Effective Date: October 2004
Terms and Conditions of Use
This website, including any subsite accessible through the homepage (the "Site"), is published and maintained by subsidiaries, affiliates, and/or related entities of Sony Manufacturing Systems America, Inc. ("Sony"). Please note that when you enter any subsite accessible through this homepage or the shopping page, such subsite may have its own terms and conditions of use which are specific to such subsite. When you access, browse, or use this Site you accept, without limitation or qualification, the terms and conditions set forth below and any additional terms and conditions of use set forth in any subsite.
Your Right to Use
the Site and Its Contents
This Site is only for your personal use. You may not distribute,
exchange, modify, sell, or transmit anything you copy from this Site,
including
but not limited to any text, images, audio, and video, for any business,
commercial,
or public purpose. As long as you comply with the terms of these Terms
and Conditions of Use, Sony grants you a non-exclusive, non-transferable,
limited right to enter, display, and use this Site. You agree not to
interrupt or attempt to interrupt the operation of this Site in any
way.
Ownership
All materials on this Site, including but not limited to audio, images,
software, text, and video clips (the "Content"), are protected
by copyright under U.S. copyright law, international conventions,
and other copyright laws. You cannot use the Content, except as specified
herein.
You agree to follow all instructions on this Site limiting the way
you may use the Content. There are a number of proprietary logos,
service marks,
and trademarks found on this Site. By making them available on this
Site, Sony is not granting you any license to utilize those proprietary
logos,
service marks, or trademarks. Any unauthorized use of the Content
may violate copyright laws, trademark laws, the laws of privacy and
publicity, and
civil and criminal statutes.
You may download one (1) copy only of the Content to be used only by you for your personal use at home, unless the subsite you are accessing states that you may not. If you download any Content from this Site, you may not remove any copyright or trademark notices or other notices that go with it.
Rules for Chatrooms,
Bulletin Boards, and Other User-Supplied Material
This website may have an area which allows you to "chat" or
upload and download materials. When using any of these areas, you agree
not to
post, send, transmit, upload, or otherwise publish through this
Site, any materials that (1) interfere with anyone else's use of the
Site; (2) are
abusive, illegal, indecent, obscene, offensive, or threatening
in any way; (3) encourage anyone to break the law; (4) violate anyone's
copyright or
other property right; (5) interfere with the privacy of any other
user; (6) contain a virus or any other harmful component; or (7) contain
false
or misleading statements of fact or descriptions of the origin
of the material or the communication. You agree to comply with any
additional terms which
are referred to on this Site or any subsite within the website.
Responsibility for
User's Material
You are prohibited from posting or transmitting any defamatory,
libelous, obscene, pornographic, profane, threatening, or unlawful
material
or any material that could constitute or encourage conduct
that would be considered
a criminal offense or give rise to civil liability, or otherwise
violate
any law. Although Sony may from time to time monitor or review
bulletin boards, chatrooms, discussions, postings, transmissions,
and the
like on the Site, Sony is under no obligation to do so and
assumes no liability
or responsibility arising from the contents of any such communications
or for any defamation, error, inaccuracy, libel, obscenity,
or profanity contained in any such communication. Sony may change,
edit, or remove
any
user material or conversations that are illegal, indecent,
obscene,
or offensive, or that violate Sony's policies in any way. Sony
will fully
cooperate with any law enforcement authorities or court order
requesting or directing Sony to disclose the identity of anyone
posting such
materials.
Sony's Rights to
User's Material
If you send any communications or materials to the Site by
electronic mail or otherwise, including any comments, data,
questions, suggestions,
or
the like, all such communications are, and will be treated
as, non-confidential and non-proprietary. Thus, you give
up any claim
that any use of
such material violates any of your rights including moral
rights, privacy
rights, proprietary
or other property rights, publicity rights, rights to credit
for material or ideas, or any other right, including the
right to approve
the way
Sony uses such material.
