# Terms of Use
By visiting CyTube (https://cytu.be), you agree to abide by the following rules
and policies. Violations of these policies are punishable by removal of access
to the website and in some circumstances may also result in legal action.
This document may be updated at any time without prior notice.
## DMCA
CyTube operates in Seattle, WA, USA and hence complies with the Digital Millenium
Copyright Act with respect to copyrighted content. **Note that CyTube does not
host audio or video content on its servers.** Video and audio content are
hosted on third-party websites and the links to such content are provided by
users of the website. CyTube does not promote or endorse any video or audio
content displayed on any channel.
### Copyright Holders
If you in good faith believe that content is shared on CyTube without permission
from the copyright holder, and this sharing is not protected by Fair Use, please
send a properly formatted DMCA takedown notice (see [17 U.S.C. ยง
512](http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap5.html#512)) to cyzon@cytu.be and CC
xaekai@cytu.be. Please include "DMCA" in the subject line, and include the
following information:
* The link to the page where this content is shared.
* Identification of the alleged infringing content.
* A digital or physical signature of the owner of the copyright or the person
authorized to act on the copyright owner's behalf.
* Your name, address, email address, and telephone number.
* A statement that you have a good faith belief that the use of the alleged
infringing material is not authorized by the copyright owner, an authorized
agent of the copyright owner, or United States law.
* A statement by you, under penalty of perjury, that the information in the
notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or are authorized to
act on behalf of the copyright owner.
Upon receipt of a valid DMCA takedown notice, access to the content will be
removed, and the user who shared the content will be notified of the takedown
and their right to file a counter-notice. All DMCA takedown notices will have
private information redacted and will be posted to the [Lumen
database](https://lumendatabase.org/).
A history of previous DMCA notices received is avilable
[here](https://cytu.be/dmca/).
### Channel Owners
Upon receipt of a DMCA takedown notice for content shared on a channel, a CyTube
administrator will remove the infringing content from the channel and provide a
copy of the takedown notice to the owner of the channel. If the owner believes
that the takedown notice is invalid or mistaken, they may contact cyzon@cytu.be
about the procedure for filing a counter-notice.
Channels receiving multiple DMCA takedown notices, either for the same content
or for different content, will be suspended or banned permanently, at the
discretion of CyTube administrators.
## Use of YouTube API Services
CyTube makes use of YouTube API Services in order to provide YouTube embed
functionality. Use of YouTube-related features is subject to the [YouTube Terms
of Service](https://www.youtube.com/t/terms).
## User Behavior
* Users must be at least 13 years old to register an account.
* Impersonating other users, including but not limited to website staff, is
prohibited.
* Harassing other users is prohibited.
* Blackmailing, doxxing, or otherwise sharing personal information without
permission is prohibited.
* Raiding, trolling, spamming, or otherwise disrupting channels is prohibited.
* Advertising other channels is allowed only with permission from the
administrators of both the channel being advertised and the channel where
the advertisement takes place. Blatant spamming of links to your channel in
other channels will result in a permanent ban from the website.
* Attempting to disrupt the service or circumvent its security is prohibited.
Please see the [security policy](security.md) for details.
* All users are required to abide by the rules of the below Channel Content
policy when sharing content in any channel.
## Channel Content
* All content, including but not limited to embedded audio and video, images,
and links to external content must be legal to view and share in the State
of Washington, USA.
* Legal adult content, such as pornography, is permitted only in channels
clearly marked as 18+ in the channel title, and only when all users of the
channel are of legal age to view such content. Distribution of child
pornography is strictly prohibited and will be reported to the relevant
authorities.
* Sexualizing content involving minors, even if that content is otherwise
legal, is prohibited. For example, channels in which users watch (legal)
videos of children and make sexual remarks about those children are not
allowed.
* Content must not attempt to circumvent the privacy or security measures of
any user's web browser. Please see the [security policy](security.md) for
details.
* Custom content (such as CSS and JavaScript) must not remove, obscure,
modify, or otherwise interfere with any prompts or options that allow users
to disable custom content (such as the channel JS accept/deny prompt or the
custom embed warning).
* Custom content such as CSS and JavaScript may only be used with permission
from the authors of such content. Copying customizations from other
channels without permission is not allowed.
* Content must comply with the corresponding terms of service for the website
which hosts the content.
* Content must not disrupt the service as a whole or the experience of
individual users.
* Malicious or fraudulent content is prohibited.
* Advertisements are prohibited.
* Donation links to support individual channels are allowed, but only if
clearly and visibly marked to inform users that the donation is supporting
the channel and not the website as a whole.
**Note:** In addition to these guidelines, please refer to the [channel takedown
policy](channel-takedowns.md) for details about how reported content is handled.
Please read this before complaining about your channel being unfairly banned.
## Bot Behavior
Non-human users (bots) are allowed on the website, provided they comply with
these rules
* Bots are only allowed in a channel with permission from the channel owner.
* Bots must rate limit their interaction with the server. In general, bots
should send no more than 10 socket.io messages in one second. Use good
judgement, and try to avoid placing unnecessary load on the server.
## Disclaimer of Liability
* Content on CyTube is provided "as-is". CyTube makes no warranties, express
or implied, and hereby disclaims and negates all other warranties,
including, without limitation, implied warranties or conditions of
merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement of
intellectual property or other violation of rights. Furthermore, CyTube does
not make any representations concerning the accuracy or reliability of
content present on CyTube. In no event shall the authors or operators of
CyTube be liable for any claim, damages, or other liability, whether in
action of contract or otherwise, arising from, out of or in connection with
CyTube or use of CyTube.
* CyTube permits users to share links, embedded content, or other content
insofar as the shared content complies with this agreement, United States
law, and where applicable, local laws. CyTube, its owners, and operators are
not responsible for the content shared, or any consequences of sharing such
content. CyTube does not endorse any user-provided content. Viewing shared
content is done at the user's own risk.