Terms of Use
PLEASE READ THESE TERMS OF SERVICE CAREFULLY BECAUSE THEY DESCRIBE YOUR RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES.
WLS Success Matters, LLC (“WLS Success Matters, ” “we, ” or “us”) operates a website, www.wlssuccessmatters.com (the “Site”), primarily geared toward individuals who are considering or have undergone lap band surgery. This Terms of Use Agreement ("Agreement") sets forth legally binding terms for your use of the Site. By using the Site you accept and agree to be bound to the following terms and conditions whether or not you register as a Member or pay for any services or products that may be offered by us from time to time.
1. Definitions
This Agreement will use the following defined terms:
a. “WLS Success Matters Content” - all data, text, files, images, photos, video, works of authorship, information, links or any other materials that is currently on or may be uploaded to the Site by WLS Success Matters from time to time.
b. "Member" - a user that completes the WLS Success Matters registration process.
c. "Member Content" - all data, text, files, images, photos, video, works of authorship, information, links or any other materials that may be uploaded to the Site by Members from time to time.
d. “post" or "posting" - publish or display.
2. Rules of Conduct
You agree that you are responsible for your own conduct and communications while using the Site and for any consequences thereof. You are solely responsible for all Content that you post, upload, email, transmit or otherwise make available on the Site. While WLS Success Matters prohibits specific conduct and Content in connection with the Site, you understand and agree that you nonetheless may be exposed to such conduct and/or Content and that you use the Site at your own risk. Under no circumstances will WLS Success Matters be liable in any way for any Content.
You agree to use the Site in ways that are respectful to other users and their experience and in a manner consistent with any and all applicable laws and regulations. You agree not to use the Site to:
a. Upload, post, email, transmit or otherwise make available any Content that is unlawful, harmful, threatening, abusive, harassing, tortious, defamatory, vulgar or obscene (unless within the scope of the topic area of a message board as determined by WLS Success Matters in its sole discretion), libelous, invasive of another's privacy, hateful or promote racism, bigotry, hatred or physical harm of any kind against any group or individual;
b. Exploit people in a sexual or violent manner;
c. Solicit personal information from anyone under the age of 18;
d. Solicit passwords or personal identifying information for commercial or unlawful purposes from other users;
e. Impersonate another person or entity, whether or not a Member of WLS Success Matters;
f. Upload, post, email, transmit or otherwise make available restricted or password only access pages or hidden pages or images (those not linked to or from another accessible page);
g. Upload, post, email, transmit or otherwise make available any Content that infringes any patent, trademark, copyright, trade secret or other proprietary right of any party (collectively the "Proprietary Rights"), unless you are the owner of the Proprietary Rights or have the permission of its owner to post such Content;
h. Upload, post, email, transmit or otherwise make available any Content that promotes an illegal or unauthorized copy of the copyrighted work of another, such as providing pirated computer programs or links to them, providing information to circumvent manufacture-installed copy-protect devices, or providing pirated music or links to pirated music files;
i. Upload, post, email, transmit or otherwise make available any Content that provides instructional information about illegal activities such as making or buying illegal weapons or promote physical harm or injury against any group or individual, violating someone's privacy, or providing or creating computer viruses;
j. Falsify or delete any author attributions, legal or other proper notices or proprietary designations or labels stating the origin or source of software or other material contained in a file that is posted;
k. Promote, engage or otherwise make available any unsolicited or unauthorized advertising, promotional materials, pyramid schemes, chain letters, disruptive commercial messages, false or misleading information or any other form of solicitation;
l. Transmit any viruses, worms, defects, Trojan horses, or any items of a destructive nature;
m. Do anything that may interfere with the operation of the Site, including, but not limited to, hacking, spamming and flood attacking;
n. Remove any copyright, trademark or other proprietary rights notices contained in or on the Site;
o. Interfere with or disrupt the Site or servers or networks connected to the Site, or disobey any requirements, procedures, policies or regulations of networks connected to the Site;
p. Use any robot, spider, site search/retrieval application, or other device to retrieve or index any portion of the Site or collect information about users for any unauthorized purpose;
q. Submit Content that falsely expresses or implies that such Content is sponsored or endorsed by WLS Success Matters; or
r. Create user accounts by automated means, or under false or fraudulent pretenses.
