IWitness Terms of Use

By accessing this website (“Website”) you (“You/Your”) agree to these Terms of Use (“Terms”) with the University of Southern California Shoah Foundation of Visual History and Education (“USC”), the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (“Museum”) to the extent written below, and Yad Vashem – the Holocaust Heroes’ and Martyrs’ Remembrance Authority (“Yad Vashem”) to the extent written below. Your use of the Website and any of those Testimonies (as defined below) accessed through the Website is conditioned upon Your acceptance of the following Terms:

1. Definition. “Testimonies” means all recorded interviews, audio/visual works, images, voices, likenesses and any portions thereof accessed through the Website or otherwise from USC.

2. Intellectual Property and Privacy Rights. USC owns the worldwide copyrights to the Testimonies. Nothing in these Terms affects such copyright ownership. The Testimonies involve privacy interests and rights of publicity that are not in the public domain. Nothing herein grants any ownership in any intellectual property right in the Testimonies to You.

3. Using Testimonies. USC grants to You a revocable limited license to access the Testimonies through the Website and to make derivative works of the Testimonies using those electronic editing tools provided with the Website (“Derivative Works”). Such use may include You uploading materials (“Uploaded Materials”) to the Website. USC further grants to You a revocable limited license to download and display any Derivative Works for uses permitted hereunder. To the extent that you display any Derivative Works You agree to refrain from combining the Testimonies with content to create Derivative Works that includes (i) falsehoods or misrepresentations that could result in legal liability for USC or any third party, damage USC’s or any third party’s reputation, or otherwise harm USC or any third party; (ii) any inflammatory, defamatory, abusive, harassing, obscene, threatening, or illegal material. At its sole discretion USC may terminate the foregoing licenses upon written notice to You.

4. Using Third-Party Materials:

a. USC has a limited license to the use of materials provided by the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum for this Website. Your use of their material binds You to their Terms of Use as stated below:

The text, images, audio and video clips, and other content provided by the Museum for use on this Website are protected by copyright and may also be subject to other restrictions. The Museum retains all rights, including copyright, in and to the text, images, audio and video clips, and other content on this Web site. Copyright and other proprietary rights may be held by individuals and entities other than or in addition to the Museum.

The text, images, and audio and video clips provided by the Museum for this Website are available for limited non-commercial, educational, and personal use only, or for fair use as defined in the United States copyright laws. Users may download these files for their own use, subject to any additional terms or restrictions that may be applicable to a particular file or program. The user must cite the author and source of the content that is used just as for a printed work, and the citation must include the Museum’s URL "www.ushmm.org."

The Museum does not warrant that use of the text, images, and video and audio clips provided for this Website will not infringe the rights of third parties. Some text, images, and audio and video clips may not be used in any form or manner without prior permission from a third party copyright owner. Whenever possible, the Museum has provided information on their Website about third party copyright owners and related restrictions.

Copying or redistributing the text, images, and other content provided by the Museum for this Website for commercial use, including commercial publication, or for personal gain is strictly prohibited.

b. USC has a limited license to the use of materials provided by Yad Vashem for this Website. Your use of their material binds you to their Terms of Use as stated below:

Text and image files, audio and video clips, and other content provided by Yad Vashem for this website is the property of Yad Vashem – the Holocaust Heroes’ and Martyrs’ Remembrance Authority and may be protected by copyright and other restrictions as well. Copyrights and other proprietary rights in the content on this website may also be owned by individuals and entities other than, and in addition to, Yad Vashem. Yad Vashem expressly prohibits the copying of any protected materials on this website, except for the purposes of fair use as defined in the copyright law, and as described below.

Fair use of copyrighted material includes the use of protected materials for non-commercial educational purposes, such as teaching, scholarship and research. Unless otherwise noted, users who wish to download or print text and image files provided by Yad Vashem for this Website for such uses may do so without Yad Vashem’s express permission, provided that they comply with the following conditions:

• The content may only be used for personal, educational or noncommercial purposes;
• Users must cite the author and source of the content as they would material from any printed work;
• The citation must include all copyright information and other information associated with the content and the URL for Yad Vashem’s website;
• None of the content may be altered or modified;
• Users must comply with all other terms or restrictions which may be applicable to the individual file, image or text;

All use of the abovementioned materials is subject to the protection of the rights of third parties in such materials, if any, and nothing in the aforesaid, or the display of such materials by Yad Vashem on its internet site, shall be construed so as to create an assumption of obligation or liability by Yad Vashem regarding the use of such materials or the responsibility for obtaining the permission of third parties for use thereof.

