Service Terms and Conditions

Article 1 (Application)

1. These Terms and Conditions shall apply to the use of “4kiz” (hereinafter referred to as the “Service”), a social networking service for children, operated by 4kiz, Inc. (hereinafter referred to as the “Company”) and all relationships related to the use of the Service between the Company and registrants of the Service (hereinafter referred to as the “Users”) who have been approved by the Company.
2. The rules and regulations notified to Users each time they are established, revised, or abolished by means deemed appropriate by the Company shall constitute a part of these Terms and Conditions, and Users shall approve and comply with them.
3. In the event of any discrepancy between the terms of this Agreement and the description of the Service outside of this Agreement, the provisions of this Agreement shall take precedence.
4. These Terms and Conditions and other regulations may be modified as of the date of publication by publishing the modifications in a prescribed manner when deemed necessary by the Company.

Article 2 (Users)

A “User” is defined as a person who has agreed to these Terms and Conditions and has completed all the prescribed registration procedures. In addition, Users of the Service are limited to children under the age of 16, their guardians and family members invited by the guardians, and corporations and professionals approved in advance by the Company. Children under the age of 16 who are Users of the Service must obtain consent from their guardians to use the Service.

Article 3 (Registration)

1. A person who wishes to use the Service (hereinafter referred to as “Prospective User”) may apply to register to use the Service by agreeing to abide by these Terms and Conditions and providing the prescribed information requested by the Company (hereinafter referred to as “Registration Information”) in manner determined by the Company.
2. In accordance with the Company’s prescribed criteria, the Company will determine whether to accept the registration of a Prospective User who has applied for registration based on the preceding paragraph. If the Company approves the registration, the Company will notify the Prospective User in a manner prescribed by the Company.
   The user registration of the Prospective User shall be deemed to be completed upon such notification. Upon completion of the registration, a contract for use of the Service (hereinafter referred to as the “User Agreement”) shall be established between the User and the Company, and the User will be able to use the Service in accordance with these Terms and Conditions.
3. The Company will approve the registration of a Prospective User on the condition that the Prospective User complies with these Terms and Conditions. The Company reserves the right to refuse registration and re-registration in the event that the Prospective User or User falls under any of the following circumstances.
   1. When all or part of the Registration Information provided to the Company is false, erroneous, or omitted.
   2. When a Prospective User or User does not meet the requirements of the second sentence of Article 2.
   3. If the Company determines that the Prospective User or User has violated a contract with the Company in the past or is related to such a person.
   4. If the Prospective User or User has been subjected to any of the measures specified in Article 8.
   5. If the Company determines that the Prospective User or User is a member of antisocial forces (this means organized crime groups, gangsters, right-wing groups, antisocial forces, and other similar groups; the same shall apply hereinafter) or is involved in any interaction or involvement with antisocial forces, such as cooperating or participating in the maintenance, operation, or management of antisocial forces through funding or otherwise.
   6. Other cases in which the Company deems the registration is not appropriate.
4. In the event of any change in the registered information, the User shall notify the Company of such change without delay in the manner prescribed by the Company.

Article 4 (Handling of Registration Information)

1. The Company shall manage the User’s Registration Information as personal information in confidence and shall not provide it to any third party in a form that allows personal identification, except in the following circumstances.
   • (a) When the information meets the purpose of use presented to and approved by the User in advance.
   • (b) When necessary for legal obligations to be complied with by the Company.
   • (c) When disclosure is requested by a court, public prosecutor’s office, police, bar association, consumer affairs center, or any other organization or individual with equivalent authority, in accordance with laws and regulations.
   • (d) When there is a justifiable reason deemed necessary for the protection of the lives or property of the public or Users.
2. The User’s Registration Information shall be owned by the Company, and the Company may delete it without the User’s consent when the Company deems it necessary.
3. The Company may, at their discretion, use and disclose information or data provided by Users to the Company as statistical information in a form that does not identify individuals, and Users shall not object to such use and disclosure.
4. If the User is under 13 years of age and using the Service from within the United States, the Company will obtain the User’s personal information online in compliance with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”) and with the consent of the guardian.
   Please review the Company’s Privacy Policy to see how the Company complies with COPPA. A guardian of a User under the age of 13 using the Services from within the United States may contact the Company at any time to request that the Company (1) stop collecting personal data from the User; (2) delete the personal data the Company have already collected from the User (however, if the User cannot be identified personally, the information may be retained in anonymous or aggregate form), or (3) request that the Company cease disclosing personal data collected from such Users to third parties, but to continue to allow the collection and use of personal data collected from such Users in connection with the Service.

