KODANSHA USA PUBLISHING, LLC
Terms of Use
Last Updated: July 18, 2024
Please read these terms of use carefully before viewing or using our website. These Terms of use apply to this website, operated by Kodansha USA Publishing, LLC (“KUP”).
IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO THESE TERMS OF USE, PLEASE DO NOT VIEW OR ACCESS OUR WEBSITE. BY VIEWING, ACCESSING, OR OTHERWISE USING ANY OF OUR WEBSITE, YOU AGREE TO THESE TERMS OF USE.
In these Terms of Use, we refer to our website kodansha.us as “Website”.
Our Details
Any questions relating to the Website should be sent to the following:
Kodansha USA Publishing, LLC
25 East 22nd Street
New York, NY 10010
Email: [email protected]
Summary
This summary is provided only for convenience. Please review the Terms of Use below in their entirety for important information and legal conditions that apply to your use of our Website.
- These Terms of Use are a legal agreement between you and KUP that govern whether and how you may use the Website. We may change these Terms of Use at any time. Use of the Website is also subject to our Privacy Policy.
- If you are under age 13, you may use the Website only under the supervision of your parent or legal guardian, except where prohibited by law. If you are age 13 or over but under age 18, you may use the Website only with the consent of your parent or legal guardian.
- The Website is owned by KUP and our licensors. You may only use the Website for personal use. You may not sell or transfer the Website, or any content or digital items within the Website, to anyone else.
- You may not copy or modify any content from the Website, or any trademarks appearing on the Website.
- You will be responsible for all charges relating to the Website. These charges may include costs to view content.
- You are responsible for maintaining the security of your account information in order to avoid unauthorized charges, including by children using your device.
- Amounts paid for digital products are non-refundable except as required under local law of your jurisdiction.
- We may discontinue or change the Website, including any features of the Website, at any time without notice or liability to you.
- Our liability to you relating to the Website is limited. You agree that any disputes will be subject to binding arbitration, to be held in San Francisco, California, USA.
Your Agreement to these Terms of Use and Future Changes to these Terms of Use and Products
Any content available to you through the Website is licensed, not sold, to you. KUP reserves all rights in and to the Website not expressly granted to you under these Terms of Use. We may need to modify these Terms of Use from time to time and for many reasons, including to reflect updates to the Products, for security purposes, or changes in law, at our sole discretion, without your consent, effective immediately upon posting of the revised Terms of Use, and you agree to and accept this condition. Material changes to these Terms of Use will be announced by a notation at the bottom of our Website beside the link to these Terms of Use, or by a dispatch of a notice to you. You are responsible for checking these Terms of Use each time before using the Website. Continued use of the Website following notice of changes will mean that you accept and agree to the updated Terms of Use.
We may also have to change our Products, for example, in order to:
- Reflect changes in relevant laws and regulatory requirements;
- Implement minor technical adjustments and improvements, for example to address a security threat; and
- Update digital content, provided that the digital content always matches the description of it that we provided to you before you bought it (and we may ask you to install these updates).
Scope of License
These Terms of Use provide you the limited, nontransferable license to view the content available on the Website. You may not rent, lease, lend, sell, transfer redistribute, or sublicense the Website or content. Any attempt to do so is a violation of the rights of KUP and our licensors. If you breach this restriction, you may be subject to prosecution and damages.
Use of the term “purchase” in these Terms of Use does not imply that you obtain any ownership rights to the Website or any virtual goods.
Copyrights
All copyrighted and copyrightable materials on the Website, including, without limitation, the design, text, graphics, pictures, sound files, and other files (the “Materials”) are copyrighted and all rights are reserved. Except as stated herein, none of the Materials may be copied, reproduced, distributed, republished, downloaded, displayed, posted, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including, but not limited to, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of KUP.
Trademarks
Kodansha, Kodansha USA Publishing, KUP, kodansha.us, the Kodansha Comics and KUP logos, and other Kodansha and KUP logos and product and service names are among the trademarks and service marks (whether registered or not) owned or exclusively licensed by Kodansha Ltd., KUP, or their affiliates. These marks may not be copied, imitated, displayed, or used without the prior written permission of KUP. In addition, all page headers, custom graphics, button icons, and scripts are service marks, trademarks, and/or trade dress owned or controlled by KUP and may not be copied, imitated, or used, without the prior written permission of KUP. All third-party trademarks and service marks appearing on the KUP Sites are the property of their respective owners and all rights therein are reserved.