Any material submitted to this Site may be adapted, broadcast, changed, copied, disclosed, licensed, performed, posted, published, sold, transmitted, or used by Sony anywhere in the world, in any medium, forever. Furthermore, Sony is free to use, without any compensation to you, any concepts, ideas, know-how, or techniques contained in any communication you send to the Site for any purpose whatsoever, including but not limited to developing, manufacturing, and marketing products using such information. However, you agree and understand that Sony is not obligated to use any such ideas or materials, and you have no rights to compel such use.
Transmitted Material
Internet transmissions are never completely private or
secure. You understand that any message or information
you send to
this Site
may be read or
intercepted by others, unless there is a special notice
that a particular message (for
example, credit card information) is encrypted (sent
in code). Sending a message to Sony does not cause Sony to
have any
special responsibility
to you.
Links
This website may contain links to other Internet sites
on the World Wide Web. Sony provides such links for
your convenience
only, and
is not responsible
for the content of any website linked to or from this
Site. Links from this Site to any other website do
not mean that
Sony approves
of, endorses,
or recommends that website. Sony disclaims all warranties,
express or implied, as to the accuracy, legality, reliability,
or validity
of any
content on
any other website.
Contests
This Site may contain contests that offer prizes or
that require you to send in material or information
about
yourself. Each
contest has
its own
rules, which you must read and agree to before you
may enter.
Rules for Kids (Under Age 16)
If you are under 16, you should ask your parents
or a guardian before you:
* E-mail the Site, or ask us to e-mail anything
to you
* Send in any information
* Enter any contest or game that requires information
about you or offers a prize
* Join any club or group
* Post any information on any bulletin board or
enter any chatroom or
* Buy anything online
Availability of Products
and Services
The products and services displayed on the Site may
not be available for purchase in your particular
country or locality.
The reference
to such
products and services on the Site does not imply
or warrant
that these products or services will be available
at any time in your
particular
location. You should check with your local Sony
authorized representative for the
availability of specific products and services
in your area.
Sony's Right to Change
These Terms and Conditions of Use or Content on the Site
Sony may add to, change, or remove any part of
these Terms and Conditions of Use at any time,
without
notice. Any
changes to
these Terms and
Conditions of Use or any terms posted on this
Site apply as soon as they are posted.
By continuing to use this Site after any changes
are posted, you are indicating your acceptance
of those
changes. Sony
may add,
change, discontinue, remove,
or suspend any other Content posted on this Site,
including features and specifications of products
described or
depicted on the Site,
temporarily
or permanently, at any time, without notice and
without liability.
Indemnification
You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold Sony
and all of its agents, directors, employees,
information
providers,
licensors
and licensees,
officers, and
parent (collectively, "Indemnified Parties"),
harmless from and against any and all liability
and costs (including, without limitation,
attorneys' fees and costs), incurred by the
Indemnified Parties in connection with any
claim arising out of any breach by you of these
Terms and Conditions
of Use or the foregoing representations, warranties,
and covenants. You will cooperate as fully
as reasonably required in Sony's defense of
any
claim. Sony reserves the right, at its own
expense, to assume the exclusive defense and
control of any matter otherwise subject to
indemnification
by you and you shall not in any event settle
any matter without the written consent of Sony.
Disclaimer of Warranties
and Damages; Limitation of Liability
YOUR USE OF THIS SITE IS AT YOUR OWN RISK.
THIS SITE (INCLUDING ALL CONTENT AND FUNCTIONS
MADE
AVAILABLE
ON OR ACCESSED
THROUGH THIS
SITE) IS PROVIDED "AS
IS." TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE
BY LAW, WITH REGARD TO THE CONTENT ON THIS
SITE, SONY MAKES NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES
OF ANY
KIND WHATSOEVER (1) FOR THE ACCURACY, MERCHANTABILITY,
FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT
OF ANY CONTENT PUBLISHED ON OR AVAILABLE
THROUGH
THE SITE; (2) THAT THE SERVER THAT MAKES
THIS SITE AVAILABLE IS FREE OF VIRUSES OR
OTHER COMPONENTS THAT MAY INFECT, HARM, OR
CAUSE DAMAGE TO YOUR
COMPUTER EQUIPMENT OR ANY OTHER PROPERTY
WHEN YOU ACCESS, BROWSE, DOWNLOAD FROM, OR
OTHERWISE USE THE SITE.
UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO SONY'S NEGLIGENCE, SHALL SONY BE LIABLE FOR ANY CONSEQUENTIAL, DIRECT, INCIDENTAL, INDIRECT, PUNITIVE, OR SPECIAL DAMAGES RELATED TO (A) THE USE OF, (B) THE INABILITY TO USE, OR (C) ERRORS OR OMISSIONS IN THE CONTENTS AND FUNCTIONS OF THIS SITE, EVEN IF SONY OR AN AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE THEREOF HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. IN NO EVENT SHALL SONY'S TOTAL LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ALL DAMAGES, LOSSES, AND CAUSES OF ACTION (WHETHER IN CONTRACT OR TORT, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) EXCEED $100.00.
General Provisions
These Terms and Conditions of Use and any
additional terms posted on this Site
together constitute
the entire agreement
between
Sony and
you with
respect to your use of this Site. Any
cause of action you may have with respect to
your use
of this Site
must be
commenced within
one (1) year
after the claim or cause of action arises.
If for any reason a court of competent
jurisdiction finds
any
provision of
these
Terms
and
Conditions of Use, or portion thereof,
to be unenforceable, that provision shall
be
enforced to the maximum extent permissible
so
as to effect the intent of this agreement,
and the
remainder of these
Terms and
Conditions
of Use
shall continue in full force and effect.
These Terms and Conditions of Use shall
be
governed
by and construed
in
accordance with
the laws of
the State of New York, United States
of America, without
reference to its conflicts
of law rules.
Online Privacy Policy
Your Privacy
At Sony we believe that, as our online
visitor, you have a right to know our
practices regarding
the
information we collect
when
you visit
our
websites, and what type of information
is collected. The guidelines contained
herein
only apply to your visits to www.sonysms.com,
which is operated
by Sony Manufacturing Systems America,
Inc. ("SMSA").
This includes web pages on www.sonysms.com
that contain "sonysms.com" in
their URLs, but does not include any
redirect URLs that link the user to
another internet domain. Other websites
which
are linked to/from www.sonysms.com
(including other Sony affiliates, other
SMSA websites, and via banner ads)
may have different policies; therefore,
please review the privacy policy notices
on those websites for details.
While SMSA does not
generally require that you provide us with personally
identifiable information
in
order to visit
and use
the SMSA websites,
please note that in order to participate
in some activities, it will be necessary
for you to provide this information.
If
you choose not to provide it for
those activities,
you may
not be able
to participate
in them.
Collection of Information: Cookies;
Personal
For each visitor to an SMSA website, SMSA's web server automatically recognizes and stores information, such as the visitor's IP address/domain name combination and any referring websites. We use this information to understand visitor traffic patterns through our websites for purposes such as enhancing their usability. Your computer provides this information automatically each time you log on, unless you've activated blocking technology available in some browsers.
When you visit SMSA's websites or advertisements appearing thereon, or use one or more of the SMSA website services, we may use an industry-wide technology called "cookies" which stores certain information on your computer and which will allow us to customize your experience to better match your interests and preferences, or to simply facilitate your signing in to use the services. Most browsers will allow you to erase cookies from your computer hard drive, block acceptance of cookies, or receive a warning before a cookie is stored. However, if you block or erase cookies, we may not be able to restore any preferences or customization settings you previously specified, and our ability to personalize your online experience would be limited. Please refer to your browser instructions or "help" screen to learn more about these functions.
Also, SMSA, or third parties on its behalf, may collect anonymous information from visits to our sites through the use of "Web Beacons." Web Beacons are electronic Web Page images that enable us to record anonymous data about visits to our web site. This anonymous information is sometimes known as "clickstream data." We may use this data to analyze trends and statistics to improve your online experience, or customer service. No personal data is collected through the use of Web Beacons on our sites.
