Terms of Service

1. Welcome to the Business Catapult!

The Business Catapult, Inc. ("Business Catapult", "we", "us") provides a professional social networking service, as described in more detail below (the "Services"), through our website accessible at http://businesscatapult.com (the "Site").

Please read the following important terms and conditions ("Terms of Service") carefully. These Terms of Service govern your access to and use of the Site, including any content, information, products or Services therein. This is a legal agreement between you and the Business Catapult. IF YOU DO NOT ACCEPT THESE TERMS OF SERVICE IN THEIR ENTIRETY, YOU MAY NOT ACCESS OR USE THE SITE OR SERVICES.

2. Services

We provide you, on the Site, a variety of entrepreneurial tools for developing and refining your business concept, and communicating and interacting with people with similar interests. In addition we provide tools for investors to analyze risks associated with business profiles. These include the ability to create business profiles that describe your business; submit your business profile to advisory networks, such as business incubators, to get business advice and refine your business concept; and submit your business profile to investor networks, to begin developing relationships with members of the investment community.

3. License to Use

Subject to this Terms of Service, we grant you a non-exclusive, revocable, non-transferable license to use the Services, including the Site. Some of our services are provided free of charge, while others are provided at a fixed fee.

4. User Submissions

"User Submissions" as used in these Terms of Service means, collectively, the text, data, graphics, images, photos and video files and other content and information which users stream, post, upload and otherwise submit to the Site, including, but not limited to business profiles, investor/advisor profiles, and groups.

The Site may permit the submission and the hosting, sharing, and/or publishing of User Submissions. You understand that whether or not such User Submissions are published, we do not guarantee any confidentiality with respect to any User Submissions. While the Site is designed to protect your data, it is intended to help you make initial connections with people who may be able to help you. Therefore, we strongly recommend that in your user submissions, you only provide data that you would present in a public forum such as a business plan competition, and reserve sensitive or proprietary data for later in-depth conversations held elsewhere (not on the Site), with such data protected with appropriate agreements.

You are solely responsible for your own User Submissions and the consequences of posting or publishing them. In connection with User Submissions:

You agree to abide by all applicable local, state, national and foreign laws, treatises and regulations in connection with your use of the Site and Services.
You agree to not include any private placement memorandum or other document that might be construed as an investment offering or solicitation in any User Submission.
You agree to not submit material that is copyrighted, protected by trade secret or otherwise subject to third party proprietary rights, including privacy and publicity rights, unless you are the owner of such rights or have permission from their rightful owner to post the material and to grant the Business Catapult rights to display such material.
You agree that you have the written consent, release, and/or permission of each and every identifiable individual person to include the name, likeness, and other data about such persons in your User Submissions.
You agree not to publish falsehoods or misrepresentations that could damage the Business Catapult or any third party.
You agree not to submit material that is unlawful, obscene, defamatory, libelous, threatening, pornographic, harassing, hateful, racially or ethnically offensive, or encourages conduct that would be considered a criminal offense, give rise to civil liability, violate any law, or is otherwise inappropriate.
You agree not to post advertisements.
You agree not to impersonate any other person.
We judge all this in our sole discretion.

You understand that when using the Site, you will be exposed to User Submissions from a variety of sources, and that we are not responsible for the accuracy, usefulness, safety, or intellectual property rights of or relating to such User Submissions. You further understand and acknowledge that you may be exposed to User Submissions that are inaccurate, offensive, indecent, or objectionable, and you agree to waive, and hereby do waive, any legal or equitable rights or remedies you have or may have against the Business Catapult with respect thereto, and agree to indemnify and hold the Business Catapult, its owners and operators, affiliates, and/or licensors, harmless to the fullest extent allowed by law regarding all matters related to your use of the Site.

The Business Catapult does not control or endorse the content, messages or information found in any User Submission, and, therefore, the Business Catapult specifically disclaims any liability with regard to the Services and any actions resulting from your participation in the Services.

5. Use of Groupware

The Site may permit you to establish one or more groups, to which other users may submit their business profiles, and to which you may invite other users to review and comment on business profiles (“group members”). Further, as group manager, you may grant administrative access to one or more of your group members; these become “group administrators”.

