Creator Terms of Service

1. Introduction & Acceptance

Welcome to the Qityol Creator Platform (“Platform”), operated by Qityol. (“Qityol,” “we,” “us,” or “our”). These Creator Terms of Service (“Terms”) constitute a legally binding agreement between you (“Creator,” “you,” or “your”) and Qityol governing your use of the Qityol creator portal located at creators.qityol.com and all related services, tools, and APIs made available through the Platform.

By creating an account, uploading content, or otherwise accessing the Platform, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these Terms, our Privacy Policy, and any additional guidelines or policies referenced herein. If you do not agree, you must not access or use the Platform.

2. Eligibility

To use the Platform as a Creator, you must:

1. Be at least 18 years of age or the age of majority in your jurisdiction;
2. Have the legal capacity to enter into a binding agreement;
3. Provide truthful, accurate, and complete information during registration and at all times thereafter;
4. Not have been previously banned or removed from the Platform for violations of these Terms or applicable law.

3. Creator Account

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials and for all activities that occur under your account. You must immediately notify Qityol at [email protected] of any unauthorized use of your account.

Qityol reserves the right to suspend or terminate any account that we reasonably believe is being used in violation of these Terms, without prior notice and without liability.

4. Content Ownership & Licensing

4.1 Your Content

You retain ownership of all original content you upload to the Platform (“Creator Content”), including but not limited to eBooks, audiobooks, podcast episodes, cover artwork, descriptions, and metadata.

4.2 License Grant to Qityol

By uploading Creator Content, you grant Qityol a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, sublicensable, and transferable license to host, store, reproduce, distribute, display, perform, and transmit your Creator Content solely for the purpose of operating, promoting, and improving the Platform and delivering your content to purchasers and subscribers.

4.3 Representations & Warranties

You represent and warrant that:

1. You are the sole author or owner of the Creator Content, or you possess all necessary rights, licenses, consents, and permissions to upload and distribute such content through the Platform;
2. The Creator Content does not infringe, misappropriate, or violate any third party's intellectual property rights, rights of publicity, rights of privacy, or any other proprietary rights;
3. The Creator Content does not contain any material that is unlawful, defamatory, obscene, harmful, threatening, harassing, or otherwise objectionable;
4. You have obtained all necessary permissions from any third parties whose copyrighted material, likeness, or personal information appears in your content.

5. Copyright Infringement, Piracy & Intellectual Property Enforcement

5.1 Prohibited Conduct

You must NOT:

• Upload, publish, or distribute any content that you did not create or for which you do not hold valid, documented rights of distribution;
• Sell, distribute, or reproduce books, audiobooks, podcasts, or any other works authored by another party without their express, written authorization;
• Reproduce, re-package, or redistribute content obtained from other platforms, publishers, libraries, or any other source without proper licensing;
• Use artificial intelligence or automated tools to generate content that substantially copies or is derived from copyrighted works;
• Misrepresent yourself as the author, publisher, or rights holder of any content;
• Circumvent, disable, or interfere with any digital rights management, content identification, or anti-piracy measures implemented by the Platform.

5.2 Payout Holds & Forfeiture

If Qityol has reasonable grounds to suspect that any Creator Content infringes third-party intellectual property rights, or that a Creator account is being used for piracy, fraud, or unauthorized distribution:

1. Immediate payout hold: All pending and future payouts associated with your account will be frozen immediately, without prior notice, pending investigation;
2. Content removal: The infringing content will be removed from the Platform immediately;
3. Investigation: Qityol will conduct an investigation, which may include requesting documentation proving your rights to the content. You will be given an opportunity to respond within fourteen (14) calendar days;
4. Forfeiture of earnings: If the investigation confirms infringement, all earnings derived from infringing content will be permanently forfeited. Such funds may be used to refund affected purchasers or remit to the rightful copyright holder;
5. Permanent account ban: Your account will be permanently terminated, and you will be banned for life from creating any new account on all Qityol platforms, including but not limited to creators.qityol.com, qityol.com, and the Qityol mobile applications.

