HotCopper Australian Terms of Use

To use the HotCopper site you must agree to the HotCopper Terms of Use below and the HotCopper User Code of Conduct at http://www.hotcopper.com.au/codeofconduct.

HotCopper complies with ASIC Regulatory Guideline 162 for Internet Discussion Sites. Please visit www.asic.gov.au for further information on this guideline. The HotCopper website is operated by Report Card Pty Ltd (ACN 092 598 859).

Disclosure and Warnings to people who view postings on HotCopper:

1. Any information posted on the website has been prepared without taking into account your objectives, financial situation or needs and as such, you should before acting on the information or advice, consider the appropriateness of the information or advice in relation to your objectives, financial situation or needs. Please be aware that any information posted on this site should not be considered to be financial product advice.
2. no one is permitted to make postings on HotCopper in their capacity as a representative of an AFSL Holder or as an Authorised representative of an AFSL Holder;
3. postings are at best general information, not professional investment advice prepared by taking into account any individual circumstances and needs of particular investors. Therefore, before acting on the basis of what is said in a posting, you should:
   1. consider consulting a licensed adviser (ASIC's website at www.asic.gov.au has a list of licensed advisers); and
   2. visit ASIC's consumer website at MoneySmart for general guidance about investing;
4. people making postings are individually responsible for the accuracy and authenticity of their postings;
5. because of the nature of the internet, it may be hard to identify or locate the person making a posting. The person may also be in an overseas jurisdiction, so it may be hard to take any legal action against them;
6. you will have no access to ASIC-approved dispute resolution schemes to recover any losses you may suffer by relying on the postings;
7. securities cannot be offered to you for sale or issue through postings on the IDS; and
8. it is advisable that you alert HotCopper or ASIC on 1300 300 630 if you have good reason to suspect that any postings are inaccurate, are based on inside information or are likely to mislead or deceive people who view or use the postings.

Disclosure and Warnings to people making postings on HotCopper:

1. you are personally responsible for your postings (including any alterations that you make to postings). Therefore, you should not include any misleading or deceptive information in your postings and not carry out illegal or unauthorised activities using the IDS. Information in postings may, where appropriate, be made available to ASIC. ASIC and people acting on such information may take action against you;
2. if you include hyper-links to other sites, you may be seen as endorsing the material on such sites. It may be advisable to you to warn people accessing other sites that you do not endorse or take responsibility for material in the hyper-linked sites;
3. if you own or have some other interest in a security, or you have any connection with a securities issuer that you might benefit from, you must disclose that fact. For example, you may be entitled to receive direct or indirect commissions, fees or other benefits from a financial product or service provider; or you may be associated with a particular securities issuer such as by being an employee or director of a securities issuer. If so, you must disclose that fact in your posting; and
4. if the IDS operator (HotCopper) finds or reasonably suspects that you are making illegal or unauthorised postings, your right to make postings will be withdrawn.
5. No one is permitted to make postings on HotCopper in their capacity as a representative of an AFSL Holder or as an Authorised representative of an AFSL Holder. By accepting these terms you confirm that you will not make postings in your capacity as a representative of an AFSL Holder or an authorised representative of an AFSL Holder.

1. ACCEPTANCE OF TERMS
HotCopper provides its service to you subject to the following Terms of Use ("TOU") which may be updated by us from time to time without notice to you. In addition, when using particular HotCopper owned or operated services, you and HotCopper shall be subject to any posted guidelines or rules applicable to such services which may be updated from time to time.

2. DESCRIPTION OF SERVICE
HotCopper currently provides users with access to a rich collection of resources, including, forums, shopping services, search services, personalized content and branded programming through its network of properties (the "Service"). You also understand and agree that the Service may include advertisements and that these advertisements are necessary for HotCopper to provide the Service. You also understand and agree that the service may include certain communications from HotCopper, such as service announcements, administrative messages and HotCopper Newsletters, and that these communications are considered part of HotCopper membership and you will not be able to opt out of receiving them. Unless explicitly stated otherwise, any new features that augment or enhance the current Service, including the release of new HotCopper properties, shall be subject to the TOU. You understand and agree that the Service is provided "AS-IS" and that HotCopper assumes no responsibility for the timeliness, deletion, mis-delivery or failure to store any user communications or personalization settings. You are responsible for obtaining access to the Service and that access may involve third party fees (such as Internet service provider or airtime charges). You are responsible for those fees, including those fees associated with the display or delivery of advertisements. In addition, you must provide and are responsible for all equipment necessary to access the Service.