If you use the Site to commit any of the above, WLS Success Matters may, in its sole discretion, terminate your password, account or ability to use the Site, and remove and discard any of your Content within the Site.
International users agree to comply with their own local rules regarding online conduct and acceptable content, including laws regulating the export of data to the United States or to or from your country of residence and expressly consent to and acknowledge that by using the Site they may be transferring personal data to the United States without any liability or obligation on the part of WLS Success Matters except as set forth in this Agreement and in WLS Success Matters's Privacy Policy.
3. Content
a. WLS Success Matters Content - Our Site and all of the WLS Success Matters Content (collectively, the “intellectual property”), are protected by copyright, trademark and other laws of the United States, as well as international conventions and the laws of other countries. The intellectual property is owned or controlled by WLS Success Matters or the party credited as the provider of the intellectual property. Additionally, the Site itself is protected by copyright as a collective work and/or compilation.
You may browse through the Site and occasionally download small amounts of WLS Success Matters Content that are of interest to you. You must keep intact all copyright, trademark and other notices contained in your personal copies. Except as otherwise provided in this Agreement, you may not reproduce or allow others to reproduce your personal copies of downloaded materials, nor may you make them available electronically without our express written consent. You may not save or archive a significant portion of the material appearing on the Site. You may not attempt to alter or modify the Content posted on the Site. Except as expressly set forth in this Agreement, you may not copy, download, display, distribute, publish, enter into a database, perform, modify, create derivative works, transmit, post, decompile, reverse engineer, disassemble or in any way exploit any of our intellectual property or the Site itself.
b. Member Content - You understand and agree that WLS Success Matters may review and delete any Member Content at its sole discretion. WLS Success Matters does not claim any ownership rights in any Content that you post to the Site. After posting any Member Content to the Site, you continue to retain all ownership rights in such Content, and you continue to have the right to use your Content in any way you choose. By posting any Content on or through the Site, you hereby grant to WLS Success Matters a limited license to use, modify, publicly perform, publicly display, reproduce, and distribute such Content solely on and through the Site. Without this license, WLS Success Matters would be unable to provide the Site. The license you grant to WLS Success Matters is non-exclusive (meaning you are free to license your Content to anyone else in addition to WLS Success Matters), fully-paid and royalty-free (meaning that WLS Success Matters is not required to pay you for the use on the Site of the Content that you post), sublicensable (so that WLS Success Matters is able to use its affiliates and subcontractors such as Internet content delivery networks to provide the Site), and worldwide (because the Internet and the Site are global in reach). This license will terminate at the time you remove your Content from the Site. The license does not grant WLS Success Matters the right to sell your Content, nor does the license grant WLS Success Matters the right to distribute your Content outside of the WLS Success Matters and its sublicensees Sites.
You understand that all Member Content, whether posted in public or restricted groups, is the sole responsibility of the originator of such Content. This means that you, and not WLS Success Matters, are entirely responsible for all Content that you post, upload, distribute, disseminate or otherwise transmit via the Site. Under no circumstances will WLS Success Matters be liable in any way for any Content, including, but not limited to, any errors or omissions in any Content, or loss or damage of any kind whatsoever incurred as a result of the use of or exposure to any Content through the Site. You agree that you must evaluate, and bear all risks associated with, the use of or exposure to any Content, including any reliance on the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of such Content. You understand that the technical processing and transmission of the Site, including Content, may involve (1) transmissions over various networks; and (2) changes to conform and adapt to technical requirements of connecting networks or devices.
You acknowledge that WLS Success Matters does not pre-screen, control, edit or endorse any Member Content made available through the Site and has no obligation to monitor the Member Content made available via the Site. If WLS Success Matters discovers Content that does not appear to conform to this Agreement, WLS Success Matters may investigate and determine in good faith and in its sole discretion whether or not to remove the Content. WLS Success Matters is under no obligation to do so and WLS Success Matters will have no liability or responsibility for performance or non-performance of such activities. You agree to resolve directly and exclusively with third parties any disputes you may have about messages that they post. You may also contact us at wendy-sandi@wlssuccessmatters.com to request a removal.
