Terms of Service

1. Welcome to Pipit

These Terms of Service ("Terms") are a binding agreement between you and Pipit LLC, a Florida limited liability company ("Pipit," "we," "us," or "our"). They govern your use of the Pipit mobile app, the Pipit+ subscription, and our website at pipitbirding.com (together, the "Services").

By creating an account or using the Services, you agree to these Terms, our Privacy Policy, and our Community Guidelines. If you do not agree, do not use the Services.

Please read Section 11 carefully. It requires most disputes to be resolved through individual arbitration rather than in court, and it waives your right to join a class action. You can opt out of arbitration as described in that section.

Who can use Pipit

• You must be at least 13 years old to use Pipit.
• If you are 13 to 17, you have a teen account with more private settings, as described in our Privacy Policy. Where state law requires it, a parent or guardian must approve your use of Pipit through your app store. If you are under 18, please review these Terms with a parent or guardian.
• You must not be barred from using the Services under US law.
• Pipit is currently available only in the United States.

2. Your Account

• Accurate information. Give us accurate information when you create your account, including your age, and keep it up to date.
• One person, one account. Your account is for you alone. Do not share it, sell it, or let anyone else use it. Do not create accounts using bots or other automated methods.
• Usernames. Do not choose a username that impersonates someone else, infringes someone's rights, or is offensive. We may reclaim or change a username that breaks these rules.
• Security. Keep your password and sign-in methods secure. You are responsible for activity on your account. Tell us right away at support@pipitbirding.com if you think someone has accessed your account without permission.
• Deleting your account. You can delete your account at any time from Settings in the app, through our account deletion request form, or by emailing us, as described in our Privacy Policy. Deleting your account does not cancel a Pipit+ subscription (see Section 3).

3. Pipit+ Subscriptions

Pipit+ is an optional paid subscription that unlocks extra features, such as "Pipit Audio ID," "Pipit Ranger," "Log 'em All," and advanced competitions. Features may change over time.

• Price and billing. Pipit+ costs $5 per month or $40 per year, plus any applicable taxes. The price is shown in the app before you subscribe. Payment is charged to your Apple App Store or Google Play account when you confirm your purchase.
• Automatic renewal. Your subscription renews automatically for the same period at the then-current price unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your app store charges the renewal within 24 hours before the current period ends.
• Cancelling. You can cancel at any time in your App Store or Google Play account settings. Cancelling stops future renewals. You keep Pipit+ until the end of the period you have already paid for. Deleting the app or your Pipit account does not cancel your subscription.
• Free trials. New subscribers may be offered a 14-day free trial. Unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the trial ends, it automatically converts to a paid subscription and you will be charged. Each person may use a free trial only once.
• Refunds. Payments are handled by Apple or Google, and refund requests are governed by their policies. Request refunds through your app store. For Google Play purchases, Pipit may also be able to issue a refund in some cases. See Section 9 for refunds when an account is closed.
• Price changes. We may change the price of Pipit+. We will give you advance notice, and your app store will ask for your consent where required. The new price applies from your next renewal.
• App store terms. Purchases are also subject to the terms of the Apple App Store or Google Play. If those terms conflict with these Terms about a purchase, the app store's terms control.

4. Your Content

"Your content" means anything you post or submit through the Services, such as sightings, photos, audio recordings, notes, comments, Help Me ID suggestions, and profile information.

You own your content

You keep ownership of your content, including the copyright in your photos and audio recordings. These Terms do not transfer ownership to Pipit.

The license you give Pipit

So we can run Pipit, you give Pipit a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to host, store, copy, display, reformat, and share your content. This license lets us:

• Run the Services. Show your content to the audience you choose (Everyone, Friends, or Only me), and operate features such as the community feed, competitions, and leaderboards.
• Improve Pipit. Use your content to develop and improve Pipit's features, including bird identification and showing which birds are likely nearby, as described in our Privacy Policy. We do not use content from teen accounts this way.
• Feature your photos, with credit. Choose photos from sightings you share with Everyone to feature in the app (including the Bird Index), on our website and social media accounts, and in other promotional materials. When we feature your photo, we will credit you by your Pipit username. We do not feature photos posted from a teen account, even after that user turns 18.
• Work with service providers. Let the companies that help us run the Services process your content on our behalf.

