Warcraft III Battle.net Terms of Use Agreement

Battle.net Terms of Use Agreement

Battle.net® ("Battle.net") is the copyrighted work of Blizzard Entertainment® ("Blizzard") or its suppliers. All use of Battle.net is governed by the terms of use provided below ("Battle.net Terms of Use"). Battle.net is provided "as is" solely for use by end users of Blizzard software products according to the terms of conditions contained herein. Any use of Battle.net not in accordance with the terms of the Battle.net Terms of Use is expressly prohibited.

1. Grant of License. Blizzard hereby grants, and by using Battle.net you thereby accept, a limited, personal, non-exclusive license and right to use Battle.net using a home, work or portable computer. Subject to the foregoing Grant of License, you may not remove any proprietary notices or labels on Battle.net without the prior consent, in writing, of Blizzard. Blizzard reserves the right for any reason to remove, without notice, any content of Battle.net received from users, including, without limitation, bulletin board postings. Blizzard reserves the right to deny, at its sole discretion, any user access to Battle.net or any portion thereof without notice. Without limiting the foregoing, Blizzard retains the right to decline service to any user who violates the Battle.net Terms of Use.

2. Registration Information. To register your account on Battle.net, you will be required to provide your name and the "CD-Key" from the Blizzard Entertainment software product you have purchased that includes the Battle.net technology. This information is used to identify you as a "unique user" of Battle.net. In the event that Blizzard learns you have provided Blizzard with false or misleading registration information, Blizzard reserves the right to terminate your Battle.net account.

3. Ownership. All title, ownership, and intellectual property rights in and to Battle.net (including, but not limited to, any titles, computer code, themes, objects, characters, character names, stories, dialog, catch phrases, locations, concepts, artwork, animations, sounds, musical compositions, audio-visual effects, methods of operation, moral rights, any related documentation, "applets" incorporated into Battle.net, transcripts of the chat rooms, member profile information, recordings of games played on Battle.net, and software) are owned by Blizzard Entertainment or its licensors. All rights are reserved. Battle.net is protected by the copyright laws of the United States, international copyright treaties and conventions, and other laws. All rights are reserved. Battle.net may contain certain licensed materials, and Blizzard's licensors may protect their rights in the event of any violation of this agreement.

4. Your Use of Battle.net.

A. You are entitled to use Battle.net for your own personal use, but you shall not be entitled to

(i) sell or grant a security interest in or transfer reproductions of Battle.net to other parties in any way, nor to rent, lease, or license Battle.net to others without the prior written consent of Blizzard;
(ii) copy, photocopy, reproduce, translate, reverse engineer, modify, disassemble, or de-compile in whole or in part any Battle.net software;
(iii) create derivative works based on Battle.net;
(iv) host or provide matchmaking services for any Blizzard software programs; emulate or redirect the communication protocols used by Blizzard as part of Battle.net, through protocol emulation, tunneling, modifying or adding components to the Program, use of a utility program, or any other technique now known or hereafter developed, for any purpose, including, but not limited to, network play over the Internet, network play utilizing commercial or non-commercial gaming networks, or as part of content aggregation networks without the prior written consent of Blizzard; or exploit Battle.net or any of its parts for any commercial purpose, including, but not limited to, use at a location such as a cyber cafe, arcade, or other location where users are charged a fee, whether hourly or otherwise, to use Battle.net;
(v) use any third-party software to modify Battle.net to change game play, including, but not limited to, cheats and/or hacks;
(vi) use Blizzard's intellectual property rights contained in Battle.net to create or provide any other means through which Blizzard Entertainment software products, including, but not limited to, StarCraft, StarCraft: Brood War, Diablo, Diablo II, Warcraft: Orcs & Humans, Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness, Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal, Warcraft II: Battle.net Edition, and Warcraft III, may be played by others, including, but not limited to, server emulators;
(vii) institute attacks upon a Battle.net server or otherwise disrupt Battle.net;
(viii) harass, threaten, stalk, embarrass, or cause distress, unwanted attention, or discomfort upon another user of Battle.net or other person or entity; cheat during game play, including but not limited to modification of the game program files;
(ix) transmit or post sexually explicit images or other content which in the sole discretion of Blizzard is deemed to be offensive; nor shall you transmit any unlawful, harmful, threatening, abusive, harassing, defamatory, vulgar, obscene, hateful, or racially, ethnically, or otherwise objectionable content;
(x) carry out any action with a disruptive effect, such as causing the screen to "scroll" faster than other users are able to type to it;
(xi) impersonate a Blizzard official or employee or any other person;
(xii) disrupt the normal flow of dialog in a chat room or otherwise act in a manner that negatively affects other users, individuals, or entities, including, but not limited to, posting "Spam" messages on Battle.net. "Spam" messages as used herein include, but are not limited to, any effort to use a computer or other electronic device to post an unauthorized and/or unsolicited advertisement to Battle.net;
(xiii) post or transmit chain letters, "cashbots," or pyramid schemes; post or transmit any unsolicited advertising, promotional materials, or other forms of solicitation to other users, individuals, or entities on Battle.net;
(xiv) intentionally or unintentionally violate any applicable local, state, national, or international law or regulation;
(xv) modify any file that Blizzard does not specifically authorize you to modify;
(xvi) "spam" by posting or sending more than one unsolicited message or piece of mail to a single address or in a chat area;
(xvii) create or maintain, under any circumstance, more than one simultaneous connection to Battle.net. All such connections to Battle.net, whether created by Blizzard software products or by other tools and utilities, may only be made through methods and means expressly approved by Blizzard Entertainment. Under no circumstances may you connect, or create tools that allow you to connect, to Battle.net's private binary interface or interfaces other than those explicitly provided by Blizzard Entertainment for public use; or
(xviii) communicate or post any user's personal information in or on the Battle.net game network, web site, or forums.

