Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Nirvanix comment

Prior to the new Unofficial Nirvanix Users blog opening Nirvanix was specifically invited to comment on media reports that it was a Nirvanix employee that deleted millions of users files, but in its reply, did not do so. Today it has emailed alleging the TechCrunch article that reproduced a comment apparently from Charlie Jackson is 'inaccurate and libelous'.

Comments on this blog may refer to these allegations, so please see Nirvanix's response, linking to a longer article on its blog, at:
http://nirvanixusers.blogspot.com/2008/07/nirvanix-comment.html

Monday, July 14, 2008

Unofficial Nirvanix users blog

If you are concerned that Nirvanix has your data and you would like it back, see:
http://nirvanixusers.blogspot.com/2008/07/about-this-blog.html

To my mind, Nirvanix should show a little more concern for users. If it was a company warehousing house contents I doubt it would be able to dump everything in the incinerator simply because an agent had mislaid some keys and their filing cabinet had fallen over and the index cards had become mixed up. Particularly if the warehousing company was part of the same enterprise when entrusted with the items.

Friday, July 11, 2008

We are stuffed - message from Nirvanix

I have received the following response from Nirvanix. I think those who suggest this has all been a process designed by Streamload to rid itself of historic customers - many of whom had high data volumes - have a point.

---Message from Nirvanix to Luzo Orbit
Dear Mr Orbit,

theLinkUp (TLU) built their applications using Nirvanix as a back end storage platform, connecting their application to our service through an API. Without the TLU application, and its database which maps users to their files Nirvanix cannot decipher which files belong to each user. The same is true for any application interaction with back end storage and is not unique to TLU.

As has been noted by many TLU users, many cannot either find their files or have found that other TLU files are in their accounts. This isn't a physical storage issue but rather TLU has somehow corrupted their database in the build or deployment of the TLU application. Unfortunately, as we are completely separate companies, Nirvanix has had no control over the build, deployment or management of the TLU application nor will we when it is shut down on August 8th, 2008.

For the benefit of TLU customers, Nirvanix has agreed to extend its data services to TLU, at no cost, so that files that are in TLU system can be retrieved during the period stated on their site. After the TLU application ceases, there will be no way to access the files.
Best Regards,

Jonathan
---message ends


This was the request I sent:

---
From: Luzo Orbit [mailto:luzoorbit@hotmail.co.uk]
Sent: Thursday, July 10, 2008 2:50 PM
To: INFO
Subject: Valuable data held on your servers

Dear Nirvanix,

I understand from John Hood of Mediamax/The Linkup that customer files are stored on your servers.

As The Linkup is shortly to close its service, I ask you to preserve customer files on your servers until such time as customers have been able to download these files.

As you are no doubt aware, The Link Up aimed to transfer files held under the previous Mediamax system, but many files (45%) did not arrive in people’s accounts. They are unable to download these from the Link Up user interface and their only hope of recovering these files is directly from Nirvanix.

This data has value and I hope that Nirvanix will respect this and ensure nothing is destroyed without checking with the owners of the data.

I would be grateful if you could provide a statement and guidance on how people can recover their data for the blogs I maintain for Mediamax and The Linkup users.

Best wishes,

Luzo Orbit.

Thursday, July 10, 2008

Nirvanix has our data

John Hood posted a message on yesterday's blog entry: in which he said: "I think the only time we intentionally lied was when we denied being a customer of Nirvanix.... And yes, your files are at Nirvanix. It's now up to them to decide if they want to give you access to MediaMax." (The full message is below).

So they lied.

The Linkup is going offline on the 8 August. We have been told to download files before then. But they will still be on the servers of Nirvanix.

John said that there was a failure rate of 45% in transferring files from Mediamax to The Linkup. The files that have not been transferred are still there on the Nirvanix servers.

Perhaps those servers still have the millions of files that were deleted last year due to operator error.

John said previously: "Nirvanix and Mediamax (parent company of The Linkup) are separate companies that spun out of Streamload. Different investors, different employees, different management. There is no connection."

Well aside from it being a deliberate lie that there is no connection, it strikes me that those who signed up to Streamload have a strong case to require Nirvanix to give them access to their files.

Those that signed up to Mediamax also have a claim, I would imagine because our data is an asset and it surely cannot be held or destroyed by a third party without our permission. The fact that it was entrusted to Nirvanix by Mediamax should not change this fact. Legal advice on this point would be very useful.

It also occurs to me that data protection legislation may help. Under UK legislation you have a right to all data held by a third party in electronic form that relates to you. When I have used this act in the UK, I have been sent copies of materials that refer to me or have been sent to the organisation by me. Would it be possible to use the US Act to require Nirvanix to provide a copy of all data held in our accounts?

I don't have much data on Mediamax - I used it for hosting files for streaming, rather than for archiving or backup. But those with large amounts of data they want back might like to consider getting legal advice on the legal obligations of Nirvanix to return the data. Time is short because possibly they will destroy it after the 8 August deadline proposed by The Linkup expires.

Even without going for an injunction to prevent this, if people write to Nivanix saying they know they have their data and they expect it to be protected and returned it will strengthen the case should it be destroyed. The email address is info@nirvanix.com

We can also try to get fees back from The Linkup. However, someone has posted to a previous blog a message they say was received from John Hood:

---
Thanks for writing. I'm sorry to hear that you haven't been able to access your files. I wish I could give you a refund, but we simply have no money. In fact, the company is several hundred thousands of dollars in debt and will soon be filing for bankruptcy. I thnk you only recourse is to join the company's other creditors in bankruptcy court.

Thanks,

John Hood
Director, Customer Support
The Linkup
---

Here is his message about lying and news that he has left The Linkup:

--- from John Hood
Bash me all you want, but my apology was sincere. I didn't have to do it and I don't work for TLU anymore so I have no ulterior motive. I am not asking for any sympathy. And for the record I've never lied. I simply related what I was told by Engineering. Sometimes they weren't able to live up to their promises but that's true for every tech company. There was nothing nefarious going on. We're guilty of not living up to expectations for the service not of lying. I think the only time we intentionally lied was when we denied being a customer of Nirvanix. That was a Nirvanix demand. But I should also mention here that the companies were entirely separate. I always laughed when I saw Tom Bassett going on about how we were the same company. Not only was that not true, we had a contentious (and that's being polite)relationship with them from Day One.
And yes, your files are at Nirvanix. It's now up to them to decide if they want to give you access to MediaMax.
--- quote ends

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

John Hood post 9 July

John Hood of Mediamax/The Linkup posted the following message on the last blog entry about the closure of the service:

---quote begins
I just wanted to apologize on behalf of our entire team for the demise of The Linkup. We started this company a year ago to prevent the closing of the Streamload service which was the desire of management after the split of Streamload into MediaMax and Nirvanix. If we hadn't the service would have been gone a long time ago. It started off on a bad note because, due to operator eror, while the company was still Streamload millions or files were deleted. Still we perservered. We built what I think is an excellent product. The problem is not the product but transferring files from MM to The Linkup. There was a 45% failure rate as we tried to upload files to the new product. Therefore we felt it was best to end this situation now. We could have pushed forward but felt that continuing out cry over lossed files would dog us forever. This would hamper sales in the future and prevent us from raising more capital. We didn't feel it was right to resume billing customers considering the massive loss of data. (Yes, PayPal was still sending us money for subscriptions but we stopped directly charging credit cards April 26th)
So as much as we'd like to continue present circumstances prevent it.