You acknowledge and agree that WLS Success Matters may preserve or disclose any Member Content if it reasonably believes disclosure is required by law or in the good faith belief that such preservation or disclosure is reasonably necessary to: (a) comply with legal process; (b) enforce this Agreement; (c) respond to claims that any Member Content violates the rights of third-parties; or (d) protect the rights, property, or personal safety of WLS Success Matters, its users, and the public.
4. WLS Success Matters Amazon Store
From time to time, WLS Success Matters may offer products for sale either directly or through the “WLS Success Matters Amazon Store” page on the Site (the “Store”). While we may include in our Store certain third party products and/or services that our staff has used and like or that our users recommend, you are responsible for making your own decisions about such products and/or services. WLS Success Matters does not endorse or guarantee any products or services that are listed in the Store or through links on the Site to third party websites. You should always consult your doctor or medical team before making decisions about using any products or services that might impact your health. Please refer to our Medical Disclaimer for more information.
5. Eligibility and Registration
Membership in the Site is void where prohibited by law. You do not need to be a Member to read certain Content on the Site; however, if you want to post messages you will need to complete the registration process. By using the Site, you represent and warrant that all registration information you submit is truthful and accurate, and that you agree to maintain the accuracy of such information on an ongoing basis. To comply with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, at this time WLS Success Matters is only available to users who are at least 18 years old. IF YOU ARE UNDER 18, YOU MAY NOT REGISTER TO USE THE SITE OR PROVIDE PERSONAL INFORMATION TO WLS Success Matters THROUGH THE SITE.
Your Membership is solely for your personal use, and you shall not authorize others to use your account, including your profile or email address. You are solely responsible for all Content published or displayed through your account, including any email messages, and for your interactions with other users. As part of the registration process, you will be asked to select a username and password and you will be responsible for all activities occurring under your username and for keeping your password secure. In order to maintain your privacy, when setting up your profile you may elect to keep it private. If you do so, no other Members or users will be able to view your profile information. However, if you elect to have your profile be publicly available, all Members will be able to view the information and pictures that you include therein.
6. Term and Termination
This Agreement shall remain in full force and effect while you use the Site, and/or are a Member. You may terminate your Membership at any time, for any reason by following the instructions on the Member account page.
7. Links
Some links on the Site lead to sites posted by independent site owners. Because WLS Success Matters has no control over these sites and there is no relationship between WLS Success Matters and these sites, WLS Success Matters is not responsible for such sites' accessibility via the Internet and does not endorse products, services, or information provided by such sites. As such, WLS Success Matters is not 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 by any user of other Content, goods, or services available on or through any other site, even if user has been directed there through a link posted on WLS Success Matters.
8. Limitations, Conditions and Rules Regarding Site
You agree that WLS Success Matters may establish or change, in its sole discretion, at any time, with or without notice to you, any limitations, conditions or rules concerning use of the Site, including, for example, the maximum number of messages a Member may post to the Site in any given day, the number of days that posted messages will remain available, or the maximum size of a permitted post.
9. Modification and Termination of Site
WLS Success Matters reserves the right at any time and from time to time to modify or discontinue, temporarily or permanently, the Site (or any part of it) or your use of the Site, with or without notice. You agree that WLS Success Matters shall not be liable to you or to any third party for any modification, suspension or discontinuance of the Site or your use of the Site.
You agree that WLS Success Matters may, in its sole discretion, at any time terminate your password, account (or any part of it) or ability to use the Site, temporarily or permanently, and remove and discard any Content posted by you within the Site, for any reason or for no reason. You agree that any termination of your access to the Site may be immediate and without prior notice. You further agree that WLS Success Matters shall not be liable to you or any third-party for any termination of your use or ability to access the Site. Even after Membership is terminated, this Agreement will remain in effect.
