Effective as from 04 August 2009
Please read these Terms and Conditions carefully before you use Sketch Star™ Software (Sketch Star).
By accessing and using Sketch Star, you indicate that you have read understood and accept these Terms and Conditions and that you agree to abide by them.
If you do not agree to these Terms and Conditions, please refrain from accessing and using Sketch Star.
Sketch Star is the services and software created and owned exclusively by Miniclip. Sketch Star is an educational design application and service which enables a User to create still graphics and moving Animations which graphics and Animations may be Saved, Submitted or Published, as the case may be. Sketch Star can be found at www.miniclip.com and www.sketchstar.com websites operated by Miniclip (the Miniclip Site).
Definitions of words used in these Terms and Conditions that are not defined in this document can be found in the Sketch Star Glossary at: http://www.miniclip.com/sketch-star/en/help/glossary and/or in the Sketch Star User Manual http://www.miniclip.com/sketch-star/en/help/.
These Terms and Conditions (together with the documents referred to in it) is a legal contract between you and Miniclip SA ("Miniclip" or "we") (the Agreement) that governs your use of Sketch Star. By using the Miniclip Site and Sketch Star you accept and agree to abide by these Terms and Conditions and such additional or amended terms and conditions and policies as Miniclip may from time to time issue. We may amend this Agreement from time to time. You are expected to check this Agreement from time to time to take notice of any changes made as they are binding on you. If you do not agree to (or cannot comply with) the Agreement as amended, you must cease any and all use of Sketch Star. You will be deemed to have accepted the Agreement as amended if you use Sketch Star. Some of the provisions contained in these Terms and Conditions may also be superseded by provisions or notices contained elsewhere on the Miniclip Site.
This Agreement makes up the entire agreement between the parties regarding the use of Sketch Star, and supersedes any prior agreements. If any portion of this Agreement is found to be unenforceable, the remaining portion will remain in full force and effect. If we fail to enforce any part of this Agreement, it will not be considered a waiver. Any amendment to this Agreement must be made in writing and any waiver of this Agreement must be made in writing and signed by us. All of our rights and obligations under this Agreement are freely assignable by us in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, or by operation of law or otherwise.
You must be at least 18 years of age to enter into this Agreement and to pay for Sketch Star Membership by subscription. If you are under 18 years of age, you must present this Agreement to your parent or legal guardian for approval before you may proceed to freely access or use the paid Sketch Star Membership. If you continue to freely access, use and/or become a paying Member of Sketch Star, and you are younger than 18 years of age, you are deemed to have sought and obtained the consent of your parent or guardian.
By using Sketch Star, you consent to Miniclip processing your personal data in accordance with our privacy policy (http://www.miniclip.com/games/en/privacy-policy.php) and you warrant that all data provided by you is accurate.
Miniclip is the owner or the licensee of all intellectual property rights of any nature whatsoever (registered and unregistered) in or relating to Sketch Star ("Intellectual Property Rights"), including, without limitation, the underlying software, objects, puppets, YoMe's and any other item created by Miniclip for use in Animations (the "Sketch Star Materials"). All Intellectual Property Rights subsisting in the Sketch Star Materials enjoy full legal protections in the relevant jurisdictions including those afforded by patent, trademark and copyright laws, rules and regulations. Miniclip hereby reserves all such rights in any and all Intellectual Property Rights howsoever arising.
To the extent an Animation created by you is sufficiently original or transformative that it warrants copyright protection, you are the owner of that copyright and you agree to license it back to Miniclip in accordance with the next paragraph.
Miniclip provides the Sketch Star Materials for the personal, non-commercial use by its Users. As such, you are granted a limited non-exclusive license (the "License") to use the Sketch Star Materials for the purpose of creating Animations in accordance with these Terms and Conditions and other applicable Miniclip policies that may be in effect from time to time.
In consideration for the grant of the License, and by creating, Saving or Submitting Animations on Sketch Star, you are deemed to agree and undertake to grant back to Miniclip a non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable royalty-free, irrevocable, perpetual worldwide license to use, display, alter and/or remove such animation. The License shall permit Miniclip to use all and/or any part of the Animations and all rights therein in any format and/or on any media and/or platform, and/or format and/or use the Animation in any way Miniclip deems appropriate.
