Terms of Service (SU 2018)

Last updated: September 4, 2024.

By using any of SimpleUpdates’s Services, you confirm you have agreed to these Terms of Service and read and understood the Privacy Policy and Acceptable Use Policy.

1. Joining the SimpleUpdates.com family of websites:

1.1. Signing Up. To use the Services, you must first signup for an account (“Account”). You agree to provide us with accurate, complete and updated information for your Account. We may need to use this information to contact you. There is a 14 day free trial. To continue using the SimpleUpdates platform, you must log your credit card and be a paying customer. We require a credit card for automatic payment.

1.2. Term. You can choose month-to-month, or get a discount by choosing annual billing. There are no refunds for the payment plan you choose, but you can cancel your account at any time.

1.3. Keep your Login Safe. Please safeguard your Account and make sure others don't have access to your Account or password. You are solely responsible for any activity on your Account. We’re not liable for any acts or omissions under any circumstance in connection with your Account. Contact support if you feel your account information may be in the hands of others. 

1.4. Sixteen And Older. The Services are not intended for and may not be used by children under the age of 16. By using the Services, you affirm that you're at least 16.

2. Your Content

2.1. Your User Content is Yours. Users of the Services may provide us with content, including without limitation text, photos, images, audio, video, code and any other materials (“User Content"). Your User Content stays yours. These Terms don't give us any rights to User Content, except for the limited rights that enable us to provide, improve, promote and protect the Services as described herein.

2.2. Your License To Us. When you provide User Content via the Services, you grant SimpleUpdates a non-exclusive, worldwide, perpetual, royalty-free, sublicensable, transferable right and license to use, host, store, reproduce, modify, create derivative works, communicate, publish, publicly display and distribute User Content for any purpose related to offering the Services.

2.3. Promoting Your Site. SimpleUpdates may, at its discretion, promote your websites use of our CMS to others. This promotion will show what our users can do using our CMS tools. You can opt out of this promotion at anytime by contacting us.

3. You Must Abide by the Law

3.1. Only Use Content You’re Allowed To Use. Any content that you post must be freely available and legal for you to post online. Do not post content on your website unless you have complete, free and legal authorization to do so.

3.2. Follow The Law. You represent that your use of the Services is not contrary to law, including without limitation applicable US export controls, regulations and sanctions.

3.4. Share Responsibly. The Services let you share User Content with others, including without limitation on social media and the open web, so please think carefully about what you share. You will bear the sole and complete responsibility of what you share using the Services.

3.5. Your Sites And Your End Users Are Your Responsibility. You may use the Services to create or publish your website, online store and other products or services (“Your Site”), and Your Sites may have their own visitors and users (“End Users”). You understand and agree that Your Sites and your End Users are your responsibility, and you’re solely responsible for compliance with any laws or regulations related to Your Sites and your End Users, including without limitation the posting of your own privacy policy. We’re not liable for, and won’t provide you with any legal advice regarding, Your Sites or your End Users.

4. Third Party Service Integrations

4.1. Third Party Services. The SimpleUpdates.com CMS has integrations available that add functionality to the Services. If you choose any of these integrations, then you are entering a contract with those services, and that relationship is between you and those services. We don't control Third Party Services, and we’re not liable for Third Party Services or for any transaction you may enter into with them. Your security when using Third Party Services is your responsibility. You also agree that we may, at any time and in our sole discretion, and without any notice to you, suspend, disable access to or remove any Third Party Services. We’re not liable to you for any such suspension, disabling or removal, including without limitation for any loss of profits, revenue, data, goodwill or other intangible losses you may experience as a result thereof.

4.2. Third Party Sites. The Services may contain links to third party sites. When you access third party sites, you do so at your own risk. We don’t control and aren’t liable for those sites.

5. Our Intellectual Property

5.1. SimpleUpdates Owns SimpleUpdates. The Services are protected by copyright, trademark and other US and foreign laws. These Terms don't grant you any right, title or interest in the Services, our trademarks, logos or other brand features or intellectual property, or others’ content in the Services. You agree not to change, translate or otherwise create derivative works of the Services.

5.2. We Use Open Source Software. Open source components may be present in our CMS software. We are glad to share the open source license with you upon request.

