Utility Consumers’ Action Network Terms of Use

General Description

Welcome to the Utility Consumers’ Action Network (UCAN) website.  UCAN is a project of the non-profit Utility Consumers' Action Network.  UCAN’s mission is to educate young and emerging artists on the legal uses of content including but not limited to fair use, parody, mash-ups, sampling, and re-mixing and facilitate the creation of new and exciting content that is not currently supported/funded by mainstream business models (the “Services”).  To provide the Services, we have to set out some ground rules in this document (the "Terms").  By accessing, using, or contributing to the Services, and in consideration for the Services we provide to you, you agree to abide by the Terms.

 
UCAN is an information source ONLY to be used at the discretion of the user.  UCAN does not provide or replace individualized legal advice and use of the Services does not create an attorney-client relationship between the user and UCAN.   The Website may include information which is out of date, jurisdiction specific, or applicable only based on a specific set of facts.  If you are in need of legal advice, please contact UCAN directly or seek other individual attorney advice and DO NOT rely on UCAN.  UCAN IS NOT YOUR LAWYER.

Your Acceptance

By using UCAN website (“Website”) you are agreeing to the following terms and conditions.  If you do not agree with a provision DO NOT use the Website. 

UCAN may change the Terms from time to time, at UCAN's sole discretion.  Your continued use of this website following the posting of such changes will constitute your assent to all such changes. Please periodically visit this section of the Website to review the current version of the Terms.

To utilize the Services, or certain portions thereof, you may be required to complete a registration process and establish an account with UCAN ("UCAN Account"). You represent and warrant that all information provided by you to UCAN is current, accurate, and complete, and that you will maintain the accuracy and completeness of this information on a prompt, timely basis.

Limited Liability and Warranty Disclaimer

UCAN WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES OF ANY KIND ARISING FROM THE USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THIS SITE. YOU EXPRESSLY AGREE THAT YOU USE THIS SITE SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHALL UCAN OR ITS SUPPLIERS OR LICENSORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, INDIRECT, ECONOMIC OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, LOSS OF DATA OR LOSS OF USE DAMAGES OR LOST PROFITS) ARISING OUT OF OR CONNECTED WITH THE SITE (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ITS OPERATION, ITS CONTENTS OR THE INFORMATION OR MATERIALS CONTAINED THEREIN, OR THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE ANY OTHER SITE LINKED TO THE SITE, OR ANY CONTENT CONTAINED IN ANY SUCH SITE, OR THESE TERMS, OR THE PRIVACY POLICY APPLICABLE TO THIS SITE) EVEN IF UCAN, ITS SUPPLIERS, OR LICENSORS HAVE BEEN NOTIFIED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF ANY DAMAGES.  BECAUSE SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY FOR CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES, THE ABOVE LIMITATION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU IN SUCH STATES.  THE RESPECTIVE LIABILITY OF UCAN, ITS SUPPLIERS AND LICENSORS SHALL BE LIMITED TO THE GREATEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW.

THIS WEBSITE IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS. UCAN MAKES NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO THE SITE'S OPERATION OR THE INFORMATION, CONTENT OR MATERIALS INCLUDED ON THIS SITE. TO THE FULL EXTENT PERMISSIBLE BY APPLICABLE LAW, UCAN HEREBY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

Code of Conduct

UCAN does not pre-screen or regularly review contributed content, but UCAN reserves the right to delete material and terminate accounts at its discretions with or without notice to the user.  Users shall adhere to the Code of Conduct to avoid such termination. 

Users shall not contribute content containing or involving material that is obscene, defamatory, libelous, unlawful, harassing, abusive, threatening, harmful, vulgar, constitutes an illegal threat, violates export control laws, hate propaganda, fraudulent material or fraudulent activity, invasive of privacy or publicity rights, profane, indecent or otherwise objectionable material of any kind or nature specifically including, but not limited to, posting a photograph of another person without their consent and posting an illegal or unauthorized copy of another person's work.  Additionally, UCAN users are prohibited from posting material that encourages conduct that could constitute a criminal offense, gives rise to civil liability, or holds UCAN or their employees, volunteers, or agents up to public scorn, ridicule, or defamation.  

Privacy Policy

Your relationship with Utility Consumers’ Action Network is your business only.

We do not collect personally identifiable information on our web site or otherwise unless you choose to give it to us when registering, via email, a phone call, or by postal mail. Even when you choose to give us information, we keep it confidential.

We do not sell, rent, share, or otherwise disclose mailing lists or other personally identifiable information. We maintain some records of individuals who contact us in case we contact you later or provide further information to you in the future. However, we do not provide this information to anyone else unless you give us your permission.

