dotPhoto.com Terms of Service   Last Updated: 2/9/2011
1. Description Of Service
2. Changes In Terms and Conditions
3. Member Conduct; Content Restrictions; Size Limitations
4. Adult Content
5. Use Of Popular Search Terms
6. Security; Site Access; Sharing Of Images; Re-Print Permission
7. Age Requirement; Limitation On Use
8. Privacy
9. Links To Third-Party Sites
10. Third-Party Software, Goods And Services
11. License Grant to dotPhoto
12. Indemnification
13. Disclaimer Of Warranties
14. Limitation Of Liability
15. Termination Of Service
16. Discontinuing Inactive Accounts / Storage Policy
17. Choice Of Law And Forum
18. International Use; Exports
19. Severability And Integration
20. Buying or Selling Image Downloads
21. dotPhoto Photo Contest Rules
1. DESCRIPTION OF SERVICE.
dotPhoto provides to its subscribers a variety of on-line services, including digital photo storage and printing, voice annotation, slide show presentations and image manipulation (the "Service"). Any additions to or enhancements of the Service, including the release of new dotPhoto features, shall be subject to these Terms of Service. To use the Service, you must have access to the World Wide Web and pay any service fees associated with such access and provide all equipment necessary to connect to the World Wide Web, including a computer and modem or other access device.
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2. CHANGES IN TERMS AND CONDITIONS.
dotPhoto may modify or terminate our services from time to time, for any reason, and without notice, including the right to terminate with or without notice, without liability to you, any other user or any third party. We reserve the right to modify these Terms of Service from time to time without notice. Please review these Terms of Service from time to time so that you will be apprised of any changes.
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3. MEMBER CONDUCT; CONTENT RESTRICTIONS; SIZE LIMITATIONS.
You agree that all materials which are transmitted by you are your sole and exclusive responsibility. You agree that you will not use the Service to upload, post or otherwise transmit any content that is: unlawful, harmful, threatening, profane, abusive, harassing, tortious, defamatory, vulgar, obscene, or pornographic, or which may give rise to civil or criminal liability under applicable law; libelous, invasive of another's privacy, hateful, or racially, ethnically or otherwise objectionable; harmful to minors in any way; or violative of any copyright or other proprietary rights of another. dotPhoto does not intend to pre-screen content uploaded or stored by its members, and is not responsible for such content, dotPhoto reserves the right to edit or remove content which violates any of the foregoing provisions.
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4. ADULT CONTENT
dotPhoto is child-friendly service, and we do not condone adult content in the public areas of the site. While we do not monitor every photo being uploaded, dotPhoto will remove accounts that promote naked or obscene photos in the public galleries and the dotPhoto search engine as we discover them. This also applies to the popular "model" search category. Please respect the children who browse dotPhoto.
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5. USE OF POPULAR SEARCH TERMS
dotPhoto establishes search categories and popular search terms to make it convenient for users to find applicable photos. Users who intentionally misapply search terms to photos (for instance, adding "Grand Canyon" to a photo of a model who is clearly not at the Grand Canyon) may have their accounts deactivated and their photos erased. With millions of photos on the site, it is important that all dotPhoto users agree to apply reasonable descriptions of public photos so that the search engine can yield meaningful results for other users.
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6. SECURITY; SITE ACCESS; SHARING OF IMAGES; RE-PRINT PERMISSION.
