Salon.com Terms of Service
1. ACCEPTANCE OF TERMS
Salon.com (Salon) provides its service to you, subject to the following Terms of Service ("TOS"), which may be updated by us from time to time without notice to you. You can review the most current version of the TOS at any time at: http://www.salon.com/about/tos/index.html. Your use of the Site constitutes your agreement to all such terms, conditions, policies and notices (the "Agreement").
Different Salon services like Table Talk and The WELL maintain their own Terms of Service which address the specific rules of those services.
2. DESCRIPTION OF SERVICE
Salon provides users with access to a rich collection of resources through its network of properties (the "Service"). The Service includes a full copy of the current Salon.com site and special content features. Salon offers two ways of accessing its content, through a Premium membership or a Free Site Pass.
Salon Premium members at ad-free membership levels will not see banner, pop-up nor Site Pass advertising and will see a minimum of other advertising across Salon. To view a list of exceptions please go to this page. Ad-supported Premium members will see advertising across Salon. Free Site Pass access lasts for a variable period from 30 minutes to 8 hours. Free Site Pass users will receive access solely to Salons articles. Free Site Pass users will see advertising across Salon and will need to watch an advertisement in order to get a Site Pass.
Unless explicitly stated otherwise, any new features that augment or enhance the current Service, including the release of new Salon properties, shall be subject to the TOS. You understand and agree that the Service is provided "AS-IS" and that Salon assumes no responsibility for the timeliness, deletion, mis-delivery or failure to store any user communications or personalization settings.
You are responsible for obtaining access to the Service by joining through Salon's registration page or opting into the Free Site Pass service and understand that access may involve third party fees (such as Internet service provider or airtime charges). You are responsible for those fees. In addition, you must provide and are responsible for all equipment necessary to access the Service.
3. MODIFICATIONS TO SERVICE
Salon reserves the right at any time and from time to time to modify or discontinue, temporarily or permanently, the Service (or any part thereof) with or without notice. You agree that Salon shall not be liable to you or to any third party for any modification, suspension or discontinuance of the Service.
Salon may change, add or remove any part of this Agreement, or any other terms associated with the use of the site, at any time, by posting a notice of such changes to the Terms of Service page of the Web site. Any changes shall become part of the Agreement and shall apply as soon as such a notice is posted. By continuing to use Salon after the notice is posted, you are indicating your acceptance of those changes.
4. FEES AND PAYMENTS
Salon will charge you fees to become a Premium member. In order to use the Service or designated portions of the Service you will be required to register and create an account. You agree to pay all fees and charges, including applicable taxes, incurred through your account at the rates in effect for the billing period in which such fees and charges are incurred. Salon reserves the right to change the amount of, or basis for determining, any Fees, and to institute new Fees, effective upon prior notice to you.
In order to set up a Premium membership with Salon you must provide Salon with valid credit card information. By submitting such credit card information, you give Salon permission to charge all Fees incurred through your account to the credit card you designate on the Registration Form. All Fees (other than renewal fees) will be charged at the time they are incurred.
5. REGISTRATION AND ACCOUNT CREATION
As part of the registration and account creation process required to obtain access to Salon's Premium Service, you will select a member ID (username) and a password. You will provide Salon with certain registration information, all of which must be accurate and updated (if any of your registration information changes, you can update it by visiting our Edit Account page). You will be solely responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your password. You are solely responsible for all usage or activity on your Salon account including, but not limited to, use of the account by any person authorized by you to use your member ID and password.
6. NON-TRANSFERABILITY OF MEMBERSHIP
Your right to use this site is personal to you and you may not sub-license, transfer, sell or assign this agreement to any third party without our approval. Any attempt to do so will be void and may result in the cancellation of your account.
7. MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL AND CANCELLATION
Salon will automatically renew and charge your account upon every one-year or monthly anniversary of the date on which you joined depending on the membership plan that you selected during enrollment. By registering, you give permission to Salon to automatically charge your membership fee to your credit card annually or monthly depending on your membership plan. However, you may "opt out" of this automatic renewal at any time by visiting the Edit My Account page and changing your preference. Or, at any time prior to the end of the applicable billing period (month, year, every other year), you may give Salon notice by e-mail to premiumhelp@salon.com that you do not wish to renew your account. Salon will cancel your account upon receipt of such notification from you.
