Updated April 11, 2010

Please read the following carefully. This terms and conditions agreement applies to OpenFile.ca, owned and operated by thefile inc. By accessing this site, you agree to the terms and conditions that appear below. If you have any comments or questions, please email us at contact@openfile.ca.

A few important points

• OpenFile agrees to explain our policies in plain language.
• We will review and approve all content before it is posted to the OpenFile website.
• We are committed to accuracy, transparency, accountability and openness.
• We will give proper credit to those who contribute to our site by:
• Attaching their real name or username to material added to a file;
• Listing user contributions in our users’ profiles;
• Crediting contributors as the originator of a published file, the same way that professional journalists are credited with bylines.
• We will take only the rights we need and use a Creative Commons licence for submitted content. We reserve the right to copy, distribute, transmit and adapt our contributors’ work under the following conditions:
• We will attribute any elements of a contributor’s work created by a third party.
• Work or elements of a work considered to be in the public domain (under applicable law) are in no way affected by the licence.
• Certain rights are in no way affected by the licence:
• Your fair dealing or Fair Use rights, or other applicable copyright exceptions and limitations.
• Your moral rights.
• Rights that other people may hold either in the work itself or in how the work is used, such as publicity or privacy rights.

By using and/or contributing to the OpenFile website, you agree to be bound by these terms and conditions. If you do not agree to be bound by these terms and conditions, please do not use this site.

If you are under 18 years of age, please show these terms and conditions to your parents or legal guardian before using this site.

These terms and conditions may be updated at any time and without notice. We invite you to review them frequently for your own reference.

Visitor/contributor information

As a visitor to OpenFile, you may forward content from this site via email, social media application or by publishing an embedded URL to another website or blog, so long as the URL links back to the original author(s) of the content and the OpenFile website.

Visitors to OpenFile may register and become contributors by completing a personal profile. Profiles must contain true and accurate information, including a valid email address where you can be reached.

Once registered, an OpenFile contributor may:

• Comment on content displayed on the site.
• Submit content to OpenFile in the form of story ideas, photos, video, audio and other documents, as well as links to relevant external websites.

Content submissions

• Contributors who submit content to OpenFile attest that they hold all rights and authorizations needed to distribute it on the internet and via other electronic means. This includes rights for music, video, photos and/or graphics contained within the work.
• Each submission to OpenFile will be subject to a Creative Commons licence. Contributors maintain ownership of their submissions and assign to OpenFile the non-exclusive right to display and distribute the content, worldwide and in perpetuity.
• All content submitted to OpenFile will be reviewed by our editorial team. If your submission is accepted, OpenFile will notify you and post the content on our site. We will also notify you if your submission is rejected. Please expect a delay of up to one (1) business day before you hear a response from us. If you do not wish to receive further messages about the status of your submission, you may unsubscribe from our notification system by emailing a message with the subject “Unsubscribe” to contact@openfile.ca.
• Contributors consent to their name or username appearing as the originator of their submission(s). You acknowledge and agree that any material you submit to the website will be considered non-confidential.
• OpenFile reserves the right to refuse to post any submission and to edit or remove any content it receives. OpenFile may monitor the website periodically and disclose any information as necessary to satisfy any law, regulation or other governmental or court request, to operate the website properly or to protect itself or other users of the website. Any such disclosure shall be in accordance with OpenFile’s Privacy Policy.

Responsible behaviour

OpenFile expects its users and contributors to observe the basic rules of online etiquette. Actions that interfere with or attempt to interfere with the site’s functions or with other users’ ability to use the site will not be tolerated.

It is a condition of your use of OpenFile that you do not post or transmit any libelous, defamatory, racist, homophobic, sexist, unlawful, threatening, abusive, obscene, vulgar, profane or pornographic information of any kind. You may not post, transmit or link to anything that promotes or encourages religious or ethnic hatred, criminal conduct, violates any laws or regulations, or infringes upon the rights of others. OpenFile will not accept any such material. We reserve the right to block violators from the site.

For more dos and don’ts, please consult our Community Guidelines.

Indemnity

Users and contributors agree to indemnify and hold OpenFile, its officers, directors, employees and sponsors harmless from and against all claims and expenses (including legal fees and disbursements) arising out of your use of this website.

For further information regarding these terms and conditions, or for any other inquiries, please email us at contact@openfile.ca.