6. Our Rights

6.1. Important Things We Can Do. We reserve these rights, which we may exercise at any time and in our sole discretion, and without liability or notice to you: (a) we may change the Services and their functionality; (b) we may restrict access to or use of parts or all of the Services; (c) we may suspend or discontinue parts or all of the Services; (d) we may terminate, suspend or restrict your access to or use of parts or all of the Services; (e) we may terminate, suspend or restrict access to your Account or Your Sites; and (f) we may change our eligibility criteria to use the Services (and if such eligibility criteria changes are prohibited by law where you live, we may revoke your right to use the Services in that jurisdiction).

6.2. HTTPS Encryption. We may offer HTTPS encryption for Your Sites. By registering a custom domain via the Services, or pointing a custom domain to the Services, you authorize us to create and maintain a certificate for the limited purpose of providing HTTPS for Your Sites.

7. Privacy

We may use and disclose your information according to our Privacy Policy. Our Privacy Policy will be treated as part of these Terms. By using the Se rvices, you agree to our collection, use and sharing of information as set forth in the Privacy Policy.

8. Paid Services And Fees

8.1. Fees. You can access certain portions of the Services by submitting a fee payment (such additional services, “Paid Services”). For example, to publish Your Sites publicly, you’ll need to pay a subscription fee. Paid Services will remain in effect until cancelled or terminated in accordance with this Agreement. You may cancel Paid Services at any time via the Services or by contacting us. If you don't pay for Paid Services on time, we reserve the right to suspend or cancel your access to the Paid Services. Transaction fees and additional fees may also apply to certain portions of the Services, and we’ll tell you about those fees before charging you. Our fees will appear on an invoice that we provide via the Services, unless otherwise indicated.

8.2. Taxes. You're responsible for all applicable Taxes for example of items sold in your online store. You are responsible for the collection of taxes from your users and the remittance of taxes to your state. 

8.3. Automatic Subscription Renewals. To ensure uninterrupted service, we will automatically bill you for certain Paid Services from the date you submit your initial payment and on each renewal period thereafter until cancellation. Your renewal period will be equal in time to the renewal period of your current subscription. For example, if you're on a monthly subscription plan, each billable renewal period will be for one month. We’ll automatically charge you the applicable amount using the payment method you have on file with us. You can disable auto-renewal at any time via the Services or by contacting Customer Care.

8.4. No Refunds. While you may cancel any Paid Services at any time, you won't be issued a refund.

8.5. Fee Changes. We may change our fees at any time. When applicable, we’ll give you advance notice of these fee changes via the Services. New fees will not apply retroactively. If you don't agree with the fee changes, you have the right to reject the change by cancelling the applicable Paid Service before your next payment date.

8.6. Chargebacks. If you contact your bank or credit card company to decline, chargeback or otherwise reverse the charge of any payable fees to us (“Chargeback”), we may automatically terminate your Account. If you have questions about a payment made to us, we encourage you to contact us before filing a Chargeback. We reserve our right to dispute any Chargeback.

8.7. Our Payment Processor. We use a third party payment processor (the “Payment Processor”) named Stripe to bill you through a payment account linked to your Account. The processing of payments will be subject to the terms, conditions and privacy policies of the Payment Processor, in addition to this Agreement. We don’t control and are not liable for the security or performance of the Payment Processor. You agree to pay us, through the Payment Processor, all charges at the prices then in effect for any purchase in accordance with the applicable payment terms. You agree to make payment using the payment method you provide with your Account. We reserve the right to correct, or to instruct our Payment Processor to correct, any errors or mistakes, even if payment has already been requested or received.

8.8. Fees For Third Party Services. Third Party Services purchased via the Services may be subject to policies that those Third Party Services determine, and they may be non-refundable. The purchase terms and conditions for such Third Party Services will be displayed during the purchase process, such as through a link to the purchase terms and conditions. It's your responsibility to verify your ability to purchase, cancel or obtain a refund for a Third Party Service. We don’t offer refunds for purchases of Third Party Services. 

9. Your Store On SimpleUpdates

9.1. Store Responsibilities. The Services include features that enable you to provide or sell products and services to, or otherwise collect payments from, your End Users (such activities, “Your Store”). We’re not a party to, and we aren’t liable for, Your Store. You're solely responsible for Your Store, and compliance with any laws or regulations related thereto, including without limitation the following:

9.1.1. Taxes. You're solely responsible for: (a) all Taxes and fees associated with Your Store, including without limitation any Taxes related to the purchase or sale of products or services in connection therewith; (b) collecting, reporting and remitting required Taxes to relevant government authorities; and (c) informing your End Users of required Taxes, and providing them with invoices as required by law. You also agree that any tax estimates, reporting or related materials that we may provide via the Services are for illustration purposes only, and you may not rely on them to comply with your tax obligations.

