Terms of Use Agreement

Welcome to The Learning Guild membership service (hereafter the "Service") Terms of Use Agreement (the “Agreement”). Please read this Agreement carefully. By using the Service, you accept and agree to these terms. If you do not agree, you are not authorized to use the Service. The Learning Guild reserves the right to change the terms of this Agreement from time to time, and it is the responsibility of each User (as defined in section 1.2, below) of the Service to review and comply with the current on the terms of this Agreement.

1. General

1.1 The Service is owned and operated by CloserStill Media, Inc. d/b/a The Learning Guild, 489 5th Ave, New York, NY 10017. The Service offers Users access to information, resources, interpersonal networking services, and other content assets owned and/or licensed by the Learning Guild primarily through the Learning Guild's website and the websites of the Learning Guild's associated events which are integral parts of the Service.  The Service includes both a free membership option and paid content package subscriptions.

1.2 An individual who accesses either of the websites is a “User” of the Service.  A User may become a “Member” by registering with the Service and creating an account known as a “Member Profile.”  A User must be 18 years or older to become a Member and establish a Member Profile. A Member may register and participate in the Service for free, or may elect to subscribe to a paid content package.  Members who subscribe to a paid content package are also known as “Subscribers.”

1.3 The terms of this Agreement apply to all Users, whether or not such User is a Member.

2. Terms of Use

2.1 The Service grants to each Member a personal, revocable, nonexclusive, non-assignable, and nontransferable license to use and display the information offered by the Service (including the paid content package subscription if the Member is also a Subscriber) on any machine(s) of which the Member is the primary user. The Member agrees that he or she will not sub-license, transfer, sell, or assign this license or any product or portion of the Service without written authorization from the Learning Guild. Any attempt to sub-license, transfer, sell, loan, or assign the license is void and of no effect and may result in the immediate termination of the Member's membership.

2.2 This grant is specific to the individual Member.  The Member shall not share his or her user name or log in credentials to any other person for any reason.

3. Membership Term and Termination

3.1 Membership has a term of four years.  Subscribers have access to paid content for one full year for each period of paid subscription. Each year, the Service will request that Members review and update their Member Profile and to confirm contact consents. The Learning Guild’s Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy describe how the Service collects, processes and shares User information and Member personal data. The Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy are incorporated by reference into this Agreement.

3.2 Approximately thirty (30) days prior to the anniversary of establishing or updating the Member Profile or the most recent subscription to paid content (whichever is latest), the Service will contact the Member to prompt the Member to update his or her Member Profile and re-confirm the contact preferences and consents. As part of the annual update or membership renewal, the Member may upgrade, downgrade or select the same level of Service as the previous year.

3.3 If the Member does not log in or register during the four-year term, the Member account will convert to inactive status. During the inactive period, the Service may contact the Member with membership renewal reminders and offers. At any time during the inactive period, the Member will be able to reactivate their membership by logging in to the Member profile and updating it.

3.4 The Service may terminate a Member's membership or access rights to the Service immediately without notice if, in the Service’s sole discretion, the Member fails to comply with any term or provision of this Agreement. 

3.5 A Member may inactivate his or her Membership at any time by clicking on the Inactivate Membership button located on the contact consent preferences page of the Member Profile. Whether the Member requests inactivation, the term lapses as described in section 3.3, or the Service inactivates the membership in accordance with section 3.4, inactivation terminates the Member’s right to use the Service or any paid content purchased from the Service. Refunds will not be issued for canceled or terminated subscriptions.

3.6 The Learning Guild reserves the right to modify, suspend, or cancel the Service, or any element of the Service, at any time and without notice.

4. User Conduct

4.1 Users shall only use the Service for lawful purposes.

4.2 Members shall access the portions of the Service accessible only by Members using their own username and login credentials. Users who have not registered with the Service shall not access those portions of the Service that require Member credentials.

4.3 A Member shall not: (i) select or use a username or email address of another person with the intent to impersonate that person; (ii) use a username or email address subject to the rights of any person without authorization; (iii) use a username in violation of the intellectual property rights of any person; or (iv) use a username that the Learning Guild, in its sole discretion, deems offensive. The foregoing provisions of this section are for the benefit of the Service and the benefit of the Service’s affiliates, third party content providers, and licensors, and each shall have the right to assert and enforce such provisions directly on its own behalf.

4.4 The Service may provide areas where Users may post comments or other content to the websites or transmit information to Members of the Service. Users shall not post or in any way transmit material that: (a) violates or infringes the rights of others; (b) is unlawful, threatening, abusive, defamatory, and invasive of privacy or publicity rights, (c) is vulgar or otherwise objectionable; (d) encourages conduct that would constitute a criminal offense, give rise to civil liability, or otherwise violates any law; (e) is a chain letter or a solicitation for a multi-level marketing (pyramid) scheme or (f) without written permission of the Service, contains advertisements or other commercial solicitations. 

