Blogger Terms

Please read these terms below before submitting any blog posts to us. By submitting posts for publication on any site owned or operated by Patch Media Corporation ("Patch"), you agree to the terms as they are below or at the time of your submission, as they may be updated from time to time. The most current version of these terms can be viewed at any time at: http://www.patch.com/blogger-tos. They have the same effect as an agreement in writing. If you do not agree to any of these terms, please don't submit your posts.

HOW IT WORKS

You are independent. You are an independent contractor, not an employee of Patch. You agree that you are not entitled to, and don’t expect any wages or compensation for any of your content. You also agree that you are not eligible for any employee benefit plans or programs. You must obtain and pay for your own computer, Internet access, third-party clearances and licenses and everything else you need to create and submit your blog posts to us. You cannot hold yourself out as our agent or representative or attempt to bind us to any obligations.

What do I get out of this? Patch provides a forum with a targeted, local audience for you to share your views and express your unique opinions and ideas.

Post if and when you want; you are the boss. As an independent contractor, you are your own boss. You have complete control over the manner and means by which you create content for Patch, and you agree that you are not under the direction or control of Patch. You can stop posting at any time. If you decide to post, you decide when, where and how often you write and submit it. You can write or work for anyone else you want at any time. You can write about anything you want. Patch does not select or approve your topics.

Submit proper work. However, you represent to us that any blog posts, photos and any other content you submit (1) is your original work or properly licensed content that you have the express right to sublicense to us, (2) does not infringe or violate any law, rule or regulation or the rights or intellectual property rights of any person or entity (or encourage anyone else to do so), (3) is not objectionable, inaccurate or inflammatory; and (4) is not obscene, defamatory, threatening, pornographic, harassing, hateful, racially or ethnically offensive, (5) is not an advertisement or solicitation of business or contributions; or (6) is not otherwise against the interests of Patch or our users as a whole. We have the right (but not the obligation) to remove any or all of your blog posts that fail to comply with the foregoing, or for any other reason, without notice to you.

Correct your errors. If your post contains a factual error, you must correct or retract it within 24 hours after notice. If you make substantive changes (including error corrections) after your blog post has been published, you must note this at the bottom of your post. This includes matters of fact, but not changes to spelling, grammar or style or minor editorial corrections. However, in the interest of transparency, you should note to readers that an earlier version of the post had an error that was since corrected. Note: if a correction/retraction is due to a legal complaint of defamation, then the correction/retraction must be posted in as prominent a location as the defamatory content.

Receive 3rd party complaints? Send them to us. Send any 3rd party legal complaints you receive on the content posted on the Patch site to an editor. Don't respond to them yourself.

No guarantees. The Patch Blogger Program provides a forum for your ideas and expression, but is made available to you "as is" without guarantee of any results based upon the publication of your blog post, is subject to changes and could temporarily or permanently be suspended without notice to you, and without guarantee that it will operate free of errors, viruses, bugs or service breakdowns. We do not guarantee that your participation will fulfill any requirements you expect from the program.

You own your submissions, but we can still use them. You own the copyright to your submitted content and you can post it anywhere else you wish. However, by submitting any content to Patch (including text, videos, photographs or audio materials), you grant Patch a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, perpetual license to exercise all rights under copyright law with respect to such content, which Patch may use and exploit (along with your name and identifying features) on their websites and other properties and those of their affiliates and business partners, as well as for marketing and promotional purposes, online or offline, in any medium and mode of delivery.

We may be required to provide information about you. You agree that if Patch is legally required to disclose information that we have about you (including your IP address and location, name and user name), we may do so, without notice to you.

Complaints and Inquiries/Choice of law. If you violate any of the Blogger terms, or we receive an inquiry or complaint about your post, you agree that you are responsible. This agreement is governed by New York law, and if we have a dispute about it, or about any content that you submit to us, the dispute will be resolved only in the courts of New York. We may provide you notices about the Patch Blogger Program and these terms by e-mail. These terms make up the entire agreement between you and us and cannot be changed unless we agree to it in writing.

Entire Agreement. These guidelines and Patch's Terms of Use constitute the entire agreement between you and Patch regarding the subjects covered. No other agreements, understandings, promises, or representations, other than those contained here and in Patch's Terms of Use, are part of the agreement between you and Patch.