When the license ends. The license ends when you delete the content or your account, except for photos we have already featured outside the app, content that no longer identifies you as described in our Privacy Policy, and copies we must keep for legal reasons. We will not sell your photos, and we will not license them or give permission to any other company or person to use them, except service providers acting on our behalf to run the Services.

Other people's content

Other users own their content. You may not copy, download, reuse, or share another user's photos, audio, or other content outside the Services without their permission, except as the law allows. Sharing a sighting with a friend inside Pipit, using the app's own sharing tools, is fine.

Your promises about your content

When you post content, you promise that:

• You own it or have permission to post it, and it does not infringe anyone's copyright, privacy, or other rights. Only post photos and audio you took or recorded yourself, unless you have permission.
• If it shows identifiable people, you have their permission.
• Your sightings are honest. Do not post made-up sightings or knowingly misidentified birds as real records.

Feedback

If you send us ideas or suggestions about Pipit, we may use them without owing you anything.

5. Community Rules

Pipit is a community for birders of every level. Our Community Guidelines, available on our website and in the app, explain these rules in more detail and are part of these Terms.

Respect birds and their habitats

• Put the welfare of birds first. Do not harass, chase, flush, or stress birds, or disturb nests, roosts, or display sites to get a sighting, photo, or recording.
• Use playback and other attractants sparingly and responsibly, and never with threatened or endangered species or in places where it is prohibited.
• Do not post content that encourages harming, capturing, or baiting wild birds.
• Follow the law. Respect private property, closed areas, and park rules. A sighting or competition is never a reason to trespass.

Respect other people

• Be kind. No harassment, bullying, threats, hate speech, or discrimination.
• Do not impersonate others or misrepresent your connection to anyone, including Pipit.
• Do not post anyone's private information, such as their home address, without permission.
• Do not post sexual, violent, graphic, or illegal content.

Keep Pipit honest and working

• Do not post fake sightings or manipulate competitions, scores, votes, or leaderboards.
• Do not post spam, ads, or promotions unless we have agreed to it in writing.
• Do not scrape, copy, or collect data from the Services using bots or other automated tools.
• Do not hack, overload, reverse engineer, or interfere with the Services, or try to get around any security or privacy feature, including location privacy settings and home privacy zones.
• Do not upload malware or harmful code.

How we enforce these rules

Users can report content and accounts in the app. We may review content and remove it, limit who can see it, or take action against accounts that break these Terms or our Community Guidelines, including suspending or closing them. We may do this without notice, but we try to act fairly and to tell you what happened. We aim to act on reports of objectionable content within 24 hours. We are not required to monitor all content, and we are not responsible for content posted by users. You can block other users at any time.

6. Competitions and Games

Pipit offers competitions and games, including Tournaments (Solo Tournament and Team Tournament), Bird Boards (Bird Blockout, Bird Lockout, and Solo Challenge), Global Competitions, and Pipit Ranger.

• For fun. Competitions are for fun and do not require payment to enter beyond any Pipit+ subscription. Competitions do not award prizes. If we ever offer prizes, we will publish official rules for that competition, and those rules will control.
• Fair play. Only count birds you actually saw or heard, at the time and place you report. Do not use fake accounts, share accounts, or coordinate to manipulate results.
• Scoring and results. Pipit sets the scoring rules and may review, correct, or remove sightings, scores, or results that appear inaccurate or break these Terms. We may disqualify players who cheat. Our decisions on scoring and results are final.
• Competitions you create. If you create a competition or lead a team, you are responsible for keeping it respectful and within these Terms. If you delete your account, a competition or team you created may pass to another member, as described in our Privacy Policy.
• Safety first. Never put yourself, others, or birds at risk to win. Pipit is not responsible for what you do while taking part (see Section 10).
• Changes. We may change, pause, or end any competition or game at any time.

