General Terms of Business for Online Products
These terms of business apply to all digital databases, applications, information, sample contracts, explanations and other online services (hereinafter referred to as online products) made available by Vincentz Network, whether against payment or free of charge, and use of which takes place exclusively by way of remote data transfer via the Internet. For deliveries of goods (books, loose-leaf editions, supplementary deliveries, tables, brochures, CD-ROMs and DVDs), the general terms of business for deliveries of goods apply. For the delivery of software, supplementary regulations in accordance with the software licensing conditions apply.
Preamble
In the online offers, Vincentz Network makes various electronic products available to its customers. These terms of use regulate the rights and obligations of the parties with respect to access to these contents if and to the extent that the provisions of the respective licensing contract concluded by Vincentz Network and the customer contain no deviating regulations for the respective electronic product. The following general terms of business (or terms of use) apply exclusively. Deviating terms of contract of the customer’s apply only if they have been confirmed by Vincentz Network.
Customer/User
The customer, in the sense of these terms of use, is the party with whom Vincentz Network concludes a contract in accordance with the terms of use. The customer (with a single licence) is personally entitled to make use of the product, or names (with a shared licence), vis-à-vis Vincentz Network, other persons (users) (giving forename, surname, e-mail address) who are entitled to make use of the product. The customer with a shared licence can name as many users as the number indicated on the licences purchased.
1.
Conclusion of Contract
1.1
A binding order is made by the customer by using the button “jetzt kostenpflichtig bestellen” [now order under payment obligation]. Vincentz Network confirms receipt of the order, as a rule, by e-mail. The e-mail confirmation is still no acceptance of the order.
1.2
The contract comes into force if Vincentz Network explicitly accepts an order.
1.3
If the customer is a consumer, a statutory right of revocation exists. The right of revocation expires prematurely if the customer explicitly agrees that the execution of contract should begin and he/she confirms his/her awareness that, with the consent given, the right of revocation expires and the execution of contract can begin.
Instruction on Revocation
2.1
Right of Revocation
You have the right to revoke this contract within fourteen days without having to give any reasons for doing so. The revocation period is fourteen days as from the day of conclusion of contract. To exercise your right of revocation, you must send us (for contact details see Imprint) an explicit declaration (e.g. in a letter sent by post, by fax or by e-mail) of your decision to revoke this contract. To satisfy the revocation deadline, it is sufficient that you send off your notification as to the exercising of the right of revocation before expiry of the revocation period.
2.2
Consequences of the Revocation
If you revoke this contract, we must return to you all payments received from you, including delivery costs (with the exception of additional costs resulting from a decision made by you in favour of another type of delivery than the most favourably priced standard delivery customarily offered by us), immediately, and at the latest within fourteen days of the date on which we received the notification of your revocation of this contract. For this repayment, we will make use of the same means of payment used by you in the original transaction, unless some alternative has been explicitly agreed with you. On no account will you be charged for this repayment.
Scope of Use
All rights and entitlements to the contents remain with Vincentz Network, unless these have been explicitly granted to the customer in the licensing agreement. During the contract period, Vincentz Network grants the customer the non-exclusive, revocable and non-transferable right to access and to view, show, search for or call up the contents as intended, for his/her/its own purposes. The use of the contents is conclusively limited to the extent stipulated in the respective licensing contracts. On no account may the customer additionally duplicate or circulate the contents, or make them publicly accessible, or pass them on in any other way to third parties and/or process them. In particular, the customer is also prohibited from updating, altering, revising, adapting, modifying, translating or converting the contents, as well as from preparing works derived from them. With the expiry of the contract period, the right to make use of the contents ends. The customer must not remove, cover or alter the copyright notes, make names, logos or markings, or other proprietary rights that appear in or on the licenced contents.
Access to the Contents
During the contract period, the customer is permitted access to the licenced contents via an authentication method stipulated by Vincentz Network (e.g. user name, password or IP authentication). After conclusion of the licensing contract, Vincentz Network will provide the customer with a set of access data. This access data may only be used by an authorised user and is not transferable to anyone else. The access data is technically limited to the access of a single licence. It is forbidden for the customer to pass on this access data to a third party.
Rights and Obligations of Vincentz Network
Vincentz Network reserves the right, while observing data protection, to analyse the log files in order to search for misuse by the customer and/or by a third party. Vincentz Network can remove parts of the contents of the websites to which Vincentz Network no longer holds the publication rights, or with respect to which it has good reason for assuming that they violate or otherwise infringe against such copyright or other legal regulations. The availability of the contents is technically realised by Vincentz Network in that Vincentz Network makes such contents generally available to its customers, though at least within the framework of technical standards that are customary to the market. Vincentz Network will take appropriate and reasonable measures to ensure that the customers or authorised users have uninterrupted access to the website and that the contents are continuously available. This availability at all times is not, however, explicitly guaranteed. In particular, access can be limited at times for technical reasons, as in the case of necessary servicing and repair work.
