Terms of Use

The Institute for the Study of Russian Piracy (“we,” or “us”) administers the website located at russiatheftwatch.com (the “Site”). By accessing or using in any manner the Site, you as an individual or as a single user on behalf of the entity or company that you represent (“you” or “your” as applicable) agree that you have read and agree to be bound by, and a party to, these terms of use (this “Agreement”) to the exclusion of all other terms. If you do not unconditionally agree to all of the terms and conditions of thisAgreement you will have no right to use the Site or its services.

  1. ACCESS TO THE SERVICES. Subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, we may offer to provide certain services, such as providing you with content, allowing you to ‘like’ or share our Site or its content with your social media networks, giving you recent news through blogs and allowing you to contact us or sign up for newsletters, and which are selected by you through the process provided on the Site (“Services”), solely for your own personal, non-commercial use, and not for the use or benefit of any third party. The term “Services” shall include, without limitation, any service we perform for you and the content offered by us on the Site. We may change, suspend or discontinue the Services at any time, including the availability of any feature, database, or content. We may also impose limits on certain features and services or restrict your access to parts or all of the Services without notice or liability. WE RESERVE THE RIGHT, IN OUR SOLE DISCRETION, TO MODIFY THIS AGREEMENT AT ANY TIME WITHOUT NOTICE. YOU SHALL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR REVIEWING AND BECOMING FAMILIAR WITH ANY SUCH MODIFICATIONS. USE OF THE SERVICES BY YOU FOLLOWING SUCH MODIFICATION CONSTITUTES YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THIS AGREEMENT AS MODIFIED.

You certify that you are legally permitted to use the Services and access the Site and take full responsibility for the selection and use of the Services and access of the Site.

The Site and Services are offered by us from our facilities in the United States of America. We make no representations that the Site or Services are appropriate or available for use in other locations. Users who access or use the Site or Services from other jurisdictions do so at their own volition and are responsible for compliance with local laws.

  1. SITE CONTENT. The Site and its contents are intended solely for the personal, non-commercial (except as specifically and expressly agreed in writing by us in connection with a specific feature of the Site only) use by Site users and may only be used in accordance with the terms of this Agreement. All materials displayed or performed on the Site (including, but not limited to text, blogs, graphics, articles, photographs, images, illustrations (also known as the “Content”)) are protected by copyright. You shall abide by all copyright notices, trademark rules, information, and restrictions contained in any Content accessed through the Site or Services, and shall not use, copy reproduce, modify translate, publish, broadcast, transmit, distribute, perform, upload, display, license, sell or otherwise exploit for any purposes whatsoever any Content or third party submissions to the Site (“User Content”) or other proprietary rights not owned by you, (i) without the express prior written consent of the respective owners, and (ii) in any way that violates any third party right. You shall not remove, obscure, or alter any notices or links (e.g., links to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use) on the Site or any of its features or tools.

The Site is protected by copyright as a collective work and/or compilation, pursuant to U.S. copyright laws, international conventions, and other intellectual property laws. You may not modify, publish, transmit, participate in the transfer or sale of, reproduce (except as provided in this Section of the Agreement), create derivative works based on, distribute, perform, display, or in any way exploit, any of the Content, software, materials, or Services in whole or in part.

You may download or copy the Content, including User Content and other items displayed on the Site intended for download, for personal, non-commercial use only, provided that you maintain all copyright and other notices contained in such Content or User Content. Copying or storing of any Content or User Content for other than personal, noncommercial use is expressly prohibited without our prior written permission, or from the copyright holder identified in such Content’s or User Content’s copyright notice.

In the course of using the Services, you and other users may now or in the future have the opportunity to provide User Content that may be used by us in connection with the Services and which may be visible to certain other users. You understand that by posting User Content on the Site, you hereby grant and shall grant to us a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty free, perpetual, irrevocable, transferable right to fully exploit such User Content (including all related intellectual property rights) and to allow others to do so; however, we will only share personally identifiable information that you have not made publicly available in accordance with our current Privacy Policy on the Site. Furthermore, you understand that we retain the right to reformat, modify, create derivative works of, excerpt, and translate any User Content. You understand that all information publicly posted or privately transmitted through the Site is the sole responsibility of the person submitting the User Content and that we will not be liable for any errors or omissions in any User Content. You understand that we cannot guarantee the identity of any other users with whom you may interact in the course of using the Services. Additionally, we cannot guarantee the authenticity of any data which users may provide about themselves. You acknowledge that all Content and User Content accessed by you using the Services is at your own risk and you will be solely responsible for any damage or loss to any party resulting therefrom.

