Introduction
The following Website Use Agreement (“Agreement”) informs you of the terms, conditions, disclaimers and policies (collectively, “Terms”) that apply to your use of the ESRB website (www.esrb.org, www.esrb.com or www.esrb.net) (“ESRB Site” or “our Site”). The ESRB Site is operated and maintained by the Entertainment Software Association, by and through the Entertainment Software Rating Board (collectively, “ESRB” “we,” “us,” or “our”). We do not represent that materials on the ESRB site are appropriate or available for use outside of the United States and Canada. Persons who choose to access our Site from other locations do so on their own initiative and are responsible for compliance with local laws, if and to the extent local laws are applicable.
Please review this agreement carefully before using the ESRB site.
This Agreement is a binding contract between you and the ESRB. By accessing and using our Site, you agree to the Terms of this Agreement. If you do not agree to these Terms, you may not use the ESRB Site.
Unacceptable Online Conduct
By using the ESRB Site, you agree not to use the ESRB site to do or attempt to do, any of the following:
- Disseminate or transmit “spam,” unsolicited messages, chain letters or unsolicited commercial e-mail;
- Post, distribute or otherwise make available or transmit any data, text, message, computer file or other material that infringes and/or violates any right of a third party or any domestic or international law, rule or regulation, including but not limited to: (a) copyright, patent, trademark or other proprietary rights; (b) right of privacy or publicity; or, (c) any confidentiality obligation;
- Create a false identity or otherwise attempt to mislead any person as to the identity or origin of any communication;
- Defame, disparage, deceive, defraud or mislead another person, or cause them to provide a payment or other valuable item under false pretenses;
- Disseminate or transmit viruses, Trojan horses or any other malicious code or program;
- Interfere with, disrupt or attempt to gain unauthorized access to other profiles or accounts (including passwords) on the ESRB Site or any other computer network;
- Delete any legal notices, disclaimers or proprietary notices such as copyright or trademark symbols or modify any logos that you do not own or have express permission to modify;
- Obtain unauthorized access to the ESRB Site administration tool or in any way modify the ESRB Site, the ESRB Materials and ESRB Trademarks displayed on the ESRB Site or any other portion of the ESRB Site.
- Disseminate or transmit material that to a reasonable person may be abusive, obscene, harassing, grossly offensive, threatening or malicious or any content that is unlawful, is intended to be used for any unlawful purpose, is false or misleading or that actually or potentially impairs the rights of another person or entity, including ESRB; or
- Engage in any other activity deemed by the ESRB to be unacceptable, in conflict with the letter or spirit of this Agreement or of the expectations or interests of us or our Site visitors as a whole.
We reserve the right to remove and if we deem appropriate, turn over to law enforcement officials, any material, including messages, e-mail, or online data submissions, that is in violation of these rules.
We reserve the right to comply with any order or otherwise cooperate with law enforcement officials regarding the identification of any user alleged to be using the ESRB Site in violation of the law.
Linking Policy
The ESRB Site may contain links to websites that may be of interest to our visitors (collectively, “Linked Sites”). These websites may offer educational, governmental or other resources or may be owned or controlled by other third parties.
These links are provided solely for the convenience of our visitors, and do not constitute an endorsement or recommendation of the Linked Sites or their products or services. The opinions expressed on the following sites do not necessarily reflect the opinions of ESRB. We are not responsible for the content of any Linked Site, any link(s) contained in any Linked Site or any changes or updates to the information contained in such sites. A visit to any site or page from our web site via any such link is done entirely at your own risk.
We strongly recommend that you carefully review any terms and conditions, privacy policies or other notifications that may be found on any Linked Site. Under no circumstances will ESRB be held responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any loss or damage that is caused or alleged to have been caused in connection with the use of or reliance on, any content, goods or services available on any Linked Site.
Should you find any link on our web site or any Linked Site objectionable for any reason, please let us know using our Contact Us form. ESRB will consider all such requests but shall have no obligation to remove any links or respond.