The renewal charge will be equal to your original sign-up price; for those joining at discounted rates, renewal charges will revert to the regular price for the plan (with ads or without ads) you initially selected.
You may cancel a one or two year membership and receive a full refund if you make your cancellation and refund request to this e-mail address, premiumhelp@salon.com, within 30 calendar days from the day you signed up. You may cancel a monthly membership at any time but will not receive a refund for your membership fee. No other refunds will be offered.
Individuals who joined before August 30, 2003 are considered Charter Members and may pay a fixed rate for yearly ad-free membership. Charter Members will retain this discounted rate as long as their account remains in good standing. Should a Charter Member permit the subscription to lapse, their renewal rate shall be equal to rates paid by new members.
Refunds to members who opt to receive special offers like free books, magazines, CDs, DVDs and other services and items will be reduced by the amount of the retail price of, and shipping costs associated with, the special offer item.
Free Site Pass user access to Salon will end 8 or fewer hours after the access was granted.
8. SPONSORS, THIRD PARTIES AND ADVERTISERS
Your correspondence or business dealings with, or participation in promotions of, sponsors, third parties or advertisers found on or through the Service, including payment and delivery of related goods or services, and any other terms, conditions, warranties or representations associated with such dealings, are solely between you and such sponsor, third party or advertiser. You agree that Salon shall not be responsible or liable for any loss or damage of any sort incurred as the result of any such dealings or as the result of the presence of such sponsors, third parties or advertisers on the Service.
From time to time Salon may offer limited-time incentives that members may opt to receive as part of their Premium membership. These incentives may include, but are not limited to books, magazine subscriptions, music CDs, software, special discounts and various services. The following general restrictions apply to these incentives:
- Cost considerations dictate that shipping may be restricted to addresses within the United States.
- Current subscribers to magazines and other services that we offer as incentives may not be eligible for these offers.
- If you have opted into a Premium offer and cancel your Premium membership within the first 30 days of your membership and request a refund, your refund will be reduced by the amount of the special offer's retail and shipping price.
The following magazine-specific restrictions apply:
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WIRED (currently available)
If you have selected it, your paid membership includes a one year (12 issues) subscription to Wired. Your subscription will begin within 14 weeks and there are no hidden obligations and you will not receive any bills. The cost of your subscription is included in your order.
If you decide that you do not want the subscription to Wired included with your Premium membership, we will deduct $11.00 from your total membership amount. Send a self addressed stamped envelope to: Wired Magazine, Advance Magazine Publishers, 600 South Airport Road, Suite A 203, Longmont, CO 80503-6424 and you will be refunded. You must include a copy of your Salon.com membership confirmation. This offer is only valid for paid customers of Salon.com with a U.S. mailing addresss who were offered and selected a Wired subscription. Requests for refund must be received within 30 days of your membership to Salon.com. This offer is only available for new subscribers to Wired.
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REASON (currently available)
If you have selected it, your paid membership includes a one year (11 issues) subscription to Reason. Your subscription will begin within 14 weeks and there are no hidden obligations and you will not receive any bills. This magazine subscription may be canceled at any time; to do so, contact the publisher directly.
By accepting this offer, you agree to receive occasional communications from Reason Magazine and the Reason Foundation.
This offer is only valid for paid customers of Salon.com with a U.S. mailing address who were offered and accepted a subscription to Reason. This offer is only available for new subscribers to Reason.
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THE NEW YORK REVIEW OF BOOKS (currently available)
If you have selected it, your paid membership includes a 6-month (10 issues) subscription to The New York Review of Books. Your subscription will begin within 14 weeks and there are no hidden obligations and you will not receive any bills. The cost of your subscription is included in your order. This magazine subscription may be canceled at any time; to do so, contact the publisher directly.
If you decide that you do not want to the subscription to The New York Review of Books included with your Premium membership, we will deduct $17.00 from your total membership amount. Send your refund request to: The New York Review of Books, PO Box 23129, Jackson, MS 39225 and you will be refunded. You must include a copy of your Salon.com membership confirmation.
This offer is only valid for new subscribers of NYR who are paid customers of Salon.com with a U.S. mailing address and were offered and selected a New York Review of Books subscription. Request for refund must be received within 30 days of your membership to Salon.com.
