Voice User Experience
TERMS OF USE
Effective Date: 1 April, 2021smartskills.tech (“Smartskills”, “us”, “we”, "our") services are accessible via Amazon Alexa, a cloud-based voice service available from Amazon and/or its affiliates (“Amazon”), via "Alexa-enabled devices" such as the Amazon Echo, using user-installable skills developed by Smartskills (“Skill(s)” or "Service(s)"). These terms of use (the “Terms”) are a binding agreement (the “Agreement”) between you and Smartskills.
The Terms govern your use of our Skills on Alexa-enabled devices. Before using any of our Skills, please review these Terms, as well as other pertinent documents such as our Privacy Policy. All relevant documents as amended are accessible via our website. Our Skills are only for your own personal use. You may not use our Skills for any commercial purpose or in any way not expressly permitted by this Agreement.
YOU ACCEPT THIS AGREEMENT AND ANY UPDATES, CHANGES, OR MODIFICATIONS THERETO BY ACCESSING OR USING THE SKILLS. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU HAVE READ AND UNDERSTOOD THIS AGREEMENT, AND YOU AGREE TO COMPLY WITH AND BE BOUND BY ITS TERMS. IF YOU ARE NOT WILLING TO BE BOUND BY THE TERMS OF THIS AGREEMENT, YOU MAY NOT ACCESS OR USE OUR SKILLS.
1. Requirements
To use our Skills, you must (1) have an Alexa-enabled device, (2) have an internet connection, (3) have an active Amazon account. If any of these requirements are not met by you, do not use our Skills. By using our Skills on an Alexa-enabled device, you agree: to these Terms, to the separate terms and conditions of the Alexa-enabled device, and also to Amazon’s Alexa Terms of Use as amended. These should be read in conjunction with both Smartskills' and Amazon's privacy policies as amended.Using certain of our Skills also requires that third-party devices you wish to control with our Skills are able to go online (i.e. are connectable). If you are unwilling or unable to comply with this requirement, you must not use the Skills in question. From time to time, Smartskills may recommend unaffiliated third-party services ("Proxies" ) as a means of establishing connectability where such is not available through the original manufacturer of the device(s) in question. Your use of any Proxies is entirely at your own risk, while all costs associated therewith shall be borne solely by you.
In order to use our Skills you will need to first enable the Skill in question, and, where relevant, configure it either by voice or through the indicated Smartskills landing page. You can search for and enable our Skills in the Alexa app and/or from the Alexa skills store on the Amazon website applicable to your country of residence. Skill availability varies by country and locale. Smartskills accepts no liability for any damage to your or any other person’s computer(s) or device(s) relating to or resulting from using our Skills or from downloading or using Amazon's Alexa app.
2. Using our Skills
Using our Skills consists of you speaking commands aloud to your Alexa-enabled device, and then receiving responses from the Skill in question through your Alexa-enabled device. Certain of our Skills will control third-party devices owned by you (and/or under your care) in accordance with the spoken command. Any questions and commands given via Alexa and targeting one of our Skills will be treated as authorized by you. Any response Alexa provides will be given as authorized and indeed expected by you. You understand that by using a Skill, you may encounter content that may be offensive, indecent, explicit or objectionable to you.By issuing a control command to a third-party device, you assert that you fully understand the consequences of that command in the broadest possible sense. The services of Alexa are performed and controlled by Amazon, which, in order to provide and improve its services, may record and keep data on your interactions with Alexa and/or our Skills. By accepting this Agreement, you understand and agree that Amazon may perform said actions in order to provide and improve its services. For more information, please consult the relevant terms and conditions of Alexa, Alexa-enabled devices and Amazon.
3. Third-party access responsibility
Depending on the security settings of your Alexa-enabled device, it may be possible for you to allow other users’ access to our Skills. By allowing or facilitating other users to access and/or use our Skills, you assume all liability and responsibility for how our Skills and/or any information obtained from our Skills are accessed and/or used. Smartskills will not be liable for any use of our Skills by users you have (or have not) authorized to have access to Alexa and to our Skills.4. Consent to use of data
By using our Skills you declare you are aware and agree that the relevant data are provided to Amazon for the purpose of implementing our Skills' functionality via Alexa. When asking Alexa for information, it will be retrieving this information for you and you agree to Amazon performing this. Amazon may also record your interactions with our Skills or with Alexa and shall handle the personal data concerned in accordance with the Alexa privacy notice and other relevant legal documents, which you have already confirmed when creating your Amazon Account.5. Accuracy
Smartskills does not design or manufacture Alexa and/or your Alexa-enabled device and has no control over them. It is possible that Alexa may not hear you properly, may misinterpret what you say, or may say something to you that is different from the information that Smartskills provided to Alexa in response to your utterance.Certain of our Skills query external databases (e.g. associated with our users' media portfolios) which have attendant metadata over which we have no control. Errors, omissions or inconsistencies in such metadata can lead to unexpected or erroneous Skill behavior. Consistently poor metadata can render a Skill essentially unusable.
Smartskills therefore accepts no responsibility for any damage, loss, liabilities or injury incurred or suffered by you or by third parties as a result of using our Skills, including as a result of Smartskills providing inaccurate, untimely, incomplete or erroneous information.