3. YOUR REGISTRATION OBLIGATIONS
In consideration of your use of the Service, you represent that you are of legal age to form a binding contract and are not a person barred from receiving services under the laws of Australia or other applicable jurisdiction. You also agree to: (a) provide true, accurate, current and complete information about yourself as prompted by the Service's registration form (such information being the "Registration Data") and (b) maintain and promptly update the Registration Data to keep it true, accurate, current and complete. If you provide any information that is untrue, inaccurate, not current or incomplete, or HotCopper has reasonable grounds to suspect that such information is untrue, inaccurate, not current or incomplete, HotCopper has the right to suspend or terminate your account and refuse any and all current or future use of the Service (or any portion thereof). Please remember that the Service is designed to appeal to a broad audience. Accordingly, as the legal guardian, it is your responsibility to determine whether any of the Services and/or Content (as defined in Section 6 below) are appropriate for your child.

4. HOTCOPPER PRIVACY POLICY
Registration data and certain other information about you is subject to our Privacy Policy and you acknowledge and consent to HotCopper using and disclosing your personal information in accordance with the Privacy Policy. For more information, see our full privacy policy at http://www.hotcopper.com.au/privacypolicy.

5. PERSONAL PASSWORD & SECURITY
If you are a new user you will receive a password and account designation upon completing the Service's registration process. Existing users will have this already. You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of the password and account, and are fully responsible for all activities that occur under your password or account. You agree to (a) immediately notify HotCopper of any unauthorized use of your password or account or any other breach of security, and (b) ensure that you exit from your account at the end of each session. HotCopper cannot and will not be liable for any loss or damage arising from your failure to comply with this Section 5.

6. MEMBER CONDUCT
You understand that all information, data, text, photographs, graphics, or other materials ("Content"), whether publicly posted or privately transmitted, are the sole responsibility of the person from which such Content originated. This means that you, and not HotCopper, are entirely responsible for all Content that you upload, post, email, transmit or otherwise make available via the Service. HotCopper does not control the Content posted via the Service and, as such, does not guarantee the accuracy, integrity or quality of such Content. You understand that by using the Service, you may be exposed to Content that is offensive, indecent or objectionable. Under no circumstances will HotCopper be liable in any way for any Content, including, but not limited to, for any errors or omissions in any Content, or for any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of the use of any Content posted, emailed, transmitted or otherwise made available via the Service.

You agree to not use the Service to:

1. upload, post, email, transmit or otherwise make available any Content that is unlawful, harmful, threatening, abusive, harassing, tortious, defamatory, vulgar, obscene, libelous, invasive of another's privacy, hateful, or racially, ethnically or otherwise objectionable;
2. harm minors in any way;
3. impersonate any person or entity, including, but not limited to, a HotCopper official, forum leader, guide or host, or falsely state or otherwise misrepresent your affiliation with a person or entity;
4. forge headers or otherwise manipulate identifiers in order to disguise the origin of any Content transmitted through the Service;
5. upload, post, email, transmit or otherwise make available any Content that you do not have a right to make available under any law or under contractual or fiduciary relationships (such as inside information, proprietary and confidential information learned or disclosed as part of employment relationships or under nondisclosure agreements);
6. upload, post, email, transmit or otherwise make available any Content that infringes any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright or other proprietary rights ("Rights") of any party;
7. upload, post, email, transmit or otherwise make available any unsolicited or unauthorized advertising, promotional materials, "junk mail," "spam," "chain letters," "pyramid schemes," or any other form of solicitation, except in those areas (such as shopping rooms) that are designated for such purpose;
8. upload, post, email, transmit or otherwise make available any material that contains software viruses or any other computer code, files or programs designed to interrupt, destroy or limit the functionality of any computer software or hardware or telecommunications equipment;
9. disrupt the normal flow of dialogue, cause a screen to "scroll" faster than other users of the Service are able to type, or otherwise act in a manner that negatively affects other users' ability to engage in real time exchanges;
10. interfere with or disrupt the Service or servers or networks connected to the Service, or disobey any requirements, procedures, policies or regulations of networks connected to the Service;
11. intentionally or unintentionally violate any applicable local, state, national or international law, including, but not limited to, regulations promulgated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, ASIC, any rules of any national or other securities exchange, including, without limitation, the Australian Stock Exchange, the New York Stock Exchange, the American Stock Exchange or the NASDAQ, and any regulations having the force of law;
12. harass another member; or
13. collect or store personal data about other users.

