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Alumnifire Terms of Service

October 17, 2018

Summary

Welcome! You've discovered Alumnifire and our Terms of Service. It's our contract with you describing the rules for using Alumnifire. While you may want to skip over some of this (admittedly, it's dry reading), we do our best to keep things succinct and use plain English. Please read the Terms carefully and completely as it'll help you understand what's important to us and make you more comfortable using Alumnifire.

This Summary of the Terms summarizes some of its provisions to make it easier to digest, but the Summary itself is not technically part of the Terms, nor does it limit the scope of the Terms in any way. While you hopefully find it helpful, reading the Summary doesn't count as reading the Terms in full. Okay, disclaimer over.

Below is a brief overview of what you can expect to find in the Terms. Think of this as the Cliffs Notes covering some of the important concepts. It's not all-inclusive and won't get you an A on the test (did we mention there's a test?), but it's a useful reference to guide your reading or help you recall certain parts.

1. The Basics

The "Basics" section includes the general acceptance provision, some key words used throughout the Terms, and a provision for how we'll communicate with you when we modify the Terms. A couple of important concepts to watch out for as you read section 1: with most online services, ours included, you tacitly agree to the Terms by using the Service; and, also like many other online services, we are growing and changing rapidly and need to update our Terms from time to time as a result. If you keep using the Service after an update, you're agreeing to the new Terms.

2. The Service

Section 2 offers more detail about how the Service actually works. There is information about how to create accounts and the confidentiality of what you do on the Service. In section 2, we also describe our Service as a "venue." In other words, you'll be interacting with other users and we won't be watching all the time. You should recognize that other users of the Service are, in most cases, not Alumnifire employees. While we work very hard to make Alumnifire a place for trust and reliability, you should use good judgment when interacting with other users because, ultimately, you're at your own risk. There may be places on the Site or App where we provide guidelines to help you to protect yourself, but those never absolve you of taking responsibility for your use of the Service.

3. Financial Terms

While we don't do it now, the Service may at some point allow you to offer products or services for pay, so we need a section to describe how the transactions within the Service are handled. One specific point to keep in mind is that what you do on the Service may have Tax implications for you personally. We can't really help you figure that stuff out, so you'll need to seek whatever Tax counsel you normally do if you plan to be making money on the Service.

4. User Policies

Our user policies describe who can use the Service, how they are expected to use it, and a few things about how we think about their responsibility and ours for what goes on. To use the Service, you need to be 13 and legally capable of signing a contract. You also need to make sure that agreeing to our Terms and using the Service doesn't break any laws or rules that you need to be following. When you use the Service, you're responsible for your actions. You can't use the Service to break the law, steal things, or deceive people. We aren't endorsing or verifying anyone on the Service, so use good judgment. There's a lot of "Golden Rule" and "be smart" stuff captured in section 4.

5. Licenses and Ownership

Section 5 covers some intellectual property concepts, as they relate to software that we create and Content that both we and users create. This section establishes what we're all allowed to do with that intellectual property. A specific provision to think about is the rights that you give Alumnifire when you upload Content to our Service. We need to capture a lot of rights to what you upload so that we can safely provide the Service, and we list those rights in section 5.

6. General Provisions

The last section, 6, captures a number of different legal concepts that can really be best described as "miscellaneous." Running a company and operating a Service is a complex business, and there are lots of statements we need to make to protect ourselves for every potential eventuality. In section 6, you'll find a number of additional waivers and protections for all kinds of things, particularly around damages resulting from use of the Service, and some ground rules like the governing law for the contract, the dispute resolution process, and what happens if anyone breaks the contract. These provisions are more broadly legal in nature and will have less information specific to the way our Service operates.

Okay, now now that you've got a few things in mind to watch out for, on with the show! The complete Terms follow.

1. The Basics

1.1 Accepting the Terms

While you're likely reading this on the Alumnifire website or mobile application, we think of Alumnifire as offering a "Service" and we'll refer collectively to the various form factors, products, and services that comprise the offering as such throughout the Terms. Individually, the Service consists of the "Site," which can be accessed at alumnifire.com or other websites on which we may make the Service available and the "App," which describes any and all applications for mobile devices, tablets, and desktops on which the Service is available. Thematically, the Service is an online venue that connects "Alumni", or graduates of an insitution (usually of higher learning) with one another to share advice, jobs, and mentorship. The Service is owned and operated by Alumnifire, Inc., which we may refer to as "Alumnifire," "we," "us," or "our" for brevity.

When you use the Service, even if you decide not to become a registered user, you agree to several things: (i) You'll comply with and be legally bound by these Terms of Service (we'll just call them "Terms" to keep things easy), the Privacy Policy incorporated here by reference, and any rules, policies, or disclaimers posted on the Service about which you are notified. Collectively, those things make up the "Agreement," (ii) You acknowledge that you are accepting a benefit that cannot be disgorged, (iii) You acknowledge that the service is subject to U.S. export controls and that you will comply with them, and (iv) You are neither located in a sanctioned country nor a prohibited person. The Agreement governs your access to and use of the Service and all Collective Content (see the "Key Words" in section 1.2 if you see capitalized words and aren't sure what they mean) and constitutes a binding legal agreement between you and Alumnifire.

We ask that you to read carefully both the Terms here and our Privacy Policy at alumnifire.com/privacy. If you do not accept the Agreement, that's okay, but you can't use the Service.

As a user you may interact with other users on the service (in fact, you're pretty likely to, as that's kind of the point of the Service), but in doing so you must recognize that Alumnifire is not party to any agreements you make with other users. We don't control users' conduct on the Service or any information provided in connection thereto, so to protect ourselves we must disclaim liability in this regard.

1.2 Key words

We use this list of key words to keep track of words and phrases we repeat over and over again throughout the Agreement. You'll recognize key words when you see them because they'll always be capitalized. You can refer here for clarification on what they mean. Additionally, when we use "you" and "your" we're referring to both the specific reader of these Terms, either an individual or entity that uses the Service, as well as all users in general. If you accept the Agreement on behalf of a company or other legal entity, you represent and warrant that you have the authority to do that.

