Terms of Use

These Terms of Use are effective on March 19, 2017.

Black’s products and services are provided by Langston, LLC. By accessing or using the Black website, the Black service, or any applications (including mobile applications) made available by Black (together, the “Service”), however accessed, you agree to be bound by these terms of use (“Terms of Use”) and by our Privacy Policy. The Service is owned or controlled by Langston, LLC (“Black”). These Terms of Use affect your legal rights and obligations. If you do not agree to be bound by all of these Terms of Use, do not access or use the Service.

There may be times when we offer a special feature that has its own terms and conditions that apply in addition to these Terms of Use. In those cases, the terms specific to the special feature control to the extent there is a conflict with these Terms of Use.

The Services that Black provides are always evolving and the form and nature of the Services that Black provides may change from time to time without prior notice to you. In addition, Black may stop (permanently or temporarily) providing the Services (or any features within the Services) to you or to users generally and may not be able to provide you with prior notice. We also retain the right to create limits on use and storage at our sole discretion at any time without prior notice to you.

The Services may include advertisements, which may be targeted to the Content or information on the Services, queries made through the Services, or other information. The types and extent of advertising by Black on the Services are subject to change. In consideration for Black granting you access to and use of the Services, you agree that Black and its third party providers and partners may place such advertising on the Services or in connection with the display of Content or information from the Services whether submitted by you or others.

ARBITRATION NOTICE: EXCEPT IF YOU OPT-OUT AND EXCEPT FOR CERTAIN TYPES OF DISPUTES DESCRIBED IN THE ARBITRATION SECTION BELOW, YOU AGREE THAT DISPUTES BETWEEN YOU AND BLACK WILL BE RESOLVED BY BINDING, INDIVIDUAL ARBITRATION AND YOU WAIVE YOUR RIGHT TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT OR CLASS-WIDE ARBITRATION.

Basic Terms

  1. You must be at least 13 years old to use the Service.
  2. These organizations may link to our home page, to publications or to other Web site information so long as the link: (a) is not in any way misleading; (b) does not falsely imply sponsorship, endorsement or approval of the linking party and its products or services; and (c) fits within the context of the linking party’s site.
  3. You may not post violent, nude, partially nude, discriminatory, unlawful, infringing, hateful, pornographic or sexually suggestive photos or other content via the Service.
  4. You are responsible for any activity that occurs through your account and you agree you will not sell, transfer, license or assign your account, followers, username, or any account rights. With the exception of people or businesses that are expressly authorized to create accounts on behalf of their employers or clients, Black prohibits the creation of and you agree that you will not create an account for anyone other than yourself. You also represent that all information you provide or provided to Black upon registration and at all other times will be true, accurate, current and complete and you agree to update your information as necessary to maintain its truth and accuracy.
  5. You agree that you will not solicit, collect or use the login credentials of other Black users.
  6. You are responsible for keeping your password secret and secure.
  7. You must not defame, stalk, bully, abuse, harass, threaten, impersonate or intimidate people or entities and you must not post private or confidential information via the Service, including, without limitation, your or any other person’s credit card information, social security or alternate national identity numbers, non-public phone numbers or non-public email addresses.
  8. You may not use the Service for any illegal or unauthorized purpose. You agree to comply with all laws, rules and regulations (for example, federal, state, local and provincial) applicable to your use of the Service and your Content (defined below), including but not limited to, copyright laws.
  9. You are solely responsible for your conduct and any data, text, files, information, usernames, images, graphics, photos, profiles, audio and video clips, sounds, musical works, works of authorship, applications, links and other content or materials (collectively, “Content”) that you submit, post or display on or via the Service.
  10. You must not change, modify, adapt or alter the Service or change, modify or alter another website so as to falsely imply that it is associated with the Service or Black.
  11. You must not access Black’s private API by means other than those permitted by Black.
  12. You must not create or submit unwanted email, comments, likes or other forms of commercial or harassing communications (a/k/a “spam”) to any Black users.
  13. You must not use domain names or web URLs in your username without prior written consent from Black.
  14. You must not interfere or disrupt the Service or servers or networks connected to the Service, including by transmitting any worms, viruses, spyware, malware or any other code of a destructive or disruptive nature. You may not inject content or code or otherwise alter or interfere with the way any Black page is rendered or displayed in a user’s browser or device.
  15. You must not create accounts with the Service through unauthorized means, including but not limited to, by using an automated device, script, bot, spider, crawler or scraper.
  16. Violation of these Terms of Use may, in Black’s sole discretion, result in termination of your Black account. You understand and agree that Black cannot and will not be responsible for the Content posted on the Service and you use the Service at your own risk. If you violate the letter or spirit of these Terms of Use, or otherwise create risk or possible legal exposure for Black, we can stop providing all or part of the Service to you.