Again, my apologies, I wish you success in downloading your files.

Best Regards,

John Hood
---quote ends

The file backup service that never was: The Linkup is closing

Those checking back to the official The Link Up blog for an update on the 29 June posting (which said the site was down for maintenance, though it was already back up), will have been shocked at the post today, 9 July 2008: "Mediamax / The Linkup is closing". The full post is included below.

The post states: "It was not possible to satisfactorily complete the move of files from MediaMax to The Linkup as we had expected, and as a result cannot offer a service that meets your expectations and our business requirements. This is a very disappointing outcome for us, and we know it has been a frustrating experience for many of our customers."

I would imagine it is frustrating for all customers who have until 8 August to download any files that have not already been lost by this company or were deleted with little or no notice when the switchover to The Linkup began in April.

So far there is no indication of whether those of us paying annual subscriptions will receive a refund. Personally my last payment was in March 2008 and my hosted links have not worked since the switch over in April. This is despite the fact that Mr. John Hood, communications director, posted here on 4 July in response to me raising this: "His statement about the TLU supporting links is a half truth. Yes, there were issues with existing links but that's because they the files that were in users hosted section were some of the last to migrate. We OBVIOUSLY still support embedded links." My files turned up in The Linkup long ago, but still the hosted links don't work. My podcast has fallen silent (and I've given up on it for now in frustration, thanks John), as have other streams.

I first began a blog on Mediamax because of lack of response from customer support when files went missing en masse. Comments were disabled on the official blog, so the idea was people could leave their comments on the users blog instead. It was called: "Mediamax - we need you!" and was an appeal for the company to engage with customers and address the problems.

For a while there was some productive discussion, or so it seemed. But then the transfer to The Linkup was sprung on us, a system still in beta. Those with free accounts on Mediamax were told with a week's notice or no notice at all that their accounts would be closed and all files deleted.

The transfer was a disaster, with a scheduling tool quickly abandoned and the promise that our files would all be transferred by the company. But for many, files have still not appeared. We were told hosted links would be maintained until December 2008. Mine have never worked, despite John's claim that OBVIOUSLY they are supported.

The only good news was that the official The Linkup blog allowed comments and so this one fell silent as many of us left our reports of system failures and appeals for help there. It felt like we were talking into a void, however. Now the comments there have all been deleted.

So The Linkup will soon be no more. Hopefully the warning at the top of this blog suggesting those thinking of signing up to The Linkup wait to see if it resolves its problems will have saved some people their money and the heartbreak many posters here report as family photos and important documents they thought they had backed up are lost forever.

I am sure the closure of The Linkup was not the outcome most people on this blog wanted. We wanted clear communication, a working system and either lost files back or at least an admission that they were gone forever and some form of compensation. Waiving of fees for those of us who have forked out good money for nothing would have been nice.

It seems, however, that it is easier for The Linkup to dump its historic customers.

Perhaps those involved will resurface in another guise promising secure storage and many other things. As it has failed to deliver or honour these commitments in the past, I would be loathe to trust it again. We can have no confidence this team will not be as incompetent in future.

It may not only be the desire to escape historic commitments that has brought about the closure. As has been mentioned in comments here, people were finding the files of strangers turning up in their accounts. While the terms and conditions may protect the company from losing files, breaking the security of personal data is perhaps a more serious issue as it is regulated by legislation in many countries, including, no doubt, the US. Perhaps it is the real risk of customers finding their personal information being abused that has prompted the company to pull the plug.

It is sad to see that the company blames others instead of looking at its own failings. John Hood said he disabled comments on the official blog, not because he didn't want to respond to the comments, but because : "the blog was full of bickering between posters and people spreading half truths. to say there a lot of sharing of information is a joke." See:
http://thelinkupusers.blogspot.com/2008/07/john-hood-disabled-comments.html

In what he billed as his 'last post' just last Friday in a comment on that entry, there was a portent of the imminent closure as he attempted to blame me for running this blog: "My point here is that he's not trying to do anything constructive here. He's just here to try to bring TLU down." He falsely claimed I had never contacted the company. I have the emails to prove it and left comments on the official blog, though John has deleted those.

Mr. Hood wrote: "Don't hide under the pretense that you're trying to provide a forum where people can get information."

Well, it has been no pretense. I hope this blog and its predecessor has provided a useful service. Certainly there has been a lot of information sharing going on. You wouldn't know from the official blog that wayward files have been turning up in other people's accounts, for example. This blog may even help the owners to be found. The Mediamax blog had a series of very useful posting, in my opinion, such as sharing information on file recovery progress.

So farewell to The Linkup. Good luck for whatever your people do next - I sincerely hope it has nothing to do with file storage or customer service. Oh, and please, at the very least, refund our fees.

Here then is the posting from the official blog telling us our files are soon to be deleted forever. See:
a href="http://tlublog.blogspot.com/2008/07/mediamax-linkup-is-closing.html:

---
MediaMax / The Linkup is closing

We regret to inform you that we will be closing The Linkup service on Friday, August 8 at 5:00 pm PDT.

The Linkup is no longer accepting any uploads or new accounts, and no further charges will be made to your credit card. After August 8, your account will not be accessible, all your personal information will be deleted (username, billing information, history, etc), and your files will be deleted. Please download any files that are in your account that you wish to keep before Friday, August 8 at 5:00 pm PDT.

It was not possible to satisfactorily complete the move of files from MediaMax to The Linkup as we had expected, and as a result cannot offer a service that meets your expectations and our business requirements. This is a very disappointing outcome for us, and we know it has been a frustrating experience for many of our customers.

We are very sorry that we have not been able to rebuild our service as we had envisioned. We sincerely appreciate those of you who stuck by us and held out hope for the return of a great service, and apologize that things did not work out better. And also a special thanks and apology to those developers who have been developing applications on The Linkup API that can no longer be supported.

Sincerely,
The Linkup Team
---

Friday, July 4, 2008

It's YOUR fault John Hood disabled comments on the official blog

John Hood of Streamload/Mediamax/The Linkup has posted the following comment to this blog explaining why he disabled comments on the official blog.

I note that NO explanation has been given on the official blog as to why comments were disabled and deleted.

--John hood johnh@thelinkup.com said...

for the record, i turned off comments because it just a constant negative spiral downward. we aren't even advertising for new users so saying that we're trying to avoid scaring them is ridiculous.
the blog was full of bickering between posters and people spreading half truths. to say there a lot of sharing of information is a joke.
to say that there's now no way to share your views is a joke too. i'm going through the names here and a great many of you have my email address and have written me.
another joke and one particularly offensive to me is that you never hear from support. hogwash. we answer 84% of our emails within 24 hours. to say that i drop in and say everything is rosy is also a joke. i gsve accurate information and took alot of abuse in return. i never said anything that wasn't true or sugar coted the facts. finally to say that we're billing people for our service is the biggest joke. we haven't charged anybody in quite some time.
if you guys change your tone and use the blog to make constructive criticism, stop abusing each other and lose the sarcasm i'll turn the blog comments back on.
finally, yes i realize that this migration has been difficult. i can't believe anyone thinks we're doing this on purpose. we're doing the best we can.