B. In the event that you violate any of the foregoing provisions, Blizzard may at its option and without notice to you

(i) temporarily suspend your access to Battle.net; or
(ii) immediately terminate your access to Battle.net.

C. In the event that Blizzard is contacted by governmental authorities and/or parties seeking legal redress against you for a violation committed by you or alleged to have been committed by you involving your use of Battle.net, Blizzard will cooperate fully with all governmental authorities and any lawful orders of the court with regards to the release of information that relates to you and your use of Battle.net, including, but not limited to, user Internet Protocol (IP) addresses, associated personal information, and all other user information on file.

5. Content Uploads to Battle.net. You may upload content to Battle.net in various forms, including, but not limited to, the selections you make for the Program, in chat rooms, and similar user-to-user areas (collectively, your "Content"). Your Content shall not (a) infringe any third-party intellectual property, other proprietary or publicity/privacy rights; (b) violate any law or regulation; (c) be defamatory, obscene, or pornographic; or (d) contain any viruses, Trojan horses, cancelbots, worms, time bombs, or other computer programming routines that are intended to damage, detrimentally interfere with, surreptitiously intercept, or expropriate any system, data, or personal information. Blizzard reserves the right to any legal remedies available to Blizzard with respect to your Content, including, but not limited to, termination of your use of Battle.net if we believe your Content may create liability for Blizzard or may cause Blizzard to lose (in whole or in part) the services of our ISPs (Internet Service Providers) or other suppliers. You hereby grant to Blizzard a worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free, sublicenseable (through multiple tiers) right to exercise all intellectual property rights, in any media now known or not currently known, associated with your Content.

6. Use of Your Content. Blizzard and/or its parent, subsidiaries or affiliates may gather, process, and use (and allow others to use) any and all information which you provide directly to Blizzard ("Content"), as well as information regarding the manner in which you use Battle.net. You hereby grant to Blizzard a worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free, sublicenseable (through multiple tiers) right to exercise all intellectual property rights, in any media now known or not currently known, associated with your Content.

7. Information found on Battle.net. Blizzard does not endorse or stand behind the accuracy, truthfulness or reliability of any information (including statements of opinion or advice) provided on or by means of Battle.net. Any and all statements made in forums, conferences, or chats or during game play reflect only the views of their authors.

8. Termination. This agreement is effective until termination by either party. You may terminate this agreement at any time by destroying all materials obtained from this site and/or service and all related documentation thereof. Blizzard reserves the right to terminate this agreement without notice at Blizzard's sole discretion if you fail to comply with any term of this agreement, including, but not limited to, disruptive behavior, cheating, instituting attacks upon a Battle.net server, and any unlawful activity. It is the policy of Blizzard to cooperate fully in criminal investigations, including, but not limited to, and if permitted by local laws, tracing user IP addresses and associated personal information, as well as sharing all other user information on file with the proper authorities upon request.