Rights and Obligations of the Customer
6.1
In the case of a shared licence, the customer will inform the authorised users as to the intellectual property entitlements or other applicable protected rights on the contents, as well as to the forms of use prohibited in keeping with point 3 of these terms of use. The customer will take all reasonable measures to prevent any violation, by users or third parties, of the intellectual property rights or other rights of Vincentz Network to the contents.
6.2
If the customer establishes that there has been misuse of the access to the contents by an employee or by a third party, the customer must inform Vincentz Network of this immediately, giving details about the misuse, and must take the measures necessary to prevent any repetition of the misuse. If possible, the customer must immediately block the access entitlement of the person(s) responsible as soon as the misuse becomes known. Depending on the type and extent of the misuse, Vincentz Network can take further measures, at its own discretion, against the authorised user responsible for the misuse.
Remuneration
7.1
The customer is obliged to pay the agreed remuneration. If payment is not made, Vincentz Network can prevent access by the customer without further notice and at its own discretion. Farther-reaching claims remain unaffected.
7.2
After invoicing by Vincentz Network, payment is undertaken either by credit card, by direct debit or by bank transfer. After the due date, the invoice is payable without deduction. In cases of subscriptions, the purchase price is due with the sending of the invoice. In cases of default on payment, default interest to the value of 2 percentage points above the base rate of interest, plus the customary banking commission – though at least 8 % as from the due date – will be calculated, without any further reminders being required. Vincentz Network is entitled to limit the payment options individually per customer.
7.3
Vincentz Network can align or adjust the basis for the calculation of the annual licence fees.
License conditions
8.1.
Start of License Period: Date of receiving access credentials.
End of License Period: 365 days after Start of License Period.
The license is extended automatically after one year. Nevertheless, the license can
be cancelled at any time and the remaining fee will be refunded proportionally.
License fee: 2100.- EUR + VAT (company license, payable within
30 days after Start of License Period)
8.2
The right of both parties to termination for exceptional reasons remains unaffected.
8.3
Each termination requires the written form (letter, fax, e-mail).
8.4
In the case of so-called test subscriptions, the period amounts to 14 days. After the end of the 14-day trial period, there is a changeover to the corresponding equivalent, then-cost-compulsory subscription model.
Guarantee, Liability and Release
9.1
Vincentz Network is liable for damage suffered by the customer that was caused deliberately or by gross negligence, that is the result of the absence of a guaranteed characteristic property of the subject matter of the performance, that is due to culpable violation of significant contractual obligations (the so-called cardinal duties), that is the consequence of a culpable violation for health, life or limb, or for liability in keeping with the Product Liability Act, in accordance with the statutory regulations.
9.2
Cardinal duties are contractual obligations, the fulfilment of which makes the adequate and orderly implementation of the contract possible in the first place, in compliance with which the contract partner may regularly trust, and the violation of which, on the other hand, endangers the achievement of the purpose of the contract.
9.3
In cases of violation of a cardinal duty, liability – provided the damage relates solely to slight negligence and does not affect life and limb, or health – is limited to such damage resulting in the context of the provision of services, as must be reckoned with as typical and foreseeable for the services forming the subject matter of the contract.
9.4
Otherwise, liability – regardless of the legal argument – is excluded both by Vincentz Network and by its executing aids and vicarious agents.
9.5
The customer undertakes to indemnify Vincentz Network and its affiliated companies for such claims and losses arising from unauthorised use of the licenced contents and which the customer could have prevented by taking the necessary care in trafficking. To this extent, the customer undertakes to release Vincentz Network from claims of third parties.
9.6
Liability on the part of Vincentz Network is at any rate excluded to the extent that the customer makes use of the contents beyond the authorisation granted in keeping with the respective licence contract.
Final Provisions
10.1
Vincentz Network reserves the right to alter the terms of use at any time and without giving reasons.
10.2
Without the prior approval of the customer, Vincentz Network can assign its rights arising from the subscription contract, whether wholly or partly, or its obligations herefrom, wholly or partly. Without the prior approval of Vincentz Network, the customer is not entitled to assign rights or obligations arising from this agreement to a third party, whether wholly or partly.
10.3
Should a provision of the terms of use be ineffective, unlawful or legally non-enforceable, all of the other provisions will remain fully effective.
10.4
This contract is subject to German law. The sole place of jurisdiction is Hanover.
Software Licensing Conditions
1.
Prior Remarks
These licensing conditions apply in addition to the Standard Terms of Business for Delivery of Goods (AGB Warenlieferungen) and the Standard Terms of Business for Online Products (AGB Onlineprodukte) and for Downloads (AGB Downloads). The licensing conditions are recognised with the opening of the seal.
2.
Granting of Rights of Use
With the conclusion of contract on the delivery/download of software (regardless of the storage medium), the customer is granted the non-transferable and non-exclusive right of use to the software forming the subject matter of the contract, this being limited to the use described below. All rights of use not explicitly listed there remain with Vincentz Network, as the holder of all of the copyright and proprietary rights.