---
So there you go people. 'Change your tone'. Mr. Hood has spoken.

Streamload's old Terms and Conditions of Use

Streamload's old Terms and Conditions of Use

"Terms and Conditions of Use

Definitions. As used in this Agreement, the following terms and phrases shall have the following meanings:

Agreement: These Terms and Conditions, Streamload.com's Privacy Policy, Streamload.com's Policy Against Copyright Infringement and any and all agreements, schedules, policies, or amendments in place between You and Streamload.com governing Your use of Streamload.com's services.

Content Provider: A User that utilizes Streamload.com's services to allow access to or distribute his or her Shared Content, in electronic or other format, to other Users, whether free of charge (shared) or for a fee.

Content Recipient: A User that utilizes Streamload.com's services to access or receive, in electronic or other format, Shared Content from other Users, whether free of charge (shared) or for a fee.

Custom Compilations: The reproduction of all or any portion(s) of Shared Content from one or more Content Providers onto to electronic and/or recordable media and the physical and/or electronic distribution of such media in fulfillment of a Content Recipient's order for a custom compilation of Shared Content.

Digital Delivery: The delivery of Shared Content or electronic data, by digital transmission of electronic data and/or sound recordings which result in specifically identifiable reproductions by or for any Content Recipient of a copy of that data or a phonorecord of that sound recording by any means now known or hereafter devised.

Net Revenues: The number of copies of Your Shared Content distributed multiplied by the purchase price You set, less the following costs and fees incurred in connection with the delivery of Your Shared Content: (1) credits, including, but not limited to, those on account of defective merchandise, errors in billing, errors in transmission, and uncollected fees; and (2) shipping, if any.

Phonorecords: Material objects in which sounds, other than those accompanying a motion picture or other audiovisual work, are fixed by any method now known or later developed, and from which the sounds can be perceived, reproduced, or otherwise communicated, either directly or with the aid of a machine or device.

Private Content: The electronic data, including but not limited to sound recordings, audiovisual works, musical works, artwork, Phonorecords, photographs, documents, software, and other graphical or textual material embodying Your works and any descriptions, titles, captions and other identifying characteristics You or others attribute thereto, maintained on Your behalf by Streamload.com that You have not designated for access by or distribution to Users other than Yourself.

Shared Content: The electronic data, including but not limited to sound recordings, audiovisual works, musical works, artwork, Phonorecords, photographs, documents, software, other graphical or textual material embodying Your works; any descriptions, titles, captions and other identifying characteristics You or others attribute thereto; and all trademarks, tradenames and trade secrets therein, which are maintained on Your behalf by Streamload.com and that You have designated for access by or distribution to Users other than Yourself, whether free of charge (shared) or for a fee.

Streaming Transmission: The digital transmission of a sound recording or other Shared Content where a copy of the Shared Content is not made by or for the Content Recipient.

Streamload.com: Streamload.com, Nine Audio Technologies, Inc., and their successors, assigns, agents, distributors, dealers, and licensees.

Transacting Parties: The Content Provider(s) and Content Recipient(s) engaged in an individual Transaction utilizing Streamload.com's services.

Transaction: The offer of a copy of any Shared Content by a Content Provider, for a fee or free of charge, and the acceptance thereof by a Content Recipient using Streamload.com's services.

User: Any individual, group or entity accessing Streamload.com's services and/or utilizing one or more of Streamload.com's services to store, transfer or receive Private Content or Shared Content.

You, Your, Yours: The person who is over the age of 18, and the minor(s), individual(s), group(s), entity(ies) or other association(s), individually and as a whole, and their agents, successors and assigns, on whose behalf that person has entered this Agreement with Streamload.com and for whom Streamload.com has established an account.

Our Relationship: Streamload.com provides a service that enables You to store, transfer and receive Private Content and Shared Content online. All Transactions that take place utilizing Streamload.com's services are made directly between the Transacting Parties.Streamload.com is not an agent of any Transacting Party, nor is Streamload.com a direct party to any Transaction.You and Streamload.com act independently in all Transactions, and no agency, partnership, joint venture, trust, employer/employee, or franchiser/franchisee relationship is intended or created by this Agreement or by Your use of Streamload.com's services.

As-Is and As-Available: Neither Streamload.com nor any User, or their respective agents, warrants that the service, Private Content or Shared Content, or Your access thereto, will be uninterrupted or error free, and Streamload.com's services and the Shared Content are provided on an "as is, as available" basis. Streamload.com has the right to make changes to its services without notice to You. Neither Streamload.com nor any User warrants that Shared Content will be free of viruses or similar contamination or destructive features. You expressly agree to assume any and all risk as to the use, quality, performance, accuracy or completeness of any Private Content, Shared Content, or Streamload.com's services.

User's Identity: You agree to provide Streamload.com with accurate, timely information about Yourself and/or the minor over the age of 13 on whose behalf You are entering this Agreement, and update Your contact data such that it remains current. You will not provide Streamload.com with false information about Your identity, impersonate another person or entity, or otherwise misrepresent Your identity or affiliation to Streamload.com. Streamload.com will use that information only in a manner consistent with that disclosed in Streamload.com's Privacy Policy, which is incorporated into this Agreement by reference. Your failure to comply with this provision automatically nullifies any obligation Streamload.com may have to contact You or provide You with any notice required by this Agreement or by law.

Access: You are solely responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of Your password and any additional identifying information required for Your use of Streamload.com's services. Streamload.com does not guarantee the security of any information transmitted to or from Streamload.com. You are solely responsible for all Private Content, Shared Content and other information stored, transferred, and received under Your username and password including, but not limited to, sole responsibility for completing transactions initiated under Your username and password and payment for purchases made under your username and password. If You lose control of your password, You may be subject to legally binding actions taken on Your behalf. You are solely responsible for the accuracy and appropriateness of the Private Content and Shared Content maintained under Your username and password; for ensuring that Private Content or Shared Content posted or distributed under Your username and password does not violate or infringe this Agreement or upon the rights of any third party (including, without limitation, copyrights, trademarks, privacy or other personal or proprietary rights); and for ensuring that Private Content and Shared Content maintained under Your username and password are not illegal. Streamload.com disclaims any and all liability for such matters, and, to the fullest extent permitted by law, You agree to indemnify, defend and hold Streamload.com harmless from and against any and all claims, liabilities, loss, damages and expenses (including, without limitation, attorneys' fees) relating to or resulting from the use of Your username and password and/or Private Content or Shared Content maintained thereunder. You must immediately notify Streamload.com if you become aware of any loss, theft, or unauthorized use of Your password or of any other unauthorized use of any User. s account information, contact data, Private Content, Shared Content, or Streamload.com's services.

