Blogging Website Terms of Use

These Blogging Website Terms of Use are designed for use with sites offering free blogging platforms and blog hosting.

This document has been recently updated and now includes a clause prohibiting scraping and text and data mining, practices commonly used in the development and training of AI models. The clause is designed to ensure that such activities are a direct breach of the website’s terms of use. It is also recommended that technical measures be taken to further protect a website’s content from scraping and text and data mining.

These website terms of use are designed for acceptance through use, in common with many websites. Instead of being required to read them and accept them using a checkbox or similar, visitors to your site are deemed to have accepted the terms of use as soon as they start using the site. Provision is also made in this document for user accounts. An option is thus included should you wish to make acceptance of the terms of use a part of the account sign-up process.

Important information about the website operator is provided, including company registration details, trading address, and details of any relevant regulatory bodies or associations. It is important to note that for certain trades and professions there may be additional information that you must supply. Members of regulated professions should include professional titles, links to professional rules and other important details. Such details are not included in this document and those working in regulated professions should seek professional advice.

Intellectual property rights are given important attention in this template. IP in user content (blogs, posts, and comments in this case) is treated separately from the rights in the content owned by the website operator.

Under these terms of use, in common with most sites offering similar features, users retain the copyright (and any other IP rights) in their content, and grant a licence to the website operator, by submitting it to the website. Users’ content is protected, however in common with mainstream blogging platforms, users are free to copy and share each other’s content within the website. Users are required to identify the relevant author when doing this and an option has been included for those websites that do this automatically. A further option has been included, requiring users to contact another user directly if they wish to use that user’s content in a way not already permitted under the terms of use.

Of further relevance to creation of blogs by users is the Acceptable Usage Policy. Applying to the use of the site in general, but in particular to the creation of blogs, posts, and comments, the policy sets out clearly the types of material and conduct that will not be accepted. Sanctions for breach are also provided.

A number of options are included in this document that allow you to choose how much flexibility to give to users when it comes to copying and saving material from the website, as well as establishing deep-links to pages within your site on other websites. More linking provisions included in the document may also help to prohibit users from establishing links to your website from websites publishing offensive or unlawful content.

An optional reference to advertising is provided, informing users that advertising may appear on the website and/or in their blog, and prohibiting them from attempting to hide or remove it. A further option explains that the website operator is not responsible for the content of advertising, and pointing out who is. Please note that these provisions only represent a basic example and that more complex terms may apply depending upon the source of the advertising on your site.

Disclaimers and liability provisions in this document seek to protect website operators to the maximum extent deemed reasonable. In particular, and important for sites hosting user content such as blogs, is a disclaimer noting that opinions, views, and values expressed in such content are those of their respective authors and not necessarily of the website operator.

Further key clauses address internet security, data protection, privacy and cookies (integrating separate policies into the terms and conditions by reference), and communications. All parts of this document are designed to be compatible with consumer protection legislation including, but not limited to, the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

This template is duplicated in the Website Terms & Conditions group.

Optional phrases / clauses are enclosed in square brackets. These should be read carefully and selected so as to be compatible with one another. Unused options should be removed from the document.

These Blogging Website Terms of Use contain the following clauses:

1. Definitions and Interpretation
2. Information About Us
3. Access to Our Site
4. Accounts
5. Intellectual Property Rights
6. Blogs, Posts and Comments
7. Intellectual Property Rights and Use of Other Users’ Blogs, Posts and Comments
8. Acceptable Usage Policy
9. No Scraping, Text or Data Mining
10. Links to Our Site
11. Links to Other Sites
12. [Advertising]
13. Disclaimers and Legal Rights
14. Our Liability
15. Viruses, Malware and Security
16. Privacy and Cookies
17. Data Protection
18. Communications from Us
19. Changes to these Terms and Conditions
20. Contacting Us
21. Law and Jurisdiction

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