3.
Extent of the Rights of Use
3.1
With the delivery, the customer purchases the right to use the delivered software on a non-specified computer that is suitable for this purpose. Furthermore, in the case of some products, the customer is explicitly granted the right to make use of an online database. The period of the right of use depends on the respective software product. The customer is informed of this at the commencement of the contract and with each subsequent update. If the right of use to the software forming the subject matter of the contract is limited to a fixed term, this ends after expiry of the agreed period of use. The right of use for the online database is determined solely by the period of use of the respective software product and ends at the same time as this.
3.2
The customer undertakes to make use of the program solely for his/her/its own purposes and not to pass it on to any third party, whether free of charge or against payment. The software may only be used by one person on one computer, but not on two or more computers at the same time, regardless of whether it is used by this same person or by various persons at the same time.
3.3
The customer is entitled to install the software on a hard disk and to use as well as to make a backup copy from the original diskette or CD-ROM, though this must not be used at the same time as the original version. In the case of a contract on a network version / shared licence, the customer is entitled to make use of the software corresponding to the contractual agreement at any time on one or on several computers, with several persons using it at the same time.
3.4
The customer is not entitled to make copies of the software, unless the copies are made for purposes of securing data and are only used to this end. Furthermore, the customer must not duplicate the software components, accompanying photos, the manual, accompanying texts or documents belonging to the software by photocopying or microfilm, electronic securing or by other methods, or resell or lease out the software and/or the related documentation, or issue sub-licences to third parties or otherwise makes these available to third parties. The customer is not entitled to pass on to a third party access codes and/or passwords for the product, or for database access, that are associated with the product. The customer is not entitled to alter, to modify, to adapt or to decompile the software and/or the related documentation, whether wholly or partly, where this exceeds in each case the limits of sections § 69d, paragraph 3, and § 69e of UrhG [Copyright Act]. The customer is also prohibited from altering copyright notes, markings/trademarks and/or ownership information of the publisher on programs or documentation material.
4.
Liability
Liability for damage to other software or to data carriers / data-processing equipment of the customer caused by the use of software delivered by Vincentz Network is only accepted if the defect in the delivered software/data carriers responsible for the damage was caused by a legal representative or agent deliberately, or due to gross negligence, and is not unforeseeable damage or damage arising untypically. In cases of contracts with public corporate bodies, public-law funds and businessmen – though with respect to the latter, only if the contract relates to the operation of their business – in addition to the limitation on liability of the preceding sentence, liability for gross negligence by agents is excluded, unless the fault lies with senior agents or violates major contractual obligations. Statutory claims for subsequent performance, withdrawal or reduction – though not for compensation – based on warranty for defects remain unaffected by the preceding regulation.
German law applies exclusively. For businessmen, the place of performance and the place of jurisdiction are Hanover and Hamburg.
Download of Documents
1.
Prior Remarks
The following terms of business apply to the download of digital contents made available, whether against payment or free of charge, as information, sample documents and explanations (hereinafter referred to as the content).
With the commencement of the call-up of the content (as a download or as an e-mail attachment), a contractual obligation comes into force, corresponding to the previous notes on use.
2.
Terms of Payment
The contract comes into force in that, after selecting an online product, the customer pays the sum indicated to Vincentz Network by credit card or by electronic direct-debit procedure.
Start Credit Balance
Each user can make use of a start credit balance for himself/herself/itself only once. An unused start credit balance expires at the end of the use-by deadline (90 days after registration) without any further notification. Payout of the start credit balance in cash, or by offsetting, is not possible.
4.
Copyright
All copyright, rights of use and other protected rights to the content remain with Vincentz Network. The user is only entitled to make use of the content for his/her/its own purposes. He/she/it is not entitled to make the content available on the Internet or on intranets, including those of third parties, for utilisation. The commercial duplication and the resale of the content are explicitly excluded.
5.
Guarantee/Liability
The content is regularly reworked and updated. Despite all circumspection and care taken, in using the content, it should always be noticed that an altered change in the legal situation or a change in judicial rulings can make a modification of the content necessary. Use of the content called up, in its current wording, is therefore advisable. The choice and the use of the content is made in the sole responsibility of the user. Farther-reaching user entitlements, especially due to lost profit or to consequential damage, are excluded. This does not apply if the damage has been caused by us maliciously or as a result of gross negligence on our part.
6.
Data Protection
Note in Keeping with Section § 33 of BDSG [German Data Protection Law]
The user data is stored by us solely for purposes of internal use. The use of user data and its processing by neutral service providers is undertaken under strict observation of the data protection law.
With the registration, the user explicitly declares his/her/its consent that his/her/its data may be stored for occasional information on updating of the content and for making new offers. The consent can be withdrawn by informal notification by e-mail, fax or letter.
7.
Final Provisions
German law applies exclusively.
For businessmen, the place of performance and the place of jurisdiction are Hanover and Hamburg.
As in: January 2005
© Copyright 2020, Vincentz Network, Hanover