Infringement of Other's Rights: You represent and warrant that: (1) any Shared Content You provide is (a) wholly Your own original work, (b) the original work of others from whom You have received the rights or authority to enter this Agreement, or (c) Your own original work that incorporates the work of others from whom you have acquired the rights or authority to enter this Agreement; (2) Your Private Content or Shared Content does not and will not infringe on any third party's copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret or other proprietary rights, rights of publicity or privacy, or moral rights; (3) Your Private Content or Shared Content does not and will not violate any law, statute, ordinance or regulation; and (4) Your Shared Content is not and will not be defamatory, trade libelous, pornographic or obscene.

Control of Private Content and Shared Content: Streamload.com does not prescreen or test Private Content or Shared Content and does not endorse any Shared Content. Although Streamload.com does not regularly monitor use of its services, it reserves the right to do so if Streamload.com, in its sole discretion, determines there may be misuse as defined by the terms of this Agreement. Streamload.com may monitor Your access, use, Shared Content, files and/or Private Content to detect signs of misuse. Streamload.com will not knowingly tolerate the use of its services for illegal or other injurious or damaging activities. If Streamload.com believes, in its own discretion, that You may be connected with such activities, Streamload.com may disclose its user files, the Shared Content and/or Private Content to the proper authorities. Streamload.com may, in its sole discretion, remove, reclassify, recatogorize, or block Your access to all or any part of Streamload.com's services or to any particular Shared Content or Private Content at any time for any reason, or for no reason at all. Without limiting the foregoing, Streamload.com reserves its right to remove any Private Content or Shared Content if (a) it decides, in its sole discretion, that the Private Content or Shared Content may breach any of Your obligations, representations, or warranties hereunder, (b) Streamload.com is advised of a court order requiring removal of the Private Content or Shared Content, or (c) any third-party claims are made relating to the Private Content or Shared Content.

Maintenance of Private Content and Shared Content: Streamload.com shall have no responsibility for and does not guarantee Private Content or Shared Content residing on Streamload.com's equipment. You are responsible for independent backup of Private Content and Shared Content stored using Streamload.com's services. You agree to assume all risk of loss of such data. You agree to hold Streamload.com harmless for any loss of data, whether on Your equipment or through Streamload.com's services, arising out of or resulting from use of Streamload.com's services, including use of software provided by Streamload.com, if any. Streamload.com may, but shall not be required to, delete Your Shared Content, files and/or Private Content after the termination of this Agreement.

Site Integrity: You will not attempt to gain access to Streamload.com's private system areas or to other areas to which You are not expressly permitted access and You shall not reverse engineer or attempt to reverse engineer any portion of Streamload.com's service. Streamload.com will prosecute those who illegally threaten the system or its services. You agree that if any of Your activities conducted in violation of this Agreement are found to disrupt or damage Streamload.com's hardware, software, system or their functions, You will reimburse Streamload.com for system administration costs incurred in repairing the affected systems as well as direct and consequential damages incurred by Streamload.com arising out of Your activities.

Anti-Spamming Policy: You agree that you will not collect personal information about other Users and will not send mass, unsolicited electronic mailings, chain letters, or "pyramid schemes" to Streamload.com's Users. You will not include in Your description of any Shared Content keywords that are not related to the Shared Content in order to gain extra exposure for the Shared Content, and You will not directly notify other Streamload.com users of Your Shared Content by means of mass-mailings, "spamming", or other unsolicited notifications. You shall not use Streamload.com's services for advertising or promotion of a commercial product or service that is not available through Streamload.com's services.

Direct Dealing: You agree to not post or otherwise distribute any information about alternate sources for Users to acquire Your Shared Content in an attempt to divert Users to services other than Streamload.com or to circumvent Your obligations to Streamload.com under this Agreement. You agree to not seek alternate sources to acquire Shared Content You located by use of Streamload.com's services in an attempt to divert Content Providers to services other than Streamload.com or to circumvent Streamload.com's services in facilitating a Transaction.

Age Restrictions: Anyone 13 years old or older is eligible to use Streamload.com's services. An account for use by a minor must be established by a person over the age of 18 with the legal right to execute this Agreement on behalf of the minor and who guarantees such minor. s performance under the terms of this Agreement. In order to post Shared Content for sale or to buy Shared Content through Streamload.com's services, however, you must be at least 18 years old.

Grant of License: You grant to Streamload.com a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, sub-licensable (through multiple tiers) right (1) to prepare and encode Your Private Content, Shared Content, and/or any portion(s) thereof, to the extent reasonably necessary for the storage, retrieval, distribution (including, but not limited to, Streaming Transmission and the making of Phonorecords and Digital Deliveries), exploitation, promotion, marketing and advertising of Your Shared Content and/or performing Streamload.com's services; (2) to display, copy, reproduce (and to mechanically reproduce musical compositions), exhibit, publicly perform, broadcast, rebroadcast, transmit, retransmit, distribute through any physical, electronic or other means, now known or hereafter devised (including, but not limited to, Streaming Transmission, Digital Delivery, and Phonorecords), and publish any or all of Your Shared Content, or any portion(s) thereof, by any and all means and media now known or hereafter devised; and (3) to create compilations containing Your Shared Content, or portions thereof, and to distribute them by any and all means and media now known or hereafter devised, including but not limited to standard audio- or data-only compact discs and audio-only cassettes manufactured primarily for home entertainment. You may revoke this license upon 30 days written notice to Streamload.com.

Name & Likeness: As a Content Provider, You grant to Streamload.com permission, on a non-exclusive basis, worldwide, to use your name(s), username, group name, corporate name, approved photograph, artwork, and/or likeness(es) and approved biographical materials solely in connection with the distribution, exploitation, promotion, marketing and advertising of Your Shared Content or Streamload.com's services. You will not assert any privacy, publicity, moral or similar rights held by you or any other person(s) whose contributions are embodied in Your Shared Content under the laws of the United States or any other country in connection with Streamload.com's use of any such materials.

Shared Content Identification: Your Shared Content must strictly conform to the title and descriptions You provide. Shared Content not suitable for all ages must be labeled to indicate that it is intended for "Mature Audiences". Shared Content with nudity, intense or graphic violence, intense sexual situations, crude or indecent language, or intensely suggestive dialogue must be labeled for "Mature Audiences". Streamload.com does not allow the use of its services to sell, share, or otherwise transfer pornographic material.

Prohibited Private Content: Streamload.com's services may not be used for the electronic storage of unlawful or illegal images, files, documents, materials, or other data relating to or resulting in child pornography, copyright or trademark infringement, or other illegal data. Streamload.com reserves the right at any time to remove any prohibited Private Content and terminate this Agreement. The storage of prohibited Private Content may also subject You to civil and/or criminal liability.

Prohibited Shared Content: You agree to abide by Streamload.com's policy concerning Prohibited Shared Content, which is incorporated into this Agreement by reference. Without limiting Streamload.com's Prohibited Shared Content policy, Streamload.com's services may not be used to engage in or encourage anything to do with unlawful or illegal activities relating to or resulting in controlled substances, gambling, pornography, prostitution, child pornography, robbery, propagating computer viruses, unauthorized access to private computer systems, copyright or trademark infringement, illicit use of credit information, or other criminal or otherwise illegal activity. Streamload.com reserves the right at any time to remove any Prohibited Shared Content and terminate this Agreement. The transfer or receipt of prohibited Shared Content may also subject You to civil and/or criminal liability.

