputes between You and other members.

(2) You are solely responsible for the content or information You transmit to other members. You will not transmit to other members or to Us or Our employees, any defamatory, inaccurate, abusive, obscene, profane, offensive, sexually oriented, threatening, harassing, racially offensive, or illegal material, or any material that infringes or violates another party's rights (including, but not limited to, intellectual property rights, and rights of privacy and publicity). We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone, at our sole discretion.

(3) By becoming a Member, You agree to accept and consent to receiving email communications initiated from Us or through Us including, without limitation: emails informing you about events and parties We organize, emails informing You of changes to the Service and emails informing You of promotions that either We provide or that are being provided by third parties. If you choose to respond to promotions that are provided by third parties and in the course of doing so, disclose information to any external service providers, and/or grant them permission to collect information about you, then their use of your information is governed by their private policies. Message notification emails such as "Your Match" emails, emails informing you about events and parties We organize and emails informing You of changes to the Service are provided by Us as part of the operation of the Service and you may receive these messages for as long as you are Our Member. Should You not wish to receive any of Our email communications, please do not use the Service. However, You may opt-out of receiving Email communications sent from Us or through Us offering You third party goods or services. To learn how to do so, visit the Help section of the Websites.

(4) You agree that We have no responsibility or liability for the deletion, corruption or failure to store any messages or other content maintained or transmitted by Our Service. You acknowledge that features, parameters or other services We provide may change at any time.

(5) We are entitled to investigate and terminate Your membership if You have misused the Service, or behaved in a way which could be regarded as inappropriate, unlawful or illegal. The following is a partial, but not exhaustive, list of the types of actions that are illegal or prohibited under this Agreement:

You will not harass or impersonate any person or entity. You will not use any manual or automatic device or process to retrieve, index, data mine, or, in any way reproduce or circumvent the navigational structure or presentation of the Service or its contents. You will not express or imply that any of Your statements are endorsed by Us, without Our specific prior written consent. You will not interfere with or disrupt any Service or any Website, servers or networks connected to any Service or Website. You will not post, distribute or reproduce, in any way, any copyrighted material, trademarks, or other proprietary information without obtaining the prior written consent of the owner of such proprietary rights. You will not remove any copyright, trademark or other proprietary rights notices contained in the Service or forge headers or otherwise manipulate identifiers in order to disguise the origin of any information transmitted through the Service. You will not use meta tags or code or other devices containing any reference to Us or the Service or the Website connected to the Service in order to direct any person to any other website for any purpose. You will not modify, adapt, sublicense, translate, sell, reverse engineer, decipher, decompile or otherwise disassemble any portion of the Service or any software used on or for the Service or cause or enable others to do so. You will not post, email or otherwise transmit any material that contains software viruses or any other computer code, files or programs designed to interrupt, harm or limit the functionality of any computer software or hardware.

INDEMNITY BY MEMBER: You will defend, indemnify, and hold Us and Our officers, directors, employees, agents, parent and subsidiary entities, affiliates and third parties harmless, for any losses, costs, liabilities or expenses relating to or arising out of Your use of the Service, including:

(I) Your breach of this Agreement; (II) any allegation that any materials that You submit to Us or transmit to the Service infringe or otherwise violate the copyright, trademark, trade secret or other intellectual property or other rights of any third party; and/or (III) Your activities in connection with the Service. This indemnity shall be applicable without regard to the negligence of any party, including any indemnified person.

RELEASE: If You have a dispute with one or more of Our Members, you release Us (and our officers, directors, agents, subsidiaries, joint ventures and employees) from any claims, demands and damages (actual and consequential) of every kind and nature, known and unknown, arising out of or in any way connected with such dispute.

ONLINE CONTENT: Opinions, advice, statements, offers, or other information or content made available through the Service, but not directly by Us, are those of their respective authors, and should not necessarily be relied upon. Such authors are solely responsible for such content. WE DO NOT GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS, OR USEFULNESS OF ANY INFORMATION ON THE SERVICE AND WE NEITHER ADOPT NOR ENDORSE, NOR ARE WE RESPONSIBLE FOR, THE ACCURACY OR RELIABILITY OF ANY OPINION, ADVICE, OR STATEMENT MADE BY ANY PARTY OTHER THAN US. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES ARE WE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE RESULTING FROM ANY PERSON'S RELIANCE ON INFORMATION OR OTHER CONTENT POSTED ON THE SERVICE OR TRANSMITTED TO MEMBERS.

WE RESERVE THE RIGHT, BUT WE HAVE NO OBLIGATION, TO MONITOR THE MATERIALS POSTED IN THE PUBLIC AREAS OF THE SERVICE. WE SHALL HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMOVE ANY SUCH MATERIAL THAT, IN OUR SOLE DISCRETION, VIOLATES, OR IS ALLEGED TO VIOLATE, THE LAW OR THIS AGREEMENT. NOTWITHSTANDING THIS RIGHT, YOU REMAIN SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CONTENT OF THE MATERIALS YOU POST IN THE PUBLIC AREAS OF THE SERVICE AND IN YOUR PRIVATE EMAIL MESSAGES. EMAILS SENT BETWEEN YOU AND OTHER MEMBERS THAT ARE NOT READILY ACCESSIBLE TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC MAY BE REVIEWED BY US FOR COMPLIANCE WITH THIS AGREEMENT, BUT WILL BE TREATED BY US AS PRIVATE TO THE EXTENT REQUIRED BY APPLICABLE LAW.

