Portal:AOL-Files/Articles/AOL Inc.'s Terms of Service Agreement

1. Terms of Service Agreement and Rules of the Road.

The America Online( service ("AOL") is provided by America Online Inc. ("AOL Inc.") to you ("Member" or "you"), subject to the terms of this Agreement ("TOS") and AOL Inc.'s operating policy, which is incorporated herein and referred to as the "Rules of the Road" or "ROR." (To access ROR on AOL use KEYWORD TOS). The TOS and the ROR comprise the entire agreement between AOL Inc. and you, and supersede any prior agreements between you and AOL Inc. with respect to the subject matter of the TOS and ROR. AOL Inc. may revise the TOS and ROR at any time, and such revision shall be effective immediately upon either posting of the revised TOS in the Member Services Area, or notifying you via e-mail or conventional mail. You agree to review the TOS and ROR periodically to be aware of such revisions. If any revision to the TOS or ROR is unacceptable to you, you may terminate your membership as provided in Section 9 below. Your continued use of AOL following notice of any such revision to the TOS or the ROR shall be conclusively deemed acceptance of all such revisions.

2. Account Info.

YOU REPRESENT THAT YOU ARE AT LEAST EIGHTEEN YEARS OLD. By registering as a Member, you will receive a password and a master account ("Master Account"). You are entirely liable for all activities conducted through your Master Account and any sub-accounts or screen-names under your Master Account ("Sub-Accounts"). (A Member may permit another individual, including a minor, to use the Member's Account or Sub-Accounts subject to Member supervision and with assumption of all resulting liabilities.) You agree to provide AOL Inc. with accurate, complete, and updated registration information, and failure to do so shall constitute a breach of this Agreement and unauthorized access to AOL, and may result in immediate termination of your account and subject you to civil and/or criminal liability. Unless you elect otherwise by selecting the appropriate "Marketing Preference" choice (KEYWORD: MARKETING PREFS), AOL Inc. reserves the right to disclose to third parties certain limited member information (e.g., Member's name, mailing address) available to selected vendors for the purpose of providing to Members information about related products and services. (See sSection 2IIB(iv) of ROR).

3. Charges.

Current rates and surcharges for using AOL may be obtained by calling AOL Inc.'s Customer Service at 800-827-6364 or by selecting "Billing" under "Member Services" (KEYWORD: BILLING). AOL Inc.'s billing practices are explained under the category "Explain Billing Terms." AOL Inc. reserves the right to change its fees and billing methods at any time effective upon thirty (30) days' prior notice by posting such change in the Member Services area. If any change in fees or billing methods is unacceptable to you, you may immediately terminate your Membership as provided in Section 9 below. Your continued use of AOL following any such changes in fees or billing methods shall be deemed acceptance of such changes. Your monthly membership fee is payable in advance and is not refundable in whole or part. You are responsible for all charges associated with connecting to AOL through an available access number. Depending on your particular location, the nearest access number may or may not be a local phone call. Members accessing AOL from outside the continental United States may be assessed special communication surcharges, which apply even if you are using your trial hours. You are responsible for all activities and charges under your Master Account and Sub-account(s), including any unauthorized charges to your account, until you notify AOL Inc. of any breach of security by calling AOL Inc. at 1-800-827-6364 and change your password. Each time you use AOL you agree and reaffirm that AOL Inc. is authorized, as applicable, to charge your designated card or withdraw funds via electronic funds transfer from your checking account. You agree that if you want to see the detailed components of accumulated charges you may do so by using KEYWORD: BILLING.

4. Rights and Responsibilities.

(a) Content You acknowledge that (i) AOL contains information, communications, software, photos, video, graphics, music, sounds and other material and services (collectively, "Content"), and (ii) such Content is generally provided under license by independent content providers ("ICPs") and other AOL subscribers. Each Member and any user of Member's Master Account has a responsibility to evaluate, and bears the risk associated with, the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any Content available through AOL. AOL Inc. does not pre-screen Content as a matter of policy, but AOL Inc. and ICPs shall have the right, but not the responsibility, to remove Content which is deemed in their discretion harmful, offensive, or otherwise in violation of the TOS or ROR.

(b) Rights. You acknowledge that (i) AOL permits access to Content that is protected by copyrights, trademarks, and other proprietary (including intellectual property) rights ("Rights"), and (ii) that these Rights are valid and protected in all media existing now or later developed and (iii) except as is explicitly provided otherwise, your use of Content shall be governed by applicable copyright and other intellectual property laws. (See the ROR for details.) You agree that you may upload to the software files, message boards or otherwise transmit on or through AOL only Content that is not subject to any Rights, or Content in which any holder of Rights has given express authorization for distribution on AOL. By submitting Content to any "Public Area" (e.g. public chat rooms, message boards, software libraries, see ROR for definition) you automatically grant -- or warrant that the owner of such Content has expressly granted -- AOL Inc. the royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive right and license to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative works from, distribute, perform and display such Content (in whole or part) worldwide and/or to incorporate it in other works in any form, media, or technology now known or later developed for the full term of any Rights that may exist in such Content. You may not select or use a screen name of another person (unless it's also your name), or a name subject to the Rights of any person other than you, or a screen name that AOL Inc. deems offensive.