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VERBENA.NET (currently available)
If you have selected it, your paid Salon Premium account includes a reusable 15% discount on purchases from Verbena.net, an online retailer. There are no hidden obligations and you will not receive any bills. This code may be used three times between now and November 30, 2006. To obtain the discount code, browse to the member benefits page and log in to your Premium account. To redeem this discount, shop at Verbena.net and enter the discount code when prompted during checkout.
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THE WEEK (offer ended 1/31/07)
If you have subscribed to a year of Salon Premium without ads, your paid membership includes a 50-issue subscription to The Week magazine. Your subscription will begin within 6-8 weeks and there are no hidden obligations and you will not receive any bills. The cost of your subscription is included in your order. This offer may only be accepted at the time of your membership renewal or registration.
If you decide that you do not want the subscription to The Week included with your Premium membership, we will deduct $15 from your total membership amount. Send a self addressed stamped envelope to: The Week, Salon Refund Request, P.O. Box 420235, Palm Coast, FL 32142-0235 and you will be refunded. You must include a copy of your Salon.com membership confirmation. This offer is only valid for paid customers of Salon.com who paid for 1 year of Salon Premium service without advertising and were offered and selected a The Week subscription. U.S. mailing addresses only. Requests for refund must be received within 30 days of your membership to Salon.com.
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IRONWEED FILM CLUB (offer ended 11/3/06)
If you have selected it, your paid Salon Premium account includes one complimentary month of membership in Ironweed Film Club. If you select this offer, you will receive one DVD from Ironweed that you are free to keep. This DVD will be mailed to the shipping address in your account settings. Your membership will begin within 6-8 weeks. There are no hidden obligations and you will not receive any bills.
By accepting this offer, you agree that Salon may share your email address with Ironweed for the purposes of contacting you with special offers and announcements related to your membership in Ironweed Film Club.
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THE NEW YORKER (offer ended 5/16/06)
If you have selected it, your paid membership includes a one-year subscription to The New Yorker. Your subscription will begin within 6-8 weeks. There are no hidden obligations and you will not receive any bills. The cost of your subscription is included in your order. Valid only for new The New Yorker subscribers with U.S. mailing addresses.
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ROLLING STONE (offer ended 7/26/06)
If you have selected it, your paid membership includes a one-year (26 issues) subscription to Rolling Stone. Your subscription will begin within 6-8 weeks and there are no hidden obligations and you will not receive any bills. The cost of your subscription is included in your order. Valid only for new Rolling Stone subscribers. U.S. mailing addresses only.
If you decide that you do not want the subscription to Rolling Stone included with your membership, we will deduct $9.00 from your total membership amount. Send a self addressed stamped envelope to: Rolling Stone Refund, PO Box 8243, Red Oak, IA 51591. You must include a copy of your Salon.com membership confirmation. This offer is only valid for paid customers of Salon.com who were offered and selected a Rolling Stone subscription. Requests for refund must be received within 30 days of your membership to Salon.com.
10. LINKS
Salon may provide, or third parties may provide, links to other World Wide Web sites or resources. Because Salon has no control over such sites and resources, you acknowledge and agree that Salon is not responsible for the availability of such external sites or resources, and does not endorse and is not responsible or liable for any content, accuracy, quality, advertising, products, or other materials on or available from such sites or resources. You further acknowledge and agree that Salon shall not be responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with use of or reliance on any such content, goods or services available on or through any such site or resource.
11. DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES
YOU EXPRESSLY UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT:
a. YOUR USE OF THE SERVICE IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK. THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS. SALON EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NON-INFRINGEMENT.
b. SALON MAKES NO WARRANTY THAT (i) THE SERVICE WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS, (ii) THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, TIMELY, SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE, (iii) THE RESULTS THAT MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE USE OF THE SERVICE WILL BE ACCURATE OR RELIABLE, (iv) THE QUALITY OF ANY PRODUCTS, SERVICES, INFORMATION, OR OTHER MATERIAL PURCHASED OR OBTAINED BY YOU THROUGH THE SERVICE WILL MEET YOUR EXPECTATIONS, (v) ANY ERRORS IN THE SOFTWARE WILL BE CORRECTED, (vi) OR THAT THIS WEB SITE, ITS CONTENT, AND THE SERVERS ON WHICH THE WEB SITE AND CONTENT ARE AVAILABLE ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS.