In addition, for paying members of Sketch Star, Miniclip agrees and undertakes to grant a limited sub-license to download, save or print a hard-copy of any Animation from the Miniclip Site for personal, non-commercial use only.
Miniclip's status as the creator of Sketch Star is hereby and repeatedly asserted. Miniclip's status as the Licensee of the Animations must be acknowledged in all copies, downloads, printed copies and in all other formats. Contributors to the Animations should receive an acknowledgement where possible.
You shall not, without the prior written consent of Miniclip, use an Animation which you do not own or any part thereof for commercial purposes of any kind.
Miniclip respects the intellectual property of others, and requires that Users do the same. You may not upload, embed, post, email, transmit or otherwise make available any material that infringes any copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret or other proprietary rights of any person or entity. We can remove any content you post on Sketch Star if we believe that it violates these Terms. If you repeatedly infringe other people's intellectual property rights, we reserve the right to disable your account when appropriate.
A Sketch Star User can belong to one of the following categories as defined in the Sketch Star Glossary being:
Use of Sketch Star by any and all Users mentioned above is permitted on a limited basis in accordance with the License set forth herein. We expressly reserve the right to withdraw or amend Sketch Star and the service we provide in connection with Sketch Star without notice. We will not be liable for any damages or injury whatsoever if for any reason Sketch Star is unavailable at any time or for any period of time.
From time to time, we may restrict access by a User to some or all Miniclip Software including Sketch Star.
If you choose to register for a Miniclip Players account, which is also for use with Sketch Star, you will choose an acceptable user name, password or other identification item as part of our security procedures. You must treat such information as confidential and not disclose it to any third party. You agree to notify Miniclip immediately if you suspect any unauthorized use of your account or access to your password. We have the right to disable any user name or password, whether chosen by you or allocated by us, at any time and for any reason.
You must make all arrangements necessary for you to have access to Sketch Star. You are responsible for ensuring that all persons who access Sketch Star or the Miniclip Site through your internet connection are aware of these Terms and Conditions, and that they fully comply with them.
You are responsible for any and all hardware, systems and/or software program(s) you use on your computer to access or use Sketch Star and any and all associated costs, fees and expenses. Sketch Star and the Animations on Sketch Star are only for your personal non-commercial use.
You may use the Miniclip Site only for lawful purposes.
You shall not use Sketch Star:
You agree:
Each time you Save or Submit an Animation on to Sketch Star, you (and the relevant Animation) must comply in full with the Publishing Standards as set out in this document and the Publishing Standards which can be found at http://www.miniclip.com/sketch-star/en/help/publishing_guidelines/.
By accessing or using Sketch Star, you hereby warrant that any and all Animations created by you or through your computer comply in full with those Standards and these terms and conditions. You undertake and agree to indemnify and keep indemnified and hold harmless Miniclip for any and all damages, costs, fees and expenses arising out of any breach of the above warranty.
Any Animation you Save or Submit to the Miniclip Site will be deemed non-confidential, non-exclusive and non-proprietary. Miniclip may use the Animation in accordance with the terms of the License and disclose or display the Animation or any part of it to third parties for any purpose whatsoever.
We may disclose your identity to any third party for any purpose including answering or refuting any claim that any Animation Saved or Submitted by you via Sketch Star to the Miniclip Site constitutes a violation of their intellectual property rights, or of their right to privacy.
Miniclip shall not be responsible or liable to any third party for the content or accuracy of any materials including Animations Submitted by you and Published by Miniclip on the Miniclip Site.
Miniclip has the right to remove any Animation Submitted to or Published on the Miniclip Site for any reason.
These Standards apply to all and each part of any Animation.
Animations must:
Animations must not:
Pursuant to 17 USC §512(c)(2), notifications of claimed copyright infringement should be sent to Miniclip as follows:
To be effective, notification must include:
MINICLIP, the "M" logo, the Miniclip "sound", the Miniclip color scheme, "SKETCH STAR", the Sketch Star logo and other Miniclip or Sketch Star products and services referenced on the Miniclip Site are trademarks or trade dress of Miniclip SA and may be registered in Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the United States and/or other countries.
Members of Sketch Star may copy, download or print Animations created by them. Free Registered Users may print Animations. Users shall not remove any references to Miniclip (if any) from the embedded in or appearing in any Animation.