You acknowledge that HotCopper may or may not pre-screen Content, but that HotCopper and its designees shall have the right (but not the obligation) in their sole discretion to pre-screen, refuse, or move any Content that is available via the Service. Without limiting the foregoing, HotCopper and its designees shall have the right to remove any Content that violates the TOU or is otherwise objectionable. You agree that you must evaluate, and bear all risks associated with, the use of any Content, including any reliance on the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of such Content. In this regard, you acknowledge that you may not rely on any Content created by HotCopper or submitted to HotCopper, including without limitation information in HotCopper Message Boards, and in all other parts of the Service.

You acknowledge, consent and agree that HotCopper may access, preserve, and disclose your account information and Content if required to do so by law or in a good faith belief that such access preservation or disclosure is reasonably necessary to: (a) comply with legal process; (b) enforce the TOU; (c) respond to claims that any Content violates the rights of third-parties; (d) respond to your requests for customer service; or (e) protect the rights, property, or personal safety of HotCopper, its users and the public.

You understand that the technical processing and transmission of the Service, including your Content, may involve (a) transmissions over various networks; and (b) changes to conform and adapt to technical requirements of connecting networks or devices.

You understand that the Service and software embodied within the Service may include security components that permit digital materials to be protected, and use of these materials is subject to usage rules set by HotCopper and/or content providers who provide content to the Service. You may not attempt to override or circumvent any of the usage rules embedded into the Service. Any unauthorized reproduction, publication, further distribution or public exhibition of the materials provided on the Service, in whole or in part, is strictly prohibited.

7. SPECIAL ADMONITIONS FOR INTERNATIONAL USE
Recognizing the global nature of the Internet, you agree to comply with all local rules regarding online conduct and acceptable Content. HotCopper is not intended for people outside of Australia and New Zealand.

8. CONTENT SUBMITTED OR MADE AVAILABLE FOR INCLUSION ON THE SERVICE
HotCopper does not claim ownership of Content you submit or make available for inclusion on the Service. However, with respect to Content you submit or make available for inclusion on publicly accessible areas of the Service, you grant HotCopper the following world-wide, royalty free and non-exclusive license(s), as applicable:

• With respect to Content other than photos, graphics, audio or video you submit or make available for inclusion on publicly accessible areas of the Service other than HotCopper Groups, the perpetual, irrevocable and fully sublicensable license to use, distribute, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, publicly perform and publicly display such Content (in whole or in part) and to incorporate such Content into other works in any format or medium now known or later developed.

"Publicly accessible" areas of the Service are those areas of the HotCopper network of properties that are intended by HotCopper to be available to the general public. By way of example, publicly accessible areas of the Service would include HotCopper Message Boards.

9. COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT
HotCopper makes no representations or warranties with respect to the ownership of, or copyright in, content on this website uploaded, linked or otherwise disseminated by users of our service and in no way represent others who claim to be authors, creators or owners of copyright or other rights thereto. You shall obtain all permission(s) when required and are solely responsible for determining the existence of such rights, satisfying any copyright or other use restrictions, intangible rights, or related interests for obtaining any and all permissions and releases, for guarding against the infringement of those rights that may be held elsewhere, and for paying any associated fees necessary for the reproduction or use of the materials and for rights to any proprietary material depicted, and you expressly assume all responsibility for observing applicable laws of copyright, literary right, trespass, conversion, property right, privacy, publicity and defamation.

10. INDEMNITY
You agree to indemnify and hold HotCopper, and its subsidiaries, affiliates, officers, agents, co-branders or other partners, and employees, harmless from any claim or demand, including but not limited to any claim by a third party for defamation, including reasonable attorneys' fees, made by any third party due to or arising out of Content you submit, post, transmit or make available through the Service, your use of the Service, your connection to the Service, your violation of the TOU, or your violation of any rights of another.

You agree that should you find any offending information, on the HotCopper website you will immediately contact HotCopper support via the support feature available on the website and ask that it be removed. This includes any content that could reasonably be regarded as likely to be defamatory, misleading or deceptive, or which would amount to illegal or unauthorised activities (for example insider trading or unauthorised offerings of securities). You also agree that HotCopper has 24 business hours to remove the offending material.