Additionally, SMSA may ask you to provide "personal information," meaning individually identifiable information such as your e-mail address, name, mailing address, telephone number, social security number, credit card number, or persistent identifier (such as a customer number held in a cookie) which is associated with individually identifiable information, to enable you to participate in contests, chatrooms, on bulletin boards, to fill out a registration, or to order products and services using these websites. SMSA may combine the information you provide on our websites with other information we may collect from you offline or from third parties so that we can more effectively tailor our website, services, and offerings to you. If you provide SMSA with personal information, you shall have the right, on reasonable prior notice, to inspect, change, amend, or delete such information. Instructions on how to update personal information will be given at the point of data collection.
Unless you instruct us otherwise, SMSA may contact you to provide information about products, services, promotions, contests, or other activities or offerings that may be of interest to you. You can instruct us whether or not you wish to be contacted by checking or removing the check from the box indicating your preference as applicable at the place where your information is collected, or by other means (such as an e-mail request). In addition, with each communication you receive from SMSA, you will be given the opportunity to indicate if you do not wish to receive future communications.
Unless it is for the purposes you have requested or originally agreed, SMSA will not share the personal information you provide on the SMSA websites with any other parties, except (a) with your consent; (b) as may be required by law or court order; (c) to persons or companies with whom SMSA contracts to carry out the internal operations of the website or our business; or (d) under exigent circumstances to protect the personal safety or property of our users, the public, or ourselves.
Additionally and with your consent, SMSA may share your personal information with other affiliated Sony companies -- i.e., (i) Sony Corporation, (ii) any company of which more than 50% of its outstanding shares are owned by Sony Corporation, directly or indirectly, or (iii) any company with the name "SONY" as a part of its trade name -- who may want to contact you about products, services, or other offerings that may be of interest to you. Further, only with your consent, SMSA may share your personal information with specific third parties outside of the Sony group of companies who may want to contact you about products, services, or other offerings that may be of interest to you. Please consult the respective privacy policies of each of these companies for further clarification as to their own privacy policy. SMSA will seek to obtain your consent at the place where the information is collected either by an "opt-out" or "opt-in" method, or by other means (such as an e-mail request). If you consent to receiving communications from any of these affiliated Sony companies, or third parties, you will need to communicate with them directly if you later decide that you no longer wish to receive their communications. Until we advise you, except as indicated above for the initial decision made with your consent to share your personal information with Sony affiliates and/or specific third parties outside of the Sony group of companies, changes or amendments to your personal information must be given both to SMSA and to each such Sony affiliate or other company directly, as these changes, amendments, and/or deletions will not be exchanged among SMSA and other Sony affiliates or third parties.
Use and Disclosure
of Anonymous Aggregated
Information
SMSA may also collect,
aggregate, and maintain
anonymous
information about
the visitors
to our websites,
such as visitors'
hobbies, interests,
purchasing
habits, music preferences,
and the like. This
data can then
be used
to tailor
SMSA's website
content
and advertising
to
deliver
a better
experience
for our visitors.
In addition, SMSA
may also
share such
aggregate information
about our
visitors
with advertisers,
business
partners, sponsors,
and other third parties;
for example, to inform
them
about the percentage
of
male/female
visitors or percentage
of visitors within
a
particular age range.
Security
While SMSA cannot
guarantee that
unauthorized access
will never
occur, rest assured
that SMSA takes
great care in
maintaining the
security of your personal
information and
in preventing unauthorized
access to
it through the
use of appropriate technology
and internal
procedures.
Notice To/Regarding
Children Under
the Age of 13
If you are under
13 years of age,
you should
not
provide any personally
identifiable
information (for
example, your
last name, home
address
or e-mail address)
on these sites
without the
knowledge
and permission
of your parent
or guardian.
If
SMSA
learns that you
are under 13
years of
age,
SMSA will not
maintain
or use
any personally
identifiable
information about
you without the
verifiable consent
of your
parent or guardian,
except
as allowed by
law. This may
mean that
you will be
unable to participate
in
some activities
on the sites
without that
verifiable
consent.