Animations and other materials submitted to the Miniclip Site are not intended to amount to advice on which reliance should be placed. We expressly disclaim any and all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on such materials by any User of the Miniclip Site, or by anyone who may be informed of any of its contents.
Miniclip aims to update the Miniclip Site including Sketch Star regularly, and may change the content at any time. If the need arises, Miniclip may suspend access to the Miniclip Site, or close it indefinitely. Any of the material on Miniclip Site may be out of date at any given time, and Miniclip is under no obligation to update such material.
The material displayed on the Miniclip Site is provided without any guarantees, conditions or warranties as to its content or accuracy. To the extent permitted by law, Miniclip, and entities of the Miniclip group of companies and third parties connected to us hereby expressly exclude: all conditions, warranties and other terms which might otherwise be imposed or implied by statute, common law or the law of equity; any and all liability (of any kind) for any direct, indirect or consequential loss or damage incurred by or attributable to any User in connection with the Miniclip Site or in connection with the use, inability to use, or results of the use of the Miniclip Site, any websites linked to it and any materials submitted to it, including, without limitation any liability for: loss of income or revenue; loss of business; loss of profits or contracts; loss of anticipated savings; loss of data; loss of goodwill; wasted management or office time; and for any other loss or damage of any kind, however arising and whether caused by tort (including negligence), breach of contract or otherwise, even if foreseeable.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, Miniclip does not disclaim liability for death or personal injury arising from our fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation or any other liability which cannot be excluded or limited under applicable law.
Miniclip shall not be liable for any loss or damage caused by viruses or other technologically harmful material that may infect your computer equipment, computer programs, data or other proprietary material due to your use of the Miniclip Site or to your downloading of any material on it, or on any website linked to it.
You agree and undertake to indemnify and keep indemnified and hold Miniclip and its entities harmless from any claim or demand, including reasonable legal fees, made by any third party in connection with or arising out of your use of Sketch Star, your violation of any terms or conditions of this Agreement, your violation of applicable laws, or your violation of any rights of another person or entity. You are solely responsible for compliance with agreements you may have with third parties.
You may link to the different parts of the Miniclip Site, provided you do so in a way that is fair and legal and does not damage Miniclip's reputation, impair its goodwill or diminish its acceptance by the public in any way. You shall not create a link in such a way as to suggest any form of association, approval or endorsement on Miniclip's part.
You must not establish a link from any website that is not owned by you.
You shall not frame the Miniclip Site on any other website. Miniclip reserves the right to withdraw this linking permission without notice. If you wish to make any use of any material or content on the Miniclip Site other than that set out above, please address your request to .
Where the Miniclip Site contains links to other sites and resources provided by third parties, these links are provided for your information only. Miniclip has no interest in or control over the contents of or materials appearing on such sites or resources and accepts no responsibility whatsoever for them or for any loss or damage that may arise from your use of them.
We will determine, in our sole discretion, whether there has been a breach of these Terms and Conditions. In the event that you breach these Terms and Conditions, we may take such action as we deem appropriate including the following:
Miniclip shall not have nor be deemed to have any liability for actions taken in response to breaches of these Terms and Conditions. The responses described in this policy are not limited, and we may take any other action we reasonably deem appropriate.
In the event that you desire to enjoy the full benefits of Sketch Star you must become a paying subscription Member of Sketch Star. By completing the subscription registration form and the payment details page, you authorise Miniclip to automatically bill the charge card you provide on the applicable subscription period subject to the 30 day trial period described below, or on the subscription period renewal date, or withdraw funds via electronic transfer from your checking account (depending on what type of charge card you are using), until you cancel your Membership. Payments are billed on the date you subscribe for the Membership and depending on the subscription period you chose, payment will reoccur 1, 3, or 6 months thereafter unless cancelled by you. All payments are completely non-refundable. You may cancel the Membership at any time, but Miniclip will not refund any remaining portion of your subscription fees, including any minimum commitments, already billed to your account.
You agree to provide Miniclip with accurate, complete and updated payment information required by the payment details page for the payment method applicable to the country from which you make payment. Failure to comply may result in the immediate termination of your Membership.