Purchases: Fees and Billing
KUP offers digital products (“Products”) for purchase by its customers through the Website. KUP reserves the right to adjust pricing for our Products or any components thereof in any manner and at any time as KUP may determine in KUP’s sole and absolute discretion. Pricing and availability of any product are subject to change without notice.
If there is a charge associated with the Products offered by KUP, you agree to pay that charge at the price(s) in effect when the charges are incurred. If you wish to purchase Products, you will be asked by KUP or a third-party payment provider to supply certain information applicable to your purchase, including but not limited to your name, address, email address, and payment information. You agree that all information you provide to KUP or other third-party payment provider is accurate, current, and complete. You authorize KUP to collect fees by charging the credit card or other method of payment you provide to us, either directly or indirectly via a third-party payment provider. The information provided by you to KUP will be handled by KUP as described in our Privacy Policy. If a purchase is made via a third-party payment provider, you are required to accept the terms of that third-party payment provider to complete the purchase.
Prices for the Products exclude all applicable taxes and currency exchange settlements, unless stated otherwise. You are solely responsible for paying any applicable taxes relating to your purchase(s). The final price, including taxes, will be confirmed in the order summary before the order is placed and paid for.
You may still incur charges incidental to using the Website even if the Website itself is free (for example, charges for internet access, text messaging, and other data transmission). You are solely responsible for the payment of such taxes or other charges related to your use of the Website.
Any amounts paid for the Products are non-refundable, except to the extent required by applicable law or as expressly set forth in these Terms of Use.
Shipping and Returns
If you are a customer resident outside the EU or UK:
Digital content is not returnable and non-refundable.
If you are a customer resident in the EU or UK:
As a consumer, under the law you have an automatic statutory right of withdrawal from contracts. However, when you purchase digital products from us, we make the digital product available to you immediately, and you therefore acknowledge that as a result, you waive your automatic statutory right of withdrawal.
You have additional legal rights if something is wrong with your digital product. If you think there is something wrong with your product, you must contact our customer service team via [email protected].
Use of your Personal Data
We may ask you to submit certain personal information in order to register a KUP account. You agree to provide and maintain true, accurate, complete, and current information. If you provide any information that is untrue, inaccurate, incomplete, or not current, KUP has the right to suspend or terminate your account and refuse any and all current or future use of the Website by you.
KUP is committed to protecting your privacy. Please review our Privacy Policy, which explains what information we collect from you and how that information is used.
Registration; Password
When you register for a KUP account, you will provide your email address and a password. It is your responsibility to take reasonable steps to keep your password confidential and not knowingly or carelessly disclose your account information. If you think a third party may have obtained your password, you should immediately change your password. We will have no responsibility for damage caused to you by a third party using your login information regardless of whether it was provided intentionally by you or through your negligence, and regardless of whether we knew or should have known of such use. If there are changes to information that you registered with us when applying to use the Website, you should update your profile to reflect the changes.
Minor Users
If you are under age 13, you may use the Website only under the supervision of your parent or legal guardian, except where prohibited by law. If you are age 13 or over but under age 18, you may use the Website only with the consent of your parent or legal guardian.
KUP relies upon parents and guardians to determine if the Website is appropriate for the viewing or access by persons under the age of 18.
If you are over the age of 18, you agree to monitor use of your account by persons younger than the age of 18. You agree to accept full responsibility for any unauthorized use of your account by persons under the age of 18, including responsibility for any use of your credit card or other payment instrument.
Prohibited Conduct
You agree not to engage in any of the following conduct through the Website: (a) interfere with or disrupt the Website or servers or networks, or disobey any requirements, procedures, policies, or regulations of networks connected with the Website; (b) interfere with, disrupt or circumvent any security feature of the Website or any feature that restricts or enforces limitations on use of or access to the Website; (c) use the Website to violate the law; (d) use the Website to harm minors in any way; (e) use the Website to reveal any personal information about another individual, including any information that may be used to track, contact, or impersonate that individual; (f) defraud or mislead KUP or other users; (g) impersonate any person or entity or falsely state or otherwise misrepresent your affiliation with a person or entity; (h) create a KUP account by automated means or false pretenses or use any other user’s account for any purpose, including to circumvent a suspension or ban; or (j) submit false refund requests to KUP. KUP reserves the right to determine what conduct violates these restrictions or is otherwise outside the intentions of these Terms of Use or the Website and to take action as a result, which may include termination of your account and exclusion from further participation in the Website.