Under no circumstances will we be liable in any way for any Content or User Content, including, but not limited to, any errors or omissions or any loss or damage of any kind incurred in connection with use of or exposure to any Content or User Content posted, e-mailed, accessed, transmitted or otherwise made available via the Services. You are solely responsible for taking all precautions necessary and/or reasonable to protect yourself, your computer systems and other property from viruses, worms, Trojan horses, and other harmful content and code. You acknowledge that we do not endorse or guarantee any Content or User Content and you may not state or imply any such endorsement or guarantee. We shall have no obligation to monitor any User Content; however, we reserve the right to monitor User Content from time to time and may remove or block any User Content on the Site or through the Services, including disabling access to Content that you have downloaded through the Services.

  1. YOUR WARRANTY. You warrant, represent and agree that you will not contribute any User Content or otherwise use the Site or the Services in a manner that (i) infringes or violates the intellectual property rights or proprietary rights, or rights of publicity or privacy, or other rights of any third party; (ii) violates any law, statute, ordinance or regulation; (iii) is harmful, threatening, abusive, harassing, tortuous, defamatory, vulgar, obscene, libelous, or otherwise objectionable; (iv) misrepresents the source or identity of any User Content; (v) uploads, installs, constitutes, or embeds malware, virus, worms, Trojan horses, or other harmful content or code, or (vi) impersonates, or falsely indicates an affiliation with, any person or entity, including, without limitation, any of our employees or representatives. We reserve the right to remove any Content or User Content from the Site or Services at any time, for any reason (including, but not limited to, upon receipt of claims or allegations from third parties or authorities relating to such Content or User Content or if we are concerned that you may have breached the immediately preceding sentence), or for no reason at all. You, not us, remain solely responsible for all User Content that you upload, post, e-mail, transmit, or otherwise disseminate using, or in connection with, the Services, and you warrant that you possesses all rights necessary to provide such User Content to us and to grant us the rights to use such User Content.

Without limiting the other terms and conditions in this Agreement, you acknowledge and agree to the following guidelines for posting and/or viewing User Content and/or Content on the Site and Services:

  • If User Content is posted to the Site using your identity or social networking site screen name it will be deemed to have been posted by you.
  • Do not post abusive, obscene, threatening, harassing, defamatory, libelous, offensive or sexually explicit material.
  • Do not make false or misleading statements.
  • Do not offer to sell or buy any product or service, or post links to third party Sites, unless expressly authorized to do so by us in connection with a feature on the Site.
  • Do not post material that infringes the intellectual property rights or other proprietary rights, or rights of publicity or privacy, of any third party.
  • Do not post information that you know to be confidential or sensitive or otherwise in violation of any law, statute, rule, ordinance or regulation.
  • Keep all comments relevant and “on topic” to the particular Service posting that is open for comments.
  1. RESTRICTIONS. You are responsible for all of your activity in connection with the Services and accessing the Site. Any fraudulent, abusive, or otherwise illegal activity may be grounds for termination of your right to Services or to access the Site. You may not post or transmit, or cause to be posted or transmitted, any communication or solicitation designed or intended to obtain password, account, or private information from any user. Use of the Site or Services to violate the security of any computer network, crack passwords or security encryption codes, transfer or store illegal material, including any that is deemed threatening or obscene, or engage in any kind of illegal activity, is expressly prohibited. You will not run any form of auto-responder or “SPAM” on the Site, or any processes that run or are activated while the you are not logged on or that otherwise interfere with the proper working of, or place an unreasonable load on, the Service infrastructure. Further, the use of manual or automated software, devices, or other processes to “crawl” or “spider” any page of the Site is strictly prohibited.
  1. WARRANTY DISCLAIMER. You acknowledge that we have no control over, and no duty to take any action regarding: which users gain access to the Site; what Content or User Content you access via the Site (including, without limitation, viruses, malware, harmful code and user generated content); what effects the Content or User Content may have on you; how you may interpret or use the Content or User Content; or what actions you may take as a result of having been exposed to the Content or User Content. You release us from all liability for you having acquired or not acquired Content or User Content through the Site. The Site may contain, or direct you to Sites containing, information that some people may find offensive or inappropriate. We make no representations concerning any content contained in or accessed through the Site, and we will not be responsible or liable for the accuracy, copyright compliance, legality or decency of material contained in or accessed through the Site. We make no representations or warranties that the Site or any Content or User Content will be uninterrupted or error-free. THE SERVICES, CONTENT, USER CONTENT, SITE AND ANY SOFTWARE ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF CONTENT, NON-INFRINGEMENT, OR THE AVAILABILITY OR QUALITY OF ANY PRODUCTS OR SERVICES AVAILABLE VIA THE SERVICES. SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW LIMITATIONS ON HOW LONG AN IMPLIED WARRANTY LASTS, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.
  1. INDEMNITY. You will indemnify and hold us, our parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, officers and employees, harmless, including costs and attorneys’ fees, from any claim or demand made by any third party due to or arising out of your access to the Site, use of the Services, the violation of this Agreement by you, or the infringement by you, or any third party using your name, identity, device or IP address, of any intellectual property or other right of any person or entity.
  1. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY. IN NO EVENT SHALL WE, OR OUR OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, OR AGENTS BE LIABLE WITH RESPECT TO THE SITE OR THE SERVICES OR THE SUBJECT MATTER OF THIS AGREEMENT UNDER ANY CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE, TORT, STRICT LIABILITY OR OTHER LEGAL OR EQUITABLE THEORY (I) FOR ANY AMOUNT IN THE AGGREGATE IN EXCESS OF $100; (II) FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OF ANY KIND WHATSOEVER; (III) FOR DATA LOSS OR COST OF PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; OR (IV) FOR ANY MATTER BEYOND OUR REASONABLE CONTROL. SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS AND EXCLUSIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.
  1. THIRD PARTY SITES. The Site may contain links to third party Sites that are not owned or controlled by us. When you access third party Sites, you do so at your own risk. We encourage you to be aware when you leave the Site and to read the terms and conditions and privacy policy of each third party Site that you visit. We have no control over, and assume no responsibility for, the content, accuracy, privacy policies, or practices of, or opinions expressed in any third party Sites. In addition, we will not and cannot monitor, verify, censor or edit the content of any third party site.
  1. TERMINATION. This Agreement shall remain in full force and effect while you use the Site. You may terminate your use of the Site or your membership at any time by following the instructions on the Site. We may terminate your access to the Site (and/or any feature thereof) or your membership at any time, for any reason, and without warning, which may result in the forfeiture and destruction of all information associated with your membership. We may also terminate or suspend any and all Services and access to the Site immediately, without prior notice or liability, if you breach any of the terms or conditions of this Agreement. Any fees paid hereunder are non-refundable. Upon termination of your account, your right to use the Services, access the Site, and any Content will immediately cease. All provisions of this Agreement which by their nature should survive termination shall survive termination, including, without limitation, ownership provisions, warranty disclaimers, and limitations of liability.
  1. MISCELLANEOUS. The failure of either party to exercise in any respect any right provided for herein shall not be deemed a waiver of any further rights hereunder. We shall not be liable for any failure to perform its obligations hereunder where such failure results from any cause beyond our reasonable control, including, without limitation, mechanical, electronic or communications failure or degradation. If any provision of this Agreement is found to be unenforceable or invalid, that provision shall be limited or eliminated to the minimum extent necessary so that this Agreement shall otherwise remain in full force and effect and enforceable. This Agreement is not assignable, transferable or sublicensable by you except with our prior written consent. We may transfer, assign or delegate this Agreement and its rights and obligations without consent. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the District of Columbia without regard to the conflict of laws provisions thereof. For all purposes of this Agreement, the parties consent to exclusive jurisdiction and venue in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia or the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, wherever appropriate. Both parties agree that this Agreement is the complete and exclusive statement of the mutual understanding of the parties and supersedes and cancels all previous written and oral agreements, communications and other understandings relating to the subject matter of this Agreement, and that all modifications must be in a writing signed by both parties, except as otherwise provided herein. No agency, partnership, joint venture, or employment is created as a result of this Agreement and you do not have any authority of any kind to bind us in any respect whatsoever.
  1. COPYRIGHT DISPUTE POLICY. It is our policy to (1) block access to or remove material that we believe in good faith to be copyrighted material that has been illegally copied and distributed by any of our advertisers, affiliates, content providers, members or users; and (2) remove and discontinue service to repeat offenders.

Procedure for Reporting Copyright Infringement:

If you believe that material or Content residing on or accessible through the Site or Services infringes a copyright, please send a notice of copyright infringement containing the following information:

  • A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the copyright that has been allegedly infringed;
  • Identification of works or materials being infringed;
  • Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing including information regarding the location of the infringing materials that the copyright owner seeks to have removed, with sufficient detail so that we are capable of finding and verifying its existence;
  • Contact information about the notifier including address, telephone number and, if available, email address;
  • A statement that the notifier has a good faith belief that the material identified in (3) is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and
  • A statement made under penalty of perjury that the information provided is accurate and the notifying party is authorized to make the complaint on behalf of the copyright owner.

Please send this information to us at [email protected].

  1. QUESTIONS. If you have any questions or notices of violation of this Agreement, please contact us at [email protected]

Updated: July 26, 2022