On occasion we are asked by the media to provide the names of consumers who are willing to speak out on specific consumer issues. We do not share such names or other identifying information unless you specifically authorize us to do so.

UCAN agrees not to disclose a user’s personal information except in limited circumstances.  UCAN may disclose a user’s personal information when UCAN is subject to valid legal process or as required to provide to provide a user with the services the user requests.  UCAN will disclose information if it is required by law.  UCAN will post changes to their privacy policy 30 days in advance of the changes taking effect.  If a user terminates their account, UCAN will deactivate the specific user account, but UCAN retains the account in order to resolve disputes or enforce agreements. 

As a registered user of UCAN Service, you are solely responsible for maintaining the confidentiality and security of your password(s) and UCAN Account(s).  You understand and agree that you are fully responsible for all actions and postings made from your UCAN Account(s).  Any accounts you create are not transferrable.  You agree to notify UCAN immediately if you become aware of any unauthorized use of your UCAN Account(s).

Community Participation

Browsing

You understand that material made available by UCAN is a product of a community effort and does not necessarily represent the view of UCAN. UCAN assumes no responsibility for the accuracy, suitability, or completeness of any content provided. 

Linking

Please note that the Website may contain links to other third party websites that are not owned or controlled by UCAN.  UCAN has no control over, and assumes no responsibility for, the content, privacy policies, or practices of any third party websites. In addition, UCAN will not and cannot censor or edit the content of any third-party site.  By using the Website, you expressly relieve YouTube from any and all liability arising from your use of any third-party website.

Commenting Guidelines
UCAN strives to facilitate citizen participation in online media and in protecting the free speech on-line.  UCAN hopes to bring a diverse range of perspectives and voices into this site, but we will decline to publish unacceptable content and will remove it if we find it on this site.

Unacceptable content includes, but is not limited to, the following:

• Statements that are intended as a personal attack or are abusive, harassing, or threatening
• Defamatory or knowingly false statements
• Information of a private or personal nature that does not have news value
• Irrelevant statements or SPAM
• Materials that violate the copyright, trademark, or trade secret rights of others that are not otherwise authorized by law, such as fair use

UCAN will determine what is "unacceptable content" on a case-by-case basis.  We reserve the right to change these standards at any time. We also reserve the right to remove links to unacceptable off-site content at any time.

UCAN License

By posting or contributing content using these Services, you are granting UCAN a non-exclusive, royalty-free, perpetual, and worldwide license to use your content in connection with the operation of the Services, including, without limitation, the license rights to copy, distribute, transmit, publicly display, publicly perform, reproduce, edit, translate and reformat your content, and/or to incorporate it into a collective work.

Indemnities

UCAN requires you indemnify them against any liability resulting from your use of their services.  UCAN retains the right to employ UCAN’s own counsel.  You remain solely responsible for UCAN’s defense and must obtain UCAN’s written consent to a settlement.  You agree to notify UCAN of a pending suit claiming you have violated a third party’s intellectual property rights.  UCAN requires that you confirm your indemnification in case of a lawsuit; failure to do so may be considered a breach of your terms of service.  

Trademark and Copyright Infringement Policy

You agree not to infringe copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, or other proprietary rights.  By posting any content, you represent and warrant that you have all right, title, and interest to such posted content, including but not limited to any consent, authorization, release, clearance or license from any third party (such as, but not limited to, any release related to rights of privacy or publicity) necessary for you to provide, post, upload, input or submit the content, and that posting such content does not violate or constitute the infringement of any patent, copyright, trademark, trade secret, right of privacy, right of publicity, moral rights, or other intellectual property right recognized by any applicable jurisdiction of any person or entity, or otherwise constitute the breach of any agreement with any other person or entity. You further represent and warrant that you are who you say you are, that you have not submitted fictitious, false or inaccurate information about yourself, and that all information contained in the posted content is true and your own work or work you are authorized to submit, and that the posted content does not contain any threatening, harassing, libelous, false, defamatory, offensive, obscene, or pornographic, material, or other material that would violate any other applicable law or regulation. You agree that you will not knowingly and with intent to defraud provide material and misleading information. You represent and warrant that the content you supply does not violate the Terms.  UCAN will take down material in response to a notice of copyright infringement and UCAN will take reasonable steps to notify the party whose allegedly-infringing content was taken down, including providing a copy of the complaint.  UCAN may terminate the account of repeat infringers and provides detailed instructions as to how to file a counter-notification.