As group manager, you are responsible for your business relationship with users who submit business profiles to your group. Further, you are responsible for investigating the interests and backgrounds of any individual whom you invite to join your group. As group manager or group administrator:

You agree to grant membership in your groups only to individuals with legitimate advisory or investment-related needs. You agree not to grant membership to any individual who may be seeking access to business profiles to gain competitive knowledge for their employer or any company that they advise.
If you use your group for investment purposes, you agree to restrict membership to individuals who meet the legal definition of accredited investor in your country and their countries (“accredited investors”), or to individuals who serve as investment advisors to accredited investors.
As your group members are also responsible for complying with these Terms of Service, you agree to encourage a climate of responsible use in your group. You also agree to report to us promptly any behavior by any of your group members that may be in violation of these Terms of Service.
You agree to promptly report to us any business profiles you receive through the Site that do not comply with this Terms of Service.
If you establish a group for an organization, by agreeing to these Terms of Service you commit that organization to these Terms of Service and any addendum covering payment of fees to the Business Catapult or other topics (if applicable); and you confirm that you have the authority to commit that organization accordingly.

The Site may also allow you to charge a fee to submit business profiles to your group. If you establish such a fee, you agree that we may collect all such fees, retain a percentage of all such fees, and remit to you the balance of all such fees on a monthly basis. You also agree that you will not collect any other such submittal fee associated with the use of the Services through any mechanism other than that provided on the Site.

6. Analytical Tools

If you decide to use any Analytical Tools, we may share with certain select third parties the results obtained from the use of such Analytical Tools ("Results") (but we will not disclose to any third parties any information that you provide to us in the course of using the Analytical Tools, including, but not limited to, answers that you provide in response to our questionnaire). You agree that we may create derivative works, such as trend analyses and other reports, using the data in your User Submissions, and that we retain all rights of ownership in such derivative works.

7. Registration

In order to access certain features of the Site and Services, and to post User Submissions, you will have to register and create a Business Catapult account.

When you register, you will be asked to choose a user name and a password. You are responsible for safeguarding your password, and you agree not to disclose your password to any third party. You agree that you will be solely responsible for any activities or actions taken under your account, whether or not you have authorized such activities or actions. You agree to immediately notify us of any unauthorized use of your account.

You agree that the information that you provide to us upon registration, and at all other times will be true, accurate, current and complete. If you create an account, you consent to the use of: (a) electronic means to complete these Terms of Service and to provide you with any notices given pursuant to these Terms of Service; and (b) electronic records to store information related to these Terms of Service or your use of the Site and Services.

To use the investor features of the Site, you must meet the legal definition of accredited investor in all countries in which you reside.

8. Rights in Content

You retain all of your ownership rights in your User Submissions. However, by submitting the User Submissions to the Site, you hereby grant us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sublicenseable and transferable license to use, reproduce, distribute, prepare derivative works of, display, and perform the User Submissions in connection with the Site and the Business Catapult's (and its successor's) business, including without limitation for promoting and redistributing part or all of the Site (and derivative works thereof) in any media formats and through any media channels. The Business Catapult retains the right to aggregate user submissions and create derivative works that present data that do not identify individual users or companies.

You also hereby grant each user of the Site a non-exclusive license to access your User Submissions through the Site as permitted through the functionality of the Site and under these Terms of Service.

No compensation will be paid with respect to the use of any Users Submission, as provided herein. We are under no obligation to post or use any User Submission and may remove any User Submission at any time in our sole discretion.

All content on the Site and available through the Service, including designs, text, graphics, pictures, video, information, applications, software, music, sound and other files, and their selection and arrangement, other than User Submissions (the "Site Content"), are the proprietary property of the Business Catapult, its users or its licensors with all rights reserved. No Site Content may be modified, copied, distributed, reproduced, republished, downloaded, displayed, posted, transmitted, or sold in any form or by any means, in whole or in part, without the Business Catapult's prior written consent, except that the foregoing does not apply to your own User Submissions that you legally post on the Site.

9. No Unlawful or Prohibited Use

The Site and Services may be used and accessed for lawful purposes only. You agree to abide by all applicable local, state, national and foreign laws, treatises and regulations in connection with your use of the Site and Services.