Any content which you transfer to the Service will be stored on a secure server located within the United States of America. Your account will also be protected by a password selected by you. You may share images only with those to whom you haven given access to your dotPhoto account. You are solely responsible for the dissemination of your password and other security information relating to your account, and are fully responsible for all activities which occur under your password or account. dotPhoto strongly recommends that you only disseminate this information to individuals who you know and trust. For more information regarding the security of your content, please see go to our Security Policy. If you share access to your content with any other person, dotPhoto shall have permission to send prints to such person.
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7. AGE REQUIREMENT; LIMITATION ON USE.
You must be at least thirteen (13) years of age to be a dotPhoto member. In addition, you must possess a valid credit card. If you are under the age of eighteen (18), the credit card must belong to your parent or legal guardian. Unless you have registered as a Professional Member, you may use the service only for personal, non-commercial purposes.
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8. PRIVACY.
When you subscribe to the Service, it is necessary for you to provide us with certain personal information, such as your name, e-mail address and mailing address. We protect and use this information as set forth in our Privacy Policy. As disclosed in dotPhoto's Privacy Policy, we may disclose to third parties certain aggregate information contained in your Registration Data or related data, provided that, such information will NOT include personally identifying information, except as specifically authorized by you or in the good faith belief that such action is reasonably necessary to comply with the law, legal process, to enforce the TOS, or under any of the other circumstances set forth in our Privacy Policy, as may be amended from time to time.
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9. LINKS TO THIRD-PARTY SITES.
dotPhoto may provide links to other sites on the Internet which may be of interest to you. dotPhoto does not control the content which may be on or available through these sites, and assumes no liability relating to such sites. The presence of such a link does not imply endorsement of those sites or association of those sites with dotPhoto. It is up to each member to become familiar with these sites and their privacy and security policies.
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10. THIRD-PARTY SOFTWARE, GOODS AND SERVICES.
Under certain circumstances, dotPhoto may make available to its members software products and other goods and services that have been developed by others. As a condition to using those products, the dotPhoto member must agree to be bound by the terms and conditions imposed by the producer of the software, goods and services, including license and warranty terms and conditions. Such agreements will be between the you and the software producer. dotPhoto DOES NOT GUARANTEE OR WARRANT THE PERFORMANCE OF ANY SUCH SOFTWARE PRODUCT, GOODS OR SERVICES OBTAINED OR ADVERTISED THROUGH dotPhoto OR ON THE dotPhoto SITE, OR THAT ANY SOFTWARE PRODUCT WILL BE FREE FROM CONTAMINATING OR DESTRUCTIVE CODE, SUCH AS VIRUSES, WORMS OR TROJAN HORSES.
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11. LICENSE GRANT TO dotPhoto.
dotPhoto does not claim any ownership in the photos, sound recordings, videos or other media created or uploaded by you or any other user ("Media"). Consequently, dotPhoto will not license, resell, or otherwise distribute Media to third parties. Unless otherwise indicated, by uploading Media to any public album within the Service, you grant dotPhoto a nonexclusive, royalty-free license to publish, distribute and display the Media, without limitation, anywhere within the Service itself and within email communications promoting the Service. This license shall be in effect during all times that relevant Media is stored by you in public dotPhoto albums. This license shall NOT apply to Media placed in private albums.