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY. All intellectual property rights in and to the Service are and shall be owned by Us, absolutely. Those rights include, but are not limited to, database rights, copyright, design rights (whether registered or unregistered), patents, trademarks (whether registered or unregistered) and other similar rights, wherever existing in the world, together with the right to apply for protection of the same. All other trademarks, logos, service marks, company or product names set forth in the Service are the property of their respective owners.

PRIVACY: The personal information (including sensitive personal information) You provide to Us will be stored on computers and/or servers. You consent to the use this information to create a profile of interests, preferences and browsing patterns and to allow You to participate in the Service. You also agree to read, review, comply with, uphold and maintain Our Privacy Statement and the terms and conditions thereof. If you are located outside of the United States, please note that the information that you provide is being sent to the United States. By becoming a Member of the Service, you consent to your data being sent to the United States and to such other third parties and jurisdictions as may be involved in the provision and operation of the Service.

DISCLAIMERS: WE PROVIDE THE SERVICE ON AN "AS IS" BASIS AND GRANT NO WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESSED, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, IN ANY COMMUNICATION WITH OUR REPRESENTATIVES, OR US OR OTHERWISE WITH RESPECT TO THE SERVICE. WE SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. FURTHER, WE DO NOT WARRANT THAT YOUR USE OF THE SERVICE WILL BE SECURE, UNINTERRUPTED, ALWAYS AVAILABLE OR ERROR-FREE, OR THAT THE SERVICE WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS OR THAT ANY DEFECTS IN THE SERVICE WILL BE CORRECTED. WE DISCLAIM LIABILITY FOR, AND NO WARRANTY IS MADE WITH RESPECT TO, CONNECTIVITY AND AVAILABILITY.

Although by using the Service each member must agree to Our terms and conditions, We cannot guarantee that each member is at least the required minimum age, nor do we accept responsibility or liability for any content, communication or other use or access of the Service by persons under the age of 18 in violation of this Agreement. Also, it is possible that other members or users (including unauthorized users, or "hackers") may post or transmit offensive or obscene materials through the Service and that You may be involuntarily exposed to such offensive or obscene materials. It also is possible for others to obtain personal information about You due to Your use of the Service. Those others may use Your information for purposes other than what You intended. We are not responsible for the use of any personal information that You disclose on the Service. Please carefully select the type of information that You post on the Service or release to others. WE DISCLAIM ALL LIABILITY, REGARDLESS OF THE FORM OF ACTION, FOR THE ACTS OR OMISSIONS OF OTHER MEMBERS OR USERS (INCLUDING UNAUTHORIZED USERS), WHETHER SUCH ACTS OR OMISSIONS OCCUR DURING THE USE OF THE SERVICE OR OTHERWISE.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY: IN NO EVENT WILL WE BE LIABLE TO YOU OR TO ANY OTHER PERSON FOR ANY INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR INDIRECT DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF DATA, LOSS OF PROGRAMS, COST OF PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE SERVICES OR SERVICE INTERRUPTIONS) ARISING OUT OF THE USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE SERVICE, EVEN IF WE OR OUR AGENTS OR REPRESENTATIVES KNOW OR HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. NOTWITHSTANDING ANYTHING TO THE CONTRARY CONTAINED HEREIN, OUR LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ANY CAUSE WHATSOEVER, AND REGARDLESS OF THE FORM OF THE ACTION, WILL AT ALL TIMES BE LIMITED TO THE AMOUNT PAID, IF ANY, BY YOU TO US FOR THE SERVICE DURING THE TERM OF YOUR MEMBERSHIP. WE DO NOT CONDUCT BACKGROUND CHECKS OR OTHERWISE SCREEN MEMBERS REGISTERING FOR THE SERVICE OR ANY OF OUR SITES IN ANY WAY. WE WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES, DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL AND/OR CONSEQUENTIAL, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO PHYSICAL DAMAGES, BODILY INJURY OR EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, ARISING OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SERVICE, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF YOUR COMMUNICATIONS WITH AND/OR INTERACTIONS WITH ANY OTHER MEMBER OF THE SERVICE, OR ANY INDIVIDUAL YOU MEET VIA THE SERVICE.

DISPUTE RESOLUTION: This Agreement is governed by the laws of the State of California without regard to its conflict of law provisions. You agree to personal jurisdiction by and exclusive venue in the state and federal courts of the State of California, City of Los Angeles with regard to any and all claims by you arising out of or related to the Websites. This Agreement shall not be governed by the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods, the application of which is hereby expressly excluded.

WAIVER AND SEVERABILITY OF TERMS: Our failure to exercise or enforce any right or provision of this Agreement shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. If any provision of this Agreement is found by a court of competent jurisdiction to be void, invalid or unenforceable, the parties nevertheless agree that the court should endeavor to give effect to the parties' intentions as reflected in the provision. In such case, the other provisions of this Agreement shall remain in full force and effect.

You certify that You have read and that You agree to be bound by the terms and conditions in this Agreement and our Privacy Policy.


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