By downloading, printing, or otherwise using text and image files provided by Yad Vashem for this website, users agree and warrant that they will limit their use of such files to fair use and will comply with all other terms and conditions of this license, and will not violate the rights of Yad Vashem or any other person or entity. Yad Vashem does not warrant that use of the text, images and content displayed on the website will not infringe the rights of third parties not owned by or affiliated with Yad Vashem. Unauthorized commercial publication or exploitation of text, images or content provided by Yad Vashem for this Website is specifically prohibited.

5. Using and Publishing by You on the Website. You have the responsibility for all Uploaded Materials, whether created by You or a third party. This responsibility includes your obtaining the necessary licenses, rights, consents, and permissions to publish Uploaded Materials or your reasonable determination that the specific factual circumstances concerning your posting allows You to post under the applicable copyright laws. USC reserves the right to remove any materials from the Website without prior notification to You. You further agree that You will not: (i) publish falsehoods or misrepresentations that could damage USC or any third party; (ii) post or publish any defamatory, abusive, harassing, obscene, threatening, or illegal material; (iii) post advertisements or solicitations of business; or (iv) impersonate another person. You agree not to use or launch any automated system, including without limitation, "bots," "spiders," "offline readers," etc., that accesses the Website in a manner that sends more request messages to USC or its licensors’ servers in a given period of time than a human can reasonably produce in the same period by using a conventional on-line web browser. You agree not to collect or harvest any personally identifiable information, including account names, from the Website, nor to use the communication systems provided by the Website for any commercial solicitation purposes. You agree not to solicit, for commercial or illegal purposes, any users of the Website with respect to their Uploaded Materials or Testimonies. You agree not to circumvent, disable or otherwise interfere with security related features of the Website or features that prevent or restrict use or copying of any Uploaded Materials or Testimonies or enforce limitations on use of the Website or the content therein.

If You are a copyright owner or an agent thereof and believe that any Uploaded Materials, Testimonies or other content infringes upon your copyrights or other proprietary rights, You may submit a notification pursuant to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act ("DMCA") by providing USC with the following information in writing (see 17 U.S.C 512(c)(3) for further detail) at the address provided below:

• (i) A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed;
• (ii) Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site;
• (iii) Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled and information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to locate the material;
• (iv) Information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to contact You, such as an address, telephone number, and, if available, an electronic mail;
• (v) A statement that You have a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the rights holder, its agent, or the law;
• (vi) A statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that You are authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.

You acknowledge that if You fail to comply with all of the requirements above, your DMCA notice may not be valid.

6. License to USC. To the extent of any rights that You may have, You agree to grant to USC a perpetual license to use any Derivative Works and any Uploaded Materials for research and educational purposes, including the right to create derivative works thereof, and for any advertising or promotion of USC and the Institute.

7. No Representations or Warranties. Neither USC nor any of its licensors makes any representations or warranties with respect to the Website and the Testimonies, except that it has obtained all rights from the interviewee, interviewers, and videographers to issue these Terms. USC cannot ensure that its copyrighted Testimonies are free from defamatory comments or materials owned by third parties. USC does not verify the accuracy of the information in the Testimonies. The Website may contain links to third party websites that are not owned or controlled by USC. USC and its licensors have no control over, and assume no responsibility for, the content, privacy policies, or practices of any third party websites. In addition, USC and its licensors will not, and cannot, censor or edit the content of any third-party site. By using the Website, You expressly relieve USC and its licensors from any and all liability arising from your use of any third-party website. Accordingly, we encourage You to be aware when You leave the Website and to read the terms and conditions and privacy policy of each other website that You visit.

