Terms of Use
Information regarding ACA International Education Foundation's Ask Doctor Debt Web site Intellectual Property Policy.
Intellectual Property Policy
The Ask Doctor Debt Web site's copyrighted material is a valuable asset which the ACA International Education Foundation and ACA International, The Association of Credit and Collection Professionals, have the exclusive right to use. Such material is created for the benefit of consumers and the general public and its control is the responsibility of the ACA International Education Foundation. Intellectual Property as referred to in this document includes that owned by the ACA International Education Foundation.
I. AUTHORITY
A. The Copyright Act of 1976, 17 U.S.C. §§ 101-803, grants copyright owners exclusive rights including the right to “reproduce the copyrighted work in copies” and “to prepare derivative works based upon the copyrighted work.”
B. Use of Foundation-produced materials: The Web site material created by the Foundation is created for consumers and the general public.
C. Foundation-produced materials are the Intellectual Property of the Foundation, are copyrighted material and may not be reproduced in whole or in part without written consent of the Foundation and an agreement by the user to adhere to the copyright material use policy of the Foundation.
II. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND INFORMATION
A. Intellectual Property of the Foundation is that information, whether in tangible or intangible form, stored, recorded or kept in any manner whatsoever which has been created, commissioned or acquired by the Foundation. Any such information which is Intellectual Property is the exclusive property of the Foundation which shall maintain control and ownership of it.
B. Information of the Foundation includes any record, file or document created by the Foundation, any staff member, officer, director or agent. Such information includes, but is not limited to, the Ask Doctor Debt Web site.
III. PROTECTION OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
A. The integrity and defense of the Intellectual Property of this Foundation is maintained by the Foundation General Counsel or their designee. The Office of Foundation General Counsel shall take whatever action is appropriate and lawful to maintain the ownership of Intellectual Property, including all copyrighted material.
B. All Intellectual Property of this Foundation shall bear the appropriate copyright mark or symbol to indicate that such material is the copyrighted work of this Foundation. The copyright mark or symbol shall be in a form approved by the Office of Foundation General Counsel. Foundation material which shall display the appropriate copyright mark or symbol, includes, but is not limited to publications, Web site, and all material conveyed by any medium in any form which is disseminated or intended to be disseminated externally, including to consumers and the general public.
C. The Office of Foundation General Counsel shall advise the Foundation on matters of Intellectual Property and make recommendations for its integrity and defense.
D. The Office of Foundation General Counsel shall take appropriate action on a day-to-day basis to maintain ownership and control of Intellectual Property. Such action may include informing potential or actual copyright infringers of the Foundation's ownership of Intellectual Property and requesting or demanding that they cease and desist such unauthorized use.
E. When appropriate, the Foundation General Counsel may make the recommendation to commence legal action against an infringer.
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IV. PERMISSION TO USE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
A. The Office of Foundation General Counsel shall provide a method to grant permission for external individuals, entities and organizations to use, re-print or re-publish Intellectual Property of this Foundation. The Foundation General Counsel or their designee may provide written permission if the user agrees to attach the appropriate copyright mark or symbol to indicate that ownership of such Intellectual Property remains with this Foundation but that this Foundation has granted express permission for a limited use.
B. In determining whether to grant permission, the Office of Foundation General Counsel shall consider whether such permission will be beneficial to this Foundation, its members or the public and whether the form of such permission will assure the ownership and integrity of the Intellectual Property.
C. Grants of permission to use Intellectual Property shall be maintained in writing or on an electronic record for a period of three years from the date of copyright of the material for which permission was granted.
D. Unless permission is expressly granted by the Foundation General Counsel or designee, no use of the Foundation's Intellectual Property by any third-party is permitted.
V. INFORMATION OF THE FOUNDATION
Licensing and Sale. The granting of permission to use Intellectual Property shall include, where appropriate, an agreement to license such material or to sell such material. Material which is created for sale by this Foundation shall be sold in the regular course of business of this Foundation. Unless otherwise specified in the terms of sale, material sold for use by this Foundation may be used by its buyer only in the manner for which it was created and sold. Unless specifically expressed in the terms of sale of such material, all Intellectual Property rights, including copyright of such material, shall be retained by this Foundation.
VI. PERMISSION TO USE ITS INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY, COPYRIGHTED WORKS AND OTHER MATERIALS
This Foundation has established this policy to provide a consistent system to determine whether to grant permission to use its copyrighted material and the terms of such permission.
A. All Materials Protected
All materials that the Foundation creates, compiles, or publishes in any manner by any media are deemed to be protected by the U.S. Copyright Law, 17 U.S.C. §§ 101 et. seq. and any other applicable federal and state laws and international treaties.
B. The Foundation Highly Values Its Copyrights
This Foundation places the highest value on its copyrighted material. Such works are the exclusive property of the Foundation and may not be re-published, re-distributed, copied, stored and disseminated in any manner, by any medium, without the written permission of an authorized representative of the Foundation.
C. Authorization to Give Permission
No Foundation employee, agent or contractor is authorized to provide such permission to use copyrighted works, except the Foundation General Counsel or their designee.
D. Procedure
1. If a request is received seeking permission to use or re-publish any Foundation materials, such request must be routed to the Foundation General Counsel or their designee.
2. The General Counsel will examine the request, determine its scope and duration and base the decision regarding the request on the benefit to the Foundation, the benefit to the membership and the public, and the importance of protecting the copyrighted material of the Foundation, along with other factors.
3. The party requesting permission to use Foundation materials will be provided with a written notice informing them that permission has been granted or that permission has been refused. No party may assume that permission has been granted or will be granted until it receives such notice.
E. Notice Provisions
1. If permission is granted, the notice will specify the conditions upon which permission is granted. Any authorization for use may require that the requesting party indicate in any such republication or use that the Foundation has given the party permission to use the work and that the Foundation owns the copyright to the work.
2. If permission is granted, the party so requesting must sign and return the permission notice, signifying their agreement to adhere to its terms. Permission shall not be authorized until such notice is received by the Office of Foundation General Counsel. Such agreements shall be kept on file in the Office of Foundation General Counsel or its designee.
F. Work Remains the Property of this Foundation
When permission to use a work is granted by the Foundation, that work remains the copyrighted property of the Foundation which will retain sole and exclusive rights to the work.
G. Procedure for Alleged or Suspected Infringement
In the event that ACA has knowledge or learns that anyone may be making use of its copyrighted materials or logo without permission, that information shall be provided to the Office of Foundation General Counsel. The General Counsel shall investigate and take the necessary action.
H. Linking
Subject to the Terms of Use for the Ask Doctor Debt Web site, you may freely link to the Ask Doctor Debt Web site. Links should be made using the appropriate URL of http://www.askdoctordebt.com. All language on your site accompanying the links must clearly state that you are linking to Ask Doctor Debt materials. The Foundation shall have no responsibility or liability for any content appearing on your Web site or electronic publication. Permission to link to the Ask Doctor Debt Web site does not constitute permission by the Foundation General Counsel or their designee to use or reproduce materials from the Ask Doctor Deb Web site.
Thank you for your support of the ACA International Education Foundation.