c. ANY MATERIAL DOWNLOADED OR OTHERWISE OBTAINED THROUGH THE USE OF THE SERVICE IS DONE AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION AND RISK AND THAT YOU WILL BE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE TO YOUR COMPUTER SYSTEM OR LOSS OF DATA THAT RESULTS FROM THE DOWNLOAD OF ANY SUCH MATERIAL.
d. NO ADVICE OR INFORMATION, WHETHER ORAL OR WRITTEN, OBTAINED BY YOU FROM SALON OR THROUGH OR FROM THE SERVICE SHALL CREATE ANY WARRANTY NOT EXPRESSLY STATED IN THE TOS.
e. THIS WEB SITE MAY CONTAIN VARIOUS COMBINATIONS OF TEXT, IMAGES, AUDIOVISUAL PRODUCTIONS, OPINIONS, STATEMENTS, FACTS, ARTICLES, MARKET DATA, STOCK QUOTES OR OTHER INFORMATION CREATED BY SALON OR BY THIRD-PARTIES. DUE TO THE NUMBER OF SOURCES FROM WHICH CONTENT IN THIS SITE IS OBTAINED, AND THE INHERENT HAZARDS OF ELECTRONIC DISTRIBUTION, THERE MAY BE DELAYS, OMISSIONS OR INACCURACIES IN SUCH CONTENT. ACCORDINGLY, SUCH CONTENT, INCLUDING THE MARKET DATA, IS FOR YOUR REFERENCE ONLY AND SHOULD NOT BE RELIED UPON BY YOU FOR ANY PURPOSE. SUCH CONTENT IS NOT INTENDED FOR THE PURPOSE OF TAX OR INVESTMENT ADVICE AND IT DOES NOT ADVOCATE THE PURCHASE OR SALE OF ANY SECURITY OR INVESTMENT.
f. INFORMATION CREATED BY THIRD PARTIES THAT YOU MAY ACCESS ON THE SITE OR THROUGH LINKS IS NOT ADOPTED OR ENDORSED BY SALON AND REMAINS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF SUCH THIRD PARTIES.
12. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
YOU EXPRESSLY UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT SALON SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF PROFITS, GOODWILL, USE, DATA OR OTHER INTANGIBLE LOSSES (EVEN IF SALON HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES), RESULTING FROM: (i) THE USE OR THE INABILITY TO USE THE SERVICE; (ii) THE COST OF PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS AND SERVICES RESULTING FROM ANY GOODS, DATA, INFORMATION OR SERVICES PURCHASED OR OBTAINED OR MESSAGES RECEIVED OR TRANSACTIONS ENTERED INTO THROUGH OR FROM THE SERVICE; (iii) UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO OR ALTERATION OF YOUR TRANSMISSIONS OR DATA; (iv) STATEMENTS OR CONDUCT OF ANY THIRD PARTY ON THE SERVICE; OR (v) ANY OTHER MATTER RELATING TO THE SERVICE.
13. EXCLUSIONS AND LIMITATIONS
SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN WARRANTIES OR THE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES. ACCORDINGLY, SOME OF THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS OF SECTIONS 6 AND 7 MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.
14. TRADEMARK AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY INFORMATION
All materials on this site ("Online Materials"), including, without limitation, names, logos, trademarks, service marks, images, articles, columns, graphics, photographs, illustrations, artwork, audio clips, video clips, software, and other elements making up the Service are protected by copyrights and other intellectual property rights owned and controlled by Salon or by other parties that have licensed their material to Salon. Except as specifically provided herein, no Online Materials may be copied, reproduced, republished, downloaded, posted, transmitted, or distributed in any way, or otherwise used for any purpose, without the prior written permission of their respective owners. You may not add, delete, distort, or otherwise modify the content on this site. Any unauthorized attempt to modify any Online Material, to defeat security features, or to utilize this site for other than its intended purposes is prohibited.