Specific reasons that WLS Success Matters may terminate your access or use, include, but are not limited to:
a. lack of use;
b. violation of the letter or the spirit of this Agreement;
c. use in your registration for WLS Success Matters membership of an email account that is not your own or that is or becomes inactive; or
d. reproduction, distribution, republication or retransmission of any WLS Success Matters Content or Member Content without the prior permission of WLS Success Matters or such Member, as the case may be.
10. Notice for California Users
As required by California Code Section 1789.3, this notice is to advise you of the following: The Site is provided by WLS Success Matters, LLC, PO Box 1389, Ventura, Ca 93002-1389. If you desire further information on use of the Site or if you have a complaint regarding the Site, please contact us at wendy-sandi@wlssuccessmatters.com . For complaints, you may also contact the Complaint Assistance Unit of the Division of Consumer Sites of the Department of Consumer Affairs in writing at 1020 N. Street, #501, Sacramento, California, 95814, or by telephone at (916) 445-1254.
11. Disclaimer of Warranty, Limitation of Liability, and Release
WLS Success Matters does not guarantee the accuracy of information found on the Site. Your reliance on information found on the Site is at your own risk.
THE SITE, AND ALL ITS CONTENTS, IS PROVIDED TO YOU “AS IS.” WLS Success Matters MAKES NO WARRANTIES OR REPRESENTATIONS, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, NON-INFRINGEMENT OF THE RIGHTS OF THIRD PARTIES, DATA ACCURACY, OR QUIET ENJOYMENT.
UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL WLS Success Matters OR ANY OTHERS INVOLVED IN CREATING THE SITE AND ITS CONTENTS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES OR INJURY, INCLUDING ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR OTHER DAMAGES RESULTING FROM ANY CIRCUMSTANCE INVOLVING THE SITE OR ITS CONTENT (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO DAMAGES OR INJURY CAUSED BY ERROR, OMISSION, INTERRUPTION, DEFECT, FAILURE OF PERFORMANCE, MISDIRECTED OR REDIRECTED TRANSMISSIONS, FAILED INTERNET CONNECTIONS, UNAUTHORIZED USE OF THIS SITE, LOST DATA, DELAY IN OPERATION OR TRANSMISSION, BREACH OF SECURITY, LINE FAILURE, DEFAMATORY, OFFENSIVE OR ILLEGAL CONDUCT OF ANY USER OF THIS SITE, OR COMPUTER VIRUS, WORM, TROJAN HORSE OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENT), EVEN IF YOU HAVE ADVISED WLS Success Matters IN ADVANCE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
WLS Success Matters DOES NOT WARRANT OR MAKE ANY REPRESENTATIONS REGARDING THE MATERIALS ON THIS SITE IN TERMS OF THEIR TIMELINESS, CORRECTNESS, ACCURACY, RELIABILITY, OR OTHERWISE. WHILE WE MAKE REASONABLE EFFORTS TO PROVIDE ACCURATE AND TIMELY INFORMATION ON THIS SITE, YOU SHOULD NOT ASSUME THAT THE INFORMATION PROVIDED IS ALWAYS UP TO DATE OR THAT THIS SITE CONTAINS ALL THE RELEVANT INFORMATION AVAILABLE ABOUT THE SUBJECT MATTER THEREOF. WE UNDERTAKE NO OBLIGATION TO VERIFY OR MAINTAIN THE CURRENCY OF SUCH INFORMATION.
For additional disclaimers regarding medical issues and liability, please see our Medical Disclaimer, which is hereby incorporated by reference.
Applicable law may 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 or exclusions may not apply to you. However, in no event shall WLS Success Matters’s aggregate liability to you or any third party for damages, losses, and causes of action exceed the amount paid by you, if any, for accessing this Site or $100, whichever is lesser. You agree to bring any and all actions within one year from the date of the accrual of the cause of action, and that actions brought after this date will be barred.
