This Agreement governs the commercial relationship between ExplodeBiz and the businesses and organizations that use it. If you are a member of the public who recorded a testimonial, this document does not apply to you — see the Recording Release instead.
1. Parties and acceptance
This Account Holder Agreement (the “Agreement”) is between View Surroundings LLC, doing business as ExplodeBiz, a California limited liability company with offices at 270 E Douglas Ave, El Cajon, California 92020 (“ExplodeBiz,” “we,” “us”), and the business or organization that creates an account (“you,” “Account Holder”).
You accept this Agreement by creating an account or using the Service. If you accept on behalf of an organization, you represent that you have authority to bind it. If you do not have that authority, do not create an account.
This Agreement incorporates our Privacy Policy and the Recording Release presented to contributors.
2. Definitions
“Contributor” means a person who records a testimonial, story, greeting, or feedback message through the Service.
“Contributor Content” means recordings, images, text, and contact details submitted by a Contributor.
“Your Content” means logos, photos, business descriptions, links, and other material you upload.
“Consent Record” means the record we retain of a Contributor’s agreement to the Recording Release.
3. The Service
We grant you a non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable right to use the Service during the term of this Agreement, for your own business purposes, subject to this Agreement.
You may not resell, sublicense, or provide the Service to third parties as a service bureau; reverse engineer it; use it to build a competing product; or exceed any usage limits we publish.
4. Your responsibilities
4.1 Testimonials and reviews
You represent and warrant that:
(a) every Contributor you invite is located in the United States and is 18 or older;
(b) you will not offer, and have not offered, any payment, discount, gift, entry into a drawing, or other consideration conditioned on the content or sentiment of a testimonial;
(c) where you provide any consideration for a testimonial regardless of its content, you will disclose that connection clearly and conspicuously wherever the testimonial appears;
(d) you will not create, commission, or publish a testimonial from a person who is not a genuine customer, and will not misrepresent a Contributor’s experience;
(e) you will not edit a testimonial in a way that materially changes its meaning or the Contributor’s opinion; and
(f) you will not suppress or selectively publish testimonials in a manner that misrepresents the overall body of feedback you have received.
4.2 Withdrawal of consent
If a Contributor withdraws consent, you will stop using their recording immediately and remove it from every page, platform, and account you control within 30 days. If a Contributor contacts you directly, you will notify us within five business days. You will not condition removal on any explanation, payment, or continued relationship.
4.3 Account security
You are responsible for all activity under your account and for keeping credentials confidential. Notify us promptly of any suspected unauthorized use.
5. Content and licenses
5.1 Your Content
You retain all rights in Your Content. You grant us a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to host, store, reproduce, transmit, reformat, and display Your Content solely to operate and deliver the Service to you. This license ends when the content is deleted, except for backup copies pending routine overwriting.
5.2 Contributor Content
Contributor Content is licensed to you by the Contributor under the Recording Release, not by us. We take no ownership of it. Our rights in Contributor Content are limited to hosting, storage, and delivery on your instructions.
5.3 No marketing use without separate consent
We will not use Contributor Content in ExplodeBiz’s own marketing unless the Contributor has separately and expressly agreed. We will not use Your Content in our marketing without your prior written consent.
6. Privacy and data handling
Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you are the business with respect to Contributor Content, and ExplodeBiz is a service provider. We agree that we:
(a) will not sell or share personal information received from you;
(b) will not retain, use, or disclose that personal information for any purpose other than performing the Service for you, or as otherwise permitted by the CCPA;
(c) will not retain, use, or disclose it outside our direct business relationship with you;
(d) will not combine it with personal information received from other sources, except as the CCPA permits for a service provider;
(e) will comply with the CCPA obligations applicable to service providers and provide the same level of privacy protection the CCPA requires; and
(f) will notify you if we determine we can no longer meet these obligations, and will permit you to take reasonable steps to stop and remediate unauthorized use.
You may take reasonable and appropriate steps to confirm we use the personal information consistently with your obligations. We will assist you in responding to verified consumer requests.
7. Territorial scope
The Service is offered in the United States only. You represent that your business is established in the United States and that every Contributor is located in the United States. We restrict access by geographic location and may suspend accounts we reasonably believe are used to collect recordings from people outside the United States.
