Terms & Conditions

PODU is an online digital service that gives customers access to a range of podcasts and audio content, which can be streamed over the internet or downloaded through PODU’s mobile application to certain internet connected devices.

PODU is a trading name of Podu Media for Art Production and Distribution, a company established under the laws of Arab Republic of Egypt and having its registered address at Building 177, Sameh Gado St. the 6th touristic area, EL Motamyez District, 6th of October City, Giza and references to ‘us’, ‘our’, ‘we’ and ‘PODU’ shall be Podu Media for Art Production and Distribution. References to ‘you’ and ‘your’ shall be references to you as an account holder and subscriber to the Service.

These Terms of Use and the Privacy Policy (together the Terms) set out the agreement between you and PODU in respect of the Service and your use of it. By signing up, and using, visiting or browsing the Service, you confirm that you are bound to the Terms, including any changes to them or to the Service.

1. THE SERVICE

1.1 Service Options
You can find a description of our Service options on our website, and we will explain which Service options are available to you when you create a PODU account. Certain options are provided to you free-of-charge. The PODU Service that does not require payment is referred to as the “Free Service.” Other options require payment before you can access them (the “Paid Subscriptions”). We reserve the right to modify, terminate or otherwise amend our offered subscription plans and any promotional offerings at any time in accordance with these Terms.

1.2 Trials
At any time, we may offer trials of Paid Subscriptions for a specified period without payment or at a reduced rate (a “Trial”). PODU may determine your eligibility for a Trial, and withdraw or modify a Trial at any time without prior notice and with no liability, to the extent permitted under applicable law. For some Trials, we’ll require you to provide your payment details to start the Trial. By providing such details you agree that we may automatically begin charging you for the Paid Subscription on the first day following the end of the Trial on a recurring monthly basis or another interval that we disclose to you in advance. If you do not want this charge, you must cancel the applicable paid subscription before the end of the trial.

1.3. As used in these Terms, the Service means the service provided by PODU for accessing the PODU content, including the website, software, content, and functionalities associated with the services, including Promotions.

1.4. PODU may release Promotions in its sole discretion and is not under no obligation to offer any Promotions.

2. Payments and cancellations

2.1 iTunes: In-App Purchase payment

Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase.
Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period.
Account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period at the rate of the selected plan.
Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's Account Settings after purchase.
Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication, where applicable.

2.2 Billing, Renewal and Cancellation (Website and Other Android Based devices)

You may purchase a Paid Subscription from PODU either by (1) paying a subscription fee in advance on a monthly basis or some other recurring interval disclosed to you prior to your purchase; or (2) pre-payment giving you access to the PODU Service for a specific time period (“Pre-Paid Period”). PODU may change the price for the Paid Subscriptions, including recurring subscription fees, the Pre-Paid Period (for periods not yet paid) from time to time and will communicate any price changes to you in advance and, if applicable, how to accept those changes. Price changes will take effect at the start of the next subscription period following the date of the price change. Subject to applicable law, you accept the new price by continuing to use the PODU Service after the price change takes effect. If you do not agree with a price change, you have the right to reject the change by unsubscribing from the Paid Subscription prior to the price change going into effect. If you register for a Paid Subscription, you may change your mind for any or no reason and receive a full refund of all monies paid within fourteen (14) days starting from the day you sign-up for the relevant service (the “Cooling-off Period”) in accordance with the following:
• If you sign up for a Trial, you agree that the Cooling-off Period for the Paid Subscription for which you are receiving a Trial ends fourteen (14) days after you start the Trial. If you don’t cancel the Paid Subscription before the Trial ends, you lose your right of withdrawal and authorize PODU to automatically charge you the agreed price each month until you cancel the Paid Subscription.
• If you purchase a Paid Subscription with no Trial, you authorize PODU to charge you automatically each month until you cancel. You agree that the Cooling-off Period is available for fourteen (14) days after your purchase but is lost once you use the PODU Service during that period.