General Conditions

1 We reserve the right to modify or terminate the Service or your access to the Service for any reason, without notice, at any time, and without liability to you. You can deactivate your Black account by sending us a request on [email protected]. If we terminate your access to the Service or you use the form detailed above to deactivate your account, your photos, comments, likes, friendships, and all other data will no longer be accessible through your account (e.g., users will not be able to navigate to your username and view your photos), but those materials and data may persist and appear within the Service (e.g., if your Content has been reshared by others).

2 Upon termination, all licenses and other rights granted to you in these Terms of Use will immediately cease.

3 We reserve the right, in our sole discretion, to change these Terms of Use (“Updated Terms”) from time to time. Unless we make a change for legal or administrative reasons, we will provide reasonable advance notice before the Updated Terms become effective. You agree that we may notify you of the Updated Terms by posting them on the Service, and that your use of the Service after the effective date of the Updated Terms (or engaging in such other conduct as we may reasonably specify) constitutes your agreement to the Updated Terms. Therefore, you should review these Terms of Use and any Updated Terms before using the Service. The Updated Terms will be effective as of the time of posting, or such later date as may be specified in the Updated Terms, and will apply to your use of the Service from that point forward. These Terms of Use will govern any disputes arising before the effective date of the Updated Terms.

4 We reserve the right to refuse access to the Service to anyone for any reason at any time.

5 We reserve the right to force forfeiture of any username for any reason.

6 We may, but have no obligation to, remove, edit, block, and/or monitor Content or accounts containing Content that we determine in our sole discretion violates these Terms of Use.

7 You are solely responsible for your interaction with other users of the Service, whether online or offline. You agree that Black is not responsible or liable for the conduct of any user. Black reserves the right, but has no obligation, to monitor or become involved in disputes between you and other users. Exercise common sense and your best judgment when interacting with others, including when you submit or post Content or any personal or other information.

8 There may be links from the Service, or from communications you receive from the Service, to third-party web sites or features. There may also be links to third-party web sites or features in images or comments within the Service. The Service also includes third-party content that we do not control, maintain or endorse. Functionality on the Service may also permit interactions between the Service and a third-party web site or feature, including applications that connect the Service or your profile on the Service with a third-party web site or feature. For example, the Service may include a feature that enables you to share Content from the Service or your Content with a third party, which may be publicly posted on that third party’s service or application. Using this functionality typically requires you to login to your account on the third-party service and you do so at your own risk. Black does not control any of these third-party web services or any of their content. You expressly acknowledge and agree that Black is in no way responsible or liable for any such third-party services or features. YOUR CORRESPONDENCE AND BUSINESS DEALINGS WITH THIRD PARTIES FOUND THROUGH THE SERVICE ARE SOLELY BETWEEN YOU AND THE THIRD PARTY. You may choose, at your sole and absolute discretion and risk, to use applications that connect the Service or your profile on the Service with a third-party service (each, an “Application”) and such Application may interact with, connect to or gather and/or pull information from and to your Service profile. By using such Applications, you acknowledge and agree to the following: (i) if you use an Application to share information, you are consenting to information about your profile on the Service being shared; (ii) your use of an Application may cause personally identifying information to be publicly disclosed and/or associated with you, even if Black has not itself provided such information; and (iii) your use of an Application is at your own option and risk, and you will hold the Black Parties (defined below) harmless for activity related to the Application.