Salon Premium Services, Salon.com, Salon Magazine, Salon Personals, Table Talk, The WELL and other Salon.com logos and product and service names are trademarks of Salon.com. All other trademarks appearing on the Site are trademarks of their respective owners and our reference to them does not imply or indicate any approval or endorsement by their owners unless such approval or endorsement is expressly made. It is understood that Salon is a news and information site and service and that references to other names and trademarks are necessary in the course of providing news and commentary about the subjects that this site covers. Salon will enforce its intellectual property rights to the fullest extent of the law.
If you are a copyright owner or an agent thereof and you believe that any content on one of Salon's sites infringes upon your copyrights, you may submit a notice pursuant to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act ("DMCA") By following the directions on our DMCA page.
15. NON-WAIVER
The failure of Salon to exercise or enforce any right or provision of the TOS shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. If any provision of the TOS is found by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, the parties nevertheless agree that the court should endeavor to give effect to the parties' intentions as reflected in the provision, and the other provisions of the TOS remain in full force and effect. You agree that regardless of any statute or law to the contrary, any claim or cause of action arising out of or related to use of the Service or the TOS must be filed within one (1) year after such claim or cause of action arose or be forever barred.
16. HEADINGS FOR CONVENIENCE ONLY
The section titles in the TOS are for convenience only and have no legal or contractual effect.
17. VIOLATIONS
Please report any violations of the TOS to our Customer Care group: premiumhelp@salon.com
18 . INDEMNIFICATION:
You agree to indemnify, defend and hold Salon harmless from any claims and expenses, including reasonable attorneys' fees, arising from or related to any breach by you of any terms of this Agreement.
19. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR OR OTHER SUCH COMMENTS OR MATERIALS:
You agree that any letter sent by you to Salon through our "post a letter to the editor" service (http://letters.salon.com/) will become the property of Salon Media Group, Inc. once your hit the "Publish my letter" button without compensation to you. Salon reserves the right to:
Any comments, materials, or letters sent by you to Salon regarding the site, including without limitation, questions, comments, suggestions, criticisms or the like ("Received Materials") shall be deemed to be non-confidential and free of any claims of proprietary or personal rights unless you 1) E-mail that information to Salon using the form on this web page http://www.salon.com/about/letters/index.html and 2) Explicitly state in the correspondence that the letter is "not for publication" and contains "private and proprietary" information that may not be distributed. Salon shall have no obligation of any kind with respect to such Received Materials and Salon will be free to reproduce, use, disclose, exhibit, display, transform, edit, abridge, create derivative works from and/or distribute the Received Materials without limitation or restriction. Furthermore, Salon is free to use any ideas, concepts, know-how, or techniques contained in any communication you send to Salon for any purpose whatsoever, including, but not limited to, developing, manufacturing, and marketing products using such information, without compensation or any other obligations to anyone, including you.
20. PRIVACY
You can read Salon's privacy statement here.
21. RESTRICTIONS ON USE:
You may not use Salon or its content for any illegal purpose or in any manner inconsistent with these Terms and Conditions. You agree to use Salon solely for your own noncommercial use and benefit and not for resale or other transfer or disposition to any other person or entity.
22. SEVERABILITY:
If any provision of this Agreement is found invalid or unenforceable, the provision will be enforced to the maximum extent permissible and the other provisions of this Agreement will remain in force.
23. ENTIRE AGREEMENT:
This Agreement and any other terms and conditions of service on http://www.salon.com constitute the entire agreement between you and Salon and govern your use of the Service.
24. REFUSAL OR DISCONTINUANCE OF SERVICE:
Salon reserves the right to refuse or discontinue service to any user for non-compliance with these Terms and Conditions.
25. CHOICE OF LAW AND FORUM:
This Agreement will be governed by the laws of the State of California. Any dispute arising from the terms of this agreement or breach of this agreement will be governed by the laws of the State of California and you agree to personal jurisdiction by the state and federal courts sitting in San Francisco, California. The parties hereby expressly waive trial by jury in any action, proceeding or counterclaim brought by either of the parties against the other on any matters whatsoever arising out of or in any way connected with these Terms and Conditions and agree to submit to binding arbitration.
I HAVE READ AND UNDERSTAND THIS MEMBERSHIP AGREEMENT AND AGREE TO BE BOUND BY ALL OF ITS TERMS.
