TERMS
OF USE
Last
Updated: April 5, 2013
Solar Home Challenge (the "Company",
"us", "we" or "our") is excited to provide our
users (“you”, or “your”) its www.solarhomechallenge.com and www.solarhomechallenge.org websites
(individually or collectively, hereinafter “Website”) and associated services
(the "Services"). Welcome!
Your use of the Website and the Services is subject to these Terms of Use. As we state in Section 15 of these Terms of
Use, we may change these Terms of Use at any time. Your use of the Website after such changes
are implemented constitutes your acceptance of the changes. Please consult these terms and conditions
regularly.
1.
Acceptance of Terms
By using the Website, you agree to our Terms
of Use, as well as to the Google Maps and GoogleEarth API Terms of Service, and
set forth at: https://google.com/help/terms_map_earth.html.
In addition, when using particular Services,
there may be additional policies, guidelines or rules applicable to such
Services. All such policies, guidelines
or rules are hereby incorporated by reference into these Terms of Use.
2.
Services Provided By
Website
The Company currently provides users with
access to a variety of Services, which may include but is not limited to, web-based
solar energy estimation tools, communications tools, discussion groups, forums,
documents, news, press releases, peer publishing, industry articles and
knowledge banks. Unless explicitly
stated otherwise, any new features that augment or enhance any current Service
shall be subject to the Terms of Use.
3.
Website Access and License
For
privacy considerations, users under the age of thirteen (13) are not permitted
to use the Services or access the Website.
Provided that you are not under the age of thirteen (13), we hereby
grant you a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable, limited, and revocable
license to access our Website and use the Services for your personal
educational, informational and entertainment use (the
"License"). You may not
reproduce, duplicate, copy, sell, resell or commercially exploit for any
purposes, any portion of, use of, or access to the Services or Website,
including without limitation by Co-branding the Website or portion thereof or
framing the Website or portion thereof (whereby the Website or portion thereof
will appear on the same screen with a portion of another website). “Co-branding” means to display a name, logo,
trademark or other means of attribution or identification of any party in such
a manner as is reasonably likely to give a user the impression that such other
party has the right to display, publish or distribute the Website or content
accessible within the Website. In the unlikely event you fail to comply with
these Terms of Use, we may terminate the License without notice and you will no
longer be permitted to use the Services or access the Website.
If you are issued a password and account by the
Company to access any Services, you are personally responsible for maintaining
the confidentiality of any such password and account and for all activities
that occur under such password or account.
You will need to immediately notify the Company of any unauthorized use
of your password or account or any other breach of security.
If we become aware of possible violations of
these Terms of Use, we may initiate an investigation that may include gathering
information from you or any user involved and the examination of other
material. We may suspend the provision
of our Services temporarily, or we may permanently remove the material involved
from our servers, cancel posts, provide warnings to you, or suspend or
terminate your access to our Website. We
will determine what action will be taken in response to a violation at our sole
discretion. We will fully cooperate with
law enforcement authorities in investigating suspected lawbreakers.
4.
Spam Policy
In order to maintain the integrity of the
Website, you are not to use the Services to post or send (a) messages which are
unrelated to a particular topic of discussion of a news group or message board
facilitated by the Company (b) unsolicited commercial email, (c) unsolicited
bulk email, (d) mass email, (e) junk email, (f) chain letters, (g) pyramid
schemes or (h) messages advertising goods or services that are addressed to a
recipient with whom you do not have an existing business or personal
relationship or is not sent at the request of, or with the express consent of,
the recipient (collectively, "Spam").
Other types of Internet abuse which may also qualify as Spam include,
but are not limited to, (i) disrupting the normal flow of dialogue, or causing
the screen to "scroll" faster than other users of the Services are
able to type, or otherwise acting in a manner that negatively affects another
user’s ability to engage in real-time exchanges, (ii) using "bots" or
otherwise harvesting other users' information, including email addresses,
and (iii) uploading, posting, emailing,
or transmitting the same message, URL, or post multiple times.
In addition to any of the foregoing,
electronic messages sent or caused to be sent using the Services may not
contain false or misleading information in the subject line or otherwise
contain false or misleading content; employ any technique to otherwise
misrepresent, hide or obscure any information identifying the point of origin
or the transmission path; use or contain invalid or false headers; use any
other means of deceptive addressing; use a third party's internet domain name,
or be relayed from or through a third party's computer system, without
permission of such third party; or use or contain invalid, non-existent or otherwise
false domain names.
5.
Links to Third Party Sites
The
Website and the Services may contain links to third party websites, deals,
coupons, news articles, blog posts, or other content ("Linked
Sites"). The Linked Sites are not under our control and we are not
responsible for the content of, any transmission received from, or the
stability of, any Linked Site. The Company
is providing these links to you only as a convenience, and the inclusion of any
link does not imply endorsement by the Company or any association with its
operators, or guarantee that the content contains accurate information. Please review the separate privacy statements
and terms of use posted at each Linked Site.
You are also cautioned to carefully read the
terms and conditions of any coupons, specials, sweepstakes, promotions, sales
or other offers from any Linked Site. The
Company shall not be responsible for any inaccuracies; misrepresentations;
product or service liability; offensive, infringing, libelous or illegal
materials; lack of availability of other sites, information, promotions,
products, or services; viruses or other computer problems resulting from use of
such sites; or any liabilities resulting from the terms and conditions of other
sites. The Company does not guarantee
any content on such sites or anything offered by third parties, including but
not limited to prices, promotions, products, or services.
You are knowingly and voluntarily assuming
all risks of using the Linked Sites to purchase goods and services and of using
any "coupons" and specials listed on this Website. You agree that the Company and its licensors
and advertisers shall have no liability whatsoever from such Linked Sites and
your usage of them.
Linked Sites are not under the control of the
Company, are not monitored or reviewed by the Company, and the Company is not
aware of the contents of the Linked Sites.
The Company does not sponsor, endorse, or recommend these Linked Sites
and makes no representations or warranties of any kind with regard to any
Linked Sites, their terms of use, or the way they may collect, save, store, and
use information, including your personally identifiable information. You acknowledge that the Company is not
responsible for the products, services, accuracy, copyright compliance,
legality, decency, or any other aspect of the contents or any transmissions
received through such Linked Sites.
These Linked Sites may contain information or material that is illegal,
unreasonable or that some people may find inappropriate or offensive. The
inclusion of such a link or frame does not imply endorsement of that site by the
Company or its advertisers or licensors, or any association with its operators,
and is provided solely for your convenience.
If you have any complaint with such sites, you should contact that site
directly.
6.
Hosted and Submitted Content
At
times, we may host third party articles and similar content on our Website, or
articles or content written by our own employees and contractors (collectively,
"Hosted Content"). All of such
Hosted Content available on or through the Services and/or the Website, including
text, logos, images, copy, applications and intellectual property is owned by
us, our suppliers, and our contributors, and is protected by copyright,
trademark, and other proprietary rights.
We give you permission to use the Hosted Content for personal,
non-commercial purposes only. You may
print, download, and store articles and other information included within the
Hosted Content for your own convenience, but you may not distribute, republish,
sell, mine, exploit, frame or scrape any of the Hosted Content, or exploit the
Hosted Content for commercial gain.
At
times, you may be invited to submit content to the Website, which may include
but is not necessarily limited to items such as documents, music, sound,
photographs, video, topical questions or responses submitted through forums or
blog entries, either for publication, circulation and/or distribution (collectively, the "Submitted
Content" and when used generically with Hosted Content,
"Content"). Such Submitted
Content is yours and the Company does not claim ownership of Submitted Content,
but by submitting such Submitted Content you grant the Company a nonexclusive,
royalty-free, fully paid-up, worldwide license to link to, reproduce,
distribute, adapt, promote, display, and sublicense the Submitted Content. We must reserve the right to remove any
Submitted Content at any time without notice.
Further, any publication of any Submitted Content is at our sole discretion.