Article 5 (ID and Password Management)

1. Users shall, at their own responsibility, properly manage and store IDs and passwords (including those used in authentication systems for external services) related to the Service.
2. Transferring, selling, or lending the IDs and passwords for the Service is strictly prohibited.
3. The Company shall not be liable for any damage resulting from negligence in the use of IDs and passwords in connection with the Service or from the use of such IDs and passwords by third parties.

Article 6 (Fees and Payment Methods)

1. The usage fee for the Service shall be determined separately by the Company, and the User shall pay the prescribed usage fee by the payment method prescribed by the Company.
2. If the User delays payment of the usage fee, the User shall pay to the Company a late fee at the rate of 14.6% per annum.

Article 7 (Prohibited Acts by Users)

Users shall not take any of the following actions or any actions that may lead to such actions.

• (a) Violate any law, court judgment, decision, or order, or any legally binding administrative action, or engage in any conduct related to criminal activity.
• (b) Infringes the copyrights or other intellectual property rights of other Users or third parties.
• (c) Any act that defames or slanders other Users or third parties.
• (d) Violating the portrait rights or privacy rights of other Users or third parties.
• (e) Acts of fraud or threats against other Users or third parties.
• (f) Acts that cause disadvantage to other Users or third parties.
• (g) Transmitting to the Company or other Users any information that falls under, or is deemed by the Company to fall under, any of the following.
  • (a) Information that contains computer viruses or other harmful computer programs
  • (b) Information that contains excessively violent or cruel expressions
  • (c) Information that contains excessively obscene expressions
  • (d) Information that contains expressions that promote discrimination
  • (e) Information that contains expressions that promote suicide or self-injury
  • (f) Information that contains expressions that promote the inappropriate use of drugs
  • (g) Information that contains antisocial expressions
  • (h) Information that requests the spread of information to a third party, such as chain mail
• (h) Reverse engineering or other analysis of the software system provided by the Company.
• (i) Excessive burden on the network or system of the Service.
• (j) Interfere with the operation of the Service.
• (k) Spreading rumors or other acts that violate or may violate laws and regulations.
• (l) Campaigning or similar activities, or activities that violate the Public Offices Election Law or other laws and ordinances.
• (m) Making a false registration or survey.
• (n) Acts of using IDs or passwords of other Users of the Service.
• (o) Advertising, publicity, solicitation, or sales activities not approved in advance by the Company.
• (p) Acts that offend public order and morals.
• (q) Acts that directly or indirectly cause or facilitate any of the aforementioned acts.
• (r) Other acts that the Company deem inappropriate.

Article 8 (Termination of User Registration)

1. In the event that a User falls under any of the following items, the Company may, without prior notice or demand, delete or hide the posted data, temporarily suspend the User from using the Service, or terminate the User’s registration.
   • (a) If a user violates any of the provisions of these Terms and Conditions.
   • (b) When it is found that there is a falsehood in the Registration Information.
   • (c) If the User does not use the Service for more than [6 months].
   • (d) If the User does not respond to the Company’s inquiries or other communications requesting a response for [30 days] or more.
   • (e) In any other case in which the Company deems it inappropriate for the User to use the Service or to continue registration as a User.
2. In the event of any of the events listed in the preceding paragraph, the User shall lose the benefit of time for all debts owed to the Company, and shall immediately pay all debts owed to the Company.