8. Limitation of Damages and Disclaimers. YOU AGREE THAT YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITE SHALL BE AT YOUR SOLE RISK. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, USC, ITS OFFICERS, TRUSTEES, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, LICENSEES, LICENSORS AND AGENTS DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN CONNECTION WITH THE WEBSITE AND YOUR USE THEREOF. NEITHER USC NOR ITS LICENSORS MAKES ANY WARRANTIES OR REPRESENTATIONS ABOUT THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THIS WEBSITE'S CONTENT,INCLUDING THE TESTIMONIES, OR THE CONTENT OF ANY SITES LINKED TO THIS SITE AND ASSUMES NO LIABILITY OR RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY (I) ERRORS, MISTAKES, OR INACCURACIES OF CONTENT, (II) PERSONAL INJURY OR PROPERTY DAMAGE, OF ANY NATURE WHATSOEVER, RESULTING FROM YOUR ACCESS TO AND USE OF THE WEBSITE, (III) ANY UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO OR USE OF OUR SECURE SERVERS AND/OR ANY AND ALL PERSONAL INFORMATION AND/OR FINANCIAL INFORMATION STORED THEREIN, (IV) ANY INTERRUPTION OR CESSATION OF TRANSMISSION TO OR FROM THE WEBSITE, (IV) ANY BUGS, VIRUSES, TROJAN HORSES, OR THE LIKE WHICH MAY BE TRANSMITTED TO OR THROUGH THE WEBSITE BY ANY THIRD PARTY, AND/OR (V) ANY ERRORS OR OMISSIONSIN OF 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 WEBSITE. YOU UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT NEITHER USC NOR ANY OF ITS LICENSORS SHALL BE RESPONSIBLE OR LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE RESULTING FROM YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITE AND THE TESTIMONIES. TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, IN NO EVENT WILL USC OR ANY OF ITS LICENSORS BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY INCIDENTAL DAMAGES, CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, EXEMPLARY DAMAGES OF ANY KIND, LOST GOODWILL, LOST PROFITS, LOST BUSINESS AND/OR ANY DIRECT OR INDIRECT ECONOMIC DAMAGES WHATSOEVER REGARDLESS OF WHETHER SUCH DAMAGES ARISE FROM CLAIMS BASED UPON CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE, TORT (INCLUDING STRICT LIABILITY OR OTHER LEGAL THEORY), A BREACH OF ANY WARRANTY OR TERM OF THIS AGREEMENT, AND REGARDLESS OF WHETHER A PARTY WAS ADVISED OR HAD REASON TO KNOW OF THE POSSIBILITY OF INCURRING SUCH DAMAGES IN ADVANCE.

9. Dispute Resolution. These Terms shall be deemed to be executed and to be performed in the State of California. Any dispute or claim between USC and You in connection with these Terms shall be settled by binding arbitration in accordance with the procedures of the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”). Arbitration shall take place before a single arbitrator. The arbitrator shall have the authority to grant any relief allowed by law, including, but not limited to, provisional, equitable and/or declaratory relief. The parties shall each pay one-half of the arbitration fees. The parties shall each pay their own attorneys' fees. USC may seek and obtain injunctive relief in any court having jurisdiction for unauthorized use of the Testimonies and may then proceed with arbitration under these Terms. You shall not be entitled to seek or obtain injunctive relief.

10. Miscellaneous Provisions. . Nothing contained in these Terms is intended or shall be construed to create any legal partnership, joint venture or agency relationship between the parties. These Terms and any rights and licenses granted hereunder, may not be transferred or assigned by You, but may be assigned by USC without restriction. These Terms shall constitute the entire agreement between You and USC. If any provision of these Terms is deemed invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, the invalidity of such provision shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions of these Terms, which shall remain in full force and effect. No waiver of any term of this these Terms shall be deemed a further or continuing waiver of such term or any other term, and USC's failure to assert any right or provision under these Terms hall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. USC reserves the right to amend these Terms of Service at any time and without notice, and it is your responsibility to review these Terms for any changes. Your use of the Website following any such amendment of these Terms will signify your assent to and acceptance of its revised terms.

For inquiries or additional licensing, please contact:
USC Shoah Foundation
Attention: Coordinator, IWitness
650 West 35th Street, Suite 114
Los Angeles, California 90089-2571
Tel: 213-740-6001 Fax: 213-740-6044
Email: iwitness@usc.edu

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