"AAA" refers to the American Arbitration Association.

"AAA Rules" refers to the Commercial Arbitration Rules and the Supplementary Procedures for Consumer Related Disputes.

"Agreement" refers collectively to the Terms, Privacy Policy, and any other rules, policies, or disclaimers posted on the Service.

"App" refers to any and all native mobile, tablet, or desktop applications of the Service.

"Collective Content" means both Member Content and Alumnifire Content.

"Content" covers any text, graphics, images, music, software (excluding the Site or App software), audio, video, data, information or other materials users encounter on the Service.

"Dispute" describes any claim or controversy arising from or relating to this Agreement, the breach, termination, enforcement, interpretation or validity thereof, or your use of the Service.

"Exchange" describes the information exchange or other transactional interactions between Members facilitated by the Service.

"Exchange Fee" refers to any applicable transaction charge paid in consideration of the advice and information provided as part of an Exchange. An exchange may not (and often does not) have an associated Exchange Fee.

"Feedback" refers to feedback, comments and suggestions for improvements to the Service.

"Member" means a person who completes Alumnifire's account registration process as described under "User Account Registration" below.

"Member Content" covers all Content created by a Member on the Service.

"Alumnifire" refers to both the product at www.alumnifire.com and Alumnifire, Inc., the owner of the Service.

"Alumnifire Account" refers to the account profile completed by Members during account registration.

"Alumnifire Content" covers all Content that Alumnifire makes available through the Service including any Content licensed from a third party, but excluding Member Content.

"Service" describes the various form factors, products, and services that comprise the Alumnifire offering.

"Service Fee" refers to the percentage of any Exchange Fees collected by Alumnifire in consideration of the Service.

"Settings" refers to parameters and preferences associated with an Alumnifire Account that Members can change to modify their experience on the Service.

"Site" refers to any and all web-based applications of the Service, including Alumnifire and any other website on which we make the Service available.

"SN" refers to third party social networking sites. For some SNs, you may use your credentials with that site to create a Alumnifire Account.

"SN Account" means a user's credentials with a third party SN that the user has linked to a Alumnifire Account.

"SN Content" refers to Content associated with a user's SN Account that is accessed, stored, and/or made available on the Service. This Content can include but is not limited to a user's name, location, biographical details, and images associated with their SN Account.

"Tax" or "Taxes" mean any sales taxes, value added taxes (VAT), goods and services taxes (GST) and other similar municipal, provincial, state and federal indirect or other withholding and personal or corporate income taxes.

"Terms" is shorthand for these Terms of Service.

1.3 Communicating with us digitally

When you visit the Site or App or send us e-mails, you are communicating with Alumnifire digitally. By doing this, you're agreeing to receive communications from us digitally, and those communications satisfy any requirement to deliver those communications in writing. It's a bit easier than writing a letter these days, and we like to save paper. When we need to tell you something, we'll either send you an e-mail or post notices on the Site or App. If you register for an account on Alumnifire, you agree to keep your email associated with the Alumnifire Account current.

1.4 Modifying this Agreement

Alumnifire is a young and growing company, and as such we may need to update this Agreement (including the Privacy Policy) from time to time. When we do this, we promise not to keep it a secret. We'll post the modified Terms and/or Privacy Policy to the Site and App and update the effective date listed at the top. Once that happens, the new Agreement goes into effect immediately, and if you continue using the Service we'll take that to mean your acceptance of the new Agreement.

2. The Service

2.1 Alumnifire is a venue

Alumnifire is a venue. What we mean by this is that while we provide the offerings defined by the Service, it's Members of the Service, not Alumnifire, who create and provide Member Content, which is the substance of Exchanges. Examples of the types of offerings Alumnifire contributes are 1) connecting Members to exchange information, 2) scheduling Exchanges, 3) providing email notification of updates associated with an Exchange, 4) hosting Collective Content, 5) integrating with payment collection and distribution services, and 6) otherwise facilitating Exchanges. Alumnifire is not a party to Exchanges or any other conversations between Members.

Alumnifire is not required to verify the credentials of or information provided by any of its Members, but, because we're nice people, we strive to ensure the validity of Members on the Service so you can feel good about using it. Keep in mind, Members are not employees or agents of Alumnifire. Being a venue means that Alumnifire is not responsible for Member Content, any other Content or information provided as part of an Exchange or any other communication or agreements between Members, or liable for any loss or damage created as a result of your reliance on information provided by Members or contained in Member Content.

What we're saying is that you use the Service and any information you get access to as a result at your own risk.

Let us get one more disclaimer out of the way. Information and Content you access via the Service is for general information purposes only. It should not be considered a substitute for an in-person visit, evaluation, or professional service. You may want to review laws, regulations, standards, practices and procedures that apply to your particular situation as they may differ depending on your location and specifics. Additionally, Members may represent certain licenses, certifications, employment, or education credentials. While we ask all Members to represent themselves as accurately as possible, their profile on Alumnifire should not be construed as validation of their credentials by Alumnifire. Bottom line, don't believe what a Member says just because they are listed on the Service, you'll need to make that judgment yourself.

At the risk of sounding repetitive (we repeat this concept because it's that important), we reiterate that the Service is a venue intended to facilitate Member interaction. Alumnifire cannot and does not edit, modify, filter, screen, monitor, control or guarantee any Member Content or information exchanged between Members via the Service. Alumnifire is not responsible for and disclaims any and all liability related to Member Content and information provided under the Service. Accordingly, Members use the service at their own risk.

2.2 Your communications are not confidential

We promise to be clear with you and tell you how you can expect your information to be used when using the Service. We've even got a great Privacy Policy that describes how we think about your information and privacy. You should read it. However, it's important that we call out specifically here in the Terms that your communications and Content on the Service are not confidential and shall not be the subject of any privileges. For example, your communications and Content on the Service are not subject to doctor-patient privilege, attorney-client privilege, or any other privilege. Communications on Alumnifire are limited as described in these Terms, do not involve in-person evaluations or visits, and and as such do not include safeguards and procedures typical of in-person evaluations and visits. Additionally, your communications and Content may be indexed by search engines or otherwise publicly exposed.