Changes, Suspension or Termination of the Website
We reserve the right to add, change, suspend, or discontinue the Website, or any aspect or feature of the Website, without notice or liability. You agree that we may update and change the Website from time to time to changes to our Products, our users’ needs and our business priorities, which includes changing the various terms and changing or eliminating parts of the Website, without contacting you in advance. We will give you reasonable notice of any major changes if and when possible.
You agree that we may temporarily suspend the Website without prior notice. During any such period you may be unable to access any content or information you have stored on the Website. This may occur, for example, when we are conducting regular or emergency maintenance on the Website.
The license is effective until terminated by you or KUP. Your rights under these Terms of Use will terminate if you violate any terms listed in these Terms of Use regardless of whether the violation is by, on behalf of or through you. We can terminate your use immediately and without notice where the grounds for this are serious, or with reasonable notice if less serious. Upon termination of the license, you shall cease all use of the Website and delete all copies of the Website.
You may, as the result of termination, lose your KUP account and all content, information, and data associated with it. You will not be entitled to any refund, reimbursement, or other liability as a result of any termination permitted under these Terms of Use for any reason, whether by you or KUP. KUP reserves the right to refuse to keep accounts for or provide access to the Website to anyone.
No Warranty
If you are a customer resident outside the EU or UK:
YOU ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE THAT USE OF THE WEBSITE IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK AND THAT THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO SATISFACTORY QUALITY, PERFORMANCE, ACCURACY, AND EFFORT IS WITH YOU. TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, THE WEBSITE IS PROVIDED “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE”, WITH ALL FAULTS AND WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, AND KUP HEREBY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES AND CONDITIONS WITH RESPECT TO THE WEBSITE, EITHER EXPRESS, IMPLIED, OR STATUTORY, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES AND/OR CONDITIONS OF MERCHANTABILITY, OF SATISFACTORY QUALITY, OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OF ACCURACY, OF QUIET ENJOYMENT, AND OF NONINFRINGEMENT OF THIRD-PARTY RIGHTS. KUP DOES NOT WARRANT THAT THE WEBSITE, OUR SERVERS, OR EMAIL SENT FROM US ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS. KUP DOES NOT WARRANT AGAINST INTERFERENCE WITH YOUR ENJOYMENT OF THE WEBSITE, THAT THE FUNCTIONS CONTAINED IN OR SERVICES PERFORMED OR PROVIDED BY THE WEBSITE WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS, THAT THE OPERATION OF THE WEBSITE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR-FREE, OR THAT DEFECTS IN THE WEBSITE WILL BE CORRECTED. NO ORAL OR WRITTEN INFORMATION OR ADVICE GIVEN BY KUP OR OUR AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE SHALL CREATE A WARRANTY. SHOULD THE WEBSITE PROVE DEFECTIVE, YOU ASSUME THE ENTIRE COST OF ALL NECESSARY SERVICING, REPAIR, OR CORRECTION. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR LIMITATIONS ON APPLICABLE STATUTORY RIGHTS OF A CONSUMER, SO THE ABOVE EXCLUSION AND LIMITATIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.
If you are a customer resident in the EU or UK:
Our Website is made available free of charge. We do not guarantee that they will always be available or uninterrupted. We may suspend or withdraw or restrict the availability of all or any part of our Website for business and operational reasons. We will try to give you reasonable notice of any suspension or withdrawal.
Limitation of Liability
If you are a customer resident outside the EU or UK:
TO THE EXTENT NOT PROHIBITED BY LAW, IN NO EVENT SHALL KUP BE LIABLE FOR PERSONAL INJURY OR ANY INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, INDIRECT, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES WHATSOEVER, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF PROFITS, LOSS OF DATA, BUSINESS INTERRUPTION, OR ANY OTHER COMMERCIAL DAMAGES OR LOSSES, ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO YOUR USE OR INABILITY TO USE THE WEBSITE, HOWEVER CAUSED, REGARDLESS OF THE THEORY OF LIABILITY (CONTRACT, TORT, OR OTHERWISE) AND EVEN IF KUP HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATION OF LIABILITY FOR PERSONAL INJURY, OR OF INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO THIS LIMITATION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. In no event shall our total liability to you for all damages (other than as may be required by applicable law in cases involving personal injury) exceed the amount of fifty dollars ($50.00). The foregoing limitations will apply even if the above stated remedy fails of its essential purpose.