You may cancel your Sketch Star Membership at any time. You will not receive any refund or partial refund for any charges already billed to your account (except as expressly provided, above, with respect to annual subscriptions). In the event you signed up for a minimum commitment period, you will be responsible for all charges for the entire minimum commitment period. You may cancel the services relating to your Sketch Star Membership by sending an e-mail to requesting Miniclip to cancel your Sketch Star Membership. Your Membership cancellation e-mail must authenticate you as the purchaser of the Membership and must be sent from the email address that we have on file for you, include your order ID and your user name and other proof that may be necessary to identify yourself as the purchaser of the Membership such as the last four digits of the credit card you used to pay for your Membership. Once we receive the cancellation e-mail from you, authenticating you as the purchaser, including the correct details as set out above, Miniclip will send a confirmation of cancellation e-mail to you. Your Membership will be cancelled within 3 business days from the date which the confirmation e-mail has been sent to you.
You understand and agree that cancellation of your subscription is your sole right and remedy with respect to any dispute with Miniclip. This includes, but is not limited to, any dispute related to, or arising out of:
For a limited time and subject to the sole discretion of Miniclip, a Sketch Star Membership shall include a 30 day free trial where no Membership fee is payable by you.
To take advantage of the free trial offer, you have to sign up for a Sketch Star Membership selecting one of the packages shown at http://www.miniclip.com/sketch-star/en/upgrade.php. Once your membership registration form and payment details have been accepted by Miniclip, you will be entitled to enjoy the same benefits that a Sketch Star Member enjoys for free for 30 consecutive days from the date you join.
If you wish to end your Sketch Star Membership, you must cancel your subscription by following the procedure set out here: http://www.miniclip.com/sketch-star/en/help/cancelling_membership/ for it to be effective. If you cancel your subscription within 30 days from joining, you will not be subject to any subscription charges.
If you continue to use and enjoy the Sketch Star Membership benefits beyond the free 30-day trial period or fail to cancel your Membership in accordance with the procedure referred to above, Miniclip will automatically deduct the price of the Membership subscription package you selected upon joining on the 31st day from joining. Unless you cancel your Sketch Star Membership such deduction will recur at the end of each period except if you subscribed for the 6 month package in which case your Membership will expire 6 months from deducting payment from your account.
This offer is for a limited time only, may be revoked at any time by Miniclip, is subject to these terms and conditions and may be accepted by a user only once.
Miniclip may modify the Terms and Conditions or the terms of this Agreement from time to time. Miniclip may terminate this Agreement or your Sketch Star Membership at any time upon the giving of notice to you. Unless otherwise terminated by Miniclip, you may be entitled to continue to use your Sketch Star Membership for any period for which you have already paid, or a pro-rata refund at Miniclip's sole discretion. Miniclip may provide notice by e-mail or by publishing the changes on the Miniclip Site. Your rights under this Agreement will automatically terminate if you fail to comply with any term. No notice shall be required from Miniclip to effect such termination. Upon any termination of this Agreement (whether by you or Miniclip) and unless otherwise permitted as above, you shall immediately discontinue use of your Sketch Star Membership. Your obligation to pay accrued charges and fees shall survive any termination of this Agreement.
As required by European Distance Selling rules and regulations, we are providing you with summary information that you must receive prior to concluding a contract with Miniclip is as follows:
To let you know what new content and services are available from time to time on Sketch Star, Miniclip may send you an e-mail describing the latest content and how to get access to the content. You agree that as a Sketch Star subscriber, Miniclip may send you such e-mail to the address you provide, because this e-mail is necessary for you to receive the Membership, you will receive this e-mail even if you have opted out of receiving other e-mails from Miniclip. If you do not want to receive this e-mail, you may cancel the Membership at any time as provided in this Agreement.
This Agreement is personal to you, and may not be assigned without Miniclip's express written consent.
The courts of Switzerland will have non-exclusive jurisdiction over any claim arising from, or related to, a visit to Miniclip's site although Miniclip retains the right to bring proceedings against you for breach of these conditions in your country of residence or any other relevant country.
These Terms and Conditions and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with it or its subject matter or formation (including non-contractual disputes or claims) shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Switzerland.
If you have any concerns about material which appears on the Miniclip's Site and/or if you wish to report an Animation, please contact: .
Thank you for abiding by these Terms and Conditions when using Sketch Star and for visiting Miniclip's site.
Before you start on the beautiful details of your animation, try drawing a simple outline. This way, you can get the overall composition looking great, and you can make sure everything's going to fit in the frame! Once you're filling in the details, you can start deleting your outline if you don't need it any more.