Our refusal of a request from outside the United States does not constitute an offering of the Service in that territory.
8. Fees and term
The Service is currently provided at no charge during the beta period. We may introduce fees on 30 days’ notice; continued use after that date constitutes acceptance. Either party may terminate at any time on notice. On termination we will delete or anonymize your content as described in the Privacy Policy. Sections 4, 5.2, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14 survive termination.
9. Suspension
We may suspend or limit your account immediately, with notice where practicable, if we reasonably believe that you have breached Section 4; that content violates law or third-party rights; or that continued operation exposes us to legal risk. We may act before completing an investigation.
10. Indemnification
You will defend, indemnify, and hold harmless ExplodeBiz and its officers, members, employees, and agents from and against any claim, demand, action, investigation, proceeding, fine, penalty, settlement, judgment, loss, liability, and cost (including reasonable attorneys’ fees and the costs of responding to regulatory inquiries) arising out of or relating to:
(a) any testimonial, review, or endorsement you solicit, edit, publish, or suppress, including claims under the FTC Act and the FTC’s reviews and testimonials rule;
(b) your use of any Contributor Content, including claims of right of publicity, misappropriation of name or likeness, defamation, false light, or invasion of privacy;
(c) your failure to honor a withdrawal of consent within the time required by Section 4.2;
(d) Your Content, including claims of copyright, trademark, or other intellectual property infringement;
(e) your breach of this Agreement or of any representation or warranty in it; and
(f) your collection of recordings from any person located outside the United States.
We will notify you of any claim for which we seek indemnification and may participate in the defense with counsel of our choosing at our own expense. You may not settle any claim in a way that imposes any obligation or admission on us without our prior written consent. Your obligations under this Section are not limited by Section 12.
11. Disclaimers
THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE.” TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, WE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. WE DO NOT WARRANT THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE, OR THAT RECORDINGS OR MESSAGES WILL BE DELIVERED.
We do not provide legal advice. We do not verify Contributor identity or confirm that your use of the Service complies with law. Those responsibilities are yours.
12. Limitation of liability
TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, NEITHER PARTY WILL BE LIABLE FOR INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR LOST PROFITS, REVENUE, DATA, OR GOODWILL, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY.
OUR TOTAL AGGREGATE LIABILITY ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT EXCEED THE GREATER OF (A) THE AMOUNTS YOU PAID US IN THE TWELVE MONTHS PRECEDING THE EVENT GIVING RISE TO THE CLAIM, OR (B) ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS ($100).
These limits do not apply to your indemnification obligations under Section 10, to either party’s breach of confidentiality, or to liability that cannot be limited by law.
13. Dispute resolution and arbitration
PLEASE READ THIS SECTION CAREFULLY. IT REQUIRES DISPUTES TO BE RESOLVED BY INDIVIDUAL ARBITRATION, WAIVES YOUR RIGHT TO A JURY TRIAL, AND WAIVES YOUR RIGHT TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS ACTION. YOU MAY OPT OUT WITHIN 30 DAYS UNDER SECTION 13.8.
13.1 Informal resolution first
Before starting an arbitration, the complaining party must send a written Notice of Dispute to the other describing the claim and the relief sought — to us at cs@explodebiz.com and 270 E Douglas Ave, El Cajon, California 92020, and to you at the contact address on your account. The parties will attempt in good faith to resolve the dispute for 60 days. A Notice of Dispute must be individualized: it must state the name and account of the specific person or entity bringing the claim and cannot be sent on behalf of multiple parties in a single notice. This period is a condition precedent to arbitration, and either party may seek dismissal of an arbitration filed before it expires.
13.2 Agreement to arbitrate
Any dispute arising out of or relating to this Agreement or the Service that is not resolved under Section 13.1 will be resolved by binding individual arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association under its Consumer Arbitration Rules, as modified by this Agreement. The Federal Arbitration Act governs this Section. Judgment on the award may be entered in any court of competent jurisdiction.