2.3 Registering for an account on the Service

If you visit the Site or App without registering for the Service, you'll be able to see limited Content; however, to use the full functionality of the Service including, but not limited to, creating an Exchange, you'll first need an Alumnifire Account. You may register directly via the Site or App or as described in this section.

Third Party Registration: Many online services allow you to register for an account using third party social networking service credentials because it is faster and easier than creating an account manually. We too allow you to register for a Alumnifire Account in this way via our Site or App, but there are a number of conditions you should keep in mind when you decide to create a Alumnifire Account. As we describe those conditions below, we'll use the shorthand "SN" to refer to these sites individually or collectively as a group and "SN Account" to refer to your credentials with a third party SN. These social networks can be services like LinkedIn or Facebook, but we may add others or remove them as registration options from time to time.

In order either to create a Alumnifire Account using your credentials with a SN Account or to link your Alumnifire Account and a SN Account, you'll need to provide the Service with those credentials or other access to that account. By doing so, you're (i) representing that you are legally entitled to provide those credentials or that access to the Service and (ii) granting the Service access to that SN Account, and (iii) representing that these actions on your part do not violate any of the terms and conditions that govern your use of that SN Account with the relevant SN. Effectively, you are agreeing that Alumnifire is not responsible for any fees, usage limitations, or other ramifications that may be imposed by the third party SN when you connect a SN Account on the Service.

When you grant us access to SN Accounts, recognize that you are also granting us additional rights to Content associated with those SN Accounts ("SN Content"). SN Content can and typically does include your user name, full name, location, email address, profile image, and friends or connections on that SN, but it can also include other Content. We will access, store, and make available SN Content via your Alumnifire Account. All SN Content is considered Member Content for purposes of these Terms. Depending on the SN Accounts you choose, you may be able to control our access to certain types of SN Content and personal information through that third party SN's privacy settings. You may also disable the connection between your Alumnifire Account and your SN Accounts by updating your Alumnifire Account "Settings."

Keep in mind that your relationship with the third party SN associated with your SN Accounts is governed solely by your agreement(s) with that SN.

We will create your Alumnifire Account and your profile page for your use of the Service based upon the personal information you provide to us or that we obtain via a third party SN as described above. No user may have more than one (1) active Alumnifire Account. You agree to provide accurate and complete information during the registration process and to keep such information current. If you violate these terms, we may suspend or terminate your Alumnifire Account and access to the Service. You are responsible for safeguarding your password. You agree not to disclose your password to any third party except in accordance with these Terms and to take sole responsibility for any activities or actions under your Alumnifire Account, regardless of whether you have authorized such activities or actions. If you detect unauthorized use of your Alumnifire Account, notify us immediately.

2.4 Offering paid products and services

As of the date on these Terms, we do not support the ability to offer paid products and services as a Member of the Service. However, we may in the future, and these are the rules and expectations for such a feature. To offer such paid options, you'll need to submit additional personal information not required for an Alumnifire account. This required personal information may include details of your expertise or products, pricing and other financial terms applicable to your offering, and additional images. Such information may be made available to both Members and non-Member users through the Service. Alumnifire collects such information through a form on the Site or App, but completing this form does not guarantee the approval and publication of your offerings. We may ask you to edit or modify such information before approving and posting it to the Service to comply with Alumnifire guidelines or for any other reason. We also reserve the right to reject and prevent publication of such offerings outright, with or without explanation. You agree that you have no legal remedy that would compel Alumnifire to publish such offerings. If you find these conditions a bit strict, recognize that they exist to protect the quality of the Service, Members on the Service, and your experiences and interactions with both.

If you decide to offer products or services through the Sevice, you agree that you cannot alter the price or financial terms of an Exchange after a Member has requested the Exchange.

Any additional Content supplied as a result of creating a product or service offering shall be considered Member Content for purposes of these Terms. More specifically, you are solely responsible for such Content. Depending on your profession and situation, you may be subject to additional laws, rules, or regulations. You also agree that you alone are responsible for ensuring that your use of the Service and any agreements you may enter into with other Members as a result of your use of the Service comply with applicable laws, rules and regulations, Tax requirements, and any other agreements you may have with third parties.

Alumnifire may at any time and without prior notice remove or disable any paid product or service offerings for any reason. Reasons for removal may include, but are not limited to, Content considered objectionable by Alumnifire at our sole discretion, Content or actions that violate these Terms, or Content or actions that otherwise may harm the Service.

2.5 Addendum for Members bound by NCAA rules

Many communities on the Service are also member organizations of the National Collegiate Athletic Association ("NCAA"), and thus bound to their rules. You agree that, should such rules apply to you, you will not violate them while using the Service.

NCAA rules regulate contact between representative of athletics interests (collectively, "boosters" and individually a "booster") and current student-athletes as well as their families and friends. A booster is defined as an individual or organization who:

Has participated in or is a member of an agency or organization as described that promotes an intercollegiate athletics program;
Has made financial contributions to an athletics department or to an athletics booster organization;
Has been requested by an athletics department staff to assist in the recruitment of prospective student-athletes or is assisting in the recruitment of prospective student-athletes;
Has assisted or is assisting in providing benefits to enrolled student-athletes; or
Is otherwise involved in promoting an intercollegiate athletics program.

In general, a booster may not provide anything or make special arrangements for student-athletes, or their friends or families, that are not available to the general student population.

Boosters are prohibited from the following:

Providing direct or indirect academic assistance;
Providing room and/or board or transportation for a student-athlete with eligibility remaining,
Entertaining student-athletes or their friends or relatives other than an occasional home meal preapproved by an athletics compliance office,
Using the name or picture of a current student-athlete to promote a commercial product or service,
Providing the use of an automobile to a student-athlete for any purpose,
Providing an award or gift to a student-athlete
Purchasing complimentary admissions from a current student-athlete, or provide an honorarium for a speaking engagement.

It is permissible for alumni and boosters to employ current student-athletes. Compensation must be based on work actually performed and at a rate commensurate with the going rate in the locality for services of like character. Earnings may not be based on the publicity, reputation, or notoriety generated from the student-athlete’s athletics ability.