(c) Conduct and Communication. AOL Inc. may elect at its sole discretion to monitor some, all or none of the Public Areas of AOL for adherence to the TOS and ROR. You agree to use AOL only for lawful purposes. Any conduct by a Member that in AOL Inc.'s sole discretion restricts or inhibits any other Member, person or entity from using or enjoying AOL or another service will not be permitted and shall entitle AOL Inc. to immediately terminate membership without notice. (See the ROR for examples of prohibited conduct). AOL Inc. intends to respect its Member's privacy and will not randomly monitor or disclose the contents of private communication (e.g. e-mail, instant messages, private chat rooms). However, AOL Inc. reserves the right, as permitted by law, to monitor or disclose the contents of private communication, if it in good faith believes that such action is necessary (i) to comply with applicable law or valid legal process (e.g., warrant, court order), (ii) to protect the rights or property of AOL Inc., or (iii) in emergencies when physical safety is at issue. (See Section 2B(iv) of the ROR for AOL Inc.'s policy regarding disclosure of Master Account registration information and Section 5 of the ROR for specialAOL Inc.'s policiesy governingregarding the monitoring of Member communication with AOL customer service personnel).

5. International C&S/Internet.

(a) International Areas. You acknowledge that your use of AOL allows access to Content originating from subscribers, ICPs and other third parties located inlocated in countries other than the United States ("International C&S"). Your access to and use of the International C&S will be governed (in addition to this Agreement) by separate terms and operating policies which conform to the appropriate national laws and customs.

(b) Internet. == AOL offers Members access to the Internet. The Internet is not owned, operated, or managed by, or in any way affiliated with, AOL Inc. or any of its affiliates; it is a separate network of computers, independent of AOL. Your use of the Internet is solely at your own risk and is subject to all applicable local, state, national and international laws and regulations. AOL Inc. retains the right, but not the obligation, in its sole discretion and without prior notice or liability, to restrict or terminate a Member's access to the Internet via AOL or to AOL (See Sections C and D of the ROR for details).

6. AOL Software.

AOL Inc. grants you a non-exclusive, limited license to use the software through which you access AOL ("AOL Software") only for use in connecting to AOL from authorized locations in accordance with this Agreement.

7. NO WARRANTY.

MEMBER EXPRESSLY AGREES THAT USE OF AOL, AOL SOFTWARE AND THE INTERNET ARE AT MEMBER'S SOLE RISK. AOL AND AOL SOFTWARE ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS," "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, UNLESS SUCH WARRANTIES ARE LEGALLY INCAPABLE OF EXCLUSION. AOL INC.'s ENTIRE LIABILITY AND YOUR EXCLUSIVE REMEDY WITH RESPECT TO USE OF AOL AND AOL SOFTWARE SHALL BE THE REPLACEMENT OF ANY DISKETTE FOUND TO BE DEFECTIVE. AOL INC.'s LIABILITY TO YOU FOR BREACH OF THIS AGREEMENT IS LIMITED SOLELY TO THE AMOUNT PAID BY YOU TO ACCESS AND USE AOL. BECAUSE SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY FOR CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES, IN SUCH STATES AOL INC.'s LIABILITY IS LIMITED TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.

8. Indemnification.

Upon request of AOL Inc., Member agrees to defend, indemnify and hold harmless AOL Inc., its affiliated companies, licensees and ICPs from all liabilities, claims and expenses, including without limitation reasonable attorney's fees, arising from breach of the TOS or ROR by use of Member's Master Account or Sub-Accounts, or in connection with, the transmission by or through Member's Master Account or Sub-Accounts of any Content on AOL. AOL Inc. reserves the right, at its own expense, to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by Member hereunder, and in such event, Member shall have no further obligation to provide indemnification for such matter.

9. Termination.

Either Member or AOL Inc. may terminate membership at any time. Member's only right with respect to any dissatisfaction with any (i) TOS or ROR term, or policy or practice of AOL Inc. in operating AOL, (ii) Content available through AOL or change therein, or (iii) amount or type of fees or billing methods, or change therein, is to terminate Membership by delivering notice to AOL Inc. (KEYWORD: Cancel). Member's notice of termination will be effective upon receipt by AOL Inc. of notification of termination. In the event that a Member's account is terminated or canceled, no refund of any fees, including monthly membership fee, will be granted and any online time credited to Member's account(s) or sSub-Aaccounts is not convertible to cash or other form of credit.

10. Law.

To the extent of any conflict between the TOS and ROR, TOS shall take precedence. Should any part of the TOS be held invalid or unenforceable, that portion shall be construed consistent with applicable law as nearly as possible to reflect the original intentions of the parties and the remaining portions remain in full force and effect. The TOS shall be governed by the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia, excluding its conflicts of law rules, and Member and AOL Inc. each submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the Commonwealth of Virginia.