Copyright Complaints

Notice and Takedown Procedure
It is our policy to expeditiously respond to clear notices of alleged copyright infringement that comply with the United States Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). This page describes the information that should be present in these notices. It is designed to make submitting notices of alleged infringement to the UCAN (the "UCAN") as straightforward as possible while reducing the number of notices that we receive that are fraudulent or difficult to understand or verify. The form of notice specified below is consistent with the form suggested by the DMCA (the text of which can be found at the U.S. Copyright Office Web Site, http://www.copyright.gov), but we will respond to notices of this form from other jurisdictions as well.

It is expected that all users of any part of UCAN site will comply with applicable copyright laws. However, if UCAN receives proper notification of claimed copyright infringement, our response to these notices will include removing or disabling access to material claimed to be the subject of infringing activity and/or terminating subscribers, regardless of whether we may be liable for such infringement under United States law or the laws of another jurisdiction.

If we remove or disable access in response to such a notice, we will make a good-faith attempt to contact the owner or administrator of the affected site or content so that they may make a counter notification pursuant to Sections 512(g)(2) and (3) of the DMCA. We may also document notices of alleged infringement on which we act. 

Designated Agent
UCAN's Designated Agent to receive notification of alleged infringement under the DMCA is:

Art Neill

3100 5^th Ave. Suite B

San Diego, CA 92103

Upon receipt of proper notification of claimed infringement, UCAN will follow the procedures outlined herein and in the DMCA.

Infringement Notification
If you believe that your work has been copied in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, or your intellectual property rights have been otherwise violated, please provide UCAN's Registered Agent (listed above) the following information in a written communication (preferably via email):

1. Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site;
2. Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled, and information reasonably sufficient to permit UCAN to locate the material;
3. Information reasonably sufficient to permit UCAN to contact the complaining party, such as an address, telephone number, and, if available, an email address at which the complaining party may be contacted;
4. The following statement: "I have a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law";
5. The following statement: "I swear, under penalty of perjury, that the information in the notification is accurate, and that I am the copyright owner or am authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed"; and
6. A physical or electronic signature of the owner or a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.

Please note that you may be liable for damages (including costs and attorneys' fees) if you materially misrepresent that material is infringing your copyrights. Accordingly, if you are not sure whether material available online infringes your copyright, we suggest that you first contact an attorney.

Counter Notification
A provider of content subject to a claim of infringement may make a counter notification pursuant to sections 512(g)(2) and (3) of the DMCA. To file a counter notification with us, please provide UCAN's Registered Agent (listed above) the following information in a written communication (preferably via email):

1. Identification of the material that has been removed or to which access has been disabled and the location at which the material appeared before it was removed or access to it was disabled;
2. Your name, address, and telephone number;
3. The following statement: "I consent to the jurisdiction of Federal District Court for the [insert the federal judicial district in which your address is located]";
4. The following statement: "I will accept service of process from [insert the name of the person who submitted the infringement notification] or his/her agent";
5. The following statement: "I swear, under penalty of perjury, that I have a good faith belief that the affected material was removed or disabled as a result of a mistake or misidentification of the material to be removed or disabled"; and
6. Your signature, in physical or electronic form.

Upon receipt of such counter notification, UCAN will promptly provide the person who provided the original infringement notification with a copy of the counter notification, and inform that person that UCAN will replace the removed material or cease disabling access to it in 10 business days. UCAN will replace the removed material and cease disabling access to it not less than 10, nor more than 14, business days following receipt of the counter notice, unless our Designated Agent first receives notice from the person who submitted the original infringement notification that such person has filed an action seeking a court order to restrain the subscriber from engaging in infringing activity relating to the material on our system or network.

Repeat Infringers
In accordance with Section 512(i)(1)(a) of the DMCA, UCAN will, in appropriate circumstances, disable and/or terminate the accounts of users who are repeat infringers. 

Accommodation of Standard Technical Measures
It is UCAN's policy to accommodate and not interfere with standard technical measures used by copyright owners to identify or protect copyrighted works that UCAN determines are reasonable under the circumstances.

Governing Law

This agreement is governed by California law and any action arising from the agreement will be brought in San Diego County.  UCAN requires that you waive your right to trial by jury.

No Waiver of Terms
UCAN’s failure to exercise or enforce any right or provision of these Terms shall not be deemed a waiver of such right or provision in that or any other instance.

Entire Agreement
The Terms constitute the entire agreement between the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersedes and replaces all prior or contemporaneous understandings or agreements, written or oral, regarding such subject matter. If for any reason a court of competent jurisdiction finds any provision or portion of these Terms to be unenforceable, the remainder of the Terms will continue in full force and effect.