7. Copyright Complaints

We respect copyright and respond to notices of claimed infringement under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). If you believe content on Pipit infringes your copyright, send a notice to our designated agent that includes:

• Your physical or electronic signature.
• A description of the copyrighted work you believe was infringed.
• Where the material is located on Pipit, such as the username and sighting or a link.
• Your name, address, phone number, and email address.
• A statement that you believe in good faith the use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law.
• A statement, under penalty of perjury, that the information in your notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act for the owner.

Designated agent: Cade Massotto, Pipit LLC, 711 18th Ave S #2, St. Petersburg, FL 33705. Email: cade@pipitbirding.com

If your content was removed and you believe it was a mistake or misidentification, you may send us a counter-notice as allowed by the DMCA. We will close the accounts of users who repeatedly infringe others' copyrights.

8. Pipit's Services and Content

Our property

The Services, including the app, software, design, the Bird Index, the Pipit name and logo, and everything we create, belong to Pipit or our licensors. Some images and information in the app come from third parties under license. We give you a personal, limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to use the app and Services for your own non-commercial use on devices you own or control, following these Terms and, for the iPhone app, Apple's App Store Usage Rules. You may not copy, sell, modify, or reuse our content, or use our name or logo, without our written permission.

Identifications and bird information

"Pipit Audio ID," "Birds Likely Near You," rarity scores, Help Me ID suggestions, and other identifications and bird information are provided to help you, but they can be wrong. Identifications from other users are their opinions, not Pipit's. Always use your own judgment, and do not rely on Pipit for decisions where a wrong identification could cause harm.

Third-party services

The Services may use or link to services we do not control, such as maps, app stores, and sign-in with Apple or Google. Their own terms and privacy policies apply, and we are not responsible for them.

Changes to the Services

We are always improving Pipit. We may add, change, or remove features, or stop offering the Services, at any time. If we end the Services entirely, we will try to give you reasonable notice. You may need to install updates to keep using the app.

9. Suspending or Closing Accounts

You can stop using Pipit and delete your account at any time.

We may suspend or close your account, or limit your access, if:

• you break these Terms or our Community Guidelines;
• the law or a court order requires it;
• we learn you are under 13, or a parent or guardian withdraws approval for a teen account through an app store;
• your account appears to be compromised, fake, or used for fraud, spam, or payment abuse such as chargebacks;
• you pose a risk of harm to other users, birds, or others, including through conduct outside Pipit; or
• we stop offering the Services.

Where appropriate, we will tell you why and give you a chance to respond. If you think we made a mistake, contact us at support@pipitbirding.com.

If we close your account because you broke these Terms, or because of fraud or payment abuse, you are not entitled to a refund of any Pipit+ fees, except where the law requires it. If we close your account for any other reason, or stop offering the Services, we will review refunds case by case and, where appropriate, help you request one from your app store. Apple and Google make the final decision on refunds for purchases made through their stores.

Sections 4 (the parts about licenses that continue), 8, 10, 11, and 12 continue to apply after your account is closed.

10. Safety, Disclaimers, and Limits on Liability

Birding safely

Birding takes place outdoors, sometimes in remote places, near water, on uneven ground, in bad weather, or around wildlife. You are responsible for your own safety and for following local laws and rules. Pay attention to your surroundings, not your phone, especially while driving or walking. Locations, sightings, and directions in Pipit may be inaccurate, outdated, or on private or restricted land. Use your own judgment about where you go and what you do. Use caution when meeting anyone you know only from Pipit.

Disclaimer of warranties

THE SERVICES ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE." TO THE FULLEST EXTENT ALLOWED BY LAW, PIPIT DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. We do not promise that the Services will be uninterrupted, error-free, or secure, that identifications or other content will be accurate, or that your content will never be lost.