Article 9 (Intellectual Property Rights)

1. All intellectual property rights related to the website, software, and services provided by the Company through the Service belong to the Company or to the party that has granted a license to the Company. Users shall not process, modify, sell to a third party, transfer, lend, rent, transfer possession of, or misappropriate for commercial purposes without the Company’s permission.
2. Users shall represent and warrant to the Company that they have legal rights to the content and data they post or otherwise transmit (hereinafter referred to as “Posted Data”) when using the Service and that the Posted Data does not infringe upon the rights of any third party.
3. Users grant the Company a geographically unrestricted, non-exclusive, sublicensable, and transferable license to use, reproduce, distribute, create derivative works from, display, and perform the Posted Data without compensation. [Users also grant to other Users, free of charge, a non-exclusive license to use, reproduce, distribute, create derivative works from, display, and perform any Posted Data that they post or otherwise transmit using the Service.]
4. The User agrees not to exercise moral rights against the Company and those who have succeeded to or been granted rights by the Company.

Article 10 (Withdrawal)

1. Users may withdraw from the Service and delete their registration as a User through procedures prescribed by the Company.
2. Upon withdrawal from membership, Users who have debts owed to the Company will naturally forfeit the benefit of time with respect to all debts owed to the Company and must immediately repay all debts to the Company.
3. The provisions of Article 4 shall apply mutatis mutandis to the handling of user information after withdrawal from membership.

Article 11 (Suspension of the Service)

The Company may suspend or discontinue all or part of the Service without prior notice to Users in any of the following circumstances.

1. When performing inspections or maintenance work on computer systems related to the Service.
2. When the operation of the Service becomes impossible due to computer or communication line failures, mishandling, excessive concentration of access, unauthorized access, hacking, etc.
3. When the Service cannot be operated due to force majeure such as earthquake, lightning, fire, windstorm, flood, power outage, or natural disaster.
4. In any other circumstances in which the Company deems it necessary to suspend or discontinue the Service.

Article 12 (Change or Termination of the Service)

1. The Company may change the contents of the Service or terminate the provision of the Service at the convenience of the Company.
2. In the event that the Company terminates the provision of the Service, the Company shall notify Users in advance.
3. The Company shall not be responsible for storing or managing any Registration Information, Posted Data, or other information on the Service.

Article 13 (Notices)

1. Use of the Service and notices to the User based on these Terms and Conditions shall be deemed to have arrived when the contents reach the email address declared by the User.
2. In the event of an accident in the computer system of the provider that manages email, or in the event of a change or discontinuation of the email address, but the email address after the change has not been notified, the notices shall be deemed to have been received when they are sent to the email address last notified by the User.

Article 14 (Disclaimer)

1. The Company makes no warranty, express or implied, that the Service will be suitable for the User’s particular purpose, that it will have the expected functions, commercial value, accuracy, or usefulness, that the User’s use of the Service will comply with applicable laws and regulations, that the Service will be continuously usable, or that defects will not occur. The Company makes no warranty of any kind, either express or implied.
2. The Company shall not be liable for any damages incurred by the User in connection with the Service beyond the amount of compensation paid to the Company by the User during the past [12 months], nor shall the Company be liable for any incidental, indirect, special, future, or lost profit damages.
3. Users shall, at their own expense and responsibility, settle any transactions, communications, and disputes with other Users or third parties arising out of or in connection with the use of the Service, and the Company shall not be liable for any such matters.

Article 15 (Assignment of Status Under the User Agreement)

1. The User may not assign, transfer, pledge as security, or otherwise dispose of his/her position under the User Agreement or rights or obligations under these Terms and Conditions to any third party without the prior written consent of the Company.
2. In the event that the Company transfers its business pertaining to the Service to a third party or causes a corporate split, the Company may transfer to the transferee of such business transfer, the status of the user contract, rights and obligations under the Terms and Conditions, User’s registration items, and other customer information, and the User shall consent to such transfer in advance.

Article 16 (Severability)

Even if any provision of these Terms and Conditions or part thereof is determined to be invalid or unenforceable under the Consumer Contract Act or other laws or regulations, the remaining provisions of these Terms and Conditions and the remainder of the provisions that are determined to be invalid or unenforceable in part shall remain in full force and effect.

Article 17 (Governing Law and Jurisdiction)

These Terms and Conditions shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Japan, and any dispute arising out of or in connection with these Terms and Conditions between the Company and a User shall be submitted to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Tokyo District Court as the court of first instance.

(Established: June 23, 2022)
(Revised: August 15, 2023)
(Revised: May 2, 2024)