Please note the following restrictions regarding the employment of student-athletes:

Employers may not advertise a student-athlete’s employment to generate extra business, nor may they use a student-athlete’s name or picture to advertise, promote, or recommend the sale or use of any commercial product or service.
A student-athlete cannot endorse a company or employer through public advertising mediums.
Student-athletes cannot be provided with any benefits not provided to other employees. This includes the use of vehicles, transportation to or from work, meals, loans, advances, or time off with pay.
Any employment arrangement must be approved by an athletics compliance office.
A timecard must be kept for all student-athletes you employ.
Student-athletes may not be paid using cash; check and direct deposit are acceptable forms of payment.

3. Financial Terms

3.1 Offering paid products and services

When another Member wants to purchase an offering from you via the Service, we will share with you the username of the Member and the details of his or her request. Such notification may come via email, text message, Tweet, or App notification.

For simplicity, we'll refer to the amount a Member must pay associated with an Exchange as the "Exchange Fee." Exchange Fees may be set by Alumnifire or directly by the provider of an offering, and are listed on the Service in U.S. dollars. Where applicable, Members that offer services on the Service that are compensated on a per minute or per hour rate will list an "Exchange Fee Rate" for those services. For such services, the amount of time associated with the Exchange multiplied by the Exchange Fee Rate equals the Exchange Fee. That's the most math you'll need to do when reading through the Terms.

Also associated with an Exchange is the "Service Fee" collected by Alumnifire in consideration of the Service. The Service Fee is calculated based on a percentage of Exchange Fees collected on your behalf, and listed directly on the Service. When you complete an Exchange, we calculate the Exchange Fee and Service Fee, collect the Exchange Fee, deduct the applicable Service Fee, and remit the balance of the Exchange Fee to you via a third party payments provider, ACH transfer (automated clearing house) or such other payment methods as may be listed on the Site or via the App, in U.S. dollars. Except as otherwise provided herein, Service Fees are non-refundable.

3.2 Purchasing paid products and services

When you purchase an offering from another Member, recognize that you are agreeing to the financial terms described in this section 3.2. In addition to these Terms there will be terms, conditions, rules and restrictions associated with the individual offering and resulting transaction between you and the other Member. Often these terms will include the pricing terms of the Exchange, but they may also include other terms. You, not Alumnifire, are responsible for performing the obligations of any such agreements. Alumnifire is not a party to such agreements and disclaims all liability arising from or related to any such agreements.

When making a purchase, you agree to pay Alumnifire all applicable Exchange Fees. In order to create an Exchange, we may need to either pre-authorize your credit card to ensure your ability to pay or charge the full amount of the Exchange Fee and place the proceeds into an escrow account maintained by our payments provider. You understand and agree that Alumnifire reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to either obtain a pre-authorization of your credit card, charge your credit card a nominal amount, not to exceed one U.S. dollar ($1) in order to prove your ability to pay, or charge your credit card the full amount of the Exchange Fee and place the proceeds in an escrow account as described above. Once you and the other Member complete an Exchange, Alumnifire will either process and collect the Exchange Fees payable or distribute the appropriate proceeds from the escrow account in accordance with these Terms and the terms of the offering. You should also keep in mind that your bank or credit card provider may collect additional fees for different types of charges, debits, or deposits to your account. We cannot control these types fees if they are charged related to our collection of the Exchange Fees, and Alumnifire disclaims all liability in this regard.

In order to charge you, we or our third party payments processor will ask you to provide customary billing information such as name, billing address and credit card information. You agree to pay Alumnifire for any completed Exchanges in accordance with these Terms by one of the methods described on the Site or App,. You hereby authorize the collection of such amounts by charging the credit card provided as part of requesting the Exchange, either directly by Alumnifire or indirectly, via a third party payment processor or by one of the payment methods described on the Site or App. If you are directed to Alumnifire's third party payment processor, you may be subject to terms and conditions governing use of that third party's service and that third party's personal information collection practices, and you will want to review those terms before you use their services. We will provide you a transaction history for completed Exchanges either via email notification or a private dashboard on the Site or App.

3.3 Requesting a refund

Once you've selected and paid for a service or product offering, there may be rare cases in which the Member offering the product or Service clearly does not fulfill his or her obligations as a seller. In such cases, such as an unresponsive seller, you are entitled to a full refund. In cases that aren't as clear (i.e. the selling Member made reasonable effort to fulfill his or her obligations but you aren't happy with the result), we will work with you to find an equitable resolution, but do not guarantee a refund. Any refunds we do offer in such circumstances do not set a precedent for similar situations in the future.

Under any circumstance, though, your satisfaction is our utmost priority and we may offer additional services as an alternative to a refund including, but not limited to, Alumnifire Content or the ability to transfer the Exchange to another Member on the Service. We may offer a reduced Exchange Fee, and specific terms would be listed in communication you receive from us in such cases.

Finally, we may, from time to time, offer refunds, deals, rebates or other reductions to the Exchange Fee for specific Members or Exchanges. It's because we like you. When we make these offers, they will contain their own terms, are specific to the individual or situation defined in those terms, and do not limit or define any section of this Agreement.

In cases where you would like to request a refund, you must do it within thirty (30) days. Otherwise, you agree that Alumnifire may retain your payment in consideration of access to the Service.

If you believe you have been improperly charged and require a refund, please contact us at feedback@alumnifire.com.

3.4 Tax responsibility

When money changes hands, rest assured that Uncle Sam will want his cut. By using the Service, you may create additional Tax reporting needs on yourself. Such needs are for you and your tax advisors to determine, and you recognize and agree that such needs are your responsibility alone. We cannot and do not offer Tax-related advice or reporting to any Members of the Service.

4. User Policies

4.1 You must be 13 to enter

Alumnifire is intended for teens and adults age 13 or older. If you're younger than 13, you'll have to wait until you are 13 to use the Service. Life is like that. By continuing to access and use the Service you represent and warrant that you are 13 or older and able to form legally binding contracts, and that your use of the Service and acceptance of these Terms do not violate any applicable laws, rules, regulations, Tax requirements, or agreements with third parties that bind you. Additionally, if you are younger than 18, you'll need parental consent in order to upload your personal information and agree to the Terms and Privacy Policy. You cannot use the Service without such consent.