11. NO RESALE OF SERVICE
You agree not to reproduce, duplicate, copy, sell, trade, resell or exploit for any commercial purposes, any portion of the Service (including your HotCopper account), use of the Service, or access to the Service.

12. GENERAL PRACTICES REGARDING USE AND STORAGE
You acknowledge that HotCopper may establish general practices and limits concerning use of the Service, including without limitation the maximum number of days that email messages, message board postings or other uploaded Content will be retained by the Service, the maximum number of email messages that may be sent from or received by an account on the Service, the maximum disk space that will be allotted on HotCopper's servers on your behalf, and the maximum number of times (and the maximum duration for which) you may access the Service in a given period of time. You agree that HotCopper has no responsibility or liability for the deletion or failure to store any messages and other communications or other Content maintained or transmitted by the Service. You acknowledge that HotCopper reserves the right to log off accounts that are inactive for an extended period of time. You further acknowledge that HotCopper reserves the right to modify these general practices and limits from time to time.

13. MODIFICATIONS TO SERVICE
HotCopper reserves the right at any time and from time to time to modify or discontinue, temporarily or permanently, the Service (or any part thereof) with or without notice. You agree that HotCopper shall not be liable to you or to any third party for any modification, suspension or discontinuance of the Service.

14. TERMINATION
You agree that HotCopper may, under certain circumstances and without prior notice, immediately terminate your HotCopper account and access to the Service. Cause for such termination shall include, but not be limited to, (a) breaches or violations of the TOU or other incorporated agreements or guidelines, (b) requests by law enforcement or other government agencies, (c) a request by you (self-initiated account deletions), (d) discontinuance or material modification to the Service (or any part thereof), (e) unexpected technical or security issues or problems, and (f) extended periods of inactivity. Termination of your HotCopper account includes (a) removal of access to all offerings within the Service, (b) removal of access to the account (or any part thereof), and (c) barring further use of the Service. Further, you agree that all terminations for cause shall be made in HotCopper's sole discretion and that HotCopper shall not be liable to you or any third-party for any termination of your account, any associated email address, or access to the Service.

15. DEALINGS WITH ADVERTISERS
Your correspondence or business dealings with, or participation in promotions of, advertisers found on or through the Service, including payment and delivery of related goods or services, and any other terms, conditions, warranties or representations associated with such dealings, are solely between you and such advertiser. You agree that HotCopper shall not be responsible or liable for any loss or damage of any sort incurred as the result of any such dealings or as the result of the presence of such advertisers on the Service.

16. LINKS
The Service may provide, or third parties may provide, links to other World Wide Web sites or resources. Because HotCopper has no control over such sites and resources, you acknowledge and agree that HotCopper is not responsible for the availability of such external sites or resources, and does not endorse and is not responsible or liable for any Content, advertising, products, or other materials on or available from such sites or resources. You further acknowledge and agree that HotCopper shall not be responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with use of or reliance on any such Content, goods or services available on or through any such site or resource.

17. HOTCOPPER'S PROPRIETARY RIGHTS
You acknowledge and agree that the Service and any necessary software used in connection with the Service ("Software") contain proprietary and confidential information that is protected by applicable intellectual property and other laws. You further acknowledge and agree that Content contained in sponsor advertisements or information presented to you through the Service or advertisers is protected by copyrights, trademarks, service marks, patents or other proprietary rights and laws. Except as expressly authorized by HotCopper or advertisers, you agree not to modify, rent, lease, loan, sell, distribute or create derivative works based on the Service or the Software, in whole or in part.

HotCopper grants you a personal, non-transferable and non-exclusive right and license to use the object code of its Software on a single computer; provided that you do not (and do not allow any third party to) copy, modify, create a derivative work of, reverse engineer, reverse assemble or otherwise attempt to discover any source code, sell, assign, sublicense, grant a security interest in or otherwise transfer any right in the Software. You agree not to modify the Software in any manner or form, or to use modified versions of the Software, including (without limitation) for the purpose of obtaining unauthorized access to the Service. You agree not to access the Service by any means other than through the interface that is provided by HotCopper for use in accessing the Service.

18. DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES
You expressly understand and agree that:

1. Your use of the service is at your sole risk. The service is provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis. HotCopper expressly disclaims all warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including, but not limited to the implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and non-infringement.
2. HotCopper makes no warranty that (i) the service will meet your requirements, (ii) the service will be uninterrupted, timely, secure, or error-free, (iii) the results that may be obtained from the use of the service will be accurate or reliable, (iv) the quality of any products, services, information, or other material purchased or obtained by you through the service will meet your expectations, and (v) any errors in the software will be corrected.
3. Any material downloaded or otherwise obtained through the use of the service is done at your own discretion and risk and that you will be solely responsible for any damage to your computer system or loss of data that results from the download of any such material.
4. No advice or information, whether oral or written, obtained by you from HotCopper or through or from the service shall create any warranty not expressly stated in the TOU.
5. Due to the global nature of the internet, users outside of Australian or New Zealand jurisdiction may access HotCopper. HotCopper is not intended to be a forum for discussion of securities that may be offered outside of the jurisdiction, nor is it intended for use by a person outside of the jurisdiction. As such, HotCopper is not subject to regulatory controls that may exist outside of the jurisdiction.

19. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
You expressly understand and agree that HotCopper shall not be liable to you for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or exemplary damages, including but not limited to, damages for loss of profits, goodwill, use, data or other intangible losses (even if HotCopper has been advised of the possibility of such damages), resulting from: (i) the use or the inability to use the service; (ii) the cost of procurement of substitute goods and services resulting from any goods, data, information or services purchased or obtained or messages received or transactions entered into through or from the service; (iii) unauthorized access to or alteration of your transmissions or data; (iv) statements or conduct of any third party on the service; or (v) any other matter relating to the service.

20. EXCLUSIONS AND LIMITATIONS
Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion of certain warranties or the limitation or exclusion of liability for incidental or consequential damages. Accordingly, some of the above limitations of sections 17 and 18 may not apply to you.

21. SPECIAL ADMONITION FOR SERVICES RELATING TO FINANCIAL MATTERS
If you intend to create or join any service, receive or request any news, messages, alerts or other information from the Service concerning companies, stock quotes, investments or securities, please read the above Sections 17 and 18. In addition, for this type of information particularly, the phrase "let the investor beware" is apt. The Service is provided for informational purposes only, and no Content included in the Service is intended for trading or investing purposes. HotCopper and its licensors shall not be responsible or liable for the accuracy, usefulness or availability of any information transmitted or made available via the Service, and shall not be responsible or liable for any trading or investment decisions made based on such information.

22. NO THIRD PARTY BENEFICIARIES
You agree that, except as otherwise expressly provided in this TOU, there shall be no third party beneficiaries to this Agreement.

23. NOTICE
HotCopper may provide you with notices, including those regarding changes to the TOU, by email, regular mail, or postings on the Service.

24. TRADEMARK INFORMATION
The HotCopper logo, trademarks and service marks and other HotCopper logos and product and service names (the "HotCopper Marks") are trademarks of ReportCard Pty Ltd. Without the prior permission of ReportCard Pty Ltd you agree not to display or use in any manner, the HotCopper Marks.

25. GENERAL INFORMATION
Entire Agreement. The TOU constitute the entire agreement between you and HotCopper and govern your use of the Service, superseding any prior agreements between you and HotCopper. You also may be subject to additional terms and conditions that may apply when you use or purchase certain other HotCopper services, affiliate services, third-party content or third-party software.

Choice of Law and Forum. The TOU and the relationship between you and HotCopper shall be governed by the laws of the State of Western Australia without regard to its conflict of law provisions. You and HotCopper agree to submit to the personal and exclusive jurisdiction of the courts located within the city of Perth, Western Australia.

Waiver and Severability of Terms. The failure of HotCopper to exercise or enforce any right or provision of the TOU shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. If any provision of the TOU is found by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, the parties nevertheless agree that the court should endeavour to give effect to the parties' intentions as reflected in the provision, and the other provisions of the TOU remain in full force and effect.

No Right of Survivorship and Non-Transferability. You agree that your HotCopper account is non-transferable and any rights to your HotCopper account or contents within your account terminate upon your death. Upon receipt of a copy of a death certificate, your account may be terminated and all contents therein permanently deleted.

Statute of Limitations. You agree that regardless of any statute or law to the contrary, any claim or cause of action arising out of or related to use of the Service or the TOU must be filed within one (1) year after such claim or cause of action arose or be forever barred.

The section titles in the TOU are for convenience only and have no legal or contractual effect.

26. VIOLATIONS
Please report any violations of the TOU to HotCopper Support via the support feature available on the HotCopper website.