9You agree that you are responsible for all data charges you incur through use of the Service.

10 We prohibit crawling, scraping, caching or otherwise accessing any content on the Service via automated means, including but not limited to, user profiles and photos (except as may be the result of standard search engine protocols or technologies used by a search engine with Black’s express consent).

Rights

1 Some of the Service is supported by advertising revenue and may display advertisements and promotions, and you hereby agree that Black may place such advertising and promotions on the Service or on, about, or in conjunction with your Content. The manner, mode and extent of such advertising and promotions are subject to change without specific notice to you.

2 You acknowledge that we may not always identify paid services, sponsored content, or commercial communications as such.

3 You represent and warrant that: (i) you own the Content posted by you on or through the Service or otherwise have the right to grant the rights and licenses set forth in these Terms of Use; (ii) the posting and use of your Content on or through the Service does not violate, misappropriate or infringe on the rights of any third party, including, without limitation, privacy rights, publicity rights, copyrights, trademark and/or other intellectual property rights; (iii) you agree to pay for all royalties, fees, and any other monies owed by reason of Content you post on or through the Service; and (iv) you have the legal right and capacity to enter into these Terms of Use in your jurisdiction.

4 The Service contains content owned or licensed by Black (“Black Content”). Black Content is protected by copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret and other laws, and, as between you and Black, Black owns and retains all rights in the Black Content and the Service. You will not remove, alter or conceal any copyright, trademark, service mark or other proprietary rights notices incorporated in or accompanying the Black Content and you will not reproduce, modify, adapt, prepare derivative works based on, perform, display, publish, distribute, transmit, broadcast, sell, license or otherwise exploit the Black Content.

5 The Black name and logo are trademarks of Black, and may not be copied, imitated or used, in whole or in part, without the prior written permission of Black. In addition, all page headers, custom graphics, button icons and scripts are service marks, trademarks and/or trade dress of Black, and may not be copied, imitated or used, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from Black.

6 Although it is Black’s intention for the Service to be available as much as possible, there will be occasions when the Service may be interrupted, including, without limitation, for scheduled maintenance or upgrades, for emergency repairs, or due to failure of telecommunications links and/or equipment. Also, Black reserves the right to remove any Content from the Service for any reason, without prior notice. Content removed from the Service may continue to be stored by Black, including, without limitation, in order to comply with certain legal obligations, but may not be retrievable without a valid court order. Consequently, Black encourages you to maintain your own backup of your Content. In other words, Black is not a backup service and you agree that you will not rely on the Service for the purposes of Content backup or storage. Black will not be liable to you for any modification, suspension, or discontinuation of the Services, or the loss of any Content. You also acknowledge that the Internet may be subject to breaches of security and that the submission of Content or other information may not be secure.

7 You agree that Black is not responsible for, and does not endorse, Content posted within the Service. Black does not have any obligation to prescreen, monitor, edit, or remove any Content. If your Content violates these Terms of Use, you may bear legal responsibility for that Content.

8 It is Black’s policy not to accept or consider content, information, ideas, suggestions or other materials other than those we have specifically requested and to which certain specific terms, conditions and requirements may apply. This is to avoid any misunderstandings if your ideas are similar to those we have developed or are developing independently. Accordingly, Black does not accept unsolicited materials or ideas, and takes no responsibility for any materials or ideas so transmitted. If, despite our policy, you choose to send us content, information, ideas, suggestions, or other materials, you further agree that Black is free to use any such content, information, ideas, suggestions or other materials, for any purposes whatsoever, including, without limitation, developing and marketing products and services, without any liability or payment of any kind to you.