5.3 Legal Prosecution

In addition to the remedies described above, Qityol reserves the right to pursue all available legal remedies against any Creator who engages in copyright infringement, piracy, or intellectual property theft, including but not limited to:

• Civil action for damages under the United States Copyright Act (17 U.S.C. § 101 et seq.), including statutory damages of up to $150,000 per work infringed for willful infringement, plus attorney's fees and court costs;
• Criminal referral to the U.S. Department of Justice for criminal copyright infringement under 17 U.S.C. § 506 and 18 U.S.C. § 2319, which may result in fines and imprisonment of up to five (5) years for a first offense, or up to ten (10) years for subsequent offenses;
• Referral to international law enforcement agencies where applicable under international copyright treaties, including the Berne Convention and the WIPO Copyright Treaty;
• Cooperation with rights holders and their legal representatives in pursuing claims and litigation against infringing parties.

5.4 DMCA Compliance

Qityol complies with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”) and is registered with the U.S. Copyright Office. If you believe content on the Platform infringes your copyright, you may submit a takedown notice to our designated DMCA agent:

Notices must comply with the requirements of 17 U.S.C. § 512(c)(3) and include: identification of the copyrighted work, identification of the infringing material with sufficient detail to locate it, your contact information, a statement of good faith belief, a statement under penalty of perjury, and your physical or electronic signature.

5.5 Creator Liability for Legal Fees

If any third party (including but not limited to copyright holders, publishers, authors, or their legal representatives) initiates legal proceedings, files a lawsuit, or brings any claim against you arising from or related to Creator Content you uploaded, published, or distributed through the Platform, you agree that you shall be solely responsible for:

• All attorney's fees, legal costs, and expenses incurred in your defense, regardless of the outcome of the proceedings;
• All damages, settlements, judgments, fines, and any other monetary awards or penalties imposed by a court, arbitrator, or regulatory body;
• All costs incurred by Qityol in responding to, cooperating with, or participating in any investigation, legal proceeding, or regulatory inquiry arising from your content, including Qityol's own attorney's fees, expert witness fees, and administrative costs;
• All costs associated with court filings, discovery, depositions,mediation, arbitration, and any appeal proceedings.

Qityol shall have no obligation to fund, subsidize, or contribute to your legal defense. This obligation survives the termination or suspension of your account and applies regardless of whether the claim is ultimately found to have merit.

6. Revenue, Fees & Payouts

6.1 Revenue Split

Qityol operates on an 80/20 revenue split. Creators receive eighty percent (80%) of the net sale price of each transaction, after deduction of payment processing fees charged by Stripe and applicable taxes. Qityol retains twenty percent (20%) as a platform fee to cover infrastructure, payment processing, customer support, and platform development.

6.2 Payment Processing

All payments are processed through Stripe Connect. By using the Platform, you agree to Stripe's Connected Account Agreement, including the Stripe Terms of Service. Stripe may assess additional fees for currency conversion, cross-border transfers, or other services.

6.3 Payout Schedule & Minimums

Payouts are available on a manual or automatic basis, subject to a minimum withdrawal threshold of $10.00 USD. Funds from sales are typically available for withdrawal within 2–7 business days of the transaction, subject to Stripe's standard holding period. Qityol is not responsible for delays caused by Stripe, banking institutions, or other third parties.

6.4 Taxes

You are solely responsible for reporting and paying all applicable taxes on income earned through the Platform. Qityol may issue tax forms (such as IRS Form 1099) where required by law. You agree to provide accurate tax identification information upon request.

6.5 Refunds & Chargebacks

If a purchaser receives a refund or initiates a chargeback, the corresponding Creator earnings will be deducted from your balance. If your balance is insufficient, the deduction will be applied to future earnings.

7. Acceptable Use Policy

In addition to the content restrictions in Section 5, you agree not to:

• Use the Platform for any unlawful purpose or in violation of any applicable law;
• Manipulate sales, reviews, ratings, or analytics through artificial or deceptive means;
• Create multiple accounts to circumvent bans, restrictions, or payout limits;
• Engage in price manipulation, including artificially inflating prices for the purpose of fraudulent refunds;
• Use automated scripts, bots, or scrapers to interact with the Platform;
• Upload malware, viruses, or any harmful code through content files;
• Harass, threaten, or abuse other Creators, customers, or Qityol staff;
• Impersonate any person or entity, or falsely state or misrepresent your affiliation with a person or entity.