4.5 Users also shall not post to the website or transmit to Members of the Service any material that depicts nudity, pornographic or sexually suggestive or explicit images, or any other adult material. The Learning Guild shall determine at its sole discretion content deemed offensive according to the Service community standards and applicable law.

4.6 Users and participants at in person conferences or other events shall not harass any other User or participants, whether in person or online.  Users must at all times comply with the Service’s Anti-Harassment Policy in section 5 below.

4.5 Users also shall not engage in any conduct that, as determined by the Service in its sole discretion, restricts or inhibits any other User from using or enjoying the Service.

4.6 Users shall not upload, post, or otherwise submit to the Service any material protected by copyright, trademark, or other intellectual property rights without the express written permission of the owner of the copyright, trademark, or other intellectual property right. To the fullest extent permitted by law, Members agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless the Learning Guild and CloserStill Media, its directors, officers, employees, and agents from and against any and all liability, claims, demands, damages and costs (including, without limitation, reasonable attorneys’ fees and expenses) arising from or related to the Member’s infringement of copyrights, trademarks or other intellectual property rights.

4.7 Unless authorized in writing in advance by the Learning Guild, Users shall not use any software, application, appliance, or any other tool to bypass, or attempt to bypass, any security features of the website or the Service.  Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, users shall not run any penetration testing scripts or other tools, deposit any malicious code (including viruses, Trojan horses, or worms), attempt to exploit software vulnerabilities, or otherwise target the websites in such a way as to deny other Users’ access to the websites.

5.  Anti-Harassment Policy

The Learning Guild seeks to foster a harassment-free experience for everyone, including Users online or participants attending in-person events.  Such an environment encourages networking and community richness that benefits all Users and participants. The Learning Guild will not tolerate harassment Users or event participants in any form—in person or online.

Harassment includes offensive verbal comments related to gender, age, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, or religion (or lack thereof); sexual images in public spaces; deliberate intimidation; stalking; following; harassing photography or recording; sustained disruption of talks or other events; inappropriate physical contact; and unwelcome sexual attention.

Users and event participants asked to stop any harassing behavior are expected to comply immediately.  Members will be subject to termination from the Service for violation of this Agreement.  If a participant engages in harassing behavior, the event organizers may take any action they deem appropriate, including expulsion from the event with no refund.

Sponsors and Vendors are also subject to the anti-harassment policy. In particular, sponsors should not use sexualized images, activities, or other material. Booth staff (including volunteers) should not use sexualized clothing/uniforms/costumes, or otherwise create a sexualized environment.

Users or participants who have been harassed, or notice that someone else is being harassed, should bring any concerns to the immediate attention of the Service. For incidents at in-person events, contact any event staff (wearing blue shirts with the Learning Guild logo), or contact the executive director, David Kelly, at dkelly@LearningGuild.com.

6. Intellectual Property Rights

6.1 The Service provides certain services and benefits for Members and derives its revenue from the production and distribution of those services and benefits for the exclusive use of Members.  All content, information, data, or other information gained through access to the Service is protected by applicable copyright laws.  Users shall not duplicate or transfer to any other person – including other Users – any content, information, data or other intellectual property without the prior written authorization from the Learning Guild. The User further agrees that any specific instance in which the Learning Guild grants written authorization does not authorize the User to duplicate and/or redistribute any other material except as expressly permitted in the written authorization.

6.2 If User posts materials to the Service, User hereby grants to the Learning Guild and the Service a royalty-free, worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive right and license to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative works from, distribute, perform, and display any such posted material (in whole or in part) and/or to incorporate it in other works in any form, media, or technology now known or later developed.

7. Third-Party Links

In an attempt to provide increased value to Users, the Service may provide various third-party links from the websites and in email communications. However, even if the third party is affiliated with the Service, the Service has no control over these linked sites, each of which may have separate terms of service. Neither the Service nor any of its affiliates or contractors has any responsibility or liability for these independent policies or actions, nor are they responsible for the privacy practices or the content of such websites. These linked sites are included on the websites and emails for Users' convenience only, and each User therefore accesses them at such User's own risk.

8.  Third-Party Content

8.1 When the Learning Guild permits Users to publish content on the Service, it does so as a provider of an interactive computer service and shall not be treated as the publisher or the speaker of that information, pursuant to the Communications Decency Act, 47 U.S.C. §230. The User posting such information shall at all times remain the publisher or speaker of such information.

8.2 Neither the Learning Guild nor the Service independently verifies or approves information posted or transmitted by Users.  Users posting any opinions, advice, statements, services, offers, or other information or content are solely responsible for its content. Users accessing such publicly posted information acknowledge that they must independently investigate any such information to their own satisfaction. 

8.3 The Learning Guild provides the functionality for Users to provide such information, which is posted as-is with no warranties, express or implied, as more fully disclaimed in section 10 below

8.4 If any third-person believes that a User has posted any material that infringes upon that person’s copyright, the third person may contact the Service at service@LearningGuild.com to identify the allegedly infringing material and request that such material be removed or disabled. 