Limitation of liability

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT ALLOWED BY LAW, PIPIT AND ITS OWNERS, EMPLOYEES, AND AGENTS WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR LOST PROFITS, DATA, OR GOODWILL, ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES, YOUR BIRDING ACTIVITIES, OR THE CONDUCT OR CONTENT OF OTHER USERS OR THIRD PARTIES. OUR TOTAL LIABILITY FOR ALL CLAIMS RELATING TO THE SERVICES WILL NOT EXCEED THE GREATER OF THE AMOUNT YOU PAID PIPIT IN THE 12 MONTHS BEFORE THE CLAIM AND $50.

Some states do not allow certain warranty disclaimers or limits on liability, so some of the above may not apply to you. Nothing in these Terms limits liability that cannot be limited by law.

Indemnity

If someone brings a claim against Pipit because of your content, your use of the Services, or your violation of these Terms or someone else's rights, you agree to cover Pipit's resulting losses and reasonable legal costs, to the extent allowed by law.

11. Resolving Disputes

Talk to us first. Most problems can be solved informally. Before starting any formal claim, email support@pipitbirding.com with a description of the issue and what you want. We will try to resolve it within 60 days.

Arbitration. If we cannot resolve it informally, you and Pipit agree that any dispute about these Terms or the Services will be resolved by binding individual arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association under its Consumer Arbitration Rules, instead of in court. The arbitration may be held by video or phone, or in the county where you live. Either of us may instead bring an individual claim in small claims court if it qualifies. Either of us may also go to court to stop infringement of intellectual property rights.

No class actions. You and Pipit may bring claims only on an individual basis, not as a plaintiff or class member in any class, collective, or representative action. If this waiver is found unenforceable for a claim, that claim must be decided in court, not in arbitration.

Opting out. You can opt out of this arbitration agreement by emailing support@pipitbirding.com with the subject "Arbitration Opt-Out" and your username within 30 days of first accepting these Terms. Opting out does not affect any other part of these Terms.

Governing law and courts. These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Florida and applicable federal law, without regard to conflict-of-law rules. Any dispute not subject to arbitration will be heard only in the state or federal courts located in Pinellas County, Florida, and you and Pipit consent to those courts' jurisdiction.

Time limit. To the extent allowed by law, any claim must be brought within one year after it arises.

12. General Terms

Changes to these Terms. We may update these Terms from time to time. We will post the new version and update the date at the top. For significant changes, we will notify you in the app or by email before they take effect. If you keep using the Services after the changes take effect, you accept the updated Terms. If you do not agree, stop using the Services and delete your account.

Apple and Google. These Terms are between you and Pipit, not Apple or Google. Pipit, not Apple, is responsible for the app and its content, maintenance, support, and any product claims. Apple has no obligation to provide maintenance or support for the app. If the app fails to meet any applicable warranty, you may notify Apple, and Apple may refund the purchase price, if any; Apple has no other warranty obligation. Apple is not responsible for investigating or defending any claim that the app infringes someone's intellectual property. Apple and its subsidiaries are third-party beneficiaries of these Terms and may enforce them against you. You must also follow any applicable third-party terms, such as your wireless carrier's.

Export laws. You promise that you are not in a country subject to a US government embargo and are not on any US government list of prohibited or restricted parties.

Electronic communications. You agree that we may send you notices and other communications electronically, such as by email or in the app, and that these meet any legal requirement that communications be in writing.

Whole agreement. These Terms, our Privacy Policy, our Community Guidelines, and any rules we publish for specific features or competitions are the entire agreement between you and Pipit about the Services.

Other terms. If any part of these Terms is found unenforceable, the rest stays in effect. If we do not enforce a right, we have not waived it. You may not transfer your rights under these Terms. We may transfer ours, for example as part of a merger or sale of Pipit. Neither of us is responsible for delays caused by events outside our reasonable control.

Contact Us

Pipit LLC
711 18th Ave S #2, St. Petersburg, FL 33705
Email: support@pipitbirding.com
Website: pipitbirding.com