SMSA believes that children using the Internet require special protection, and we urge parents or guardians to explain Internet safety to their children. Parents are urged to spend time online with their children to become familiar with the types of content available on the SMSA websites and the Internet in general. Control tools are available from online services and software manufacturers to help create a safer environment for children.
If a child under 13 years of age wishes to participate in any SMSA website activity, or wishes to take advantage of a product or service offering, available to children, and to do so necessitates the furnishing of any of the child's personal information, please note the following:
(i) Before any collection of a child's personal information takes place at a website directed to children or where SMSA is knowingly collecting children's personal information, the child will be asked to provide his/her parent's or guardian's e-mail address. SMSA will then send an e-mail (the "Initial Notification") to the parent/guardian indicating, among other things, the information that the child is requested to provide; the intended use(s) of the information; and information on how the parent/guardian can, at their election, delete the child's information from SMSA's database or records. Upon receipt of the Initial Notification, a parent or guardian may respond back to SMSA to grant his/her consent or to deny consent, in which case SMSA will delete the parent or guardian's e-mail address. Upon SMSA's receipt of the parent/guardian consent, SMSA will send a confirming e-mail to the parent/guardian's e-mail address
(ii) The e-mail address of the operator collecting or maintaining personal information from children through this website is: SMSA-InfoWebmaster@am.sony.com
(iii) The types of personal information collected from children may include the name, e-mail address, home address, telephone number, and/or any other information reasonably necessary for the child to participate in a particular activity. This information may be collected directly and/or passively (e.g., through a web server that automatically recognizes and stores information, such as a visitor's IP address/domain name combination)
(iv) The information collected may be used for purposes such as fulfillment of a requested transaction, record keeping, marketing back to the child, or making it publicly available through a chatroom or by other means
(v) Unless specific consent is obtained from the child's parent or guardian, the child's personal information will not be disclosed to third parties who are not contractors hired to carry out the internal operations of the websites, other than as may be required by law. We have required, or will require, such contractors to agree to use personal information of website visitors only for the purposes of carrying out these operations and to keep such information confidential. A parent or guardian has the option of consenting to the collection and use of the child's personal information without consenting to the disclosure of that information to third parties
(vi) SMSA is prohibited from conditioning a child's participation in an activity on the child's disclosing more personal information than is reasonably necessary to participate in such activity
(vii) A parent can review and have deleted the child's personal information, can refuse to permit further collection or use of the child's information, and can revoke or limit consents previously given. For instructions on how to do so, please send an e-mail to: SMSA-InfoWebmaster@am.sony.com.
(viii) If SMSA desires to use a child's information for purposes other than that for which the parent/guardian consent was previously given, SMSA will not do so without first getting the parent/guardian consent
Consent
to Processing
By
providing any
personal information
to the
SMSA websites,
all users,
including without
limitation users
in the
member states
of the
European Union,
fully understand
and unambiguously
consent to
the collection
and processing
of such
information in
the United
States of
America.
Policy
Governs Use;
Changes to
Privacy Policy
The
terms of
this policy
will govern
the use
and any
information collected
while it
is in
place. SMSA
reserves the
right to
change this
policy at
any time,
so please
re-visit this
page as
often as
you wish.
In case
of any
material change,
we will
make a
notation near
the "Privacy Policy" link
on the home page of our Site. Changes to this privacy policy
are effective at the time they are posted to this Site, and
your continued use of this
Site after posting will constitute acceptance of, and agreement
to be bound by, those changes.
Questions
If
you have
any questions
or comments
about our
personal information
practices or
about this
privacy statement,
please feel
free to
send us
an e-mail
at SMSA-InfoWebmaster@am.sony.com.
For any Customer Service issues with products or services by Sony Manufacturing Systems America, Inc. please visit our Help page, which includes links to Customer Service and Support for these divisions.
To report any technical problems with this website, you can e-mail us at: SMSA-InfoWebmaster@am.sony.com