6. Changes & Amendments
Smartskills reserves the right to modify or discontinue Skills at any time without prior notice. The number and range of services offered via Amazon Alexa may change over time and depend on Amazon's current offer and availability. Changes to APIs or cloud services related to third-party devices controlled by our Skills may result in loss of certain Skill-functionalities to which you were accustomed. Any modification of Skills to address such changes will be performed solely at Smartskills discretion, if at all.Smartskills reserves the right to amend these Terms from time to time. All relevant documents as amended are accessible via our website. We encourage you to check back periodically to review the Terms for any changes since your last visit. If you continue using our Skills after any amendments have taken effect, we will assume that you agree with the amendments and they shall become effective for you. Should you object to the amendments, the amendments shall not be effective for you and as a result you shall not be entitled to use our Skills any longer.
7. Additional costs, Reimbursement
Smartskills shall not be responsible for any costs associated with using our Skills, including the purchase and use of an Alexa-enabled device, the required internet connection and/or Proxies, and any requisite third-party controllable devices or media portfolios.The partial or total loss of certain Skill functionalities as a result of blocking changes by Proxies or in third-party API functionality outside of Smartskills control shall not give grounds for reimbursement of In-Skill Purchase ("ISP") fees paid by you for access to such functionalities. As with all ISPs, your sole remedy in such cases is to cancel your ongoing subscription to the pertinent Skill. Amazon's refund policies, as amended, are applicable to cancellations.
8. Indemnification
You will indemnify, release and hold harmless Smartskills, its parent, subsidiaries and affiliates, and all officers, directors, agents and employees thereof, and any party acting on Smartskills' behalf, from and against any and all third-party claims, actions, liabilities, losses, damages, judgments, costs and expenses, including reasonable attorneys’ fees (collectively, “Claims”) arising out of (i) any use of a Skill by you or by any person that you allow to use the Skill, that is not in accordance with the terms of this Agreement, (ii) any breach of this Agreement by you or by any person that you allow to use the Skill, or (iii) any violation of any laws, regulations or the rights of any third-party by you or by any person that you allow to use the Skill.9. Termination
Smartskills may terminate your access to a Skill at any time and without notice if you fail to comply with any of the terms herein. Skill access may also be terminated if data logs indicate excessive network traffic beyond what would normally be deemed fair use for the Skill in question.10. Responsibility, Liability
Smartskills accepts no responsibility or liability for any damage, loss, liabilities, injury or disappointment incurred or suffered by you as a result of using our Skills, including as a result of us and/or our partners or suppliers providing inaccurate, untimely, incomplete or erroneous information. Smartskills shall not be liable for any failure to comply with its obligations where the failure is caused by something outside its reasonable control.Where your use of a Skill requires exposing an API-endpoint as connectable for network access by the Skill, the security considerations of such connectability remain your sole responsibility. This is also the case with Proxies — despite a possible recommendation by Smartskills, you are responsible for performing your own assessment of the security implications. If you do not adequately understand the consequences of this then you should permanently revoke external access to the pursuant API-endpoint and should not use the Skill(s) in question.
11. General
This Agreement, including all revisions and amendments thereto, is governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of The Netherlands without regard to its conflict or choice of law principles.If any term or provision of this Agreement is held to be void or unenforceable by any judicial or administrative authority, such determination shall not affect the validity of enforceability of the remaining terms and provisions of this Agreement. The remaining provisions of this Agreement shall remain in effect and shall be construed in accordance with its terms.
The failure of Smartskills to enforce at any time any of the provisions of this Agreement, or the failure by Smartskills to require at any time performance by you of any of the provisions of this Agreement, shall in no way be construed to be a present or future waiver of such provisions, nor in any way affect the right of Smartskills to enforce such provision thereafter. The express waiver by Smartskills of any provision, condition or requirement of this Agreement shall not constitute a waiver of any future obligation to comply with such provision, condition or requirement.
You are not permitted to transfer, assign or otherwise dispose of this Agreement, which is personal to you, or any of your rights or obligations arising under this Agreement without the prior written consent of Smartskills.
Smartskills is not liable or responsible for any failure to perform, or delay in performance of any of Smartskills’ obligations under this Agreement that is caused by events outside Smartskills’ reasonable control (“Force Majeure Event”), in particular (without limitation) (a) unavailability of public or private telecommunication networks (b) acts, decrees, legislation, regulations or restrictions of any government or (c) strikes, lock-outs or other industrial action, civil commotion, riot, invasion, terrorist attacks or threats of terrorist attacks, war (whether declared or not) or any natural disaster. Smartskills’ performance under this Agreement is deemed to be suspended for the period that Force Majeure Event continues, and Smartskills will have an extension of time for performance for the duration of that period. Smartskills will use its reasonable efforts to bring the Force Majeure Event to a close or to find a solution by which Smartskills’ obligations under this Agreement may be performed despite the Force Majeure Event.
The fact that a Skill or Service facilitates controlling a third-party device or service in no way represents or implies the existence of any relationship or affiliation whatsoever between Smartskills and the third-party in question. This is also true of any recommendations regarding Proxies. All trademarks of parties remain the sole property of their respective proprietors, their incidental use being for descriptive or informational purposes only.