Nature of Duty to Purchasers: Unless You expressly state otherwise, by utilizing Streamload.com's services to sell copies of Your Shared Content, You agree to offer an unlimited number of copies of Your Shared Content for sale to the general public, and You are under a duty to consummate all transactions according to the terms and conditions under which the purchaser requested Your Shared Content. Although You are free to modify Your terms of sale at any time, You agree to fill all orders placed prior to any such modification under the terms in effect at the time the order was placed.

Payment Obligations: If You agree to receive Shared Content for which the Content Provider requests a fee, You thereby agree to pay the listed price of the Shared Content requested, due and payable to Streamload.com immediately upon requesting the Shared Content. Streamload.com will thereafter transfer payment to the Content Provider in accordance with the terms and conditions of the agreement between Streamload.com and the Content Provider.

Nature of Transactions: The Content Recipient acquires only a non-exclusive license to use the Shared Content for their own benefit. The Content Recipient may not transfer or allow, authorize, or permit others to transfer the Shared Content or derivations thereof in any form or by any means to any third party. The Content Provider retains all intellectual property rights in the Shared Content, including, without limitation, all copyright, trademark, and patent rights therein.

Additional Terms and Conditions: The Transacting Parties may agree to additional terms and conditions governing the transfer and use of the Shared Content, such as additional restrictions on the permitted uses thereof. Should any provision of any such agreement conflict with the terms and conditions of this Agreement, this Agreement shall prevail, but only to the extent necessary to resolve any such conflicts.

Compensation: As a Content Provider, submission of Shared Content shall be at Your sole expense. Should You charge Content Recipients a fee for use of Your Shared Content, Your account will be credited with a percentage (currently as set forth here and subject to change without notice) of the Net Revenues actually collected by Streamload.com for deliveries containing such Shared Content. Net Revenues shall not include and no credits shall be applied to Your account for any Shared Content reproduced, distributed, performed, displayed, broadcast, delivered or transmitted on a "free" or "no charge" basis. Your Net Revenues will not include purchases of Shared Content for which You charge a "nominal" fee (currently defined as less than $3), until the Content Recipient accrues $3 in total aggregated purchases from one or more Content Providers. Your portion of any Net Revenue includes all royalties and other payments due You, all contributing artist(s), author(s), producers, directors, performers, engineers, and any other persons engaged in connection with the creation of Your Shared Content. You shall be solely responsible for the payment of any royalties or other compensation due all such persons or other third parties arising from any account credits received by You hereunder. Streamload.com reserves the right to reverse any transaction that is in violation of this Agreement and to credit Streamload.com's costs and fees attributable to that transaction against Your account. You agree to compensate Streamload.com for all transactions initiated by use of Streamload.com's services in accordance with the terms of this Agreement and, while using Streamload.com's services, You agree that You will not take steps to circumvent this obligation, such as by diverting buyers to an alternate source to acquire Your Shared Content. Streamload.com will make good faith efforts to make Your Shared Content available only in accordance with Your instructions. Streamload.com, however, may incorrectly categorize Your Shared Content such that "free" or "no charge" content is available only for a fee, or fee-based Shared Content is available for "free" or "no charge". Should Streamload.com make such an error, then upon notice from You, Streamload.com will take all commercially reasonable efforts to promptly correct the error, that being Your sole and exclusive remedy. Streamload.com shall not be responsible for actual, consequential or other damages arising from any such errors.

Payments to You: Net Revenue credited to your account has no monetary value. You may, however, redeem Net Revenue credited to Your account for payment in United States Dollars when (1) You accumulate $20 or more of Net Revenue in Your account; (2) the transaction(s) for which the Net Revenue was credited to Your account occurred at least five business days prior to Your redemption request; and (3) You have not requested redemption of accumulated Net Revenue in the thirty days preceding Your redemption request. Upon receipt of a valid redemption request, Streamload.com will submit payment to you via check or electronic transfer.

Accounting: Streamload.com agrees to keep accurate books and records covering the transactions related to this Agreement. During the one year period following Streamload.com's on-line issuance of an accounting statement, You may, at Your expense and upon reasonable notice, inspect Streamload.com's records related to that statement at a location specified by Streamload.com, provided that Your inspection does not unreasonably interfere with Streamload.com's services. If Your inspection reveals that Streamload.com has incorrectly credited Your account, Streamload.com will take all reasonable efforts to promptly correct the deficiency and credit Your account accordingly.

Licensing Fees, Royalties, Etc.: As a Content Provider, You shall be solely responsible for all licensing, reporting and payment obligations of any kind to third parties in connection with Your Shared Content, including but not limited to any applicable license fees, royalties, participations, residuals, union and/or guild payments, "sample" or "replay" licenses or payments, and mechanical, synchronization or public performance royalties. Neither Streamload.com nor any Content Recipient shall have any obligation to make any such payments, and You warrant that You will fulfill your obligations to any such third parties.

Taxes and Other Obligations: As a Content Provider, You are responsible for payment of any and all taxes, tariffs, duties, and other such obligations attributable to the sale of Your Shared Content. Neither Streamload.com nor any Content Recipient will be liable for any such obligations.

Copyright & Deposit Requirements: You understand and agree that Streamload.com's services may entail the making and/or distribution of copies and/or Phonorecords embodying Your Shared Content as those terms are defined by the United States Copyright laws. You are also aware that Your use of Streamload.com's services may trigger certain legal obligations, including, but not limited to, mandatory deposit requirements and compulsory licensing. You agree that You are solely responsible for complying with any such requirements and agree to defend, indemnify and hold Streamload.com harmless from and against any and all claims, losses, damages, or liabilities arising out of Your failure to do so.

Export Controls: No Shared Content shall be acquired by or otherwise exported or re-exported into (or by or to a national or resident of) Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Syria, Sudan or any other country to which the U.S. has embargoed goods; or to anyone on the U.S. Treasury Department's list of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons or the U.S. Commerce Department's Table of Denial Orders. As a Content Recipient, You represent and warrant that You are not located in, under the control of, or a national or resident of any such country or on any such list.

Parental Control Protections: Streamload.com does not routinely audit the Private Content or Shared Content provided by Users of its services and strongly encourages the use of parental control protections (such as computer hardware, software, or filtering services) that are commercially available and may assist in limiting access to Shared Content or Private Content that may be harmful to or inappropriate for minors.

Assignability: You may not assign, transfer, or delegate this Agreement, Your duties and obligations under this Agreement, Your benefits under this Agreement, or Your Streamload.com account to anyone without the express written consent of Streamload.com. Upon reasonable notice to You, Streamload.com may assign or transfer this Agreement at its sole discretion.

DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES: STREAMLOAD.COM'S SERVICES AND MATERIALS AND THIRD PARTY CONTENT ACCESSIBLE IN CONNECTION THEREWITH ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE", AND, EXCEPT AS EXPRESSLY PROVIDED HEREIN, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE BY APPLICABLE LAW, STREAMLOAD.COM DISCLAIMS ALL SUCH WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, Streamload.com does not warrant that the functions and/or services of Streamload.com-related services, Private Content, Shared Content, hardware, sites, software, data or other material will be uninterrupted or error-free, or that defects will be detected or corrected; neither Streamload.com nor any third party Content Provider warrants that any service, software, Shared Content, Private Content or the methods by which they are made available will be free of viruses or similar contamination or destructive features. You expressly agree to solely assume the entire risk as to the quality and performance of Streamload.com's services and the accuracy or completeness of Private Content and/or Shared Content.Streamload.com does not warrant or make any representations regarding the use or the results of the use of its services, software, Private Content, Shared Content, the materials, functions, data or services in or provided by Streamload.com, its affiliates or its Users in terms of accuracy, reliability, or otherwise. You expressly agree to assume the entire cost of all necessary servicing, repair, correction and related liabilities resulting from Your use of Streamload.com's services. If applicable law does not allow the exclusion of implied warranties, certain of the above exclusion may not apply to You.

Guarantee Against Fraudulent Transactions: Notwithstanding the foregoing, Streamload.com provides a limited guarantee against Shared Content sales that are blatantly fraudulent as follows: If You have purchased Shared Content through Streamload.com's services which Streamload.com, in its sole discretion, deems to be fraudulent (such as a posting that comprises a blank document or Shared Content that in no way conforms to its description) and You notify Streamload.com of such within 48 hours of the Transaction, Streamload.com will reverse that transaction. If you believe that you have been the victim of fraud while using Streamload.com's services, please contact legal@streamload.com.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY: YOU AGREE THAT, EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE EXPRESSLY PROVIDED IN THIS AGREEMENT, UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES, INCLUDING (BUT NOT LIMITED TO) NEGLIGENCE, SHALL STREAMLOAD.COM BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ACTUAL, INCIDENTAL, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, PUNITIVE, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES) THAT RELATE TO OR RESULT FROM THE USE OF, THE INABILITY TO USE, OR THE CORRUPTION OF PRIVATE CONTENT, SHARED CONTENT OR OTHER DATA STORED ON, STORED IN, RETRIEVED FROM, ACQUIRED, TRANSMITTED OR TRANSFERRED THROUGH STREAMLOAD.com's SERVICES, EVEN IF STREAMLOAD.COM OR ITS REPRESENTATIVES HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. YOU FURTHER AGREE THAT STREAMLOAD.COM WILL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE TO YOU FOR ANY DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DIRECT, INCIDENTAL, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, PUNITIVE, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES) OR ANY LOSSES YOU MAY INCUR IN CONNECTION WITH STREAMLOAD.COM'S SERVICES OR ANY OF THE CONTENT, DATA OR OTHER MATERIALS TRANSMITTED THROUGH OR RESIDING ON STREAMLOAD.COM'S EQUIPMENT, EVEN IF STREAMLOAD.COM HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE OR LOSS. NOTWITHSTANDING THE FOREGOING, IN NO EVENT SHALL STREAMLOAD.COM'S TOTAL LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ALL DAMAGES, LOSSES, AND CAUSES OF ACTION (WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, NEGLIGENCE), OR OTHERWISE) EXCEED THE GREATER OF $1,000 OR THE AMOUNT PAID BY YOU FOR ACCESSING THIS SITE. If applicable law does not allow the limitation or exclusion of liability or incidental or consequential damages, certain of the above limitations or exclusions may not apply to You.

Indemnification: You agree to defend, indemnify and hold Streamload.com and its agents, employees, consultants, representatives and/or assigns harmless from and against any and all claims, proceedings, damages, injuries, liabilities, losses, costs and expenses (including, but not limited to, attorneys. fees and costs through appeal) relating to, arising out of or resulting from, in whole or in part, any acts or omissions by You, or Private Content, Shared Content, materials or information stored, transmitted or received by or for You, that in any way relate to Streamload.com's services.

Termination at Will: Streamload.com reserves the right to change, suspend or discontinue all or any aspect of its services at any time, including the availability of any feature, Private Content, or Shared Content, without prior notice or liability to You. Either party may terminate this Agreement at any time for any reason or for no reason by sending notice of termination to the other party. Each party expressly waives any and all claims it may have against the other party arising out of or related to any such termination at will.

Termination for Cause: Streamload.com may terminate this Agreement if You submit false or misleading information to Streamload.com, if You breach any provisions of this Agreement, or violate any laws, including the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998. If Streamload.com terminates this Agreement for cause, You will forfeit any and all Net Revenue credited to Your account, and Your licenses to use any and all acquired Shared Content (and its mechanism(s) of delivery) will automatically terminate. Under no circumstances will You be entitled to redeem any Net Revenues or receive a license to use any Shared Content that Streamload.com, in its sole discretion, determines You gained from illegal activities or in a way that otherwise violates the terms of this Agreement. Upon termination for cause, You will no longer have the right to access Streamload.com's services and You will be precluded from accessing Streamload.com's services in the future. Streamload.com expressly reserves any and all additional rights and remedies it may have against You including, but not limited to, claims for breach of contract.

Choice of Law & Venue: Streamload.com's services are provided from its offices within the State of California, United States of America. Streamload.com makes no representation that its services are appropriate or available for use in other locations. If You choose to access this site from other locations, You do so on Your own initiative and are responsible for compliance with local laws, if and to the extent local laws are applicable. All matters with respect to this Agreement, including, without limitation, matters of validity, construction, effect and performance shall be governed by the internal laws of the State of California applicable to contracts made and to be performed therein between the residents thereof (regardless of the laws that might otherwise be applicable under principles of conflicts of law). Any action or proceeding related to the subject matter of this Agreement shall be venued in San Diego, California. You hereby agree to submit to personal jurisdiction in the federal and state courts located in San Diego, California. This Agreement shall not be governed by the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods.

Severablity: If any provision of this Agreement shall be deemed unlawful, void, or for any reason unenforceable, then that provision shall be severable from this Agreement and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining provisions. This Agreement may not be amended unless an officer of Streamload.com has approved and signed such an amendment in writing. Non-enforcement of any section of this Agreement does not constitute consent or waiver and Streamload.com reserves the right to enforce any provision of this Agreement at its sole discretion.

Incorporation: The terms of this Agreement supercede any prior representations made by Streamload.com or negotiations between You and Streamload.com and is the entire agreement between the parties relating to the subject matter contained herein.

Modifications: Streamload.com may from time to time amend the terms and conditions of this Agreement. At the time of any such change, You will be notified of the modified terms and conditions. Continued use of Streamload.com's services after the effective date of the notification shall constitute acceptance of the changed Agreement.

Time Limitation on Claims: Regardless of any statute or law to the contrary, any claim, cause of action, or demand for arbitration against Streamload.com arising out of or related to this Agreement or use of Streamload.com's services must be filed within one year of the date upon which You were or should have first been aware of the existence of the grounds for Your claim or cause of action.

Arbitration: Any dispute between You and Streamload.com relating to this Agreement, Private Content, Shared Content or Streamload.com's services, hardware or software shall be resolved by binding arbitration pursuant to the commercial rules of the American Arbitration Association. Any such controversy or claim shall be arbitrated on an individual basis, and shall not be consolidated in any arbitration with any claim or controversy of any other party. The arbitration shall be conducted in San Diego, California, and any judgment on the arbitration award may be entered in any court having jurisdiction thereof.