In addition, without limitation, you agree that you will not do any of the following while using or accessing the Site or Services:

Use the Site in any manner which could damage, disable, overburden, or impair the Site or interfere with any other person's use and enjoyment of the Site;
Obtain or attempt to obtain any materials or information through any means not intentionally made available or provided for through the Site;
Circumvent, disable or otherwise interfere with security-related features of the Site or features that prevent or restrict use or copying of any Content or User Submission;
Use any meta tags or other hidden text or metadata utilizing a Business Catapult name, trademark, URL or product name;
Attempt to probe, scan or test the vulnerability of any Business Catapult system or network or breach or impair or circumvent any security or authentication measures protecting the Site or Services;
Unless to the extent permitted under applicable laws, attempt to decipher, decompile, disassemble, reverse engineer, or otherwise try to discover or determine the source code of any software or any proprietary algorithm used to provide the Services or the Analytical Tools, including by running multiple tests on such Analytical Tools;
Knowingly include or use any false or inaccurate information in any User Submission or in connection with the use of the Analytical Tools;
Alter or modify in any manner the Results;
Delete, or in any manner alter, the copyright, trademark, or other proprietary rights notices appearing on the Results;
Aggregate Results or combine information related to different User Submissions;
Make any representation or warranty regarding the accuracy or reliability of the Results;
Use the Services, including, but not limited to, the Analytical Tools and the Results, in any way that competes with the Business Catapult;
Defame, abuse, harass, stalk, threaten or otherwise violate the legal rights (such as rights of privacy and publicity) of others;
Facilitate any viruses, Trojan horses, worms or other computer programming routines that may damage, detrimentally interfere with, surreptitiously intercept or expropriate any system, data or information;
Advertise or offer to sell or buy any goods or services for any business purpose, unless the Site specifically allows such messages;
Conduct or forward surveys, contests, pyramid schemes or chain letters;
Download any file posted by another user of the Site that you know, or reasonably should know, cannot be legally distributed in such manner;
Falsify or delete any author attributions, legal or other proper notices or proprietary designations or labels of the origin or source of software or other material contained in a file that is uploaded;
Harvest or otherwise collect information about others, including e-mail addresses, without their consent, or through any means not intentionally made available or provided for through the Site;
Encourage or instruct any other individual to do any of the foregoing or to violate any term of these Terms of Service.

We have no obligation to monitor User Submissions. However, we reserve the right to review User Submissions and to remove any materials in our sole discretion. We reserve the right to terminate your access to any or all of the Site at any time without notice for any breach of these terms of service.

We will fully cooperate with any law enforcement authorities or court order requesting or directing us to disclose the identity of anyone posting publishing or otherwise making available any User Submissions, emails or other materials.

10. Development Partners

We operate a development partner program; for more information on this program, contact us. If you are selected as a development partner, your responsibilities are described in a separate development partner agreement. The development partner agreement is in addition to this Terms of Service, and in no way relieves you of your responsibilities under this Terms of Service.

11. International Use

Recognizing the global nature of the Internet, you agree to comply with all applicable local rules including but not limited to rules regarding online conduct and acceptable content. Specifically, you agree to comply with all applicable laws regarding the transmission of technical data exported from the United States or the country in which you reside.

12. Links to Third Party Sites

The Site may contain links to other web sites ("Linked Sites"). The Linked Sites are not under our control, and we are not responsible for the contents of any Linked Site, including without limitation any link contained in a Linked Site, or any changes or updates to a Linked Site. We are not responsible for webcasting or any other form of transmission received from any Linked Site. We provide these links to you only as a convenience, and the inclusion of any link does not imply endorsement by us of the Linked Site or any association with its operators.

13. Privacy Policy

Please see our separate Privacy Statement for information about the data we collect and our use of those data.

14. Copyright Policy

It is our policy to terminate your access to the Site if you infringe the copyright rights of others, upon receipt of proper notification to us by the copyright owner or the copyright owner's legal agent. Without limiting the foregoing, if you believe that your work has been copied and posted on the Site in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, please provide us with the following information: (i) an electronic or physical signature of the person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the copyright interest; (ii) a description of the copyrighted work that you claim has been infringed; (iii) a description of where the material that you claim is infringing is located on the Site; (iv) your address, telephone number, and email address; (v) a written statement by you that you have a good faith belief that the disputed use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; (vi) a statement by you, made under penalty of perjury, that the above information in your notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on the copyright owner's behalf.