Regarding the Renewal and Cancelation; unless your Paid Subscription has been purchased for a Pre-Paid Period, your payment to PODU will automatically renew at the end of the applicable subscription period, unless you cancel your Paid Subscription before the end of the then-current subscription period. If you choose to cancel the Paid Subscription, the cancellation will take effect the day after the last day of the current subscription period, and you will be downgraded to the Free Service. If you purchased the Paid Subscription and you cancel your payment or Paid Subscription and/or terminate any of the Agreements (1) after the Cooling-off Period is over (where applicable), or (2) before the end of the current subscription period, we will not refund any subscription fees already paid to us. If you wish to receive a full refund of all monies paid to PODU before the Cooling-off Period is over, you must contact our customer support at [email protected]. When we process any refund, we will refund amounts using the method you used for payment, or using cash, or any other method which PODU prefers, guaranteeing you will receive the amount of money you paid to PODU.

3. OWNERSHIP OF CONTENT

3.1. Content offered on the Service may be owned by PODU or by another Third Party. All content is treated as part of the Service, and all the Terms apply to it.

3.2. If you (Content-Creator) have a Podcaster Account, you may be able to upload Content to the Service. You may use your Content to promote your business or artistic enterprise. If you choose to upload Content, you must not submit to the Service any Content that does not comply with this Agreement or the law. For example, the Content you submit must not include third-party intellectual property (such as copyrighted material such as music tracks, snippets of copyrighted programs, podcasts, or videos made by other users) unless you have permission from that party or are otherwise legally entitled to do so. You are legally responsible for the Content you submit to the Service.

3.3. You (Content-Creator) retain all of your ownership rights in your Content. In short, what belongs to you stays yours. However, we do require you to grant certain rights to PODU and other users of the Service, as described below.

3.4. By providing Content to the Service, you (Content-Creator) grant to PODU a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, transferable, sublicensable license to use that Content (including to reproduce, distribute, modify, display and perform it) for the purpose of operating, promoting, and improving the Service.

3.5. You (Content-Creator) also grant each other user of the Service a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to access your Content through the Service, and to use that Content (including to reproduce, distribute, modify, display, and perform it) only as enabled by a feature of the Service.

3.6. The licenses granted by you (Content-Creator) continue until the Content is removed as described below. Once removed, the licenses will terminate, except where the operation of the Service, use of Content permitted before your removal, or the law requires otherwise. For example, removal of Content by you does not require PODU to: (a) recall Content that is being used by other users within any limited offline viewing functionality of the Service; or (b) delete copies we reasonably need to keep for legal purposes.

3.7. You (Content-Creator) grant to PODU the right to monetize your Content on the Service (and such monetization may include displaying ads on or within Content or charging users a fee for access). This Agreement does not entitle you to any payments. Any payments you may be entitled to receive from PODU will be treated as royalties. If required by law, we will withhold taxes from such payments.

3.8. You (Content-Creator) may remove your Content from the Service at any time. You also have the option to make a copy of your Content before removing it. You must remove your Content if you no longer have the rights required by these terms.

3.9. If we reasonably believe that any of your Content (Content-Creator) (1) is in breach of this Agreement or (2) may cause harm to PODU, our users, or third parties, we reserve the right to remove or take down some or all of such Content. We will notify you (Content-Creator) with the reason for our action unless we reasonably believe that to do so: (a) would violate the law or the direction of a legal enforcement authority, or would otherwise risk legal liability for PODU or our Affiliates; (b) would compromise an investigation or the integrity or operation of the Service; or (c) would cause harm to any user, other third party, PODU or our Affiliates.

4. Community Guidelines

4.1. PODU operates a system of “strikes” in respect of Content that violates the PODU Community Guidelines. Each strike comes with varying restrictions and may result in the permanent removal of your Account and Content from PODU. If you (Content-Creator) believe that a strike has been issued in error, you may appeal by sending to us at [email protected] with the words “copyright strike’ in the email subject line.

4.2. If you (Content-Creator) received more than 3 strikes in a period of 90 days, we will suspend you account while we look through your issues, and we may delete the account if the copyright infringement issues persist.

4.3. If your (Content-Creator) content has been restricted due to a strike, you must not use another account to circumvent these restrictions. Violation of this prohibition is a material breach of this Agreement.

5. Copyright Protection

5.1. If you (Copyright Owner) believe your copyright has been infringed on the Service, please send us a notice.

5.2. If you (Copyright Owner) believe your copyright claim was done in error, you may retract your claim by sending to us at [email protected].