4.2 Alumnifire doesn't endorse users or third parties

We're all adults here (or at least operating with adult supervision, anyway -- if not you should re-read section 4.1), and as such we expect Members and users to use good judgment and take responsibility for their own actions. Alumnifire does not endorse any of its Members. While Members are required to provide accurate information, we do not confirm any Member's identity or credentials. You are responsible for determining the suitability of others who you contact via the Service.

We do not guarantee that you will receive a response from another Member, or that you will be satisfied with Exchanges or Member Content. You can read our refund policies in section 3.3. You must evaluate on your own any Member Content you consume for accuracy, quality, and usefulness. Making use of information contained in Member Content outside the Service is done at your own risk. If you believe you have a claim as a result of your interaction with other Members or third parties on the Service, you agree to seek any legal or other remedy solely from the third party that caused you harm and not Alumnifire.

From time to time, we may offer you products and services from third parties. If we do we may include their information, logos, links, or names on the Site or App. Doing so is not an endorsement of any such third party, its products, or its services. You're on your own and must determine its suitability independently if you decide to utilize its products or services.

4.3 Terminating and deactivating this Agreement and your account

We may, in our discretion and without liability to you, with or without cause, with or without prior notice and at any time: (a) terminate these Terms or your access to our Service, and (b) deactivate or cancel your Alumnifire Account. If this were to happen, we would promptly pay you any amounts we owe you, as we reasonably determine in our discretion or which we are legally obligated to pay you. Likewise, you would remain liable for all amounts you owe to Alumnifire hereunder.

You may cancel your Alumnifire Account at any time by contacting Alumnifire at feedback@alumnifire.com. We will typically complete a cancellation within seven (7) business days after our receipt of your notice. Keep in mind that if your Alumnifire Account is cancelled, we are not obligated to delete or return to you any Content you have posted to the Service, including, but not limited to, any reviews or Feedback.

4.4 How you're expected to conduct yourself on the Service

Alumnifire can't possibly know the situation of every single user of the Service, and as such we can't guarantee that your use of the Service won't violate laws, rules, regulations, Tax obligations, or contracts that apply to you. So be careful, because by using the Service you take responsibility to ensure your compliance with applicable requirements.

Furthermore, there are a number of different types of use of the Service that are prohibited. Collectively, you might summarize these rules as "don't break the law," "don't steal," and "be honest". However, we've bulleted out the specifics below to cover all the bases.

When using our Service, you recognize that it is prohibited to, and you agree that you will not:

break the law, or, more specifically, violate any local, state, provincial, national, or other law or regulation, or any order of a court, including, without limitation, zoning restrictions and Tax regulations;
use the Service for any commercial or other purposes that are not expressly permitted by these Terms or copy, store or otherwise access any information contained on the Service or Content for purposes not expressly permitted by these Terms;
use manual or automated software, devices, scripts robots, or other means or processes to access, "scrape", "crawl" or "spider" any web pages or other services contained in the Service;
systematically retrieve data or other Content from our Service to create or compile, directly or indirectly, in single or multiple downloads, a collection, compilation, database, directory or the like, whether by manual methods, through the use of bots, crawlers, or spiders, or otherwise;
use automated scripts to collect information or otherwise interact with the Service;
attack the Service, or otherwise interfere with or damage our Service, including, without limitation, through the use of viruses, cancel bots, Trojan horses, harmful code, flood pings, denial-of-service attacks, packet or IP spoofing, forged routing or electronic mail address information or similar methods or technology;
infringe the rights of any person or entity, including without limitation, its intellectual property, privacy, publicity or contractual rights;
use our Service to distribute unsolicited commercial email ("spam") or advertise services unrelated to information and expertise, except as expressly allowed by these Terms;
use our Service to transmit, distribute, post or submit any information concerning any other person or entity, including without limitation, photographs of others without their permission, personal contact information or credit, debit, calling card or account numbers;
register for more than one Alumnifire Account or register for a Alumnifire Account on behalf of an individual other than yourself;
impersonate any person or entity, or falsify or otherwise misrepresent yourself or your affiliation with any person or entity;
"stalk" or harass any other user of our Service or collect or store any personally identifiable information about any other user other than for purposes of transacting as a Member;
recruit or otherwise solicit any other Member to join third party services that are competitive to Alumnifire, without Alumnifire's prior written approval;
contact a Member for any purpose other than the purposes explicitly provided in the Terms;
circumvent the obligation to pay any fees related to Alumnifire's provision of the Service by creating an Exchange outside the Service;
attempt to publish an offering with false or misleading information, or with a price you do not intend to honor;
post, upload, publish, submit or transmit any Content that: (i) infringes, misappropriates or violates a third party's patent, copyright, trademark, trade secret, moral rights or other intellectual property rights, or rights of publicity or privacy; (ii) violates, or encourages any conduct that would violate, any applicable law or regulation or would give rise to civil liability; (iii) is fraudulent, false, misleading or deceptive; (iv) is defamatory, obscene, pornographic, vulgar or offensive; (v) promotes discrimination, bigotry, racism, hatred, harassment or harm against any individual or group; (vi) is violent or threatening or promotes violence or actions that are threatening to any other person; or (vii) promotes illegal or harmful activities or substances;
use, display, mirror or frame the Site or App, or any individual element within the Service, Alumnifire's name, any Alumnifire trademark, logo or other proprietary information, or the layout and design of any page or form contained on a page, without Alumnifire's express written consent;
access, tamper with, or use non-public areas of the Site or App, Alumnifire's computer systems, or the technical delivery systems of Alumnifire's service providers;
attempt to probe, scan, or test the vulnerability of any Alumnifire system or network or breach any security or authentication measures;
avoid, bypass, remove, deactivate, impair, descramble, or otherwise circumvent any technological measure implemented by Alumnifire or any of Alumnifire's providers or any other third party (including another user) to protect the Service or Collective Content;
forge any TCP/IP packet header or any part of the header information in any email or newsgroup posting, or in any way use the Service or Collective Content to send altered, deceptive or false source-identifying information;
attempt to decipher, decompile, disassemble or reverse engineer any of the software used to provide the Service or Collective Content; or
advocate, encourage, or assist any third party in doing any of the foregoing.