9.1.2. Fulfillment And Delivery. You're solely responsible for fulfilling and delivering your products and services to your End Users.

9.1.3. Claims and Warranties. You're solely responsible for any claims or warranties you make in connection with Your Store.

9.1.4. Customer Service. You're solely responsible for handling any comments or complaints related to Your eCommerce, including without limitation any issues related to payments, promotions, refunds or chargebacks. You agree to provide accurate and complete contact information on Your Sites so that your End Users can submit comments or complaints to you.

9.1.5. Site Terms, Policies And Legal Compliance. You agree to post and make clearly available on Your Sites a privacy policy, and any other terms or policies that may be required by law, and you warrant that Your Sites and Your Store will comply with all applicable laws and regulations. You agree that we won’t provide any legal advice regarding such terms, policies or compliance. Be sure to read our Privacy Policy to learn more about disclosures to your End Users regarding your use of the Services.

9.2. Store Restrictions. You may not offer or sell any products or services which, in our sole discretion: (a) may be deemed hazardous, counterfeit, stolen, fraudulent, offensive or abusive; (b) are prohibited for sale, distribution or use; or (c) otherwise fail to comply with any applicable laws or regulations, including without limitation with respect to intellectual property, privacy or publicity rights, consumer protection, product safety or trade regulations, or export controls, regulations or sanctions. 

9.3. Store Suspensions. While we’d prefer not to, we may, at any time and in our sole discretion, and without any notice to you, suspend, disable access to or remove your Account, Your Sites or Your Store, without any liability to you or to any End Users, including without limitation for any loss of profits, revenue, data, goodwill or other intangible losses (except where prohibited by law). For example, we may suspend Your Store if you’re violating this Agreement. 

9.4. Store Payment Processors. To accept payments from your End Users in connection with Your eCommerce, you may integrate Your Sites with third party payment processors (“eCommerce Payment Processors”). Your relationship with such eCommerce Payment Processors is governed by those eCommerce Payment Processors’ terms and policies. We don’t control and aren’t liable for any eCommerce Payment Processors, or for any transaction you may enter into with or through any eCommerce Payment Processors. eCommerce Payment Processors are Third Party Services, as defined in Section 4.1. While we will try to provide advance notice, you agree that we may, at any time and in our sole discretion, and without any notice to you, suspend, disable access to, or remove from the Services, any eCommerce Payment Processors, without any liability to you or to any End Users, including without limitation for any loss of profits, revenue, data, goodwill or other intangible losses (except where prohibited by law). Your eCommerce Payment Processors may provide invoices for any transaction fees associated with your eCommerce transactions. 

10. Domains

10.1. Reseller Services. We work with third party registrars to provide you with domain services. When you register a domain name, or renew or transfer an existing domain name, via the Services, you become bound by the relevant registrar’s terms and conditions, which are incorporated by reference into this Agreement. Currently, the registrar for the Services is Tucows Inc., and all registrations and renewals via the Services are subject to the Tucows Terms and Conditions, under which SimpleUpdates is the “Reseller.” 

10.2. ICANN. Your use of our domain services is subject to the policies, including without limitation the dispute resolution policies, of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (“ICANN”). Your rights and responsibilities as a domain name registrant under ICANN’s 2009 Registrar Accreditation Agreement are summarized here. You can learn more about domain name registration in general here.

10.3. Transfers, Renewals And Refunds. You may not transfer a domain name for the first sixty (60) days following registration. For renewals, we’ll try to provide you notice at least fifteen (15) days before your domain renewal date, but you agree that renewing your domain is solely your responsibility. If you cancel a domain name purchase within the first five (5) days following your purchase, we may provide a full refund. However, we don't offer refunds for domain renewals or transfers.

11. Term And Termination 

This Agreement will remain in effect until terminated by either you or us. To terminate this Agreement, you may contact us or simply stop using the Services at any time. We reserve the right to suspend or terminate the Services at any time at our sole discretion and without notice. For example, we may suspend or terminate your use of the Services if you're violating these Terms or our Acceptable Use Policy. All sections of this Agreement that by their nature should survive termination shall survive termination, including without limitation Your Content, Our Intellectual Property, Warranty Disclaimers, Limitation Of Liability, Indemnification, Dispute Resolution and Additional Terms. 