6. SIGN UP

6.1 You may use the Service without signing up to an account. If you sign up, you may use your email and credentials directly, or you can sign up using a Third Party platform such as Facebook or Google.

6.2. You are subject to the Terms of Use of the Third Party Platforms if you sign up through them.

7. The PODU APP

7.1. You may download the PODU App from a number of online stores or it may be preloaded onto your device (Third Party Platform). Continued use of the PODU App will constitute acceptance of these Terms and the license contained in this paragraph 4.

7.2. If you are an Apple customer, you must comply with the Usage Rules set out in the App Store Terms of Service as well as these Terms. Similarly, Android users must comply with the Usage Rules set out in the Play Store Terms of Services and these Terms.

7.3. You may not distribute or make the PODU App available over a network where it could be used by multiple devices at the same time. You may not transfer, redistribute or sublicense the PODU App. You may not copy (except as permitted by this license), reverse-engineer, disassemble, attempt to derive the source code of, modify, or create derivative works of the PODU App, any updates, or any part thereof (except as and only to the extent that any foregoing restriction is prohibited by applicable law or to the extent as may be permitted by the licensing terms governing use of any open-sourced components included with the PODU App).

8. ELIGIBILITY

8.1. In order to access the Service, you must be:

8.1.1. at least eighteen (18) years of age or above;

8.1.2. an individual and not a corporation; and

8.1.3. capable of entering, performing and adhering to these Terms.

8.2. While individuals under the age of eighteen (18) may utilize the Service, they may do so only with the involvement and guidance of their parents and/or legal guardians, under the registered account of such parent/legal guardians. Some content on the Service may contain mature themes. Please note therefore that such content may not be suitable for all viewers/users.

8.3. You may only access the Service in the following particular geographic locations: Algeria, Bahrain, Chad, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Palestinian Territory, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Somalia, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen (each a Service Location).

8.4. If you are not located in a Service Location, as determined by PODU in its sole discretion, you are not eligible to access or use the Service. Any access to or use of the Service outside the Service Locations is expressly prohibited.

8.5. You acknowledge and agree that PODU may immediately suspend or terminate your access to the Service if PODU believes, in its sole discretion, that you are not located within a Service Location.

9. CHANGES TO THE SERVICE

9.1. From time to time, we may, at our discretion and without notice, make changes to how we operate the Service, including, but not limited to, modifying, discontinuing, enhancing, adding or removing any content or any part of the Service.

9.2. We may stop providing the Service or any of the features of the Service, to you or to users generally, including, but not limited to, creating usage limits for the Service.

9.3. We regularly make adjustments to the Service to improve user experience of the Service and these adjustments may not always be captured within these Terms.

9.4. PODU will never be liable for amending, suspending, removing or disabling access to the Service, but will endeavor to ensure that any interruptions to the Service will be kept to a minimum.

9.5. The content available on the Service will change regularly as we include more podcasts.

9.6. Some of the content we offer is supplied by third parties. The availability of such content is outside our control. You acknowledge and agree that certain content or certain features of the Service may be removed from the platform.

10. DELIVERY OF CONTENT

10.1. You will need an authorized device to view content on the Service. The content is transmitted to your device in a stream of encrypted data packets, for the purpose of real-time streaming or viewing by you and not for copying, storing, permanent download or redistribution.

10.2. The streaming software is developed by or for PODU and is designed to enable instant streaming of content from PODU to your authorized device. The software and its functionalities may differ by device. The software used in any devices is licensed to you by PODU pursuant to these Terms for the purpose of using the Service only.

10.3. The quality of the playback of the content may vary from device to device and may be affected by a range of factors, such as your location, available bandwidth, content selected, configuration of your device or the speed of your internet or mobile connection. Please check with your internet or network operator provider for information on possible data usage charges, network speed or roaming charges.

10.4. By using the Service, you agree to receive updated versions of the Service and related third party software without notice from us.

10.5. If any content is made available on an ‘download to own’ basis or has any recording, storage or playback functionality, your use of such service shall be subject to such other terms and conditions that PODU may apply. You will be notified of such terms and conditions prior to your download of any such content.

11. AUTHORIZED DEVICES

11.1. You will need an authorized device to view content on the Service.

11.2. You agree not to share your device registration details with any other person. All devices registered to your account must be owned by you.