Linking to the ESRB Site
Sites that link to the ESRB Site agree to be bound by the following additional terms and conditions:
- You understand and agree that, absent a trademark license or use agreement from the ESRB, you cannot use the ESRB rating icons or other ESRB Trademarks for linking to ESRB – and that ESRB has not granted you, by implication or by estoppel or otherwise, any right, title, or interest to use any ESRB logos, trademarks, service marks, copyrights or other intellectual property.
- You further acknowledge and agree that: (i) the ESRB Trademarks are and will remain the sole property of ESRB; (ii) you will not contest ownership of the ESRB Trademarks; (iii) the ESRB Site and the contents thereof are the sole property of ESRB; and, (iv) you will not assert ownership or control of the ESRB Site.
- You may not create frames around the ESRB Site or pages within the ESRB Site, subject the ESRB Site to pop-ups, pop unders or similar unauthorized advertisements or use any other technique that alters in any way the visual presentation or appearance of the ESRB Site without prior written approval from the ESRB.
- You may not have a link to ESRB on your site that states or implies that ESRB endorses or sponsors your site.
- You agree to protect and use commercially reasonable efforts to maintain the good name and reputation of ESRB.
- ESRB reserves the right to request the removal of any link to the ESRB Site for any reason and at any time. If ESRB chooses to exercise such right, you agree to immediately cease the use of any link to the ESRB Site.
Restrictions on Use of Materials
Unless otherwise noted, all materials contained on the ESRB Site (“ESRB Materials”) are protected by copyright and/or trademark laws and are the property of the ESRB, third party licensors or other parties that have license agreements or other relationships with us. All trademarks, certification marks, service marks, trade names and trade dress, including but not limited to the ESRB rating icons and certification seals (collectively, “ESRB Trademarks”), are proprietary to the ESRB. No license to any ESRB intellectual property (including the ESRB Materials and the ESRB Trademarks) is extended to you without prior written consent from us. Any implied license to use our intellectual property without our prior written consent is hereby expressly disclaimed by the ESRB. To seek permission to use any of our intellectual property, please contact us at [email protected].
ESRB Materials may only be used or licensed under valid certification mark procedures, licenses or other agreements with ESRB; please consult ESRB web pages or personnel for more information. Otherwise, no ESRB Materials may be copied, reproduced, republished, uploaded, posted, transmitted or distributed in any way, except that you may download one copy of the ESRB Materials on any single computer for your personal, noncommercial home use only, provided that: (i) you keep intact all copyright and other proprietary notices; (ii) you make no modifications to the ESRB Materials; (iii) you do not use the ESRB Materials in a manner that suggests an association with any of our services; and, (iv) you do not download quantities of the ESRB Materials to a database that can be used to avoid future downloads from the ESRB Site. The use of any ESRB Materials on any other website or computer environment without the express written permission of the ESRB is prohibited.
Personally Identifiable Information
The ESRB Site contains many forms where businesses and consumers can submit personally identifiable information (such as name, mailing address, phone number or e-mail address) about themselves in the context of submitting a company registration (e.g., publisher registration, retailer registration, privacy online registration), comment, complaint, request for information or other similar request. ESRB does not solicit this information and is not responsible for the accuracy of any Personally Identifiable Information (“PII”). The ESRB’s use of PII is strictly governed by the ESRB Privacy Policy. By using the ESRB Site or submitting PII on the ESRB Site, you hereby provide ESRB your affirmative and unambiguous consent to use your information in accordance with our Privacy Policy. The ESRB Privacy Policy may change from to time. Please check it frequently to ensure that you are aware of these changes.
Disclaimer/Limitation of Liability
YOU EXPRESSLY AGREE THAT THE USE OF THE ESRB SITE IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK. THE ESRB SITE, ALL MATERIALS ON THE ESRB SITE and ALL PRODUCTS AND SERVICES OFFERED VIA THE ESRB SITE ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” AND WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE BY LAW, WE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE and NONINFRINGEMENT. NEITHER WE NOR ANY OF OUR RESPECTIVE AGENTS OR CONTRACTORS WARRANT THAT ANY FUNCTIONS CONTAINED IN THE ESRB SITE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, SECURE, ERROR-FREE, THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED or THAT THE ESRB SITE OR THE SERVER THAT MAKES THEM AVAILABLE ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS. NEITHER WE NOR ANY OF OUR RESPECTIVE AGENTS OR CONTRACTORS WARRANT OR MAKE ANY REPRESENTATIONS REGARDING THE USE OR THE RESULTS OF THE USE OF SERVICES, PRODUCTS OR MATERIALS ON THE ESRB SITE WITH RESPECT TO THEIR CORRECTNESS, ACCURACY, RELIABILITY or OTHERWISE. YOU ASSUME THE ENTIRE COST OF ALL NECESSARY SERVICING, REPAIR or CORRECTION TO YOUR SYSTEM.
UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO NEGLIGENCE, SHALL WE BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, PUNITIVE OR OTHER DAMAGES, INCLUDING LOST PROFITS OR COSTS OR ATTORNEY’S FEES, THAT RESULT FROM THE USE OF or THE INABILITY TO USE, THE ESRB SITE OR MATERIALS OR FUNCTIONS ON THE ESRB SITE, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER WE HAVE BEEN INFORMED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. IN THE EVENT THAT LIABILITY IS FOUND DESPITE THIS PARAGRAPH, THE TOTAL LIABILITY OF ESRB AND/OR ANY OF ITS AGENTS, CONTRACTORS or EMPLOYEES TO YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTIES UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE SHALL BE LIMITED TO $100.
Applicable law may not allow the disclaimer or exclusion of implied warranties or of incidental or consequential damages, so the above disclaimers and exclusions may not apply to you.
Indemnification
You hereby agree to indemnify and hold harmless ESRB, its subsidiaries, affiliates, officers, directors, agents and employees, from any expense, loss, claim, damage, fine, penalty or liability, including reasonable fees for attorneys and other professionals, payable under any judgment, verdict, court order or settlement, to the extent resulting from any claim, demand, action, suit, arbitration or other proceeding initiated by any third party, including the assessment, claim or demand by a governmental agency or entity, arising out of your breach of this Agreement, including any claims arising out of your link to the ESRB Site, if applicable.
Modifications
ESRB reserves the right, at our sole discretion, to modify, add or delete portions of this Agreement at any time. Modifications shall be effective immediately when posted to this page.
Termination
This Agreement is effective until terminated by either you or us. You may terminate this Agreement at any time by discontinuing use of the ESRB Site and destroying all materials obtained from the ESRB Site and all related documentation and all copies and installations thereof, whether made under the Terms of this Agreement or otherwise.
We may immediately terminate this Agreement with respect to you (including your ability to access the ESRB Site) at any time, without cause and without notice to you in our sole discretion. Upon termination, you must cease use of the ESRB Site and destroy all materials obtained from the ESRB Site and all copies thereof, whether made under the Terms of this Agreement or otherwise.
ESRB also reserves the right to take any other actions that we, in our sole discretion, believe to be in the best interest of the ESRB or other users of the ESRB Site as a whole.
Arbitration
Any and all disputes, controversies and claims arising out of or relating to this Agreement or concerning the respective rights or obligations of the parties hereto shall be settled and determined by arbitration in the City of New York before a panel of one (1) arbitrator pursuant to the Commercial Rules then in effect of the American Arbitration Association. Judgment upon the award rendered shall be binding on the parties and may be entered in any court having jurisdiction. The parties agree that the party filing the arbitration shall bear the filing fees of the arbitration. The parties further agree that the arbitrator shall have the power to award damages, injunctive relief and reasonable attorneys’ fees and expenses to any party in such arbitration, subject to the limitations set forth in this Agreement. Neither party may seek a judicial review of any decision of the arbitrator.
General Provisions
This Agreement shall be governed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York, without regard to its rules regarding choice or conflict of laws. Should a provision of this Agreement require interpretation, it is agreed that the court, arbitrator, agency, individual or entity interpreting this Agreement shall not more strictly construe the terms herein against the ESRB. The waiver by ESRB of a breach of any provision of this Agreement shall not be construed as a waiver of any subsequent breach. In the event that any of the provisions of this Agreement are held to be unenforceable by a court or arbitrator, the remaining portions of the Agreement will remain in full force and effect, but only to the extent that giving effect to the remaining provisions hereof shall be in accordance with the intent of the ESRB.