We do take violations of the above rules seriously, and may prosecute violators to the fullest extent allowed by law. If we need to involve law enforcement, we will.

Alumnifire may, but has no obligation to, monitor your access or use of the Service or Collective Content or review or edit any Member Content. Alumnifire may, at any time and without prior notice, remove or disable access to any Collective Content that Alumnifire, at its sole discretion, considers to be objectionable for any reason, in violation of these Terms or otherwise harmful to the Service, or just plain disgusting.

5. Licenses and Ownership

5.1 License to use the App

Assuming you comply with the Agreement, Alumnifire grants you a non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable limited license to access and use the App using a mobile or desktop device solely for your own personal use. You agree you won't use the App for any other purpose and that you have no additional rights in the App other than those defined explicitly here in section 5.1.

5.2 License to access and view Content

Assuming you comply with the Agreement, Alumnifire grants you a non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable limited license, to (i) access and view any Alumnifire Content solely for your own personal and non-commercial use and (ii) access and view any Member Content to which you are permitted access, solely for your own personal and non-commercial use. You agree that you won't use Alumnifire Content or Member Content for any other purpose and that you have no additional rights in Alumnifire Content or Member Content than those defined explicitly here in section 5.2.

Additionally, don't plagiarize. You agree not to use, copy, adapt, modify, prepare derivative works based upon, distribute, license, sell, transfer, publicly display, publicly perform, transmit, broadcast or otherwise exploit the Service or Collective Content, except as expressly permitted in these Terms.

5.3 Content that you create

Alumnifire is designed to allow you to post, upload, publish, submit or transmit Member Content. When you do so, you own that Content, but you also grant Alumnifire a worldwide, irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, transferable, royalty-free license, with the right to sublicense, to use, view, copy, adapt, modify, distribute, transfer, publicly display, publicly perform, transmit, stream, broadcast, access, view, and otherwise exploit such Member Content on, through, or by means of the Service. Nothing in these Terms will be deemed to restrict any rights that you may have to use and exploit any such Member Content.

You are also responsible for any Member Content that you create or publish on the Service. Thus, when adding that Content to the Service, you're telling us that you have the legal right to do so. More specifically, you represent and warrant that: (i) you either are the sole and exclusive owner of all Member Content that you make available through the Service or you have all rights, licenses, consents and releases that are necessary to grant Alumnifire the rights in such Member Content, as contemplated under these Terms; and (ii) neither the Member Content nor your posting, uploading, publication, submission or transmittal of the Member Content or Alumnifire's use of the Member Content (or any portion thereof) on, through or by means of the Service will infringe, misappropriate or violate 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.

5.4 Even more about licenses

Section 5 describes all applicable licenses granted to you as a Terms-abiding user of our Service. No licenses or rights other than those explicitly defined in this section 5 are granted to you by implication or otherwise under any intellectual property rights owned or controlled by Alumnifire or its licensors.

5.5 We own the Service

The Service and Collective Content are protected by copyright, trademark, and other laws of the United States and foreign countries. Accepting the Terms means you and agree that the Service and Collective Content, including all associated intellectual property rights is the exclusive property of Alumnifire and its licensors. You will not remove, alter or obscure any copyright, trademark, service mark or other proprietary rights notices incorporated in or accompanying the Service or Collective Content. That would just be mean.

6. General Provisions

6.1 Privacy Policy

You can find Alumnifire's Privacy Policy at www.alumnifire.com/privacy for information and notices concerning Alumnifire's collection and use of your personal information.

6.2 Links to other sites and services

You may find links to third-party websites or resources on the Service or as part of Collective Content. Alumnifire, of course, doesn't control the internet, so you'll understand that we are not responsible or liable for: (i) the availability or accuracy of such websites or resources; or (ii) the content, products, or services on or available from such websites or resources. And you'll remember our endorsement policy from section 4.2. Links on our Service to third party websites or resources do not constitute our endorsement of them or their content, products, or services. Consequently, you're at your own risk if you utilize any of the offerings of such third parties.

6.3 Notice about proprietary rights and trademarks

Any trademarks, service marks, logos, trade names and other proprietary designations of Alumnifire that you see here in the Terms are trademarks or registered trademarks of Alumnifire. Any other trademarks, service marks, logos, trade names and other proprietary designations of others that you see in other places on the Site or App are their trademarks or registered trademarks.

6.4 Infringing copyright

Alumnifire respects copyright law and expects its users to do the same. We're a respectful bunch. It is Alumnifire's policy to terminate in appropriate circumstances the Alumnifire Accounts of Members who infringe or are believed to be infringing the rights of copyright holders.

6.5 Disclaimers galore

And you thought we had disclaimed and waived liability for everything we possibly could at this point. Joking aside, we include this section to protect our business, and it's important for you as a user to know where we consider the line of what we're responsible for and what you and other users are. This section helps define that line.

If you use the service, you do it at your own risk. By doing so you are agreeing to several things regarding our Service as follows (we use bold font here to make this section stand out). As you read this, if you aren't a lawyer, you may be confused by the term "warranty." A plain English translation for this is roughly "guarantee," "promise" or "commitment," so when we say that we "disclaim any warranty" regarding something that means we aren't promising that the Service will offer whatever comes next. We provide this translation to help you read the Terms more easily, but it does not limit the legal definition of "warranty" with respect to this Agreement in any way.