8. Account Suspension & Termination

8.1 By Qityol

Qityol may, at its sole discretion and without prior notice, suspend or permanently terminate your account and access to the Platform for any reason, including but not limited to: violation of these Terms, suspected fraudulent activity, intellectual property infringement, inactivity exceeding twelve (12) months, or upon request from law enforcement.

8.2 By You

You may close your account at any time by contacting [email protected]. Upon closure, any remaining balance above the minimum payout threshold will be disbursed within thirty (30) days, provided no investigations are pending.

8.3 Effects of Termination

Upon termination: (a) your right to access the Platform ceases immediately; (b) all Creator Content may be removed from the Platform; (c) purchasers who previously bought your content will retain access to their purchases; (d) Sections 4, 5, 6.4, 9, 10, 11, 12, and 13 shall survive termination.

9. Disclaimers

PLEASE READ THIS SECTION CAREFULLY

THE PLATFORM IS PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, QITYOL DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. QITYOL DOES NOT WARRANT THAT THE PLATFORM WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE, OR THAT ANY DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED.

10. Limitation of Liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, IN NO EVENT SHALL QITYOL, ITS OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, OR AFFILIATES BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF PROFITS, REVENUE, DATA, GOODWILL, OR OTHER INTANGIBLE LOSSES, ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO YOUR USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE PLATFORM, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

QITYOL'S TOTAL AGGREGATE LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ALL CLAIMS ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO THESE TERMS OR THE PLATFORM SHALL NOT EXCEED THE AMOUNTS PAID TO YOU BY QITYOL IN THE TWELVE (12) MONTHS PRECEDING THE EVENT GIVING RISE TO THE CLAIM.

11. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Qityol and its officers, directors, employees, agents, and affiliates from and against any and all claims, damages, losses, liabilities, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or related to: (a) your use of the Platform; (b) your Creator Content; (c) your violation of these Terms; (d) your violation of any third-party rights, including intellectual property rights; or (e) any claim that your Creator Content caused damage to a third party.

12. Governing Law & Dispute Resolution

12.1 Governing Law

These Terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Delaware, United States of America, without regard to its conflict of law provisions. All matters arising out of or relating to these Terms shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the federal and state courts located in the State of Delaware.

12.2 Arbitration

Any dispute, controversy, or claim arising out of or relating to these Terms that cannot be resolved through good-faith negotiation within thirty (30) days shall be finally settled by binding arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”) under its Commercial Arbitration Rules. The arbitration shall take place in Delaware, United States, and shall be conducted in English. The arbitrator's award shall be final and binding and may be entered as a judgment in any court of competent jurisdiction.

12.3 Class Action Waiver

YOU AGREE THAT ANY DISPUTE RESOLUTION PROCEEDINGS WILL BE CONDUCTED ONLY ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS AND NOT IN A CLASS, CONSOLIDATED, OR REPRESENTATIVE ACTION. YOU WAIVE ANY RIGHT TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT OR CLASS-WIDE ARBITRATION.

13. General Provisions

• Entire Agreement: These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy and any supplemental policies, constitute the entire agreement between you and Qityol regarding the Platform.
• Amendments: Qityol reserves the right to modify these Terms at any time. Material changes will be communicated via email or through a notice on the Platform at least thirty (30) days before taking effect. Your continued use after such notice constitutes acceptance.
• Severability: If any provision of these Terms is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall continue in full force and effect.
• Waiver: Qityol's failure to enforce any right or provision shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision.
• Assignment: You may not assign or transfer these Terms without Qityol's prior written consent. Qityol may assign these Terms without restriction.
• Force Majeure: Qityol shall not be liable for delays or failure in performance resulting from causes beyond our reasonable control, including natural disasters, acts of government, pandemics, or internet disruptions.

14. Contact Us

If you have any questions about these Terms, please contact us: