Terms of service - Wikipedia

Terms of service (also known as terms of use and terms and conditions, commonly abbreviated as TOS or ToS, ToU or T&C) are the legal agreements between a ... Termsofservice FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia Jumptonavigation Jumptosearch Legalagreementforaservice ForthetermsofuseforWikipedia,seewmf:TermsofUse.Forotheruses,seeTermsofservice(disambiguation). Termsofservice(alsoknownastermsofuseandtermsandconditions,commonlyabbreviatedasTOSorToS,ToUorT&C)arethelegalagreementsbetweenaserviceproviderandapersonwhowantstousethatservice.Thepersonmustagreetoabidebythetermsofserviceinordertousetheofferedservice.[1]Termsofservicecanalsobemerelyadisclaimer,especiallyregardingtheuseofwebsites.Vaguelanguageandlengthysentencesusedinthetermsofusehavebroughtconcernsoncustomerprivacyandraisedpublicawarenessinmanyways. Contents 1Usage 2Content 3Readability 4Publicawareness 5Criticismandlawsuits 5.1AOL 5.2Sony 5.3Instagram 5.4Zappos 6Seealso 7References 8Externallinks Usage[edit] TheTermsofServiceAgreementismainlyusedforlegalpurposesbycompanieswhichprovidesoftwareorservices,suchaswebbrowsers,e-commerce,websearchengines,socialmedia,andtransportservices. Alegitimateterms-of-serviceagreementislegallybindingandmaybesubjecttochange.[2]Companiescanenforcethetermsbyrefusingservice.Customerscanenforcebyfilingalawsuitorarbitrationcaseiftheycanshowtheywereactuallyharmedbyabreachoftheterms.Thereisaheightenedriskofdatagoingastrayduringcorporatechanges,includingmergers,divestitures,buyouts,downsizing,etc.,whendatacanbetransferredimproperly.[3] Content[edit] Atermsofserviceagreementtypicallycontainssectionspertainingtooneormoreofthefollowingtopic: Disambiguation/definitionofkeywordsandphrases Userrightsandresponsibilities Properorexpectedusage;definitionofmisuse Accountabilityforonlineactions,behavior,andconduct Privacypolicyoutliningtheuseofpersonaldata Paymentdetailssuchasmembershiporsubscriptionfees,etc. Opt-outpolicydescribingprocedureforaccounttermination,ifavailable SometimescontainsaArbitrationclausedetailingthedisputeresolutionprocessandlimitedrightstotakeaclaimtocourt Disclaimer/LimitationofLiabilityclarifyingthesite'slegalliabilityfordamagesincurredbyusers Usernotificationuponmodificationofterms,ifoffered Among102companiesmarketinggenetictestingtoconsumersin2014forhealthpurposes,71hadpubliclyavailabletermsandconditions:[4] 57ofthe71haddisclaimerclauses(including10disclaimingliabilityforinjurycausedbytheirownnegligence) 51letthecompanychangeterms(including17withoutnotice) 34allowdatadisclosureincertaincircumstances 31requireconsumerstoindemnifythecompany 20promisenottoselldata Among260massmarketconsumersoftwarelicenseagreementsin2010:[5] 91%disclaimedwarrantiesofmerchantabilityorfitnessforpurposeorsaiditwas"Asis" 92%disclaimedconsequential,incidental,specialorforeseeabledamages 69%didnotwarrantthesoftwarewasfreeofdefectsorwouldworkasdescribedinthemanual 55%cappeddamagesatthepurchasepriceorless 36%saidtheywerenotwarrantingwhetheritinfringedothers'intellectualpropertyrights 32%requiredarbitrationoraspecificcourt 17%requiredthecustomertopaylegalbillsofthemaker(indemnify),butnotviceversa Amongthetermsandconditionsof31cloud-computingservicesinJanuary-July2010,operatinginEngland:[6] 27specifiedthelawtobeused(aUSstateorothercountry) mostspecifythatconsumerscanclaimagainstthecompanyonlyinaparticularcityinthatjurisdiction,thoughoftenthecompanycanclaimagainsttheconsumeranywhere somerequireclaimstobebroughtwithinhalfayearto2years 7imposearbitration,allforbidillegalandobjectionableconductbytheconsumer 13canamendtermsjustbypostingchangesontheirownwebsite amajoritydisclaimresponsibilityforconfidentialityorbackups mostpromisetopreservedataonlybrieflyafterterminatingservice fewpromisetodeletedatathoroughlywhenthecustomerleaves somemonitorthecustomers'datatoenforcetheirpoliciesonuse alldisclaimwarrantiesandalmostalldisclaimliability 24requirethecustomertoindemnifythem,afewindemnifythecustomer afewgivecreditsforpoorservice,15promise"bestefforts"andcansuspendorstopanytime Theresearchersnotethatrulesonlocationandtimelimitsmaybeunenforceableforconsumersinmanyjurisdictionswithconsumerprotections,thatacceptableusepoliciesarerarelyenforced,thatquickdeletionisdangerousifacourtlaterrulestheterminationwrongful,thatlocallawsoftenrequirewarranties(andUKforcedAppletosayso). Readability[edit] Amongthe500most-visitedwebsiteswhichusesign-in-wrapagreementsinSeptember2018:[7] 70%ofagreementshadaveragesentencelengthsover25words,(where25orlessisneededforconsumerreadability) medianFRE(FleschReadingEase)scorewas34(whereover60isconsideredreadablebyconsumers) medianF-K(Flesch-Kincaid)scorewas15yearsofschool(498of500hadscoreshigherthantherecommended8thgrade) Among260massmarketconsumersoftwarelicenseagreementswhichexistedinboth2003and2010:[5] medianandmeanFleschscoreswere33inbothyears,witharangefrom14to64in2003,andfrom15to55in2010(whereover60isconsideredreadablebyconsumers) mediannumberofwordsrosefrom1,152to1,354,withrangeof33to8,406in2003,andfrom106to13,416in2010 Publicawareness[edit] A2013documentarycalledTermsandConditionsMayApplypublicizedissuesintermsofservice.Itwasreviewedby54professionalcritics[8]andwonforBestFeatureDocumentaryattheNewportBeachFilmFestival2013andforBestDocumentaryattheSonomaValleyFilmFestival2013.[9] Clickwrapped.comrates15companiesontheirpoliciesandpracticeswithrespecttousingusers'data,disclosingusers'data,amendingtheterms,closingusers'accounts,requiringarbitration,finingusers,andclarity. TermsofService;Didn'tReadisagroupeffortthatrates67companies'termsofserviceandprivacypolicies,thoughitssitesaystheratingsare"outdated."[10]Italsohasbrowseradd-onsthatdelivertheratingswhileatthewebsiteofaratedcompany.Membersofthegroupscoreeachclauseineachtermsofservicedocument,but"thesameclausecanhavedifferentscoresdependingonthecontextoftheservicesitappliesto."[11]TheServicestablistscompaniesinnoapparentorder,withbriefnotesaboutsignificantclausesfromeachcompany.Inparticular,competitorsarenotlistedtogethersothatuserscancomparethem.Alinkgiveslongernotes.Itdoesnottypicallylinktotheexactwordingfromthecompany.TheTopicstabliststopics(like"PersonalData"or"Guarantee"),withbriefnotesfromsomecompaniesaboutaspectsofthetopic. TOSBack.org,supportedbytheElectronicFrontierFoundation,listschangesintermsandpoliciessequentially,10perpage,for160pages,ornearly1,600changes,for"manyonlineservices."[12]Theredoesnotseemtobeawaytofindallchangesforaparticularcompany,orevenwhichcompaniesweretrackedinanytimeperiod.ItlinkstoTermsofService;Didn'tRead,thoughthattypicallydoesnothaveanyevaluationofthemostrecentchangeslistedatTOSBack.org. Termsofservicearesubjecttochangeandvaryfromservicetoservice,soseveralinitiativesexisttoincreasepublicawarenessbyclarifyingsuchdifferencesinterms,including: Availabilityofpreviousterms Cancellationorterminationoftheaccountand/orservicebyuser Copyrightlicensingonusercontent Datatrackingpolicyandopt-outavailability Indemnificationorcompensationforclaimsagainstaccountorcontent NotificationandfeedbackpriortochangesinTerms Notificationofgovernmentorthird-partyrequestsforpersonaldata Notificationpriortoinformationtransferineventofmergeroracquisition Pseudonymallowance Readability Savedortemporaryfirstandthird-partycookies Transparencyofsecuritypractices Transparencyongovernmentorlawenforcementrequestsforcontentremoval Criticismandlawsuits[edit] AOL[edit] In1994,theWashingtonTimesreportedthatAmericaOnline(AOL)wassellingdetailedpersonalinformationaboutitssubscriberstodirectmarketers,withoutnotifyingoraskingitssubscribers;thisarticleledtotherevisionofAOL'stermsofservicethreeyearslater. OnJuly1,1997,AOLpostedrevisedtermsservicetotakeeffectJuly31,1997,withoutformallynotifyingitsusersofthechangesmade,mostnotablyanewpolicywhichwouldgrantthird-partybusinesspartners,includingamarketingfirm,accesstoitsmembers'telephonenumbers.Severaldaysbeforethechangesweretotakeeffect,anAOLmemberinformedthemediaofthechangesandthefollowingnewscoverageincitedalargeinfluxofinternettrafficontheAOLpagewhichenableduserstooptoutofhavingtheirnamesandnumbersonmarketinglists.[1] Sony[edit] In2011GeorgeHotzandothermembersoffailOverflowweresuedbySonyCorporation.SonyclaimedthatbyviolatingthetermsofserviceofthePlayStationNetworkandtheDigitalMillenniumCopyrightAct,Hotzandotherswerecommittingbreachofcontract.[13] Instagram[edit] Seealso:Instagram§ Criticismandlawsuits OnDecember17,2012,Instagramannouncedachangetoitstermsofusethatcausedawidespreadoutcryfromitsuserbase.Thecontroversialclausestated:"youagreethatabusinessorotherentitymaypayustodisplayyourusername,likeness,photos(alongwithanyassociatedmetadata),and/oractionsyoutake,inconnectionwithpaidorsponsoredcontentorpromotions,withoutanycompensationtoyou". Therewasnoapparentoptiontooptoutofthechangedtermsofuse.[14] Themovegarneredseverecriticismfromprivacyadvocatesaswellasconsumers.Afteroneday,Instagramapologizedsayingthatitwouldremovethecontroversiallanguagefromitstermsofuse.[15]KevinSystrom,aco-founderofInstagram,respondedtothecontroversy,stating: Ourintentioninupdatingthetermswastocommunicatethatwe’dliketoexperimentwithinnovativeadvertisingthatfeelsappropriateonInstagram.Insteaditwasinterpretedbymanythatweweregoingtosellyourphotostootherswithoutanycompensation.Thisisnottrueanditisourmistakethatthislanguageisconfusing.Tobeclear:itisnotourintentiontosellyourphotos.Weareworkingonupdatedlanguageinthetermstomakesurethisisclear.[16] Zappos[edit] Sometermsofservicearewordedtoallowunilateralamendment,whereonepartycanchangetheagreementatanytimewithouttheotherparty'sconsent.A2012courtcaseInreZappos.com,Inc.,CustomerDataSecurityBreachLitigationheldthatZappos.com'stermsofuse,withonesuchclause,wasunenforceable.[17] Seealso[edit] Abandonware Acceptableusepolicy Clickwraplicense Browsewrap End-userlicenseagreement Free-softwarelicense Glossaryoflegaltermsintechnology Goodfaith(law) Indexofarticlesrelatedtotermsofserviceandprivacypolicies Internetprivacy Licensemanager Comparisonoffreeandopen-sourcesoftwarelicences Shrinkwrapcontract Softwareassetmanagement Standardformcontract References[edit] ^abKornblum,Janet(1997-07-29)."AOLdumpsnewmemberpolicy".Archivedfromtheoriginalon2013-01-19.Retrieved2006-12-24. ^"TermsofserviceDefinitionfromPCMagazineEncyclopedia".pcmag.com.2013.Retrieved2013-01-07. ^DelPiero,John;JenniferSwanton;TonyCardine(2017-08-28)."5WaystoSecureYourIntellectualPropertyDuringCorporateTransitions".LegaltechNews. ^Phillips,AndelkaM.(2015)."GenomicPrivacyandDirect-to-ConsumerGenetics:BigConsumerGeneticData--What'sinthatContract?".2015IEEESecurityandPrivacyWorkshops.SanJose,CA:IEEE:60–64.doi:10.1109/SPW.2015.19.hdl:2262/77428.ISBN 9781479999330.S2CID 14504403.p ^abMarotta-Wurgler,Florencia,andRobertTaylor(2013)."SetinStone?ChangeandInnovationinConsumerStandard-FormContracts"(PDF).NewYorkUniversityLawandEconomicsWorkingPapers.88:240–285. ^Bradshaw,Simon;Millard,Christopher;Walden,Ian(2010-09-02)."ContractsforClouds:ComparisonandAnalysisoftheTermsandConditionsofCloudComputingServices"(PDF).Rochester,NY:QueenMaryUniversityofLondon-CloudLegalProject. ^Becher,ShmuelI.;Benoliel,Uri(2019-01-11)."TheDutytoReadtheUnreadable".Rochester,NY.SSRN 3313837.{{citejournal}}:Citejournalrequires|journal=(help) ^"TermsandConditionsMayApply(2013)ExternalReviews".IMDB.Retrieved2017-03-15. ^"TermsandConditionsMayApply(2013)Awards".IMDB.Retrieved2017-03-15. ^"TermsofService;Didn'tRead,homepage".Retrieved2017-03-15. ^"TermsofService;Didn'tRead,Topics".Retrieved2017-03-15. ^"TOSBack,Thetermsofservicetracker".Retrieved2017-03-15. ^"Sonyfollowsup,officiallysuesGeohotandfail0verflowoverPS3jailbreak".Engadget.Retrieved2021-03-06. ^Pepitone,Julianne(December18,2012)."Instagramcannowsellyourphotosforads".CNNMoney.CNN.RetrievedDecember18,2012. ^McCullagh,Declan;DonnaTam(18December2012)."Instagramapologizestousers:Wewon'tsellyourphotos".Cnet.Retrieved19December2012. ^Systrom,Kevin(December18,2012)."Thankyou,andwe'relistening".Instagram.Instagram.RetrievedDecember19,2012. ^Goldman,Eric."HowZappos'UserAgreementFailedInCourtandLeftZapposLegallyNaked".Forbes.Retrieved1October2013. Externallinks[edit] [1]Listofchangesintermsandpoliciesat"manyonlineservices"sinceJune2013 TermsonService;Didn’tReadUserrightsinitiativetorateandlabelwebsiteterms&privacypolicies ClickwrappedRatingsofthepoliciesandpracticesofmajorconsumerinternetcompanies Retrievedfrom"https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Terms_of_service&oldid=1087947831" Categories:TermsofserviceHiddencategories:CS1errors:missingperiodicalArticleswithshortdescriptionShortdescriptionisdifferentfromWikidata Navigationmenu Personaltools NotloggedinTalkContributionsCreateaccountLogin Namespaces ArticleTalk English Views ReadEditViewhistory More Search Navigation MainpageContentsCurrenteventsRandomarticleAboutWikipediaContactusDonate Contribute HelpLearntoeditCommunityportalRecentchangesUploadfile Tools WhatlinkshereRelatedchangesUploadfileSpecialpagesPermanentlinkPageinformationCitethispageWikidataitem Print/export DownloadasPDFPrintableversion Inotherprojects WikimediaCommons Languages فارسی한국어עבריתNederlandsRomânăРусскийไทย中文 Editlinks