For notice of claims of copyright infringement, contact us by opening a help ticket on the Site, or by using the “Contact” feature on the Site. Any other feedback, comments, requests for technical support, and other communications should be directed to the Business Catapult by opening a help ticket on the Site.

15. Indemnification

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold the Business Catapult, its officers, directors, employees and agents, harmless from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, and expenses, including without limitation reasonable attorney's fees and costs, arising out of or in any way connected with (i) your access to or use of the Site, Services, Content and User Submissions; (ii) your violation of these Terms of Service; (iii) your violation of any third party right, including without limitation any intellectual property right, publicity, confidentiality, property or privacy right; or (iv) any claim that one of your User Submissions caused damage to a third party.

16. Payment for Services

You shall pay all fees or charges to your account in accordance with the fees, charges, and billing terms in effect at the time a fee or charge is due and payable. Payments must be made in advance unless otherwise mutually agreed upon in writing. All payment obligations are noncancelable, and all amounts paid are nonrefundable.

17. Limitations on Service

While it is our goal to provide you with a useful, stable and available service, we cannot guarantee that there will be no unforeseen difficulties, technical or otherwise, which may, result in service interruptions or loss of data. For this reason, the Services are provided strictly on an "as is" basis. By accepting this Agreement, you agree that neither the Business Catapult nor any of its third party service providers will be held accountable for any delays in transmission of your data, data loss, service interruptions or retention of user settings.

We reserve the right to change or discontinue, either temporarily or permanently, any part or all of its services at any time and without prior notice. You agree that neither the Business Catapult nor any of its third party service providers will be liable for any damages, including lost business opportunities, should such discontinuance occur.

18. Liability Disclaimer

THE BUSINESS CATAPULT HAS NO AFFILIATION OR ASSOCIATION WITH ANY INVESTOR OR INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY AND DOES NOT PARTICIPATE AS AN INVESTOR OR ENTREPRENEUR PRESENTING AN INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY.

THE SITE IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES. THE BUSINESS CATAPULT DOES NOT PROVIDE OR ASSIST IN THE FORMULATION OF THE TERMS OF ANY INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY. THE BUSINESS CATAPULT PROVIDES NO INVESTIGATION OR VERIFICATION OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED BY AN INVESTOR OR ENTREPRENEUR REGARDING ANY INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY.

THE BUSINESS CATAPULT DOES NOT RECOMMEND OR ENDORSE ANY SPECIFIC INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY OR INVESTOR. THE BUSINESS CATAPULT MAKES NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES REGARDING THE SUITABILITY, RELIABILITY, AVAILABILITY, TIMELINESS, ACCURACY, AND COMPLETENESS OF THE INFORMATION, SOFTWARE, PRODUCTS, SERVICES AND RELATED GRAPHICS CONTAINED ON THE SITE FOR ANY PURPOSE. THE BUSINESS CATAPULT SHALL NOT BE SUBJECT TO LIABILITY FOR TRUTH, ACCURACY, OR COMPLETENESS (OR THE LACK THEREOF) OF ANY INFORMATION MADE AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SITE OR FOR ERRORS, MISTAKES OR OMISSIONS THEREIN OR FOR ANY DELAYS OR INTERRUPTIONS OF THE DATA OR INFORMATION STREAM FROM WHATEVER CAUSE. YOU AGREE TO USE THE SITE SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK.

THE SITE IS A RESOURCE FOR USERS. HOWEVER, THE BUSINESS CATAPULT DOES NOT GIVE BUSINESS, INVESTMENT, OR LEGAL ADVICE TO ANY USER USING THE SITE. THE BUSINESS CATAPULT IS NOT A BROKER, DEALER OR INVESTMENT ADVISOR AND NOTHING HEREIN SHALL CONSTITUTE A SALE OR OFFER TO BUY OR SELL OR RECOMMEND ANY SECURITIES.

