Terms and conditions

Terms and Conditions of use for this website (June 2009)

If you use the Publictechnology.net website (the "Website") you agree to be bound by these terms and conditions.

1. Definitions
   In these terms and conditions, "we" and "us" means Sift Media, the owner of the Website, whose registered office is , , , Bristol BS1 1QB. Our company registration number is 0 registered in England and Wales. The term "you" refers to the user or viewer of our website.
    
2. Access to the Website and content
   2.1 The information provided by us on the Website is not in any way an invitation or recommendation to buy any products or services featured and you should seek appropriate independent advice. The content of this Website is for your general information and use only, and it is subject to change without notice.

   2.2 We will endeavour to allow uninterrupted access to the Website, but access to the Website may be suspended, restricted or terminated at any time.

   2.3 We reserve the right to change, modify, substitute or remove without notice any information on the Website from time to time.

   2.4 From time to time this website may also include links to other websites. These links are provided for your convenience to provide further information. They do not signify that we endorse the website(s). We have no responsibility for the content of the linked website(s).
    

3. Intellectual Property
   3.1 The copyright in the material contained in the Website, together with the website design, text and graphics, and their selection and arrangement, and all software compilations, underlying source code and software (including applets) belongs to Sift Limited, its subsidiaries or the providers of such information. All rights are reserved. None of this material may be reproduced or redistributed for commercial purposes without our written permission.

   3.2 Product and company names mentioned on this website may be the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

   3.3 You shall retain ownership of all copyright in data you submit to the Website. You grant us a world-wide exclusive, royalty-free, non-terminable licence to use, copy, distribute, publish and transmit such data in any manner.

   3.4 This website contains material which is owned by or licensed to us. This material includes, but is not limited to, the design, layout, look, appearance and graphics. Reproduction is prohibited other than in accordance with the copyright notice, which forms part of these terms and conditions.
    

4. Exclusions of liability
   4.1 We use reasonable endeavours to ensure that the data on the Website is accurate and to correct any errors or omissions as soon as practicable after being notified of them. We do not monitor, verify or endorse information submitted by third parties for posting on the Website and you should be aware that such information may be inaccurate, incomplete or out of date. To the extent permitted by applicable law, we disclaim all warranties and representations (whether express or implied) as to the accuracy of any information contained on the Website. We do not guarantee that the Website will be fault free and do not accept liability for any errors or omissions.

   4.2 Due to the nature of electronic transmission of data over the internet, and the number of users by whom data is posted on to the Website, any liability we may have for any losses or claims arising from an inability to access the Website, or from any use of the Website or reliance on the data transmitted using the Website, is excluded to the fullest extent permissible by law. In no event shall we be liable for any loss of profit, revenues, goodwill, opportunity, business, anticipated savings or other indirect or consequential loss of any kind in contract, tort (including negligence) or otherwise arising out of use of the Website, save where such liability cannot be excluded by law.

   4.3 We do not give any warranty that the Website is free from viruses or anything else which may have a harmful effect on any technology.
    

5. Exclusion of liability for suppliers' goods and services
   We promote a number of suppliers on the Website and offer you the opportunity to buy goods and services from those suppliers through the Website. We can accept no liability for any goods or services provided by third party suppliers. Any goods or services which are not stated to be provided by us are provided by third parties over whom we do not have control and you should satisfy yourself that you wish to purchase those goods or services before contracting with the supplier. The suppliers will be supplying on their own standard terms and conditions and you should check that you agree to those terms and conditions before placing an order.
    
6. Username and password
   6.1 On registering with us, you are issued with a user name and password, which must be used in order to access certain restricted parts of the Website. The user name and password are personal to you and are not transferable.

   6.2 Your username and password are the methods used by us to identify you and so are very important. You are responsible for all information posted on the Website by anyone using your username and password, and any payments due for services accessed through the Website by anyone using your user name and password. Any breach of security of a user name and password should be notified to us immediately.

   6.3 You may not adapt or circumvent the systems in place in connection with the Website nor access the Website other than through normal operations.
    

7. Data submitted by users
   7.1 We accept no liability for data supplied by any user for display on the Website and the limitations in condition 4 above (Exclusions of liability) apply.

   7.2 If you submit data for display on the Website you are responsible for ensuring that the data is accurate, complete and up to date and for updating that data where necessary.

   7.3 If you submit data for display on the Website you are responsible for ensuring that no data is uploaded or submitted which is untrue, defamatory, obscene or abusive or otherwise objectionable or in breach of any applicable laws or rights of third parties.

   7.4 You warrant that you have taken all reasonable precautions to ensure that any data you upload or otherwise submit to the Website is free from viruses and anything else which may have a contaminating or destructive effect on any part of the Website or any other technology.

   7.5 We reserve the right (without limiting our rights to seek other remedies) to remove offending material placed on the Website that we consider to constitute a misuse of the Website or which is otherwise harmful to other users of the Website.