By
providing Submitted Content, you certify that you own the Submitted Content, or
otherwise have the right to freely redistribute the Submitted Content without
limitation, and that providing this Submitted Content will not violate or
infringe upon the rights of any third party, including but not limited to,
copyrights, patents, trademarks, trade secrets, right of publicity or other
proprietary rights. Further, you certify
that your submissions contain no elements and produce no results that are
defamatory, obscene, in violation of any law, or otherwise contain harmful or
destructive content or output, including but not limited to any viruses, worms,
and Trojan horses.
The
Company assumes no liability with respect to disputes over Content ownership,
copyright, or trademarks. In the event
that the Company is notified by a rightful owner that an infringement of
ownership, copyright, or trademark has occurred, the Company will remove the
Content in question in a timely manner without notice. If you believe that Content included on the
Website is your proprietary work and has been copied in a way that constitutes
an infringement of your rights in that work, please immediately notify the Company
of any such infringement at [email protected], in the manner set
forth below. All reports and inquiries
will be kept confidential, except to the extent necessary to investigate any
alleged violation and enforce these Terms of Use.
When
reporting an infringement, please ensure you provide all of the following
information: (i) a detailed description
of the Content on the Website that you, in good faith, believe is an
infringement of your ownership rights; (ii) a statement by you that you have a
good faith belief that the disputed use has not been authorized by you, the
copyright owner; (iii) a statement by you declaring under penalty of perjury
that (A) the foregoing information is accurate, (B) that you are the owner of
the copyright interest involved or that you are authorized to act on behalf of
the actual owner, and (C) your physical address, telephone number, and email
address. The Company will remove the
infringing posting(s), subject to the procedures outlined in the Digital Millennium
Copyright Act (DMCA). Some of the Content on the Website may be provided by
third parties, including third parties that have paid to place their Content on
the Website. The Company expressly
disclaims any representation or warranty about the accuracy of such content.
7.
Privacy Policy
We created this web
site Privacy Policy ("Privacy Policy") as part of our commitment to
fair information practices and the protection of the privacy and security of
the users of our Website. This Privacy Policy will advise you about how we
protect your personal information and what choices you have with respect to our
use of such information. We urge you to
read this Privacy Policy carefully.
a.
Application of our
Privacy Policy
This Privacy Policy applies to the use of our
Website and services owned and operated by us. Please note, this Privacy Policy
does not apply to your use of unaffiliated Linked Sites to which our Website
only links. Once you enter another web
site (whether through an advertisement, service, or content link), be aware
that we are not responsible for the privacy practices of such other web
sites. Furthermore, this Privacy Policy
only covers information collected on the Website and does not cover any
information collected by us offline.
b.
Types of Information
Collected
i. Traffic Data Collected. We automatically track and collect
non-personal identification information when you visit our Website, including
your (A) IP address (a set of numbers that is assigned to your computer when
you are on the Internet); (B) domain server (a computer that stores web site
files and provides them to people who request them); (C) type of computer; and
(D) type of web browser (collectively "Traffic Data"). Traffic Data is anonymous information that
does not personally identify you but is helpful for marketing purposes or for
improving your experience on the Website.
We collect Traffic Data through the use of "Cookie" technology
and "Web Beacons."
"Cookies" are data files sent to and stored on the computer
you use to view a web site.
"Cookies" can be used to monitor use of our Website, to
customize content specific to your interests, to ensure that you do not see the
same advertisement repeatedly and to store your user name and password so you
do not have to re-enter it each time you visit the Website. "Web Beacons" are small graphic
image files on a web page which can be utilized by a web site to determine
information about a user. "Web
Beacons" are not used to track information outside of our Website and are
not used to track personal information.
The information collected by Web Beacons allows us to, among other
things, statistically monitor the number of users of our Website, and the web
sites of our selected partners.
ii. Personal Information Collected. In order for you to access certain services
and/or to purchase products and services that we offer via the Website, we may
ask you to provide us with information that personally identifies you
("Personal Information").