YOU SHALL MAKE YOUR OWN INVESTMENT DECISIONS BASED UPON YOUR OWN PERSONAL DUE DILIGENCE INVESTIGATION AND OTHER PERSONAL INVESTMENT CRITERIA. THE BUSINESS CATAPULT HAS NO LIABILITY WITH RESPECT TO THE ACTIONS OR OMISSIONS OF ANY USER OR THIRD PARTY USING THE SITE.

THE BUSINESS CATAPULT DOES NOT ENDORSE OR CERTIFY THAT ANY INVESTOR IS A SOPHISTICATED, ACCREDITED INVESTOR WITH THE ABILITY TO BEAR THE RISK OF ANY INVESTMENT. IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO DETERMINE IF AN INVESTOR IS A SOPHISTICATED, ACCREDITED INVESTOR WITH THE ABILITY TO BEAR THE RISK OF A PARTICULAR INVESTMENT.

AS A CONDITION TO THE USE OF THE SITE, YOU HEREBY WAIVE AND RELEASE THE BUSINESS CATAPULT, ITS AFFILIATES, THEIR RESPECTIVE MEMBERS, OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, SUPPLIERS, OR LICENSORS FROM ANY AND ALL CLAIMS, CAUSES OF ACTION OR OTHER RIGHTS THAT MAY ARISE OUT OF OR RELATING TO THE USE OF THE SITE.

THE BUSINESS CATAPULT DOES NOT PROVIDE ANY PERSONALIZED OR INDIVIDUAL INVESTMENT ADVICE TO ANY USER. NEITHER THE BUSINESS CATAPULT NOR ANY OF ITS EMPLOYEES OR AGENTS ARE BROKERS, ADVISERS, FINANCIAL CONSULTANTS OR SECURITIES DEALERS. ANY INFORMATION PRESENTED ON THE SITE IS NOT A PERSONALIZED RECOMMENDATION OR A SOLICITATION TO BUY, SELL OR HOLD ANY INVESTMENT OR SECURITY OF ANY KIND.

THE INFORMATION, SOFTWARE, PRODUCTS, AND SERVICES INCLUDED IN OR AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SITE MAY INCLUDE INACCURACIES OR TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS. CHANGES ARE PERIODICALLY ADDED TO THE INFORMATION HEREIN. THE BUSINESS CATAPULT AND/OR ITS SUPPLIERS MAY MAKE IMPROVEMENTS AND/OR CHANGES IN THE SITE AT ANY TIME. ADVICE RECEIVED VIA THE SITE SHOULD NOT BE RELIED UPON FOR PERSONAL, BUSINESS, LEGAL OR FINANCIAL DECISIONS AND YOU SHOULD CONSULT AN APPROPRIATE PROFESSIONAL, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ATTORNEYS AND INVESTMENT ADVISORS, FOR SPECIFIC ADVICE TAILORED TO YOUR SITUATION.

19. Termination, Cancellation

We reserve the right, in our sole discretion upon breach of these Terms of Service, to terminate your access to the Site and the related services or any portion thereof at any time, without notice. Upon termination, all licenses and other rights granted to you by these Terms of Service will immediately cease. We will not be liable to you or any third party for termination of the Services or termination of your use of the Services. UPON ANY TERMINATION OR SUSPENSION, ANY INFORMATION (INCLUDING USER SUBMISSIONS) THAT YOU HAVE SUBMITTED ON THE SITE OR THAT WHICH IS RELATED TO YOUR ACCOUNT MAY NO LONGER BE ACCESSED BY YOU. Furthermore, we will have no obligation to maintain any information stored in our database related to your account or to forward any information to you or any third party.

You may terminate your account at any time and for any reason by posting your request in a help ticket. When you terminate your account, your account will no longer be accessible. Any cancellation request will be handled within 30 days of receipt of such a request by us. Any suspension, termination or cancellation will not affect your obligations to us under these Terms of Service (including but not limited to ownership, indemnification and limitation of liability), which by their sense and context are intended to survive such suspension, termination or cancellation.

20. Modification of Terms of Service

We reserve the right to change the terms, conditions, and notices under which the Site is offered, including but not limited to the fees associated with the use of the Site.

21. Copyright/Trademark Notices

The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

The example companies, organizations, products, people and events depicted herein are fictitious. No association with any real company, organization, product, person, or event is intended or should be inferred.

Any rights not expressly granted herein are reserved.

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