Welcome to Public Spend Forum
Welcome, and thank you for using PublicSpendForum.net and Community.PublicSpendForum.net. Please take a few minutes to read over the User Agreement below.
These Terms of Use (“Terms”) are a legal contract between you (“You” or “Your”) and Public Spend Forum LLC (“Us” or “We” or the “Company”). You and the Company are collectively referred to herein as the “Parties”. These Terms govern Your use of all the text, data, information, software, graphics, photographs and more (all of which We refer to as “Materials”) that We and Our affiliates may make available to You, as well as any services (“Services”) We may provide through any of Our websites (all of which are referred to in these Terms as this “Website”).
READ THESE TERMS CAREFULLY BEFORE BROWSING THIS WEBSITE. USING THIS WEBSITE INDICATES THAT YOU HAVE BOTH READ AND ACCEPT THESE TERMS. YOU CANNOT USE THIS WEBSITE IF YOU DO NOT ACCEPT THESE TERMS. IF YOU ARE ENTERING INTO THIS AGREEMENT ON BEHALF OF A COMPANY OR OTHER LEGAL ENTITY, YOU REPRESENT THAT YOU HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO BIND SUCH ENTITY AND ITS AFFILIATES TO THIS AGREEMENT. IF YOU DO NOT HAVE SUCH AUTHORITY, OR IF DO NOT AGREE WITH ANY OF THESE TERMS, DO NOT ACCESS OR OTHERWISE USE THIS WEBSITE OR ANY INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THIS WEBSITE.
USE OF MATERIAL ON THIS SITE
The insights and information presented within this Website are not meant to be comprehensive. We recommend You complement the insights and information presented with this Website with Your own market intelligence. You agree that we are not responsible for completeness of information, unless noted specifically for specific content, or responsible for third parties’ (including other Members’) content or information or for any damages as result of your use of or reliance on it.
INTRODUCTION
Public Spend Forum is a global community and knowledge network for public procurement and all participants in the public sector market. Our mission is to help global government professionals, suppliers and others with an interest in government spending connect, learn and collaborate in order to improve the effectiveness of public spending.
CHANGES
We may alter the Materials and Services We offer You and/or choose to modify, suspend or discontinue this Website at any time and without notifying You. We may also change, update, add or remove provisions (collectively, “modifications”) of these Terms from time to time. Because both Parties benefit from clarity, We promise to inform You of any modifications to these Terms by posting them on this Website and, if You have registered with Us, by describing the modifications to these Terms in an email that We will send to the address that You provided during registration. To be sure We properly reach Your email inbox, We just ask that You let Us know if Your preferred email address changes at any time after Your registration.
If You object to any such modifications, Your sole recourse shall be to cease using this Website. Continued use of this Website following notice of any such modifications indicates You acknowledge and agree to be bound by the modifications. Also, please know that these Terms may be superseded by expressly-designated legal notices or terms located on particular pages of this Website. These expressly-designated legal notices or terms are incorporated into these Terms and supersede the provision(s) of these Terms that are designated as being superseded.
In addition, We may post additional rules from time to time which may apply to Your use of certain sections of the Website or portions of the Services.
GENERAL USE
By using this Website, You represent that You are at least 18 years of age.
We invite You to use this Website for individual, consumer purposes (“Permitted Purposes”).
In these Terms we are granting You a limited, personal, non-exclusive and non-transferable license to use and to display the Materials; Your right to use the Materials is conditioned on Your compliance with these Terms. You have no other rights in this Website or any Materials and You may not modify, edit, copy, reproduce, create derivative works of, reverse engineer, alter, enhance or in any way exploit any of this Website or Materials in any manner. If You make copies of any of this Website while engaging in Permitted Purposes then We ask that You be sure to keep on the copies all of Our copyright and other proprietary notices as they appear on this Website.
If You breach any of these Terms the above license will terminate automatically and You must immediately destroy any downloaded or printed Materials (and any copies thereof).
USING THIS WEBSITE AND THE WEBSITE’S SERVICES
We appreciate You visiting this Website and do not require You to register in order to access the Website. However, in order to access certain password-restricted areas of this Website and to use certain Services and Materials offered on and through this Website, You must successfully register an account with Us. In addition, We welcome your comments on the Website Materials. In order to leave comments, you must register with Disqus, as directed on the Website. Disqus is a third-party service, and You acknowledge and agree that you may be subject to additional terms and conditions by registering with Disqus.