Furthermore, you represent and warrant that you own or otherwise control all of the rights to the Media that you post; that you have received all proper permissions and/or releases relative to all media that you post; that use of the Media you store in any public album does not violate these Terms of Service and will not cause injury to any person or entity; and that you will indemnify dotPhoto for all claims resulting from Media you supply. dotPhoto has the right but not the obligation to monitor and edit or remove any activity or Media. You understand and agree that dotPhoto takes no responsibility and assumes no liability for any Media posted by you or any third party.

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12. INDEMNIFICATION.
You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless dotPhoto and its subsidiary and other affiliated companies, and their employees, officers, directors, contractors, agents, licensors and suppliers, from all liabilities, losses, damages, claims, costs and expenses, including reasonable attorney's fees, that arise from (i) use or misuse of the Service or any person to whom you have granted access to the Service, (ii) your violation of any of these Terms of Service, or (iii) any other activity related to your account (including negligent or wrongful conduct). dotPhoto reserves the right, at it own expense, to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to defense by you, in which event you will cooperate with dotPhoto and its counsel in the conduct of such defense.
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13. DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES.
THE SERVICE, AS WELL AS ALL CONTENT, MATERIALS, INFORMATION, SOFTWARE, INFORMATION AND PRODUCTS INCLUDED IN OR AVAILABLE THROUGH dotPhoto ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, dotPhoto EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND RELATING THERETO, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OR NONINFRINGEMENT. dotPhoto, ITS SUBSIDIARIES, AFFILIATES AND LICENSORS, DO NOT WARRANT THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, TIMELY, SECURE OR ERROR-FREE, OR THAT ITS SITE WILL BE FREE FROM VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS. YOUR USE OF THE SERVICE IS SOLELY AT YOUR RISK. BECAUSE SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT PERMIT THE EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN WARRANTIES, THESE EXCLUSIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.
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14. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY.
UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHALL dotPhoto, ITS SUBSIDIARIES AND AFFILIATED COMPANIES, OR ITS LICENSORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, PUNITIVE, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOST PROFITS, OR LOSS OF USE, DATA OR OTHER INTANGIBLES) THAT RESULT FROM THE USE OF, OR INABILITY TO USE, THE SERVICE. THIS LIMITATION APPLIES WHETHER THE ALLEGED LIABILITY IS BASED ON CONTRACT, TORT, NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY, OR ANY OTHER BASIS, EVEN IF dotPhoto HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE. BECAUSE SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, dotPhoto'S LIABILITY IN SUCH JURISDICTIONS SHALL BE LIMITED TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.
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15. TERMINATION OF SERVICE.
dotPhoto, in its sole discretion, may terminate your password and use of the Service, and remove and discard any Content within the Service, for any reason, including, without limitation, expiration of the terms of your dotPhoto subscription, lack of use of the Service for a specified period, or if dotPhoto believes that you have violated or acted inconsistently with the letter or spirit of these Terms of Service. You agree that any termination of your access to the Service under any provision of these Terms of Service may be effected at the sole discretion of dotPhoto. dotPhoto may deactivate or delete your account and all related information and files and/or bar any further access to such files or the Service at its sole discretion without notice. You agree that dotPhoto shall not be liable to you or any third-party for any termination of your access to the Service.
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16. DISCONTINUING INACTIVE ACCOUNTS / STORAGE POLICY.
dotPhoto provides free storage for personal and professional photographers who are actively engaged with their images for up to one year from join date. dotPhoto reserves the right to cancel the Service or to discontinue free accounts that are inactive. (All paid membership plans are deemed active.) Professionals are encouraged to use optional Album Deletion Dates to prompt customers to buy photos and to free up space. Professionals with over 10,000 images are encouraged to clean out periodically their inventories of non-selling images. Users that disparage dotPhoto printing services or that use dotPhoto services for display-only without intent to sell will be deleted.
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17. CHOICE OF LAW AND FORUM.
These Terms of Service shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New Jersey, without regard to its conflicts of law rules. You expressly agree that the exclusive jurisdiction for any claim or action arising out of or relating to these Terms of Service or your use of the Service shall be filed only in the state or federal courts located in the State of New Jersey, and you further agree and submit to the exercise of personal jurisdiction of such courts for the purpose of litigating any such claim or action. 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 these Terms of Service must be filed within one (1) year after such claim or cause of action arose or be forever barred.
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18. INTERNATIONAL USE; EXPORTS.
dotPhoto makes no representation that the Service will be available or appropriate for use in locations outside of the United States. Those who choose to access the Service from locations outside the United States do so at their own risk and are responsible for compliance with local laws and regulations. dotPhoto members are responsible for compliance with all United States export laws and regulations when the member exports any materials provided through the Service.
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19. SEVERABILITY AND INTEGRATION.
Unless otherwise specified herein, this agreement constitutes the entire agreement between you and dotPhoto with respect to the Service and supersedes all prior or contemporaneous communications and proposals (whether oral, written, or electronic) between you and dotPhoto with regard to the Service. If any part of these Terms of Service is held invalid or unenforceable, that portion shall be deemed to be substituted with a valid, enforceable provision which most closely reflects the original intent of the parties, and the remaining portions shall remain in full force and effect.
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20. BUYING OR SELLING IMAGE DOWNLOADS

Professional photographers and image owners who sell hi-resolution downloads of their images on dotPhoto agree to offer these terms to download buyers, and, by purchasing downloads, buyers also agree to these terms:

  • The buyer has the right in perpetuity to use the image for non-commercial purposes including but not limited to such activities as web posting, sharing, printing and gift creation for personal use.
  • The professional photographer (the seller) retains the copyright of the image and any rights for commercial use if the photo is cleared for commercial use and the subjects have signed model releases.
  • Both the buyer and the seller agree that a contract of sale exists between the buyer and the seller, and not between dotPhoto and either party. In the event of any dispute, the buyer and the seller agree to enforce their own rights and to hold dotPhoto harmless.
  • Buyer has inspected the resolution of this image prior to purchase, and agrees that this is a non-refundable sale.
21. DOTPHOTO PHOTO CONTEST RULES

Contest entrants must be members of dotPhoto and no purchase is necessary. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED.