Disclaimer of Warranties

THE SERVICE, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, BLACK CONTENT, IS PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS”, “AS AVAILABLE” AND “WITH ALL FAULTS” BASIS. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE BY LAW, NEITHER BLACK NOR ITS PARENT COMPANY NOR ANY OF THEIR EMPLOYEES, MANAGERS, OFFICERS OR AGENTS (COLLECTIVELY, THE ” BLACK PARTIES”) MAKE ANY REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OR ENDORSEMENTS OF ANY KIND WHATSOEVER, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO: (A) THE SERVICE; (B) THE BLACK CONTENT; (C) USER CONTENT; OR (D) SECURITY ASSOCIATED WITH THE TRANSMISSION OF INFORMATION TO BLACK OR VIA THE SERVICE. IN ADDITION, THE BLACK PARTIES HEREBY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, TITLE, CUSTOM, TRADE, QUIET ENJOYMENT, SYSTEM INTEGRATION AND FREEDOM FROM COMPUTER VIRUS.

THE BLACK PARTIES DO NOT REPRESENT OR WARRANT THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE ERROR-FREE OR UNINTERRUPTED; THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED; OR THAT THE SERVICE OR THE SERVER THAT MAKES THE SERVICE AVAILABLE IS FREE FROM ANY HARMFUL COMPONENTS, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, VIRUSES. THE BLACK PARTIES DO NOT MAKE ANY REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES THAT THE INFORMATION (INCLUDING ANY INSTRUCTIONS) ON THE SERVICE IS ACCURATE, COMPLETE, OR USEFUL. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOUR USE OF THE SERVICE IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK. THE BLACK PARTIES DO NOT WARRANT THAT YOUR USE OF THE SERVICE IS LAWFUL IN ANY PARTICULAR JURISDICTION, AND THE BLACK PARTIES SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM SUCH WARRANTIES. SOME JURISDICTIONS LIMIT OR DO NOT ALLOW THE DISCLAIMER OF IMPLIED OR OTHER WARRANTIES SO THE ABOVE DISCLAIMER MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU TO THE EXTENT SUCH JURISDICTION’S LAW IS APPLICABLE TO YOU AND THESE TERMS OF USE.

BY ACCESSING OR USING THE SERVICE YOU REPRESENT AND WARRANT THAT YOUR ACTIVITIES ARE LAWFUL IN EVERY JURISDICTION WHERE YOU ACCESS OR USE THE SERVICE.

THE BLACK PARTIES DO NOT ENDORSE CONTENT AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ANY RESPONSIBILITY OR LIABILITY TO ANY PERSON OR ENTITY FOR ANY LOSS, DAMAGE (WHETHER ACTUAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR OTHERWISE), INJURY, CLAIM, LIABILITY OR OTHER CAUSE OF ANY KIND OR CHARACTER BASED UPON OR RESULTING FROM ANY CONTENT.