PASSWORD RESTRICTED AREAS OF THIS WEBSITE
If You want an account with Us, You will need to submit the following information through the account registration page on this Website:
- A working email address;
- First and last name;
- Authorization or promotional code;
- Preferred username and password.
You may also be asked to provide additional, optional information so that We can provide You a more customized experience when using this Website, but supplying any such information, if we ask, is up to You. Once You submit the required registration information, We alone will determine whether or not to approve Your proposed account. If approved, You will be sent an e-mail detailing how to complete Your registration. For so long as You use the account, You agree to provide true, accurate, current, and complete information which can be accomplished by logging into Your account and making relevant changes directly or contacting Us using the below contact information and We can make the changes for You.
You are responsible for complying with these Terms when You access this Website, whether directly or through any account that You may setup through or on this Website. Because it is Your account, it is Your job to obtain and maintain all equipment and services needed for access to and use of This Website as well as paying related charges (such as, for example, internet access charges). It is also Your responsibility to maintain the confidentiality of Your password(s), including any password of a third-party site that We may allow You to use to access this Website. Should You believe Your password or security for This Website has been breached in any way, You must immediately notify Us.
PAYMENTS
Use of the Website is free. If we offer paid Services and/or products and You choose to purchase such Services or products (by clicking a clearly marked “Purchase” button), You agree to pay all fees or charges based on Our fees, charges, and billing terms in effect as shown at the time of purchase on the Website. We may cancel your order or suspend or terminate Your account and/or access to Our Services and this Website if Your payment is late and/or Your offered payment method (e.g., credit card or PayPal account) cannot be processed. By providing a payment method in connection with a purchase, You expressly authorize Us to charge the applicable fees on said payment method as well as taxes and other charges incurred thereto each time you accrue any charges. All fees and charges are non-refundable. If You purchase Services and/or products on behalf of another entity, such Services and/or products will be provided solely to the entity who financed the purchase.
ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS
By using the Website and/or the Services provided on or through the Website, You consent to receiving electronic communications from Us. These electronic communications may include notices about applicable fees and charges, transactional information and other information concerning or related to the Website and/or Services provided on or through the Website. These electronic communications are part of Your relationship with Us. You agree that any notices, agreements, disclosures or other communications that We send You electronically will satisfy any legal communication requirements, including that such communications be in writing.
PRIVACY POLICY
We respect the information that You provide to Us, and want to be sure You fully understand exactly how We use that information. So, please review Our Privacy Policy (“Privacy Policy”) https://www.publicspendforum.net/privacy-policy/ which explains how we use information You provide Us. Ultimately, you own information such as intellectual property you provide us while acknowledging the public nature of this site and accessibility available to members.
LINKS TO THIRD-PARTY SITES
We may sometimes provide links on the Website to third-party websites, which contain third-party content. If You use these links, You will leave this Website. We are not obligated to review any third-party websites that You link to from this Website, We do not control any of the third-party websites, and We are not responsible for any of the third-party websites (or the products, services, or content available through any of them). Thus, We do not endorse or make any representations about such third-party websites, any information, software, products, services, or materials found there, or any results that may be obtained from using them. If You decide to access any of the third-party websites linked to from this Website, You do this entirely at Your own risk and You must follow the privacy policies and terms and conditions for those third-party websites. Certain areas of this Website may allow You to interact and/or conduct transactions with one or more third-party websites, and, if applicable, will allow you to configure your privacy settings in that third-party website account to permit Your activities on this Website to be shared with Your contacts in your third-party site account.
CODE OF CONDUCT
USER SUBMISSIONS
Certain areas of this Website (e.g., comments, blogs, chat rooms or customer ratings and review areas) may permit You to submit feedback, information, data, text, software, messages, or other materials (each, a “User Submission”). You agree that You are solely responsible for all of Your User Submissions and that any such User Submission is considered both non-confidential and non-proprietary. Further, We do not guarantee that You will be able to edit or delete any User Submission You have submitted.