12. Warranty Disclaimers

To the fullest extent permitted by law, SimpleUpdates makes no warranties, either express or implied, about the Services. The Services are provided “as is.” SimpleUpdates also disclaims any warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and non-infringement. No advice or information, whether oral or written, obtained by you from SimpleUpdates shall create any warranty. SimpleUpdates makes no warranty or representation that the Services will: (a) be timely, uninterrupted or error-free; (b) meet your requirements or expectations; or (c) be free from viruses or other harmful components. Some places don't allow the disclaimers in this paragraph, so they may not apply to you.

13. Limitation Of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, in no event will SimpleUpdates be liable with respect to any claims arising out of or related to the Services or this Agreement for: (a) any indirect, special, incidental, exemplary, punitive or consequential damages; (b) any loss of profits, revenue, data, goodwill or other intangible losses; (c) any damages related to your access to, use of or inability to access or use the Services or any portion thereof, including without limitation interruption of use or cessation or modification of any aspect of the Services; (d) any damages related to loss or corruption of any content or data, including without limitation User Content and eCommerce data; (e) any User Content or other conduct or content of any user or third party using the Services, including without limitation defamatory, offensive or unlawful conduct or content; or (f) any Third Party Services or third party sites accessed via the Services. These limitations apply to any theory of liability, whether based on warranty, contract, tort, negligence, strict liability or any other legal theory, whether or not SimpleUpdates has been informed of the possibility of such damage, and even if a remedy set forth herein is found to have failed its essential purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, in no event shall the aggregate liability of SimpleUpdates for all claims arising out of or related to the Services and this Agreement exceed the greater of twenty dollars ($20) or the amounts paid by you to SimpleUpdates in the twelve (12) months immediately preceding the event that gave rise to such claim. Some places don't allow the types of limitations in this paragraph, so they may not apply to you.

14. Indemnification

To the fullest extent permitted by law, you agree to indemnify and hold harmless SimpleUpdates from and against all damages, losses and expenses of any kind (including without limitation reasonable attorneys' fees and costs) arising out of or related to: (a) your breach of this Agreement; (b) your User Content, Your Sites and Your eCommerce; (c) any claims from your End Users; and (d) your violation of any law or regulation or the rights of any third party. 

15. Dispute Resolution

15.1. Informal Resolution. Before filing a claim against SimpleUpdates, you agree to try to resolve the dispute by first emailing Support@SimpleUpdates.com with a description of your claim. We'll try to resolve the dispute informally by following up via email, phone or other methods. If we can’t resolve the dispute within thirty (30) days of our receipt of your first email, you or SimpleUpdates may then bring a formal proceeding.

15.2. Arbitration Agreement. You and SimpleUpdates agree to resolve any claims arising from or relating to the Services or this Agreement through final and binding arbitration and you and SimpleUpdates expressly waive trial by jury, except as set forth below. Discovery and rights to appeal in arbitration are generally more limited than in a lawsuit, and other rights that you and we would have in court may not be available in arbitration. There is no judge or jury in arbitration, and court review of an arbitration award is limited.

15.4. Arbitration Venue. Arbitration will be based in the state of Michigan.

15.5. NO CLASS ACTIONS. You may only resolve disputes with us on an individual basis, and may not bring a claim as a plaintiff or a class member in a class, consolidated or representative action. Class actions, class arbitrations, private attorney general actions and consolidation with other arbitrations aren't allowed.

16. Additional Terms

16.1. Entire Agreement. This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between you and SimpleUpdates regarding the subject matter of this Agreement, and supersedes and replaces any other prior or contemporaneous agreements, or terms and conditions applicable to the subject matter of this Agreement. This Agreement creates no third party beneficiary rights.

16.2. Controlling Law. This Agreement and the Services shall be governed in all respects by the laws of the State of Michigan, without regard to its conflict of law provisions.

16.3. Waiver, Severability And Assignment. Our failure to enforce any provision of this Agreement is not a waiver of our right to do so later. If any provision of this Agreement is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions will remain in full effect and an enforceable term will be substituted reflecting our intent as closely as possible. You may not assign any of your rights under this Agreement, and any such attempt will be void. We may assign our rights under this Agreement to any of our affiliates or subsidiaries, or to any successor in interest of any business associated with the Services.

16.4. Modifications. We may modify this Agreement from time to time, and will always post the most current version on SimpleUpdates.com. By continuing to use or access the Services after any modifications come into effect, you agree to be bound by the modified Agreement. If you disagree with our changes, then you should immediately stop using our Services.