If you are a customer resident in the EU or UK:
Nothing in these Terms of Use is intended to exclude or limit our liability where it would be unlawful to do so. This includes liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence or the negligence of our employees, agents or subcontractors, or, for fraud or for fraudulent misrepresentations.
You agree not to use our Website or purchase Products for any commercial or business purpose, and we have no liability to you for any business losses for example loss of profit, loss of business, business interruption, or loss of business opportunity.
We do not voluntarily accept responsibility for any loss or damage that:
- Was not caused by our breach of these Terms of Use;
- Was not, at the time you agreed to these Terms of Use, a reasonably foreseeable consequence of our breaching these Terms of Use (loss or damage is foreseeable if either it is obvious that it will happen or if, at the time these Terms of Use were entered into, both we and you knew it might happen);
- Was caused by a delaying event outside of our reasonable control.
If defective digital content that we have supplied damages a device or digital content belonging to you, we will either repair the damage or pay you compensation. However, we will not be liable for damage that you could have avoided by following our advice to apply an update offered to you free of charge or for damage that was caused by you failing to correctly follow installation instructions or to have in place the minimum system requirements advised by us.
Indemnification
To the extent permitted by the laws of your country, you are responsible for damages incurred by KUP and our affiliates as a result of your use of the Website and agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless KUP and our affiliates and other users from and against any and all claims, damages, costs and expenses, including attorneys’ fees, arising from or related to the use of the Website and any breach of these Terms of Use, the Privacy Policy or any other policies posted on the Website from time to time.
No Support
You agree that we have no obligation to provide support relating to the Website. We may provide limited support to users who contact us through a specified email address or web interface; however, we may discontinue such support at any time. If you have any questions relating to the Website, please contact us at the email or postal address provided at the top of these Terms of Use.
US Government Users
The Website and related documentation are “Commercial Items,” as that term is defined at 48 C.F.R. §2.101, consisting of “Commercial Computer Software” and “Commercial Computer Software Documentation,” as such terms are used in 48 C.F.R. §12.212 or 48 C.F.R. §227.7202, as applicable. Consistent with 48 C.F.R. §12.212 or 48 C.F.R. §227.7202-1 through 227.7202-4, as applicable, the Commercial Computer Software and Commercial Computer Software Documentation are being licensed to US Government end users (a) only as Commercial Items and (b) with only those rights as are granted to all other end users pursuant to the terms and conditions herein. Unpublished-rights reserved under the copyright laws of the United States.
Communications
You agree that KUP may send emails to you for the purpose of informing you of upcoming events or offers, notifying you of changes to the Website, or for other purposes we deem appropriate.
Disputes
As used in these Terms of Use, “Dispute” means any dispute, claim, demand, action, proceeding, or other controversy between you and KUP concerning the Website and your or KUP‘s obligations and performance under these Terms of Use, KUP‘s Privacy Policy or with respect to the Website, whether based in contract, warranty, tort (including, without limitation, fraud, misrepresentation, fraudulent inducement, concealment, omission, negligence, conversion, trespass, strict liability, and product liability), statute (including, without limitation, consumer protection and unfair competition statutes), regulation, ordinance, or any other legal or equitable basis or theory. “Dispute” will be given the broadest possible meaning allowable under law. However, “Dispute” does not include a claim to enforce or protect, or concerning the validity of, any of your or KUP’s (or any of KUP’s licensors’) intellectual property rights or a claim related to, or arising from, allegations of theft, piracy, or unauthorized use.
Mediation and Binding Arbitration for customers in the United States
PLEASE READ THIS CAREFULLY. IT AFFECTS YOUR RIGHTS
You may opt-out of arbitration within a limited period. Please see “Opt-Out Right” below.
Informal Negotiation. You and KUP agree to attempt in good faith to resolve any dispute through informal discussions and negotiations before commencing arbitration. Unless you and KUP otherwise agree in writing, the period for informal negotiation will be sixty (60) days from the date on which you or KUP provides the other written notice of the dispute. Neither party will commence arbitration before the end of the foregoing period.
