TERMS OF USE

Company reserves the right, at its discretion, to modify these Terms of Use at any time without notice by posting a new version on the Site under the “Terms of Use” hyperlink or elsewhere.  Use of the Site by User following such change constitutes User’s acceptance of the terms and conditions of the Terms of Use as modified and the most current version of the Terms of Use will supersede all previous versions.  User agrees that User’s use of the Site is at User’s own risk.  User certifies that User is legally permitted to access the Site, and takes full responsibility for accessing the Site and Content (defined below).  These Terms of Use are void where prohibited by law, and the right to access the Site is revoked in such jurisdictions.

User is responsible for all of its activity in connection with accessing the Site. User shall be responsible for obtaining and maintaining any equipment or ancillary services needed to connect to and access the Site.  Without limiting any of User’s responsibilities, User acknowledges and agrees that: (a) User shall be solely responsible for compliance with all laws, regulations and ordinances connected with the User’s access to the Site; and (b) User shall comply with all of the provisions of these Terms of Use.

All materials displayed or performed on the Site, including, but not limited to text, comments, feedback, graphics, news articles, photographs, images, illustrations, audio clips and video clips (collectively, the “Content”) are protected by copyright and trademarks.  The Site and all Content is intended solely for use by Company’s Users and may only be used in accordance with these Terms of Use.  User shall abide by all copyright notices, information, and restrictions contained in any Content accessed through the Site.

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• RESTRICTIONS ON USE.  The Site is protected by copyright as a collective work and/or compilation, pursuant to U.S. copyright laws, international conventions, and other copyright laws.  User may not modify, publish, transmit, participate in the transfer or sale of, reproduce (except as provided in this Section of the Terms of Use), create derivative works based on, distribute, perform, publicly display, or in any way exploit, the Site, any of the Content, or any software or other materials incorporated therein, in whole or in part.  User may not download or copy any Content displayed on the Site without the express written consent of Company or from the copyright holder identified in such Content’s copyright notice.

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• COMPANY RIGHT TO REMOVE CONTENT.  Company reserves the right to remove any Content from the Site 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 for no reason at all.

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• CONTENT DISCLAIMER.  Company has no special relationship with or fiduciary duty to any User.  Company makes no representations whatsoever concerning, and shall not be responsible or liable for, the accuracy, completeness, copyright compliance, legality, or appropriateness of material contained in or accessed through the Site.  User acknowledges that the Site may contain links or references or direct Users to third party websites and agrees to the limitation on liability set forth in Section 6.

The Site may contain links or references to third party websites. User acknowledges that the Company is not responsible for these websites, has not reviewed such websites, has no control over such websites, and is not in any way liable for Content that appears on these third party websites or for any cookies, harmful programs or technologies, or executable code that may be located on such third party websites.

The Company may place a cookie or other small text file on any computer from which a User accesses the Site.

Usage of the Site and any information submitted therein is subject to the Company’s Privacy Statement. Users are advised to review the Privacy Statement on the Site.  The Company shall maintain the privacy of User’s personal information in accordance with the Privacy Statement.  The Company shall not be liable for the privacy of any information published by any User on the Site, including, without limitation, e-mail addresses, identification information, personal information, confidential or trade-secret information, or any Content.

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ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS PRIVACY ACT NOTICE (18 USC §§2701-2711): COMPANY MAKES NO GUARANTY OF CONFIDENTIALITY OR PRIVACY OF ANY COMMUNICATION OR INFORMATION TRANSMITTED ON THE SITE OR ANY WEB-SITE LINKED TO THE SITE.  The Company reserves the right to monitor transmissions over its network for maintenance, service quality assurance, or any other purpose permitted by the Electronic Communications Privacy Act.

THE CONTENT, SITE AND ANY SOFTWARE ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR NON-INFRINGEMENT.

By using the Site,  User releases Company, its officers, directors, employees, agents, subsidiaries, joint venturers, and other related parties from claims, demands and damages of every kind and nature, known and unknown, suspected and unsuspected, disclosed and undisclosed, arising out of or in any way connected with the Site.  If you are a California resident, you waive California Civil Code §1542, which says: “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.”

User will indemnify and hold Company, its parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, officers, employees, and agents harmless from and against all damages, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees), incurred in connection with any claim or demand made by any third party arising from: (i) User’s use of or access to the Site; (ii) User’s violation of these Terms of Use; or (iii) the infringement by User of any intellectual property or other right of any person or entity.

IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COMPANY BE LIABLE TO A USER OR ANY THIRD PARTY WITH RESPECT TO THE SITE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, PUNITIVE, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OF ANY KIND WHATSOEVER, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION LOST PROFITS OR SPECULATIVE DAMAGES.

The failure of Company to exercise in any respect any right provided for herein shall not be deemed a waiver of that or any further rights hereunder. Company shall not be liable for any failure to perform its obligations hereunder where such failure results from any cause beyond Company’s reasonable control.  If any provision of these Terms of Use is found to be unenforceable or invalid, that provision shall be limited or eliminated to the minimum extent necessary so that these Terms of Use shall otherwise remain in full force and effect and enforceable.  These Terms of Use are not assignable, transferable or sub-licensable by User.  These Terms of Use 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.  User agrees that should a dispute arise between User and the Company regarding these Terms of Use, any litigation or arbitration will take place in the District of Columbia. User agrees that these Terms of Use are the complete and exclusive statement of the mutual understanding of User and the Company, and supersede all previous written and oral agreements, communications and other understandings relating to the subject matter of these Terms of Use.  No agency, partnership, joint venture, or employment is created as a result of these Terms of Use and User does not have any authority of any kind to bind Company in any respect whatsoever.