Personal Information may include data such as: (A) your name, telephone
number, mailing and/or e-mail addresses ("Contact Data"); (B) your
credit score, account or credit card number ("Financial Data"); (C)
your zip code, age and/or income ("Demographic Data"); (D) your
energy rate plan and usage information (“Energy Data”); or (E) the information
input or calculated as a result of estimating your solar potential using the
Website (“Solar Data”). If you
communicate with us by e-mail, post messages to any of our chat groups,
bulletin boards or forums, or otherwise complete online forms, surveys or
contest entries, any information provided in such communication may be
collected as Personal Information. We will only collect Personal Information
which you voluntarily provide.
c.
Uses of Information
Collected
We use Contact Data
to send you information about our Company or our products or services, or
promotional material from some of our partners, or to contact you when
necessary. We use your Financial Data to
verify your qualifications for certain products or services and to bill you for
products and services. We use your
Demographic Data to customize and tailor your experience on the Website,
displaying content that we think you might be interested in according to your
preferences. We use your Energy Data to help determine your suitability for our
products or services, or the products or services of some of our partners. We
use your Solar Data to help determine your suitability for our products or services,
or the products or services of some of our partners.
d.
Children
We are committed to protecting the privacy of
children. Therefore, we prohibit
registration by children under the age of 13 for all interactive portions of
the Website including forums, chats and message boards. We will not knowingly collect personally
identifiable information from children under 13. We strongly urge all parents to participate
in their children's exploration of the Internet and any online services, and to
teach their children about protecting their personal information while online.
Furthermore, we may, at our discretion,
require users under the age of 18 to obtain the consent of a parent or guardian
to view certain content, and we may limit access to certain content to users
above a specified age. You agree to
abide by any such restrictions, and not to help anyone avoid these
restrictions.
e.
Communications from
Website and Third Parties
We reserve the right to contact you
regarding product or service alerts and special offers that we believe may be
of interest to you. We may also provide your Contact Data to solar retailers
and other related third party service providers that we believe may be of
interest to you. We will not provide your Financial Data to any third party
without your consent. Accordingly, we,
or these third parties may directly contact you about: (i) your information
service request through this Website and / or (ii) our / their own products and
services. We respect your right to “opt out” of these communications at any
time. If you do not want us to contact you, or share your Personal Information
with any third parties, you may “opt out” by emailing us at
[email protected] Please
note, however, if you choose to "opt out" you may not be eligible for
certain benefits for which Personal Information is needed.
f.
User Choice Regarding
Collection, Use and Distribution of Personal Information
You may choose not to provide us
with any Personal Information. In such an event, you can still access and use
much of the Website; however you will not be able to access and use those
portions of the Website that require your Personal Information. If you do not wish to receive information and
promotional material from us or from some of our partners, you may “opt out” by
emailing us at [email protected]
g.
Confidentiality and
Security of Personal Information
Except as otherwise provided in this
Privacy Policy, we will keep your Personal Information private and will not
share it with third parties, unless such disclosure is necessary to: (i) comply
with a valid legal inquiry or process such as a search warrant, subpoena,
statute or court order; (ii) protect a physical or property threat to you, to
others or to the Website; (iii) respond to a breach or attempted breach of the
security of our Website; (iv) defend or assert our legal rights; or (v) enforce
our Terms of Use. We may also transfer
Personal Information in connection with a corporate merger, consolidation, sale
of related assets or corporate division, or other fundamental corporate
change. In the event we are legally
compelled to disclose your Personal Information to a third party, we will
attempt to notify you unless doing so would violate the law or a court
order. Your Personal Information is
stored on secure servers that are not accessible by third parties.
h.
Lost or Stolen
Information
You are responsible for maintaining the
confidentiality of your Personal Information including, but not limited to, the
details of your credit card(s) and your user name and password. You shall be responsible for all uses of your
registration, whether or not authorized by you. You must immediately notify us
if your credit card, user name or password is lost, stolen or used without your
permission. In such an event, we will
cancel that credit card number, user name or password and update our records
accordingly.
i.
Other Limits to Your
Privacy
The Website contains links to other
web sites. Please note, we are not
responsible for the privacy practices or the content of such web sites. Once you link to another web site from our
Website, you are subject to the terms and conditions of that site, including
but not limited to that site's privacy policy and terms of use. We may also make chat rooms, forums, message
boards, and news groups available to you.