By submitting any User Submission, You are promising Us that:
- You own all rights in Your User Submissions (including, without limitation, all rights to the reproduction and display of Your User Submissions) or, alternatively, You have acquired all necessary rights in Your User Submissions to enable You to grant to Us the rights in Your User Submissions as described in these Terms;
- If You submit a User Submission which is owned, in whole or in part, by someone else, and to which you have acquired all necessary rights, You have paid and will pay in full all license fees, clearance fees, and other financial obligations, of any kind, arising from any use or commercial exploitation of Your User Submissions;
- Your User Submissions do not infringe the copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, or other intellectual property rights, privacy rights, or any other legal or moral rights of any third party;
- You voluntarily agree to waive all “moral rights” that You may have in Your User Submission;
- Any information contained in Your User Submission is not known by You to be false, inaccurate, or misleading;
- Your User Submission does not to your knowledge violate any law (including, but not limited to, those governing export control, consumer protection, unfair competition, anti-discrimination, or false advertising);
- Your User Submission is not, and may not reasonably be considered to be, defamatory; libelous; hateful; racially, ethnically, religiously, or otherwise biased or offensive; unlawfully threatening or unlawfully harassing to any individual, partnership, or corporation; vulgar, pornographic, obscene, or invasive of another’s privacy;
- You were not and will not be compensated or granted any consideration by any third party for submitting Your User Submission;
- Your User Submission does not incorporate materials from a third-party website, or addresses, email addresses, contact information, or phone numbers (other than Your own);
- Your User Submission does not contain any viruses, worms, spyware, adware, or other potentially damaging programs or files;
- Your User Submission does not contain any information that You consider confidential, proprietary, or personal; and
- Your User Submission does not contain or constitute any unsolicited or unauthorized advertising, promotional materials, junk mail, spam, chain letters, pyramid schemes, or any other form of solicitation.
By submitting a User Submission, You grant to Us an irrevocable, perpetual, transferable, non-exclusive, fully-paid, worldwide, royalty-free license (sublicensable through multiple tiers) to:
- Use, distribute, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, publicly perform, and publicly display Your User Submissions (or any modification thereto), in whole or in part, in any format or medium now known or later developed;
- Use (and permit others to use) Your User Submission in any manner and for any purpose (including, without limitation, commercial purposes) that We deem appropriate in Our sole discretion (including, without limitation, to incorporate Your User Submission or any modification thereto, in whole or in part, into any technology, product, or service);
- Display advertisements in connection with Your User Submissions and to use Your User Submissions for advertising and promotional purposes.
We may, but are not obligated to, pre-screen User Submissions or monitor any area of this Website through which User Submissions may be submitted. We are not required to host, display, or distribute any User Submissions on or through this Website and may remove at any time or refuse any User Submissions for any reason. We are not responsible for any loss, theft, or damage of any kind to any User Submissions. Further, You agree that We may freely disclose Your User Submission to any third party absent any obligation of confidence on the part of the recipient.
UNAUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES
To be clear, We authorize Your use of this Website only for Permitted Purposes. Any other use of this Website beyond the Permitted Purposes is prohibited and, therefore, constitutes unauthorized use of this Website. All rights in this Website remain Our property.
We encourage you to share articles and/or links to articles from our Website, so long as you give Public Spend Forum attribution as the source when you post or share them.
Unauthorized use of this Website may result in violation of various United States and international copyright laws., Unless You have written permission from Us stating otherwise, You are not authorized to use this Website in any of the following ways (these are examples only and the list below is not a complete list of everything that You are not permitted to do):
- For any public or commercial purpose which includes use of this Website on another site or through a networked computer environment;
- In a manner that publicly displays, publicly performs, reproduces or distributes any of this Website without attribution to Public Spend Forum, or that modifies any of this Website;
- In a manner that violates any local, state, national, foreign, or international statute, regulation, rule, order, treaty, or other law;
- To stalk, harass, or harm another individual;
- To impersonate any person or entity or otherwise misrepresent Your affiliation with a person or entity;
- To interfere with or disrupt this Website or servers or networks connected to this Website;
- To use any data mining, robots, or similar data gathering or extraction methods in connection with this Website;
- Attempt to gain unauthorized access to any portion of this Website or any other accounts, computer systems, or networks connected to this Website, whether through hacking, password mining, or any other means;
- Copy or use the information, content or data of others available on the Services (except as expressly authorized by Us); or
- Copy or use the information, content or data on the Website in connection with a competitive service (as determined by Company).
In addition, You agree that you will follow the following rules:
- Don’t challenge or attack others. The discussions and comments are meant to stimulate conversation not to create contention. Let others have their say, just as You may.
- Don’t post commercial messages on any discussion list, resource library entry, or other area where others might see it. Contact people directly with product and service information if You believe it would help them.
- Use caution when discussing products. Information posted on the lists and in the libraries is available for all to see, and comments are subject to libel, slander, and antitrust laws.
- Post Your message or documents only to the most appropriate lists or libraries. Do not spam several lists or libraries with the same message.