9. Acknowledgments. You hereby acknowledge that

(i) you assume the cost of all telephone charges, necessary servicing, repair, or correction for connecting to Battle.net;
(ii) the materials in this site and/or service are provided "as is" and without warranties of any kind, either express or implied, including, but not limited to, warranties of accuracy, reliability, merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement;
(iii) that, as part of your registration process and in consideration for the privilege of accessing Battle.net and if permitted by local laws, Blizzard has the right to send your computer one or more "cookies" without any further notice to you (these cookies only retain your user preferences), and Blizzard has the right to obtain certain identification information about your computer and its operating system, including the identification numbers of your hard drives, central processing unit, IP addresses, and operating systems for identification purposes;
(iv) that, if permitted by local law, Blizzard has the right to obtain "non-personal" data from your Internet browsing software in order to make certain demographic assumptions regarding the users of Battle.net without any further notice to you;
(v) Blizzard does not warrant that Battle.net will be uninterrupted or error-free, that defects will be corrected, or that this site and/or service or the server are free of viruses or other harmful components;
(vi) you may not be able to access Battle.net whenever you want, and there may be extended periods of time where you cannot access Battle.net;
(vii) Blizzard shall not be held liable for any delay or failure to perform resulting from causes outside the reasonable control of Blizzard;
(viii) as certain games played on Battle.net require electronic files, including, but not limited to, player characters, accounts, statistics, user profiles, weapons, armor, quests, and maps ("Online Data"), to be stored upon Battle.net for your use when utilizing Battle.net to play these games online, you hereby agree and acknowledge that Blizzard shall not have any liability to you for the loss of Online Data for any reason whatsoever, including, but not limited to, server failure, telephonic interruptions of any kind, defects, viruses or other harmful components, and negligent acts of Blizzard and/or its affiliates;
(ix) you may not use "Duplicated Characters" and/or "Duplicated Items" on Battle.net, including, but not limited to, weapons, armor, rings, amulets, stones, staves, etc., that were created by exploiting a slow connection or "lag," programming error, or any other manner that allows you to utilize "Duplicated Characters" and/or "Duplicated Items" on the Battle.net service. In the event that Blizzard discovers that you are utilizing such characters and/or items on Battle.net, you hereby acknowledge that Blizzard may, at its sole discretion, delete such characters and/or items from your account on Battle.net;
(x) Blizzard reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to modify or delete any information, including, but not limited to, player characters, accounts, statistics, user profiles, and any other information accumulated or uploaded on Battle.net;
(xi) any accounts and their associated information and characters that are inactive for ninety (90) days will be deleted;
(xii) any Hardcore™ characters you create are done so at your own risk, and Blizzard shall not be held liable for the permanent death of said characters under any circumstances, including, but not limited to, disruptions in Battle.net service, lag, defects, errors, or ISP interruptions;
(xiii) Blizzard does not warrant Battle.net or any of the games played over Battle.net will be free of cheats, hacks, or programming errors that may affect the outcome of games, tournaments, Battle.net's ladder ranking systems or the general use of Battle.net; and
(xiv) the terms of this agreement shall extend to anyone that you allow to use your Battle.net account, user name or player character(s) and that you are personally responsible and liable for the consequences that may result if any such person violates the terms of the agreement, including, but not limited to, termination of your account and loss of your user names and characters.

10. Indemnification. Upon request of Blizzard, you agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless Blizzard, its parent, subsidiaries, affiliates, licensees, and distributors from all liabilities, claims and expenses, including attorneys' fees arising from breach of the Battle.net Terms of Use by use of, or in connection with, the transmission by or through your account of any content on Battle.net. Blizzard reserves the right, at its own expense, to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by you hereunder, and in such event, you shall have no further obligation to provide indemnification for such matter.

11. DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY. BATTLE.NET IS PROVIDED TO YOU "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. BLIZZARD DOES NOT WARRANT THAT THE PROGRAM WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR FREE. BLIZZARD DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ANY AND ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

12. Limitation of Liability. NEITHER BLIZZARD NOR ITS PARENT OR AFFILIATES SHALL BE LIABLE IN ANY WAY FOR LOSS OR DAMAGE OF ANY KIND RESULTING FROM THE USE OF BATTLE.NET, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, LOSS OF GOODWILL, WORK STOPPAGE, COMPUTER FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION, OR ANY AND ALL OTHER COMMERCIAL DAMAGES OR LOSSES.

13. Miscellaneous. This agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of California, without giving effect to any principles of conflicts of law. Those who choose to access this site and/or service from other locations do so on their own initiative and are responsible for compliance with local laws, if and to the extent that local laws are applicable. Software from this site and/or service is further subject to United States export controls. No software from this site and/or service may be downloaded or otherwise exported or re-exported

(i) into (or to a national or resident of) Cuba, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Iran, Syria, or any other country to which the U.S. has embargoed goods; or
(ii) to anyone on the U.S. Treasury Department's list of Specially Designated Nationals or the U.S. Commerce Department's Table of Deny Orders.

By downloading or using the software, you represent and warrant that you are not located in, under the control of, or a national or resident of any such country or on any such list. If any provision of this agreement shall be unlawful, void, or for any reason unenforceable, then that provision shall be deemed severable from this agreement and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining provisions. This is the entire agreement between the parties relating to the subject matter herein. Blizzard may change the terms of this agreement upon such advance notice, if any, as may be required by law.