Notice: Legal notice to Streamload.com must be delivered to:

Legal Notice
Streamload.com
4475 Mission Blvd., Suite 238
San Diego, CA 92109
858-581-1900
legal@streamload.com

Any notice to You required by law or under this Agreement will be effectuated by Streamload.com posting notice on its site in a designated area and via electronic mail (e-mail) to the address on file with Streamload.com (if any).

Reporting Violations of this Agreement: Violations of the terms of this Agreement or similar agreements should be reported to Streamload.com at legal@streamload.com. To report potentially infringing use of copyrighted material, please refer to Streamload.com's Copyright Infringement Policy.

Authority: You represent and warrant that (1) You are over the age of 18; (2) You have full right and power to enter into and perform this Agreement, and have secured all third party consents necessary to enter into this Agreement; and (3) if You are establishing an account on behalf of a minor or if any contribution to Your Shared Content is from a minor, You have the legal right to execute this Agreement on behalf of the minor and guarantee such minor's performance of the terms of this Agreement. These warranties shall survive any termination of this agreement. You agree to indemnify and hold Streamload.com and its Users harmless from any and all damages and costs, including reasonable attorney's fees, arising out of or related to Your breach of the representations and warranties described herein. You agree to execute and deliver documents to Streamload.com, upon Streamload.com's reasonable request, that evidence or effectuate Streamload.com's rights under this Agreement.

Agreement: You represent that You have carefully read this Agreement, that You understand its contents, and that You have had an opportunity to seek independent legal advice with respect to the review and advisability of entering into this Agreement. Should you have any questions concerning this Agreement, please contact legal@streamload.com."

Streamload's old Privacy Policy

Here are the old terms.

" Rules & Legal Policy

Streamload's Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy statement discloses Streamload's privacy practices and is incorporated into and is subject to the Terms and Conditions of Use. By entering into the Agreement, you expressly consent to Streamload's use and disclosure of Your personal information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

Information Collection and Use: Streamload is the sole owner of the information collected from its Users. Except as required by law, subpoena or court order, Streamload will not sell, share, or rent this information to others in ways different from what is disclosed in this statement.

Registration. In order to use Streamload's services, Users must first complete a registration form, which requires providing Streamload certain information. This information is used to identify the specific User utilizing Streamload's services. The User may provide optional identifying information, demographic information, and unique identifiers to enable us to provide a more personalized experience on the site.

Content Providers. The Content Provider must provide contact and other identifying information on the submission form. This information is used to enforce Streamload's Policy Against Copyright Infringement and its Terms of Service.

Content Recipients. The Content Recipient must provide contact information (e.g., name and shipping address) and financial information (e.g., credit card number and expiration date) on the order form. This information is used for billing purposes and to fill Content Recipients' orders. If Streamload has trouble processing an order, it will use this contact information to notify the Content Recipient.

Cookies. A cookie is a piece of data stored on the User's hard drive containing information about the User. Cookies identify the User for our database, but provide no information other than that which You have already provided Streamload. For instance, by setting a cookie on this site, the User would not have to log in a password more than once, thereby saving time while on the site. If a User rejects the cookie, they may still use the site. The User, however, will be limited in some areas of the site. Cookies can also enable Streamload to track and target the interests of the Users to enhance their experience on the site. Some of Streamload's business partners use cookies and action tags (also known as single pixel gifs or web beacons) on the site for purposes such as serving ads and measuring advertising effectiveness. Streamload, however, has no access to or control over their use of these cookies and is not responsible for the data collected through these cookies, or how any such collected data is used or shared by Streamload's business partners. Any information that these third parties collect via cookies and action tags is completely anonymous. If you would like more information about this practice and your choices, click here.

Log Files. Streamload uses IP addresses to analyze trends, administer the site, track User. IP addresses are linked to personally identifiable information for security and operational purposes only.

Correspondence. Streamload may retain correspondence from Users for tracking purposes only and, except as required by law or to assist in enforcing the Agreement, will not use it for any secondary purpose or to send You unsolicited electronic mail.

Use of Personal Information. Streamload will not give, sell, rent, share, or trade any personal information about You to third parties or provide Your personal information, including your name or electronic mail address, to third parties except as required by law, subpoena or court order. Streamload may disclose Your username, name, address, electronic mail, and other personal information as it believes necessary or appropriate in connection with an investigation for fraud, intellectual property infringement, piracy, or other illegal activity as well as dispute resolution and enforcement of the Agreement. Streamload will share aggregated demographic information with its partners and advertisers. This is not linked to any personal information that can identify any individual person. Streamload uses an outside shipping company to ship orders, and a credit card processing company to bill Users for goods and services. Streamload may partner with other parties to provide specific services. When the User signs up for these services, Streamload will share names or other contact information as necessary for the third party to provide these services. These parties are not allowed to use personally identifiable information except for the purpose of providing these services.

Metadata. By your use of Streamload's service you grant a non-exclusive, sub-licensable license to Streamload for any and all rights in the identifications, descriptions, or other metadata you have provided in connection with Your Public Content and Private Content. Streamload reserves the right to rent, sell or otherwise share this metadata with other entities at its discretion.

Links. This web site contains links to other sites. Please be aware that Streamload is not responsible for the privacy practices of such other sites. We encourage our Users to be aware when they leave our site and to read the privacy statements of each and every web site that collects personally identifiable information. This Privacy Policy statement applies solely to information collected by Streamload on the Streamload web site.

Surveys and Contests. From time-to-time Streamload may request information from Users via surveys or contests. Participation in any such surveys or contests is completely voluntary and the User therefore has a choice whether or not to disclose the requested information. Information requested may include contact information (e.g., name and address), and demographic information (e.g., age level or income). Contact information will be used to notify the winners and award prizes. Survey information will be used for purposes of monitoring or improving the use and satisfaction of this site.

Security. Streamload uses best practices to protect our Users' information. When Streamload asks users to enter sensitive information (such as credit card number), that information is protected with SSL encryption software for transmission to Streamload. All of our Users' information is restricted in our offices. Only employees who need the information to perform a specific job (for example, our billing clerk or a customer service representative) are granted access to personally identifiable information. Streamload employees must use password-protected screen-savers when they leave their desk. When they return, they must re-enter their password to re-gain access to your information. Furthermore, employees are kept up-to-date on Streamload's security and privacy practices. Every quarter, as well as any time new policies are added, Streamload employees are notified and/or reminded about the importance placed on privacy, and what they can do to ensure the Users' information is protected. Finally, the servers on which Streamload stores personally identifiable information are kept in a secure environment.

Supplementation of Information. Streamload may combine information about the purchasing habits of Users with similar information from its partners to create a personalized user profile. When a User makes a purchase from one of Streamload's partners, the partner company may collect and share that purchase information with Streamload to better tailor the site to the Users' preferences.