Alumnifire has no obligation to conduct background checks on any Member.
The Service and Collective Content are provided "as is," without warranty of any kind, either express or implied.
Without limiting the foregoing, Alumnifire explicitly disclaims any warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, quiet enjoyment or non-infringement, and any warranties arising out of course of dealing or usage of trade.
Alumnifire makes no warranty that the Service or Collective Content will meet your requirements or be available on an uninterrupted, secure, or error-free basis.
Alumnifire makes no warranty regarding the quality of any offerings, the Service, Collective Content or any information provided via Exchanges, or the accuracy, timeliness, truthfulness, completeness or reliability of any Collective Content obtained through the Service or any information provided via Exchanges.
No advice or information, whether oral or written, obtained from Alumnifire or through the Service or Collective Content, will create any warranty not expressly made herein.
You are solely responsible for all of your communications, interactions with other users of the Service and with other persons you discover as a result of your use of the Service. You will take reasonable precautions in all such communications and interactions regardless of whether such communications or interactions are organized by Alumnifire. Alumnifire does not make any attempt to verify the statements of users of the Service.

6.6 Limitation of liability

This section includes a fair bit of legalese, so we'll provide plain English translations to help you comprehend the terms. The translations are not intended to, and do not, limit or define the sections they describe in any way, so read the sections in full. We will emphasize the legal provisions using bold font.

You acknowledge and agree that, to the maximum extent permitted by law, the entire risk arising out of your access to and use of the Service, Collective Content, or Exchanges via the Site and App, and any contact you have with other users of the Service whether in person, by phone, online, or other means remains with you. Neither Alumnifire nor any other party involved in creating, producing, or delivering the Service or Collective Content will be liable for any incidental, special, exemplary, or consequential damages arising out of or in connection with these Terms, the use of or inability to use the Service or Collective Content, or any communications or interactions with other users of the Service or with other persons you discover as a result of your use of the Service. Such limitation of liability holds true regardless of whether such included damages are based on warranty, contract, tort (including negligence), product liability or any other legal theory and regardless of whether Alumnifire has been informed of the possibility of such damages, even if a limited remedy set forth herein is found to have failed of its intended purpose. Types of damages covered by this provision include, but are not limited to:

lost profits
loss of data
loss of goodwill
service interruption
computer damage
system failure
personal or bodily injury
emotional distress

Translation: If bad things happen to you (generally referred to as "damages") when you use Alumnifire, Alumnifire is not responsible, to the greatest extent allowed by law.

In no event will Alumnifire's aggregate liability arising out of or in connection with these Terms and your use of the Service exceed the amounts you have paid or owe as a Member for Exchanges made via the Service in the twelve (12) month period prior to the event giving rise to the liability, or one hundred U.S. dollars ($100) if no such payments have been made. The limitations of damages set forth above are fundamental elements of the basis of the bargain between you and Alumnifire. Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of liability for consequential or incidental damages, so the above limitation may not apply to you.

Translation: If bad things (again "damages") happen to you and Alumnifire is found to be responsible and liable, the most you can ask for is your money back that you've spent with Alumnifire in the preceding year.

6.7 Indemnification

You agree to release, indemnify, and hold Alumnifire and its affiliates and subsidiaries, and their officers, directors, employees and agents, harmless from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, and expenses, including but not limited to reasonable legal and accounting fees, arising from (i) your use of the Service or Collective Content; (ii) your violation of these Terms; (iii) your Member Content; (iv) your interaction with any Member, reliance on any information exchanged via the Service; or (v) any violation by you of applicable law or contract terms with a third party to which you are subject. Alumnifire shall have the right to control all defense and settlement activities.

Bottom line: we aren't responsible for your actions if they get you into trouble, and you'll cover any resulting losses we may suffer.

6.8 Export control and restricted countries

You may not and will not use, export, re-export, import, or transfer the App except as authorized by United States law, the laws of the jurisdiction in which you obtained the App, and any other applicable laws. In particular, but without limitation, the App may not be exported or re-exported: (a) into any United States embargoed countries; or (b) to anyone on the U.S. Treasury Department's list of Specially Designated Nationals or the U.S. Department of Commerce's Denied Person's List or Entity List. You'll also recall the representation you make in section 1.1 that you are neither located in a sanctioned country nor a prohibited person. You agree that you will not use the Service for purposes prohibited by U.S. law, including the development, design, manufacture or production of missiles, or nuclear, chemical or biological weapons. Of course you've already agreed several times now in this Agreement not to break the law. Consistent with U.S. embargo restrictions, Alumnifire does not permit offerings associated with certain countries.

6.9 Give us feedback! And also report misconduct

We welcome and encourage you to provide feedback, comments and suggestions for improvements to the Service (things we like to call "Feedback"). Just email us at feedback@alumnifire.com to send us Feedback. We love hearing from you! Of course, by doing so, you agree that such Feedback will be the sole and exclusive property of Alumnifire and you hereby irrevocably assign to Alumnifire and agree to irrevocably assign to Alumnifire all of your right, title, and interest in and to all Feedback and the intellectual property rights therein, including without limitation all worldwide patent, copyright, trade secret, moral and other proprietary rights. If we're really interested in your Feedback, then at our request and expense you will execute documents and take such further acts as Alumnifire may reasonably request to assist Alumnifire to acquire, perfect, and maintain its intellectual property rights and other legal protections for the Feedback.

In addition, if you feel any user is acting or has acted inappropriately, including but not limited to, anyone who (i) engages in offensive, violent or sexually inappropriate behavior, (ii) you suspect of fraud, or (iii) engages in any other disturbing conduct, you should immediately report such person to the appropriate authorities and to Alumnifire. Let's keep the Service clean.

6.10 You cannot assign or transfer this Agreement

You may not assign or transfer these Terms, by operation of law or otherwise, without Alumnifire's prior written consent. If you try to do so without our consent, such attempt will be null and void and of no effect. Alumnifire may assign or transfer these Terms, at its sole discretion, without restriction. Subject to the foregoing, these Terms will bind and inure to the benefit of the parties, their successors and permitted assigns.

6.11 We will notify you of changes

Unless otherwise specified herein, any notices or other communications permitted or required hereunder, including those regarding modifications to these Terms, will be in writing and given by Alumnifire (i) via email (in each case to the email address associated with your Alumnifire Account) or (ii) by posting to the Site or App. If we go the email route, the date of receipt will be deemed the date on which such notice is transmitted.