9. Website Content

If a Member accesses the content provided by the Service, either to provide information to the Service or to retrieve and review research information from the Service, such Member agrees as follows:

• The Member will not supply false or defamatory information.
• The Member will report to the Service any false or defamatory information of which the Member becomes aware.
• Because all survey data and other original research is provided by Members, the Learning Guild is not responsible for any false or defamatory material reported or placed on the Service by Members.
• The content and material contained on the websites as a part of the Service is offered as information only and not as professional advice of any nature.
• The Learning Guild is not liable for any loss, damage, action, causes of action, expense, cost, or liability, including attorney fees, made or incurred as a result of any false, misleading, or defamatory material or information in any content provided by the Service.
• The Member acknowledges that it is important for a User to independently investigate all ratings, information, and opinions expressed in any content provided as a part of the Service.
• The Member acknowledges that the ratings, information, and opinions expressed by users of the Service are those of the persons supplying the ratings, information, and opinions, and not those of the Learning Guild or its officers, employees, shareholders, or directors.

10. Disclaimer of Warranty; Limitation of Liability

10.1 Each User expressly agrees that use of the Service is at his or her sole risk. The Service is provided as is and the Learning Guild does not warrant that the Service or the websites will be uninterrupted or error free; nor is there any warranty as to the results that may be obtained from the use of the Service or the websites or as to the accuracy, reliability, or content of any information provided through the Service or the websites. To the fullest extent permitted by law, the Learning Guild disclaims all warranties, express or implied, in connection with the Service, including, but not limited to the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose.  The disclaimer of liability contained in this section applies to any and all damages or injury caused by any failure of performance, error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, delay in operation or transmission, computer virus or other malicious code, communication line failure, theft or destruction, or unauthorized access to, alteration of, or use of records or any other material, whether for breach of contract, negligence, or under any other cause of action. Each User specifically acknowledges that the Service is not liable for the defamatory, offensive, wrongful, or illegal conduct of third parties, or other Users, and that the risk of damage or injury from the foregoing rests entirely with each User. In no event will the Service or any person or entity involved in creating, producing, or distributing the Service be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, or consequential damages arising out of the use of or inability to use the Service or the websites.

10.2 Each User hereby acknowledges that the disclaimer and limitation of liability of this Section 10 shall apply to all content on the Service and the websites. The Service neither endorses nor is responsible for the accuracy or reliability of any opinion, advice, information, or statement on the Service, nor for any offensive, defamatory, or obscene posting made on the Service by anyone other than employees of the Service while acting in their official capacities. Under no circumstances will the Service be liable for any loss or damage caused by reliance on information obtained through postings on the Service.

10.3 The Learning Guild does not endorse, warrant, or guarantee any product or service offered by a third party through the Service, and is not a party to and does not in any way monitor any transaction between Users and third-party providers of products or services. As with the purchase of a product or services through any medium or in any environment, each User should use his or her best judgment and exercise caution where appropriate. Each User specifically acknowledges that in no event will the Learning Guild, its affiliates, or any of their respective employees or agents be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, or consequential damages arising out of: (i) the use by such User of any browser owned or operated by any party; and/or (ii) the downloading of any software or software service owned, distributed, or operated by any third party.

11. Monitoring

The Service shall have the right, but not the obligation, to monitor the content of the Service to determine compliance with this Agreement and any other operating rules established by the Service. The Service shall have the right, in its sole discretion, to edit, refuse to post, or remove any material submitted to or posted on the Service. Without limiting the foregoing, the Service shall have the right to remove any material that the Service, in its sole discretion, finds to be in violation of the provisions hereof, otherwise objectionable, or stale. Notwithstanding this right, Users shall remain solely responsible for the content of their messages posted on the Service. Each User acknowledges and agrees that the Service shall assume or have any liability for any action or inaction by the Service or any third-party content provider with respect to any conduct, communication, or posting on the Service.

12.  Consent to Collection of Personal Data

By using the Service, each User consents to the collection and use of personal data by the Service and its affiliates as described in this Agreement, the Service’s Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy, each of which is incorporated by reference in this Agreement.

13. Dispute Resolution

Any dispute that arises from or is related to this Agreement, in whole or in part, shall be governed by, and construed and interpreted in accordance with, the laws of the State of California. Exclusive jurisdiction and venue for the resolution of any dispute among the parties, regardless of whether such dispute is based on this Agreement or any other matter, shall be in a state or federal court of competent jurisdiction sitting in Sonoma County, California. The User consents to personal jurisdiction in such courts and waives any claim or defense based on venue or jurisdiction in any other location.

14. Policy Changes

The Service reserves the right to amend this Agreement at any time and without notice.  Each User is responsible for reviewing the Agreement for any changes. Users continued use of the Service following any such changes will indicate agreement to and acceptance of the revised terms of the Agreement. 

15. Feedback

The Learning Guild welcomes User's questions, comments, and concerns about the Service and this Agreement. If Users have questions or need more information, please email service@LearningGuild.com

This document last updated on: April 24, 2024.