Privacy of Other Users. Your use of other Users' personal information obtained through Streamload is strictly limited to communications related to Your use of Streamload's services that are not unsolicited commercial messages and any other purpose that a User expressly opts into after adequate disclosure of the purpose(s). In all cases, You must give Users an opportunity to remove themselves from Your database and a chance to review what information You have collected about them. In addition, except as defined in this section, you can not disclose personal information about another User to any third party without Streamload's consent and the consent of such other User after adequate disclosure.

Special Offers. Streamload may occasionally send information on products, services, special deals, or a newsletter. Out of respect for the privacy of the Users, Streamload presents the option to not receive these types of communications. Please see Streamload's Choice / Opt-Out provision below.

Site and Service Updates. Streamload may send its Users site and service announcement updates. Users are not able to un-subscribe from service announcements, which contain important information about the service. Streamload communicates with the User to provide requested services and in regards to issues relating to their account via electronic mail or phone.

Correcting/Updating Personal Information. If Your personally identifiable information changes (such as your zip code), Streamload will endeavor to provide a way to correct or update the personal data You provided to it. This can usually be done at the Account Information page or by electronically mailing our Customer Support at support@streamload.com.

Removing Personal Information and Content. Streamload will remove Your contact information from its current database if You decide that You no longer want to use Streamload's services and request to be removed from the database. Streamload may in some circumstances retain information that You have requested removed to resolve disputes, troubleshoot problems and enforce the Agreement. Further, such prior information is never completely removed from Streamload's databases due to technical constraints and the fact that Streamload backs up its systems. Accordingly, Your personal information will not be completely removed from Streamload's databases in response to Your requests.

Choice/Opt-out. You may opt-out of having Your information used for purposes not directly related to Streamload's services at the point where we ask for the information. Users who no longer wish to receive promotional materials from our partners may opt-out of receiving these communications by replying with unsubscribe in the subject line in the electronic mail or electronic mail us at support@streamload.com.

Notification of Changes. If Streamload decides to change this privacy policy, it will post those changes so Users are always aware of what information Streamload collects, how it uses it, and under which circumstances, if any, it is disclosed. If at any point Streamload decides to use personally identifiable information in a manner different from that stated at the time it was collected, Streamload will notify You by way of electronic mail. You will have a choice as to whether Streamload may use Your information in this different manner. Otherwise, Streamload will use information in accordance with the privacy policy under which the information was collected.

No Warranties. Due to technical, legal and practical limitations, Streamload cannot warrant and does not guarantee, and You should not expect, that all of Your private communications and other personal information will never be disclosed in ways not otherwise described in this Privacy Policy. Streamload may disclose information to governmental authorities or third parties under certain circumstances, or third parties may unlawfully intercept or access transmissions or private communications. You authorize Streamload to disclose any information about You to law enforcement or other government officials as Streamload, in its sole discretion, believes necessary, prudent or appropriate, in connection with an investigation of fraud, intellectual property infringement, or other activity that is illegal or may expose Streamload to legal liability.

Effective Date: 12/1/2003 "

Monday, June 30, 2008

The Linkup - the cover up begins again

The Linkup, formerly Mediamax and just as crap, has now disabled comments on its official blog and all past comments have been removed. See:
http://tlublog.blogspot.com/

Why might this be? Well, just read some of the comments here and on the previous users blog for Mediamax and DON'T SUBSCRIBE TO THIS COMPANY!!

Despite being a file back up service it has lost people's files.

It has closed people's accounts and deleted files, with short or no notice.

It promised that files previously hosted on the Mediamax would continue to be available from The Linkup (at least until December 2008). They are not.

Customer service is useless.

Occassionally John Hood will drop by here and will explain how everything is so much better now.

But The Linkup is so proud of their customer feedback they have deleted it from their own blog and disabled comments.

So its back to posting the depressing truth here folks.

Thursday, May 29, 2008

Mediamax hosted links still dead

Mediamax promised that links to hosted files would still work after the re-branding of the site to The Linkup until December 2008. They are not.

At least the 404 file not found message that appeared with the dead links I've been checking has now been changed. The new message is:

---
MediaMax Hosted File

The file you requested is a MediaMax hosted file. We are presently moving MediaMax files to The Linkup and this file will be available when the process has been completed.

We apologize for any inconvenience.

---

Yeah, right. What's the betting this message will appear until December 2008?

No-one asked for this re-branding. It is the attempt of the company to escape its awful image and users once again have to pay the price and suffer the consequencies.

No-one asked for Mediamax to be shut down, so we have to use The Linkup system which is still in beta - and doesn't work, as many people here have noted.

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Hosted links are dead - abandon The Linkup

My hosted links are dead even though the files have been transferred to The Linkup.

John Hood promised MediaMax links would work until December 2008. Ending them then was enough of a betrayal of customers who have stuck with this company despite all its failings. But links are dead now, today, depite the promises. Sadly, just what we have come to expect as customer service.

I signed up to MediaMax for hosting my podcast. It has now fallen silent. Click on any of the links on various websites and you get a 'page not found' warning.

Thanks guys. I'm off and advising everyone who reads this blog not to sign up to The Linkup.

Use an alternative service. Even if it promises less than The Linkup it can only be better in the long run.

Saturday, May 10, 2008

Leave your comments on The Linkup blog

Well MediaMax is now dead and The Linkup, if not properly live, is certainly touting for business.

It bills itself as: "The best place to store and share files on the web."

Maybe if 'store' is taken to mean 'upload with a risk of losing forever and the possibility of having your free account closed down and all files dumped with just a week's notice', which is the service MediaMax provided.

And 'share' has to mean 'share until we decide to change the name to escape our piss poor image in which case links to you files will die when we can no longer be bothered to redirect them'.

One positive development is The Linkup blog accepts comments. So leave them at:
http://tlublog.blogspot.com/

If comments are disabled there, you can use this unofficial blog at:
http://thelinkupusers.blogspot.com/

For a reminder of how MediaMax delivered on its claim to be the best file storage and sharing service see:
http://mediamaxusers.blogspot.com/

Friday, April 18, 2008

BEWARE of Thelinkup file storage service - it was previously known as MediaMax and Streamload

Thelinkup.com file storage service is the latest incarnation of MediaMax, previously known as Streamload.

In the transition from Streamload to MediaMax there were many problems. MediaMax lost many files from its supposedly secure servers.

Non-paying users of MediaMax are being told with about a week's notice that if they do not upgrade their accounts to Linkup accounts, they will be deleted and their files will be lost!

If you are thinking of signing up to Thelinkup as a new customer, my advice is DON'T.

Check out first whether it works by coming to this blog. In the meantime, check out the MediaMax users blog. Many customers have so much material archived on MediaMax they
can't easily switch.

To be fair, when MediaMax works it has good features. When it doesn't work it causes heartbreak (seriously - imagine losing the family photos you had entrusted to a file BACKUP service).

MediaMax customer service sucks too.

So be warned. Take a look at:
http://mediamaxusers.blogspot.com/

In the last poll on that blog in January 2008:

  • 70% of voters had extreme problems with MediaMax,
  • 16% significant problems,
  • 9% rare problems and
  • 5% no problems.

However, if everything works out fine and The Linkup changes resolve all the problems, you will read it here first!