In the event that you have a dispute with WLS Success Matters, you release WLS Success Matters (and our officers, directors, agents, and employees) from claims, demands, and damages (actual and consequential) of every kind and nature, known and unknown, suspected and unsuspected, disclosed and undisclosed, arising out of or in any way connected with such disputes. If you are a California resident, you waive California Civil Code section 1542 which says: “A general release does not extend to claims which the creditor does not know or suspect to exist in his favor at the time of executing the release, which if known by him must have materially altered his settlement with the debtor.”
12. Indemnification
You agree to defend, indemnify and hold each of WLS Success Matters, its parent companies, subsidiaries, affiliates, officers, directors, employees, agents, parents and licensors, harmless from any and all claims, demands, liabilities, losses, damages, and/or expenses, including reasonable attorneys' and expert witness fees arising out of or relating to the use of the Services and/or in violation of this Agreement by you and/or any users of your WLS Success Matters account, including, without limitation, any breach of the representations and warranties made by you herein, any and all claims arising from Content or other materials posted onto the Service by you, or the infringement by you, or any other user of your account, of any Proprietary Rights or other rights of any person or entity.
13. Breaches of Security
Members and users must promptly inform WLS Success Matters of apparent breaches of security, including without limitation loss, theft, unauthorized disclosure or use of an ID or password or any violations of this Agreement. WLS Success Matters ASSUMES NO LIABILITY AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY WARRANTY OR LIABILITY THAT MIGHT ARISE IN CONNECTION WITH THE LOSS, THEFT OR UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO OR DISCLOSURE OF AN ID, PASSWORD OR OTHER PERSONAL INFORMATION RELATING TO THE USE OF THE SERVICE. You expressly assume any and all liability in connection with actual and/or apparent breaches of security. Notice of actual or apparent security breaches should be immediately provided upon discovery and can be delivered to wendy-sandi@wlssuccessmatters.com.
14. Violations and Additional Terms
WLS Success Matters reserves the right to seek all remedies available at law and in equity for violations of these Terms of Use, including suspending or blocking your access to the Site. Please see our Privacy Policy for our policies regarding privacy, which is incorporated herein by reference.
15. Changes to this Agreement
WLS Success Matters reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to modify, alter, or otherwise change these Terms of Use at any time. Please review the Terms of Use, Privacy Policy and/or Medical Disclaimer periodically for changes. WLS Success Matters shall have no obligation to notify you of any such changes other than posting such modifications on the Site, but we reserve the right, in our sole discretion, to provide you notice of such changes to any e-mail address you have provided to us. Your continued use of the Site constitutes your acceptance of and agreement to be bound by these changes without limitation, qualification or change. If at any time you determine that you do not accept these changes, you must stop using this Web site.
16. General
a. Waivers. No delay or failure by WLS Success Matters to enforce any of these Terms of Use shall constitute a waiver of any of our rights under these Terms of Use. Neither the receipt of any funds by WLS Success Matters nor the reliance of any person on our actions shall be deemed to constitute a waiver of any part of these Terms of Use. Only a specific, written waiver signed by an authorized representative of WLS Success Matters shall have any legal effect.
b. Severability. If any clause or provision set forth in these Terms of Use is determined to be illegal, invalid or unenforceable under present or future law, the clause or provision shall be deemed to be deleted without affecting the enforceability of all remaining clauses or provisions.
c. Governing Law and Jurisdiction. These Terms of Service and any disputes arising under or related to these Terms of Use and/or the Privacy Policy or the Medical Disclaimer or to this Site will be governed by U.S. federal law and the laws of the State of California, without reference to its conflict of law principles. Any such dispute shall be resolved exclusively in the state or federal courts in Boston, Massachusetts. You agree to submit to the personal jurisdiction and venue of the courts of the State of California for any legal proceeding involving the Site, regardless of who initiated the proceeding.
These Terms of Use is WLS Success Matters’s official agreement with users of this Site. In case of any inconsistency between these Terms of Use and its translation into another language, this English-language document shall control.
17. For More Information
If you have any questions regarding our Terms of Use, please contact us by sending an email to wendy-sandi@wlssuccessmatters.com .