11.3. You must ensure that your devices meet the minimum hardware, systems and software requirements, required by the Service.

11.4. From time to time, device manufacturers or providers or the device operating system may impose changes that limit or restrict your use of the Service on that device. In such cases, we will try to notify you of these changes in advance, but as we have no control over these manufacturers and providers, it may not always be possible to do so.

11.5. If there are any issues relating to your device and its compatibility with the Service, you agree to contact the manufacturer or provider for such issues. We make no warranty and take no responsibility for the performance of the devices, including their compatibility with the Service.

12. SUPPORT AND COMMUNICATION

12.1. If you want to learn more about the PODU App or the Service or have any problems using it, please take a look at our support resources at www.podu.me. You can email our customer care team. None of the Third Party Platforms who make the PODU App available are responsible for providing any support services for the PODU App available on their online stores.

12.2. If you think the PODU App or the Services are faulty or misdescribed or wish to contact us for any other reason, please email our customer service team at [email protected].

12.3. If we have to contact you, we will do so by email or by SMS using the contact details you have provided to us, any Third Party Platform or to your telecommunications provider when creating your account.

13. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

13.1. The Service, including, but not limited to, all copyright, trademarks, intellectual property in all material, software, technology and content, are all owned and/or controlled under license by PODU, its licensors and content and technology providers.

13.2. ‘Podu’ and all related registered and/or unregistered trademarks, trade names, and/or service marks (the PODU Marks) are the property of PODU and/or its affiliates or subsidiaries in the MENA region. Certain characters, logos, names and images incorporated by PODU on the Service (and the content on the Service) are also protected as registered or unregistered trademarks, trade names and/or service marks and are the property of their respective owners. The PODU Marks may not be used without the express permission of PODU.

13.3. Content shall not be reproduced or used without express written permission from PODU or its licensors and we reserve the right to terminate your access to the Service if we, in our sole discretion, believe that you are in violation of any software restrictions, or Security Requirements (as defined below) or are in violation of the copyrights of PODU or its licensors through any unauthorized copying or use of our proprietary content.

14. SECURITY REQUIREMENTS

14.1. You are responsible for protecting the password that you use to access the Service, and you should not share your password with any third party. You are responsible for any activities or actions taken using your password, whether or not you have authorized those activities or actions. If you think your password has been used without your permission, you should notify us as soon as possible. We can then take the appropriate action, including stopping the supply of the Service, or suspending the account, as we need to.

14.2. You agree to use the Service in accordance with all applicable laws, rules and regulations. You agree that you shall not at any time use, or attempt to use, the Service on a device where the device operating system have been removed or tampered with (such as 'jailbreaking' or ‘rooting’).

14.3. You agree not to archive, download (other than through caching necessary for personal use), reproduce, distribute, modify, display, perform, publish, license, create derivative works from, offer for sale, or use (except as explicitly authorized in these Terms) content and information contained on or obtained through the Service. You also agree not to circumvent, remove, alter, deactivate, degrade or thwart any of the content protections in the Service; use any robot, spider, scraper or other automated means to access the Service; decompile, reverse engineer or disassemble any software or other products or processes accessible through the Service; insert any code or product or manipulate the content of the Service in any way; or, use any data mining, data gathering or extraction method.

14.4. You agree not to upload, post, e-mail, send or transmit any material designed to interrupt, destroy or limit the functionality of any computer software or hardware or equipment associated with the Service, including any software viruses or any other computer code, files or programs.

14.5. If we believe that there has been, or is likely to be, a breach of security in relation to your account, we may suspend usernames or passwords and require that they are changed. We may also restrict your use of all or any part of the Service.

14.6. If your authorized device is sold, lost or stolen, you should deactivate that device. If you fail to log out or deactivate your device, other users may access the Service through your account and may be able to access your account information.

14.7. If you do not comply with any of the above security restrictions (Security Requirements), then we may immediately terminate your access to the Service and without prejudice to any rights or remedies available to us at law.

15. CHANGES TO THESE TERMS

15.1. We reserve the right, at our discretion, to change, modify, add, or remove portions of these Terms at any time by posting the amended Terms on the PODU website. Please check these Terms periodically for changes. Your continued use of the Service after the posting of changes constitutes your binding acceptance of such changes and any amended Terms.