6.12 Severability of the Agreement

This Agreement is intended to govern the agreement between you and Alumnifire in accordance with and to the extent permitted by all applicable laws, ordinances, rules, and regulations. Should any provision of these Terms or the application thereof to any person or circumstance, for any reason or to any extent, be determined invalid or unenforceable, but the extent of such invalidity or unenforceability does not destroy the basis of the bargain among the Members as expressed herein, the remainder of this Agreement and the application of such provision to other persons or circumstances shall not be affected thereby, but rather shall be enforced to the greatest extent permitted by law.

6.13 New York law governs this Agreement

Alumnifire is based in Brooklyn, so we use New York law to govern our operations. Thus, the law of the State of New York (without reference to its choice of law principles) shall govern these Terms. Subject to section 6.14, you and we agree to submit to the personal jurisdiction of a state court located in Kings County, New York for all matters arising in connection with these Terms or your use of the Service.

6.14 Dispute resolution process

You and Alumnifire agree that any dispute, claim or controversy arising from or relating to this Agreement, the breach, termination, enforcement, interpretation, or validity thereof, or your use of the Service (we'll call them "Disputes") will be settled by binding arbitration, except that each party retains the right to seek injunctive or other equitable relief in a court of competent jurisdiction to prevent the actual or threatened infringement, misappropriation or violation of a party's copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, patents, or other intellectual property rights. You and we both hereby waive the right to a trial by jury or to participate as a plaintiff or class member in any purported class action or representative proceeding. Further, unless both you and Alumnifire otherwise agree in writing, the arbitrator may not consolidate more than one person's claims, and may not otherwise preside over any form of any class or representative proceeding. Should this specific provision be held unenforceable, then the entirety of this "Dispute Resolution" section 6.14 will be deemed void. Except as provided in the preceding sentence, this "Dispute Resolution" section 6.14 will survive any termination of this Agreement.

Arbitration Rules and Governing Law. Arbitration will be administered by the American Arbitration Association ("AAA") in accordance with the Commercial Arbitration Rules and the Supplementary Procedures for Consumer Related Disputes (the "AAA Rules") then in effect, except as modified by this "Dispute Resolution" section 6.14. (The AAA Rules are available at adr.org or by calling the AAA at 1-800-778-7879.) The Federal Arbitration Act will govern the interpretation and enforcement of this section.

Arbitration Process. A party who desires to initiate arbitration must provide the other party with a written Demand for Arbitration as specified in the AAA Rules. (The AAA provides a form Demand for Arbitration at adr.org. The arbitrator will be either a retired judge or an attorney licensed to practice law in the state of New York and will be selected by the parties from the AAA's roster of consumer dispute arbitrators. If the parties cannot agree upon an arbitrator within seven (7) days of delivery of the Demand for Arbitration, then the AAA will appoint the arbitrator in accordance with the AAA Rules.

Arbitration Location and Procedure. Unless you and Alumnifire otherwise agree, the arbitration will be conducted in the county where you reside. If your claim does not exceed ten thousand U.S. dollars ($10,000), then the arbitration will be conducted solely on the basis of documents you and Alumnifire submit to the arbitrator, unless you request a hearing or the arbitrator determines that a hearing is necessary. If your claim exceeds ten thousand U.S. dollars ($10,000), your right to a hearing will be determined by AAA Rules. Subject to the AAA Rules, the arbitrator will have the discretion to direct a reasonable exchange of information by the parties, consistent with the expedited nature of the arbitration.

Arbitrator's Decision. The arbitrator will render an award within the time frame specified in the AAA Rules. The arbitrator's decision will include the essential findings and conclusions upon which the arbitrator based the award. Judgment on the arbitration award may be entered in any court having jurisdiction thereof. The arbitrator's award damages must be consistent with the terms of the "Limitation of Liability" section 6.6 as to the types and the amounts of damages for which a party may be held liable. The arbitrator may award declaratory or injunctive relief only in service of the claimant and only to the extent necessary to provide relief warranted by the claimant's individual claim. If you prevail in arbitration you will be entitled to an award of attorneys' fees and expenses, to the extent provided under applicable law.

Fees. Your responsibility to pay any AAA filing, administrative and arbitrator fees will be solely as set forth in the AAA Rules. However, if your claim for damages does not exceed seventy five thousand U.S. dollars ($75,000), Alumnifire will pay all such fees unless the arbitrator finds that either the substance of your claim or the relief sought in your Demand for Arbitration was frivolous or was brought for an improper purpose (as measured by the standards set forth in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11(b)).

Changes. Notwithstanding the provisions of the "Digital Communication and Modifications" section 1.3, should we amend this "Dispute Resolution" section 6.14 at a point in which you had already accepted this Agreement and this section, you will be notified of the amendment in accordance with this Agreement. If your intent is to reject any such change, you must do so by sending us written notice (including by email to feedback@alumnifire.com) within 30 days of the date such change became effective, as indicated by the effective date listed at the top of the Terms or the date of Alumnifire's email to you notifying you of such change. By rejecting any change, you are agreeing that you will arbitrate any Dispute between you and Alumnifire in accordance with the provisions of this "Dispute Resolution" section 6.14 as of the date you first accepted these Terms or accepted any subsequent changes to these Terms.

6.15 This Agreement is the entire Agreement

This Agreement constitutes the entire and exclusive understanding and agreement between Alumnifire and you regarding the Site, App, Service, Collective Content and any Exchanges made via the Site or App, and this Agreement supersedes and replaces any and all prior oral or written understandings or agreements between you and Alumnifire regarding the same. This is the whole shebang.

6.16 If we don't enforce our rights, it doesn't forego or reduce our rights

If we fail to enforce any right or provision of this Agreement, such action does not constitute a waiver of future enforcement of that right or provision. Such a waiver will be effective only in writing and signed by an authorized representative of Alumnifire. Our rights and remedies under this Agreement are cumulative and the exercise of any such right or remedy does not limit our ability to exercise any other such right or remedy.

7. Get in touch with us

If you have suggestions or questions about these Terms, you can contact us at:

Mail: Alumnifire, Inc. 37 W 26th Street, Suite 207 New York, NY 10010

Email: feedback@alumnifire.com

Link to old versions

If you'd like to see older versions of the Terms and track what has changed, we've posted our revision history on GitHub.