13.3 Exceptions
This Section does not apply to:
(a) claims that qualify for small claims court, which either party may bring individually there;
(b) requests for temporary or preliminary injunctive relief to protect intellectual property or prevent unauthorized access, which either party may seek from a court;
(c) claims for public injunctive relief to the extent such relief cannot be waived under California law; and
(d) claims of sexual assault or sexual harassment, which you may bring in court under the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act.
13.4 Class action waiver
ALL CLAIMS MUST BE BROUGHT IN AN INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY, NOT AS A PLAINTIFF OR CLASS MEMBER IN ANY PURPORTED CLASS, COLLECTIVE, CONSOLIDATED, OR REPRESENTATIVE PROCEEDING. THE ARBITRATOR MAY NOT CONSOLIDATE MORE THAN ONE PARTY’S CLAIMS AND MAY NOT PRESIDE OVER ANY FORM OF CLASS OR REPRESENTATIVE PROCEEDING. THE ARBITRATOR MAY AWARD RELIEF ONLY TO THE INDIVIDUAL PARTY SEEKING IT.
If this Section 13.4 is found unenforceable as to any claim, that claim must proceed in court and is severed from arbitration, but this Section 13.4 remains in force as to all other claims. This Section 13.4 is not severable from the agreement to arbitrate: if it is held wholly invalid, the entirety of Section 13 is void.
13.5 Batching of similar claims
If 25 or more Notices of Dispute raising substantially similar claims are filed against us within a 90-day period by or with the assistance of the same counsel or coordinated group, the claims will be administered in staged batches of no more than 50. The parties will select 10 claims per batch to proceed first, one per side alternating. The arbitrator’s determinations in that first batch are not binding on later batches, but the parties will engage in a global mediation after it concludes. The limitations period for all claims in the queue is tolled while batching proceeds. Neither party may demand that the administrator collect filing fees for claims not yet in an active batch.
13.6 Arbitration fees and location
For claims under $10,000 brought by an Account Holder, we will pay all AAA filing, administration, and arbitrator fees, except where the arbitrator finds the claim frivolous. Arbitration will be conducted by telephone or videoconference, on written submissions, or in person in the county of your principal place of business, at your election. A single arbitrator will decide the dispute and may award any relief available in court to the individual party.
13.7 Delegation
The arbitrator has exclusive authority to resolve any dispute about the interpretation, applicability, enforceability, or formation of this Section, except that a court decides any challenge to Section 13.4 (class action waiver) and any question of whether the batching protocol in Section 13.5 applies.
13.8 Your right to opt out
You may opt out of this Section 13 by sending written notice within 30 days of first accepting this Agreement, to cs@explodebiz.com with subject line “Arbitration Opt-Out,” or by mail to 270 E Douglas Ave, El Cajon, California 92020. The notice must state your name, account, and intent to opt out. Opting out does not affect any other provision, and we will not retaliate or treat your account differently for doing so. If you opt out, disputes are resolved in the courts identified in Section 14.1.
13.9 Contributors
This Section binds Account Holders only. Members of the public who record testimonials are not subject to arbitration or the class action waiver — see Section 19.1 of the Terms of Service.
14. General
14.1 Governing law and venue
This Agreement is governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to conflict-of-laws rules. For any dispute not subject to arbitration, the parties consent to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in San Diego County, California.
14.2 Changes
We may modify this Agreement on 30 days’ notice by email or in-product notice. Material changes to Section 13 apply only prospectively and give you a fresh 30-day opt-out. Continued use after the effective date constitutes acceptance.
14.3 Assignment
You may not assign this Agreement without our written consent. We may assign it to an affiliate or in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets.
14.4 Notices
Notices to you may be sent to the email or address on your account. Notices to us go to cs@explodebiz.com and 270 E Douglas Ave, El Cajon, California 92020.
14.5 Severability and entire agreement
If any provision is unenforceable, it is modified to the minimum extent necessary or severed, and the remainder stays in effect — subject to Section 13.4, which is not severable from Section 13. This Agreement, with the Privacy Policy and Recording Release, is the entire agreement between the parties and supersedes prior agreements on its subject matter. No waiver of any breach is a waiver of any other.
15. Contact
View Surroundings LLC, dba ExplodeBiz
270 E Douglas Ave
El Cajon, California 92020
Email: cs@explodebiz.com
Phone: (619) 655-9000