Limitation of Liability; Waiver

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL THE BLACK PARTIES BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGES OF ANY KIND (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, ECONOMIC, EXEMPLARY, SPECIAL, PUNITIVE, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL LOSSES OR DAMAGES) THAT ARE DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY RELATED TO: (A) THE SERVICE; (B) THE BLACK CONTENT; (C) USER CONTENT; (D) YOUR USE OF, INABILITY TO USE, OR THE PERFORMANCE OF THE SERVICE; (E) ANY ACTION TAKEN IN CONNECTION WITH AN INVESTIGATION BY THE BLACK PARTIES OR LAW ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITIES REGARDING YOUR OR ANY OTHER PARTY’S USE OF THE SERVICE; (F) ANY ACTION TAKEN IN CONNECTION WITH COPYRIGHT OR OTHER INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OWNERS; (G) ANY ERRORS OR OMISSIONS IN THE SERVICE’S OPERATION; OR (H) ANY DAMAGE TO ANY USER’S COMPUTER, MOBILE DEVICE, OR OTHER EQUIPMENT OR TECHNOLOGY INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, DAMAGE FROM ANY SECURITY BREACH OR FROM ANY VIRUS, BUGS, TAMPERING, FRAUD, ERROR, OMISSION, INTERRUPTION, DEFECT, DELAY IN OPERATION OR TRANSMISSION, COMPUTER LINE OR NETWORK FAILURE OR ANY OTHER TECHNICAL OR OTHER MALFUNCTION, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, DAMAGES FOR LOST PROFITS, LOSS OF GOODWILL, LOSS OF DATA, WORK STOPPAGE, ACCURACY OF RESULTS, OR COMPUTER FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION, EVEN IF FORESEEABLE OR EVEN IF THE BLACK PARTIES HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF OR SHOULD HAVE KNOWN OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY OR TORT (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, WHETHER CAUSED IN WHOLE OR IN PART BY NEGLIGENCE, ACTS OF GOD, TELECOMMUNICATIONS FAILURE, OR THEFT OR DESTRUCTION OF THE SERVICE). IN NO EVENT WILL THE BLACK PARTIES BE LIABLE TO YOU OR ANYONE ELSE FOR LOSS, DAMAGE OR INJURY, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, DEATH OR PERSONAL INJURY. SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. IN NO EVENT WILL THE BLACK PARTIES TOTAL LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ALL DAMAGES, LOSSES OR CAUSES OR ACTION EXCEED ONE HUNDRED UNITED STATES DOLLARS ($100.00).

YOU AGREE THAT IN THE EVENT YOU INCUR ANY DAMAGES, LOSSES OR INJURIES THAT ARISE OUT OF BLACK’S ACTS OR OMISSIONS, THE DAMAGES, IF ANY, CAUSED TO YOU ARE NOT IRREPARABLE OR SUFFICIENT TO ENTITLE YOU TO AN INJUNCTION PREVENTING ANY EXPLOITATION OF ANY WEB SITE, SERVICE, PROPERTY, PRODUCT OR OTHER CONTENT OWNED OR CONTROLLED BY THE BLACK PARTIES, AND YOU WILL HAVE NO RIGHTS TO ENJOIN OR RESTRAIN THE DEVELOPMENT, PRODUCTION, DISTRIBUTION, ADVERTISING, EXHIBITION OR EXPLOITATION OF ANY WEB SITE, PROPERTY, PRODUCT, SERVICE, OR OTHER CONTENT OWNED OR CONTROLLED BY THE BLACK PARTIES.

BY ACCESSING THE SERVICE, YOU UNDERSTAND THAT YOU MAY BE WAIVING RIGHTS WITH RESPECT TO CLAIMS THAT ARE AT THIS TIME UNKNOWN OR UNSUSPECTED, AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH SUCH WAIVER, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU HAVE READ AND UNDERSTAND, AND HEREBY EXPRESSLY WAIVE, THE BENEFITS OF SECTION 1542 OF THE CIVIL CODE OF CALIFORNIA, AND ANY SIMILAR LAW OF ANY STATE OR TERRITORY, WHICH PROVIDES AS FOLLOWS: “A GENERAL RELEASE DOES NOT EXTEND TO CLAIMS WHICH THE CREDITOR DOES NOT KNOW OR SUSPECT TO EXIST IN HIS FAVOR AT THE TIME OF EXECUTING THE RELEASE, WHICH IF KNOWN BY HIM MUST HAVE MATERIALLY AFFECTED HIS SETTLEMENT WITH THE DEBTOR.”

BLACK IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ACTIONS, CONTENT, INFORMATION, OR DATA OF THIRD PARTIES, AND YOU RELEASE US, OUR DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, AND AGENTS FROM ANY CLAIMS AND DAMAGES, KNOWN AND UNKNOWN, ARISING OUT OF OR IN ANY WAY CONNECTED WITH ANY CLAIM YOU HAVE AGAINST ANY SUCH THIRD PARTIES.

Arbitration

Except if you opt-out or for disputes relating to: (1) your or Black’s intellectual property (such as trademarks, trade dress, domain names, trade secrets, copyrights and patents); (2) violations of the API Terms; or (3) violations of provisions 13 or 14 of the Basic Terms, above (“Excluded Disputes”), you agree that all disputes between you and Black (whether or not such dispute involves a third party) with regard to your relationship with Black, including without limitation disputes related to these Terms of Use, your use of the Service, and/or rights of privacy and/or publicity, will be resolved by binding, individual arbitration under the American Arbitration Association’s rules for arbitration of consumer-related disputes and you and Instagram hereby expressly waive trial by jury. As an alternative, you may bring your claim in your local “small claims” court, if permitted by that small claims court’s rules. You may bring claims only on your own behalf. Neither you nor Black will participate in a class action or class-wide arbitration for any claims covered by this agreement. You also agree not to participate in claims brought in a private attorney general or representative capacity, or consolidated claims involving another person’s account, if Black is a party to the proceeding. This dispute resolution provision will be governed by the Federal Arbitration Act. In the event the American Arbitration Association is unwilling or unable to set a hearing date within one hundred and sixty (160) days of filing the case, then either Instagram or you can elect to have the arbitration administered instead by the Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Services. Judgment on the award rendered by the arbitrator may be entered in any court having competent jurisdiction. Any provision of applicable law notwithstanding, the arbitrator will not have authority to award damages, remedies or awards that conflict with these Terms of Use.

You may opt out of this agreement to arbitrate. If you do so, neither you nor Black can require the other to participate in an arbitration proceeding. To opt out, you must notify Black in writing within 30 days of the date that you first became subject to this arbitration provision. You must use this address to opt out:

Langston, LLC ATTN: Arbitration Opt-out 2711 Centerville Rd., Suite 400, Wilmington, DE 19808.

You must include your name and residence address, the email address you use for your Black account, and a clear statement that you want to opt out of this arbitration agreement.

If the prohibition against class actions and other claims brought on behalf of third parties contained above is found to be unenforceable, then all of the preceding language in this Arbitration section will be null and void. This arbitration agreement will survive the termination of your relationship with Black.

Entire Agreement

If you are using the Service on behalf of a legal entity, you represent that you are authorized to enter into an agreement on behalf of that legal entity. These Terms of Use constitute the entire agreement between you and Black and governs your use of the Service, superseding any prior agreements between you and Black. You will not assign the Terms of Use or assign any rights or delegate any obligations hereunder, in whole or in part, whether voluntarily or by operation of law, without the prior written consent of Black. Any purported assignment or delegation by you without the appropriate prior written consent of Black will be null and void. Black may assign these Terms of Use or any rights hereunder without your consent. If any provision of these Terms of Use is found by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid or otherwise unenforceable, the parties nevertheless agree that such portion will be deemed severable from these Terms of Use and will not affect the validity and enforceability of the remaining provisions, and the remaining provisions of the Terms of Use remain in full force and effect. Neither the course of conduct between the parties nor trade practice will act to modify the Terms of Use. These Terms of Use do not confer any third-party beneficiary rights.

Territorial Restrictions

The information provided within the Service is not intended for distribution to or use by any person or entity in any jurisdiction or country where such distribution or use would be contrary to law or regulation or which would subject Black to any registration requirement within such jurisdiction or country. We reserve the right to limit the availability of the Service or any portion of the Service, to any person, geographic area, or jurisdiction, at any time and in our sole discretion, and to limit the quantities of any content, program, product, service or other feature that Black provides.

The effective date of these Terms of Use is March 19, 2017. These Terms of Use were written in English (US). To the extent any translated version of these Terms of Use conflicts with the English version, the English version controls.