Although we strive to protect our users' privacy, we cannot guarantee
the security of the information you post.
The information you disclose in these areas becomes public
information. We have no control over its
use and you should exercise caution when deciding to disclose your Personal
Information. You disclose this
information at your own risk.
j.
Updates and Changes
to Privacy Policy
We reserve the right, at any time
and without notice, to add to, change, update or modify this Privacy Policy,
simply by posting such addition, change, update or modification on the
Website. Any such addition, change,
update or modification will be effective immediately upon posting on the
Website.
k.
Disclaimer
The information provided
in this Privacy Policy should not be construed as the giving of business,
legal, or other advice. Furthermore, we
do not warrant as fail proof, the security of information provided through the
Website.
8.
Disclaimer of Warranties/Limitation of Liability
While
we use reasonable efforts to include accurate and up-to-date information on the
Website, we make no representations as to the accuracy, quality, timeliness,
availability, or completeness of the information, documents, Content or other
materials available on the Website, and you should not rely upon them. We provide the Website and any Service on an
"AS IS, AS AVAILABLE" basis.
You use the Website and any Service at your own risk, and the Company,
its employees, directors, and agents are not liable for any errors or omissions
in their content or delivery, or for any form of loss or damage (including any
consequential, indirect, incidental, special, or exemplary damages, even if
known to us) that may result from their use.
We expressly disclaim all warranties, including warranties of
merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose or non-infringement. If any of the above provisions are void under
governing law, our liability shall be limited to the maximum extent permitted
by law.
9.
Indemnification
You
will indemnify and hold the Company, and its subsidiaries, affiliates,
officers, agents, and employees harmless against any claim, dispute, or demand,
including reasonable attorneys' fees, which may arise from a breach or
violation by you of these Terms of Use, including any Content submitted to or
uploaded to the Company, or transmitted via the Company by you.
10.
Injunctive Relief
Your
breach of these Terms of Use may result in immediate and irreparable harm to
us, for which there may be no adequate remedy at law, and, therefore, you agree
that we shall be entitled to equitable relief to compel you to cease and desist
all unauthorized use, evaluation and/or disclosure of information obtained
through the Website, which is in addition to any other remedies available at
law or in equity.
11.
Jurisdiction
These
Terms of Use, and the rights and obligations hereunder, are to be governed by,
and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of Arizona. Any legal action or proceeding between you
and us arising out of or relating to the Terms of Use or your use of the
Website shall be brought exclusively in a federal or state court of competent
jurisdiction sitting in Phoenix, Arizona, and you hereby expressly and
irrevocably consent to be bound by the personal jurisdiction and venue of such
courts.
12.
No waiver;
Severability
A waiver of any breach of any provision of
the Terms of Use shall not be deemed to be a waiver of any repetition of such
breach or in any manner affect any other terms or conditions of the Terms of
Use. We do not waive any rights by the
failure to enforce this policy in every instance in which it might apply. In the event that any provision of the Terms
of Use is held to be unenforceable, it will not affect the validity or
enforceability of the remaining provisions and will be replaced by an
enforceable provision that is the closest to the intention underlying the
unenforceable provision.
13.
Assignability
We
may assign our rights and delegate our duties under the Terms of Use either in whole
or in part at any time without notice.
You may not assign, sublicense or otherwise transfer your rights or
obligations, in whole or in part, under the Terms of Use to anyone else without
our prior written consent.
14.
Relationship
This
Agreement does not establish any relationship of partnership, joint venture,
employment, franchise or agency between you and us.
15.
Updates and Changes
to Terms of Use
We reserve the right, at any time and without
notice, to add to, change, update or modify these Terms of Use simply by
posting such addition, change, update or modification on the Website. Any such addition, change, update or
modification will be effective immediately upon posting on the Website. Your use of the Website after such changes
are implemented constitutes your acceptance of the changes. Please consult these Terms of Use
regularly.
Copyright 2013 Sidestep Energy, LLC