Terms of Service
Copyright / Trademark glossary
- The following terms are trademarked by The Construct:
- Matchbox: A publicly accessible live or archived event on The Construct consisting of a text exchange
- Figure: One of two principal participants (creators) in a Matchbox
- Rhet: A segment of posted text by a Figure in a Matchbox
- Gallery: The live audience of a Matchbox
- Ring: An entity on The Construct that represents an entity outside of The Construct (an individual or a group) and which hosts the Matchboxes of its members
- Note: An annotation added to a Rhet, aka a footnote
- The Construct makes no claims whatsoever to copyright of any content, and holds the position that copyright is rightly held by the Figures of a Matchbox.
- The Construct will actively cooperate (within reason) in valid litigation over copyright violations (except intra-Ring disputes) or content piracy.
Content
- The Construct will not engage in content moderation in Matchboxes (except in the cases outlined below in italics), nor are tools provided for moderation of Figures by any other user.
- It is prohibited to post, publish, or display the following anywhere on The Construct. If such content is discovered it may be deleted, Matchboxes may be removed, and accounts and/or Rings may be suspended:
- information such as addresses, geo locations, email addresses, phone numbers, identity numbers, credit card or account numbers, etc. – including one’s own
- By posting on The Construct, all users assume legal responsibility for their content and indemnify The Construct in any legal actions arising from it.
- A Rhet cannot be edited or removed from a Matchbox.
- Entire Matchboxes may be hidden from view by request of a Ring admin.
- The content of a Note on a Rhet may be strikethrough edited in perpetuity by the original posting Figure.
- Plagiarized content in Rhets is prohibited. If discovered, the Ring may be suspended.
- Factual information in the About section of a Ring profile page and in Ring member bios must be accurate and not misleading. All information posted in these sections will be reviewed and assessed by The Construct.
Security
- Ring accounts may currently be formed by individuals and entities personally known to a team member of The Construct, or by a process of introductions and video meetings at the discretion of the company.
- Impersonating another individual or entity by display name, image, handle, etc is prohibited on The Construct, including in the Gallery/comments. If impersonation is discovered, the account may be suspended.
- Users of The Construct must be at least 16 years old.
Privacy
- There is no direct messaging function on The Construct.
- No personal data will be used by The Construct for any purpose other than displaying an account to a user, and no data whatsoever will be shared with any private or commercial third parties for any reason except the processing of payments, email communication (Twilio/SendGrid), error logging (Sentry.io), and cloud service of the platform (Google Cloud Services).
Behavior
- Matchboxes are public environments.
- Access to a Matchbox confers a right of live observation. Commenting is a privilege and not a right. Either Figure in a Matchbox may Mute any commenter for any reason, or may turn off commenting privileges for the entire Matchbox.
- Accounts, individuals, or entities discovered to be engaging in content piracy or any other form of attack on The Construct will be suspended.
Tracking and Targeting
- The Construct does not track users in any way across apps or websites. Nor does The Construct use personal data related to usage, comments, or activity within the app for any purpose other than delivering the service of the platform.
- Cookies are for functional purposes only.
- Matchboxes are displayed according to time/date created, and the list appears the same to all users.
- There is no algorithmic feed of content on The Construct. Any algorithms in use are posted in plain English here: Algos