   7.6 You will indemnify us for any claim or loss (including without limitation, economic loss) suffered by us arising out of your failure to observe any of the terms of this condition 7.

   7.7 Subject to the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 condition 7.5 may be enforced by the following people in their own right:

   i) any third party with whom we contract for content or advertising; and
   ii) our employees or agents

   at the time of any failure to observe.
    

8. Payment
   8.1 Where payment is required we will explicitly say so. In which case you shall pay within 30 days of receipt of an invoice from us, any fees incurred by you at the rates in effect when such fees are incurred. You shall also pay all applicable taxes related to charges made for the use of the Website at the same time.

   8.2 If you fail to pay us within the time stipulated above, we shall be entitled to charge you interest at 4% above the base rate at the relevant time of Barclays Bank plc. Such interest shall accrue daily and be compounded monthly. In addition, we may suspend your access to and use of the Website.
    

9. Data protection
   9.1 We are committed to protecting your privacy. We will collect and use information supplied by you and other users of the Website to improve the Website and personalise your experience when you visit the Website. We may also use it to tell you (via email, telephone, post or any alternative medium) about changes in our services, or about services and features we think you'll find interesting.

   9.2 We never sell, trade or rent your personal information to any third parties. Unless you explicitly provide your details to a third party (for example in response to any offers advertised on the Website), your personal information is used only by us for the purposes outlined in 9.1 above.

   9.2 Under the UK Data Protection Act 1998 we follow strict security procedures in the storage and disclosure of information which you have given us, to prevent unauthorised access.

   9.3 You may edit your personal information at any time.
    

10. Right to cancel and refunds
    10.1 You can cancel any services you order via the Website within 7 days of your order being accepted, except that where the services are provided within 7 days of the order being accepted, your right to cancel ceases once provision of the services starts. We aim to provide services as promptly as possible. You accept that the services will often be provided shortly after the order is accepted and as a result you may only have a short period, if any, in which to cancel an order.

    10.2 You can cancel any goods you order via the Website within 7 days of receipt of the goods, unless the goods are ones which were clearly personalised to your requirements, by their nature cannot be returned or are otherwise goods for which no right of cancellation exists under the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000.

    10.3 You should send any notice of cancellation of an order immediately to Please give full details of the order, including any order number we have given you for it.

    10.4 Where you cancel an order in accordance with these terms and conditions, we will refund to you any sums paid for that order within 30 days of receipt of your cancellation. We may deduct any direct costs we incur in recovering any goods delivered under an order which is then cancelled.

    10.5 Where we arrange collection of payment on behalf of a third party supplier and you cancel your order with them in circumstances where you are entitled to do so, we will refund to you any sums paid for that order as soon as we can after we receive those sums back from the third party supplier.
     

11. Cookies
    A cookie is a small text file written to your hard drive that contains information about your account on this Website. Cookies do not contain any personal information about users. Once you close your browser, the cookie simply terminates. We use cookies so that we can personalise your experience of the Website. If you set up your browser to reject the cookie, you may still use the Website, however you may be requested to log in repeatedly to access some of the content or features available. Some of our business partners use cookies on our site (for example, advertisers). We have no access to or control over these cookies.
     
12. General
    12.1 If any provision of these terms and conditions is held to be unlawful, invalid or unenforceable, that provision shall be deemed severed and the validity and enforceability of the remaining provisions of these terms and conditions shall not be affected.

    12.2 We may modify these Terms & Conditions at any time by publishing the modified terms and conditions on the Website. Any modifications to the Terms & Conditions shall take immediate effect.
     

13. Governing law
    13.1 These terms are governed by and to be construed in accordance with English law.
    13.2 Any disputes shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.
     
14. Additional disclaimers & indemnities
    14.1 The views expressed here are those of the members
    The views expressed in any post, comment or blog on this Website are those of the person who submitted them and not necessarily the views of Sift Media. Every effort is made to react swiftly to remove any inappropriate content, either through discovery by us or by request from any member of the Website or any third party.

    14.2 Content of Private Messages
    We accept no responsibility in connection with or arising from content in Private Messages.

    14.3 Content take-down process
    We will endeavour to remove any content that is offensive, defamatory or libellous, upon being given notice of such content. The process for requesting the taking down of content is as follows:

    • Step 1 – Notify us
      Notify us of the content that you feel is offensive, defamatory or libellous. You can do this by sending the URL of the thread or post in question to:
      

      We will review the thread or post in question and determine whether it should be taken down. As 'innocent disseminators' of the content on this forum, our policy is to remove content only when there is a clear legal obligation for us to do so – we will defend our members' right to freedom of speech if we have sufficient reason to believe that content was posted in good faith, without malice and is the honestly held opinion of the author.

    • Step 2 – Pre-Action Protocol for Defamation
      If you disagree with our judgement on the taking down of any thread or post and still wish it to be removed, we ask that you follow the requirements of the Pre-Action Protocol for Defamation. It is advisable to seek legal guidance on this.