- All messages must add to the body of knowledge. We reserve the right to reject any message for any reason.
- Include a signature tag on all messages. Include Your name, affiliation and location.
- State concisely and clearly the topic of Your comments in the subject line. This allows members to respond more appropriately to Your posting and makes it easier for members to search the archives by subject.
- Include only the relevant portions of the original message in your reply. Delete any header information, and put Your response before the original posting.
- Only send a message to the entire list when it contains information that everyone can benefit from.
- Send messages such as “thanks for the information” or “me, too” to individuals–not to the entire list. Do this by using the “Reply to Sender” link to the left of every message.
- Do not send administrative messages, such as remove me from the list. Instead, use the web interface to change your settings or to remove Yourself from a list. If You are changing e-mail addresses, You do not need to remove Yourself from the list and rejoin under your new e-mail address. Simply change Your settings.
- Warn other list subscribers of lengthy messages either in the subject line or at the beginning of the message body with a line that says “Long Message.”
If You violate these Terms, and that violation results in Our having to defend ourselves against any claim, allegation or lawsuit, You agree to pay Our reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs, as well as any damages that We may end up having to pay as a result of Your violation. You alone are responsible for any violation of these Terms by You. We reserve the right to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by You and, in such case, You agree to cooperate with Our defense of such claim.
PROPRIETARY RIGHTS
“Public Spend Forum” is a trademark that belongs to Us. Other trademarks, names and logos on this Website are the property of their respective owners.
Unless otherwise specified in these Terms, all Materials, including the arrangement of them on this Website are Our sole property, Copyright © 2015 Public Spend Forum LLC. All rights not expressly granted herein are reserved. Except as otherwise required or limited by applicable law, any reproduction, distribution, modification, retransmission, or publication of any copyrighted material is strictly prohibited without the express written consent of the copyright owner or license.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY INFRINGEMENT
We respect the intellectual property rights of others and encourage You to do the same. Accordingly, We have a policy of removing User Submissions that violate intellectual property rights of others, suspending access to this Website (or any portion thereof) to any user who uses this Website in violation of someone’s intellectual property rights, and/or terminating in appropriate circumstances the account of any user who uses the this Website in violation of someone’s intellectual property rights.
Pursuant to Title 17 of the United States Code, Section 512, We have implemented procedures for receiving written notification of claimed copyright infringement and for processing such claims in accordance with such law. If You believe Your copyright or other intellectual property right is being infringed by a user of this Website, please provide written notice to Our Agent for notice of claims of infringement:
Public Spend Forum
1776 I Street, NW 10th Floor
Washington, DC 20006
Attn: Raj Sharma
To be sure the matter is handled immediately, Your written notice must:
- Contain Your physical or electronic signature;
- Identify the copyrighted work or other intellectual property alleged to have been infringed;
- Identify the allegedly infringing material in a sufficiently precise manner to allow Us to locate that material;
- Contain adequate information by which We can contact You (including postal address, telephone number, and e-mail address);
- Contain a statement that You have a good faith belief that use of the copyrighted material or other intellectual property is not authorized by the owner, the owner’s agent or the law;
- Contain a statement that the information in the written notice is accurate; and
- Contain statement, under penalty of perjury, that You are authorized to act on behalf of the copyright or other intellectual property right owner.
Unless the notice pertains to copyright or other intellectual property infringement, the Agent will be unable to address the listed concern.
Submitting a DMCA Counter-Notification
We will notify You that We have removed or disabled access to copyright-protected material that You provided, if such removal is pursuant to a validly received DMCA take-down notice. In response, You may provide Our Agent with a written counter-notification that includes the following information:
- Your physical or electronic signature;
- Identification of the material that has been removed or to which access has been disabled, and the location at which the material appeared before it was removed or access to it was disabled;
- A statement from You under the penalty of perjury, that You have a good faith belief that the material was removed or disabled as a result of a mistake or misidentification of the material to be removed or disabled; and
- Your name, physical address and telephone number, and a statement that You consent to the jurisdiction of a court for the judicial district in which Your physical address is located, or if Your physical address is outside of the United States, for any judicial district in which We may be located, and that You will accept service of process from the person who provided notification of allegedly infringing material or an agent of such person.
Termination of Repeat Infringers
We reserve the right, in Our sole discretion, to terminate the account or access of any user of this Website or Service who is the subject of repeated DMCA or other infringement notifications.
DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES
THIS WEBSITE IS PROVIDED “AS IS” AND “WITH ALL FAULTS” AND THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE OF THIS WEBSITE IS WITH YOU.