Binding Arbitration. If informal negotiation fails to resolve a dispute, arbitration shall be conducted before a single arbitrator under the Commercial Rules of the American Arbitration Association (AAA), including the AAA’s Supplementary Procedures for Consumer Related Disputes. Your arbitration fees and your share of arbitrator compensation shall be governed by the AAA Commercial Rules, Consumer Due Process Protocol, and the Supplementary Procedures for Consumer Related Disputes. Unless the claim is for more than ten thousand dollars (US$10,000), the arbitration shall be conducted solely through the submission of documents, by phone or online. The arbitrator shall make a decision in writing, and shall provide a statement of reasons if requested by either party. YOU UNDERSTAND AND ACKNOWLEDGE THAT BY AGREEING TO BINDING ARBITRATION, YOU ARE GIVING UP THE RIGHT TO LITIGATE (OR PARTICIPATE IN AS A PARTY OR CLASS MEMBER) ALL DISPUTES IN COURT BEFORE A JUDGE OR JURY. INSTEAD, YOU UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT ALL DISPUTES WILL BE RESOLVED BEFORE A NEUTRAL ARBITRATOR, WHOSE DECISION AND AWARD WILL BE BINDING AND FINAL, EXCEPT FOR A LIMITED RIGHT OF APPEAL UNDER THE FEDERAL ARBITRATION ACT. ANY COURT WITH JURISDICTION OVER THE PARTIES MAY ENFORCE THE ARBITRATOR'S AWARD. Nothing herein will prevent KUP or you from pursuing a claim in a small claims court with applicable jurisdiction
Limitation. You and KUP agree that any arbitration shall be limited to the dispute between KUP and you individually. YOU AND KUP AGREE THAT EACH MAY BRING CLAIMS AGAINST THE OTHER ONLY IN YOUR OR ITS INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY AND NOT AS A PLAINTIFF OR CLASS MEMBER IN ANY PURPORTED CLASS OR REPRESENTATIVE PROCEEDING. Further, unless both you and KUP agree otherwise, the arbitrator may not consolidate more than one person's claims, and may not otherwise preside over any form of a representative or class proceeding. If this provision is determined to be unenforceable, then the entirety of this section “Mediation and Binding Arbitration” shall be null and void.
Opt-Out Right. You can reject and opt-out of this binding arbitration agreement within thirty (30) days of your receipt of an order with one or more Product(s), solely with respect to such order, by emailing us at the email address above in “Our Details” with your first and last name, the email address you previously provided to us, and a statement of your intent to opt-out of binding arbitration. Note that opting out of this arbitration agreement does not affect any other part of these Terms, including the provisions regarding controlling law or courts in which any disputes must be brought. This section survives termination of these Terms of Use.
If you are a customer resident in the EU or UK, this “Mediation and Binding Arbitration” section does not apply to you.
Governing Law and Jurisdiction
If you are a customer outside the EU or UK:
The laws of the State of California, excluding its conflicts of law rules, govern these Terms of Use and your use of the Website. Your use of the Website may also be subject to other local, state, national, or international laws. In the event that the agreement above to arbitrate is not effective for any reason, you hereby agree to personal jurisdiction by and venue in the federal and state courts of the County of San Francisco, California, USA for all disputes in connection with these Terms of Use or any dispute of any sort that might arise between you and us or our affiliates. We and you agree that the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (Vienna, 1980) shall not apply to these Terms of Use or to any dispute or transaction arising out of these Terms of Use.
If you are customer resident in UK or EU:
If you are a consumer in the UK or EU, we will not deprive you of any protection you have under the law of the country where you live and you can bring actions in the courts of your home country.
If you are a customer in the EU, you may also choose to raise any dispute with an alternative dispute resolution body via the EU Commission’s Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) Platform.
Notice for California Users
Under California Civil Code Section 1789.3, California users of an electronic commercial service receive the following consumer rights notice: The Complaint Assistance Unit of the Division of Consumer Services of the California Department of Consumer Affairs may be contacted in writing at 1625 North Market Blvd., Suite N112, Sacramento, CA 95834, or by telephone at (800) 952-5210.
Severability
If any of the terms or conditions of these Terms of Use shall be deemed invalid, void or for any reason unenforceable, that provision shall be deemed severable and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining portion of these Terms of Use.
Delay in Enforcement
No delay or failure to take action under these Terms of Use shall constitute any waiver by us of any provision of these Terms of Use.