16. SOME THINGS YOU MUST NOT DO

16.1. You acknowledge and agree that you will not:

16.1.1. copy, rent, sell, reproduce, publish, post, broadcast, frame or transmit the Service or the content (or any part of them) or make them available to the public, or authorize or assist anyone else to do so;

16.1.2. make any direct or indirect charge for broadcasting or using any part of the Service or content;

16.1.3. show any of the content or any part of the Service in public to an audience, even if no direct or indirect charge is made;

16.1.4. attempt to interfere with, compromise the system integrity or security or decipher any transmissions to or from the servers running the Service;

16.1.5. take any action that imposes, or may impose at our sole discretion an unreasonable or disproportionately large load on our infrastructure;

16.1.6. upload invalid data, viruses, worms, or other software agents through the Service;

16.1.7. impersonate another person or otherwise misrepresenting your affiliation with a person or entity, conducting fraud, hiding or attempting to hide your identity;

16.1.8. interfere with the proper working of the Service;

16.1.12. bypass the measures we may use to prevent or restrict access to the Service, including without limitation features that prevent or restrict use or copying of any content or enforce limitations on use of the Service or the content therein;

16.1.13. use the Service and content in any ways not expressly permitted in these Terms;

16.1.14. access or use the Services or content for any improper or unlawful purpose or allow anyone else to do so.

17. LAST LEGAL BITS

17.1. You acknowledge and agree that:

17.1.1. the Service, information, related features, software and content are provided to you by us “as is” and without any guarantee, representation or warranty of any kind;

17.1.2. PODU does not guarantee, represent or warrant that your use of the Service will be uninterrupted, timely, secure or free from errors;

17.1.3. any content viewed or otherwise obtained through the use of the Service is done at your own initiative and risk; and

17.1.4. PODU, its subsidiaries, directors, employees or licensors will not be liable to you for personal injury or any special, incidental, indirect or consequential damages of any kind, or any damages whatsoever resulting from loss of use, data or profits, or any damages or loss (including, but not limited to, any damage to your device) arising out of or in connection with the use or performance of the Service.

17.1.5. (i) you are resident in a Service Location, (ii) that you are not located in a country that is subject to a U.S. government embargo or has been designated by the U.S. Government as a “terrorist supporting” country and (iii) you are not listed on any U.S. Government list of prohibited or restricted parties.

17.1.6. you are entirely responsible for complying with any Third Party terms and conditions that cover your use of the PODU App and/or Service, including, for example, your internet service provider terms and conditions of use. You will be entirely responsible for ensuring that your use of the PODU App does not breach any Third Party terms or other applicable laws.

17.2. You agree that, by signing up to the Service and by using any part of the Service and content, you are responsible for your actions and omissions.

17.3. The Service may present links to third party websites, ads or offers not owned or controlled by us. We are not responsible for these sites, ads or offers.

17.4. The Service is provided on an “as is” and “as available” basis. Use of the Service is at your own risk. To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, the Service is provided without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including, but not limited to, implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement.

17.5. To the full extent permitted by law, PODU, its subsidiaries, directors, employees or licensors will not be liable to you for personal injury or any special, incidental, indirect or consequential damages of any kind, or any damages whatsoever resulting from loss of use, data or profits, or any damages or loss (including, but not limited to, any damage to your device) arising out of or in connection with the use or performance of the Service.

17.6. To the full extent permitted by law, we (and our associated companies) exclude responsibility and all liabilities arising from:

17.6.1. any use of the Service which is not authorized by us;

17.6.2. suspending, restricting or terminating the Service or content (or any part) in accordance with these Terms;

17.6.3. any delay, failure, act or default in relation to the provision of the Services and content;

17.6.4. any errors, viruses or bugs present in or arising from your use of the Service;

17.6.5. any incompatibility of the Service or content with any other software or hardware; and

17.6.6. any act or default of any third party supplier, device manufacturer or provider of a device operating system or any third party broadband or internet supplier.

17.7. These Terms are governed by the laws of Arab Republic of Egypt and its courts will have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute or claim arising out of, or in connection with these terms.

17.8. If any provision of these Terms is held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable, the validity, legality or enforceability of the other provisions will not be affected and will remain in full force and effect.

17.9. These Terms shall only be enforceable between you and us and no third party may rely upon them.