WE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND (EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY) WITH RESPECT TO THIS WEBSITE, WHICH INCLUDES BUT IS NOT LIMITED TO, ANY IMPLIED OR STATUTORY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR USE OR PURPOSE, TITLE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS.
THIS MEANS THAT WE DO NOT PROMISE YOU THAT THE WEBSITE IS FREE OF PROBLEMS. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, We make no warranty that this Website will meet Your requirements or that this Website will be uninterrupted, timely, secure, or error free or that defects in this Website will be corrected. We make no warranty as to the results that may be obtained from the use of this Website or as to the accuracy or reliability of any information obtained through this Website. No advice or information, whether oral or written, obtained by You through this Website or from Us or Our subsidiaries/other affiliated companies shall create any warranty. We disclaim all equitable indemnities.
LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
WE SHALL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY DAMAGES RESULTING FROM YOUR DISPLAYING, COPYING, OR DOWNLOADING ANY MATERIALS TO OR FROM THIS WEBSITE. IN NO EVENT SHALL WE BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY INDIRECT, EXTRAORDINARY, EXEMPLARY, PUNITIVE, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING LOSS OF DATA, REVENUE, PROFITS, USE OR OTHER ECONOMIC ADVANTAGE) HOWEVER ARISING, EVEN IF WE KNOW THERE IS A POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
LOCAL LAWS; EXPORT CONTROL
We control and operate this Website from Our headquarters in the United States of America and the entirety of this Website may not be appropriate or available for use in other locations. If You use this Website outside the United States of America, You are solely responsible for following applicable local laws.
FEEDBACK
Any submissions by You to Us (e.g., comments, questions, suggestions, materials – collectively, “Feedback”) through any communication whatsoever (e.g., call, fax, email) will be treated as both non-confidential and non-proprietary. You hereby assign all right, title, and interest in, and We are free to use, without any attribution or compensation to You, any ideas, know-how, concepts, techniques, or other intellectual property and proprietary rights contained in the Feedback, whether or not patentable, for any purpose whatsoever, including but not limited to, developing, manufacturing, having manufactured, licensing, marketing, and selling, directly or indirectly, products and services using such Feedback. You understand and agree that We are not obligated to use, display, reproduce, or distribute any such ideas, know-how, concepts, or techniques contained in the Feedback, and You have no right to compel such use, display, reproduction, or distribution.
GENERAL
We think direct communication resolves most issues – if We feel that You are not complying with these Terms, We will tell You. We will even provide You with recommended necessary corrective action(s) because We value this relationship.
However, certain violations of these Terms, as determined by Us, may require immediate termination of Your access to this Website without prior notice to You. The laws of Washington, D.C. and applicable U.S. federal law, without regard to the choice or conflicts of law provisions, will govern these Terms. Foreign laws do not apply. Any disputes relating to these Terms or this Website will be heard in the courts located in Washington, D.C. If any of these Terms are deemed inconsistent with applicable law, then such term(s) shall be interpreted to reflect the intentions of the Parties, and no other terms will be modified. By choosing not to enforce any of these Terms, We are not waiving Our rights. These Terms are the entire agreement between You and Us and, therefore, supersede all prior or contemporaneous negotiations, discussions or agreements between the Parties about this Website. The proprietary rights, disclaimer of warranties, representations made by You, indemnities, limitations of liability and general provisions shall survive any termination of these Terms.
CALIFORNIA CONSUMER NOTICE
Under California Civil Code Section 1789.3, California users are entitled to the following consumer rights notice: This Website and Service are provided by Public Spend Forum LLC. If You have a question or complaint regarding the Website or Service, please contact Customer Service at support@publicspendforum.net. You may also contact Us by writing Public Spend Forum LLC, Attn: Raj Sharma, 1776 I Street, NW, 10th Floor, Washington DC 20006. California residents may reach the Complaint Assistance Unit of the Division of Consumer Services of the California Department of Consumer Affairs by post at 1625 North Market Blvd., Sacramento, CA 95834 or by telephone at (916) 445-1254 or (800) 952-5210 or Hearing Impaired at TDD (800) 326-2297 or TDD (916) 322-1700.
CONTACT US
If You have any questions about these Terms or otherwise need to contact Us for any reason, You can reach Us at 202-591-3361, email us at support@publicspendforum.net or write us at: Public Spend Forum, 1776 I Street, NW, 10th Floor, Washington DC 20006.