Rules. The Contest is governed by all terms and conditions listed below. If you choose to participate in the contest, you have agreed to these terms and conditions. The rules are determined by the judges of the contest and are final.

Contest time period. Unless otherwise specified, each contest begins on the first of each month at 12:00 AM Pacific Time and ends on the final day of each month at 11:59 PM Pacific Time.

Eligibility; Age requirement. You must be at least 13 years of age in order to enter and/or win a dotPhoto contest. All members of dotPhoto, including both amateur and professional are eligible. dotPhoto partners, employees and their immediate families are not eligible.

Submissions. By entering the dotPhoto contest you agree that your image is not unlawful, harmful, threatening, profane, abusive, harassing, tortuous, defamatory, vulgar, obscene, or pornographic, or which may give rise to civil or criminal liability under applicable law; libelous, invasive of another's privacy, hateful, or racially, ethnically or otherwise objectionable; harmful to minors in any way; or volatile of any copyright or other proprietary rights of another.

Any submissions deemed inappropriate in any manner will automatically be disqualified and taken off the site. If you have any questions or concerns about this issue, please view the Terms of membership for dotPhoto under Section 15: Termination Of Service.

Images may be submitted any time within the allotted time period of the contest. Members may submit multiple entries to a contest at any time. Images which have won previous dotPhoto contests are ineligible for submission.

Upon entering the contest, you agree to allow dotPhoto to use your name, photo, and location for any promotional and advertising purposes without any compensation.

Copyright. By entering a dotPhoto contest, you certify that the photo you have submitted is your original work and has never been copyrighted or, if copyrighted, that you are the sole copyright owner. You are entering this photo as an honest and true effort of your personal creativity and artistic vision, and you understand that it will be published on the Internet as your original work and under your own copyright. Photos in the dotPhoto Contest Album may not be ordered or copied by guests or other users.

How Winners are Selected. dotPhoto contests are judged by the Photo Editorial Staff. The criteria are based on the appropriateness of theme, originality, image quality and composition.

Winner Notification. All winners will be notified via email within 48 hours from the end date of the contest. Winners must provide their full name, working email address, and mailing address within their account settings to be eligible to redeem prizes. Failing to do so will result in disqualification.

INDEMNIFICATION. You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless dotPhoto and its subsidiary and other affiliated companies.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHALL dotPhoto, ITS SUBSIDIARIES AND AFFILIATED COMPANIES, OR ITS LICENSORS BE LIABLE FOR THE COPYRIGHT OF THE PHOTOS THAT HAVE BEEN SUBMITTED. CONTEST ENTRIES ASSUME ALL THE RIGHTS, RESPONSIBILITIES, AND CONSEQUENCES FOR THE SUBMITTED PHOTOS TO ALL DOTPHOTO CONTESTS. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHALL dotPhoto, ITS SUBSIDIARIES AND AFFILIATED COMPANIES, OR ITS LICENSORS INCUR ANY LIABILITY OF ANY KIND RESULTING FROM OR ARISING FROM PARTICIPATION IN THE CONTEST (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY ACCEPTANCE, POSSESSION, USE, MISUSE, OR NONUSE OF THE PRIZE BY THE WINNER), OR THE SUBMISSIONS, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION THE INFRINGEMENT OF THIRD PARTY INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS BY SUBMISSIONS. WINNERS AGREE TO ACCEPT THE PRIZE AS IS (WITHOUT SUBSTITUTIONS).

Miscellaneous. dotPhoto assumes all rights and responsibilities of changing these contest terms and conditions at any time. dotPhoto DOES NOT take responsibility for prizes that are lost or damaged upon delivery by an outside carrier.
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