Terms of Service

1. Acceptance of Terms

By accessing or using the Collective Media platform (the "Platform"), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service ("Terms"). If you do not agree with any part of these Terms, you may not use the Platform.

These Terms apply to all visitors, registered users, creators, and donors. By creating an account or submitting a project, you represent that you are at least 18 years of age and have the legal capacity to enter into these Terms.

2. Platform Description

Collective Media is operated by Collective Media, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization ("we," "us," or "Collective Media"). The Platform enables independent creators to submit creative projects for crowdfunding by the public.

When a project reaches its funding goal in full, all intellectual property rights in the funded work are transferred to Collective Media, and the work is immediately released into the public domain under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. Projects that do not reach their funding goal by the stated deadline expire, and all donor allocations are automatically refunded.

Collective Media does not guarantee that any project will reach its funding goal or that any deliverable will be produced after funding.

3. Creator Terms

By submitting a project to the Platform, you ("Creator") agree to the following:

• IP Assignment upon Full Funding. Submission of a project constitutes your binding agreement to assign and transfer all intellectual property rights in the funded work — including copyright, moral rights to the extent waivable by law, and any related rights — to Collective Media upon the project reaching its full funding goal. This assignment is irrevocable once the project is fully funded.
• Ownership Warranty. You represent and warrant that you are the sole owner (or have full legal authority to assign) all intellectual property rights in the work described in your project submission, and that the work does not infringe any third-party rights.
• No Reversal After Funding Complete. Once a project reaches its funding goal, the IP assignment to Collective Media is final and cannot be reversed, rescinded, or challenged. You may not submit a DMCA takedown or any other IP claim against works you assigned under these Terms.
• Creator Compensation. Creators receive the net funded amount (funding goal minus the 5% platform fee) disbursed by Collective Media according to the disbursement schedule communicated at the time of project approval.

Collective Media reserves the right to reject or remove any project submission at its sole discretion, including for violations of the Prohibited Content policy in Section 8.

4. Donor Terms

By funding your wallet or allocating funds to a project, you ("Donor") acknowledge and agree:

• Pure Donation. All contributions made through the Platform are charitable donations to Collective Media, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. You do not receive any goods, services, equity, or other consideration in exchange for your contribution.
• Tax Deductibility. Because Collective Media is a 501(c)(3) organization and no goods or services are provided in exchange, your contributions may be tax-deductible to the extent allowed by applicable law. Collective Media will issue annual acknowledgment letters as required by the IRS. You are solely responsible for verifying deductibility with your tax advisor.
• Restricted Gifts. Funds allocated to a specific project are restricted gifts intended solely for that project. If a project expires without reaching its funding goal, restricted funds are automatically returned to your Platform wallet. Collective Media will not redirect restricted funds to another project without your consent.
• No Ownership Rights. Funding a project does not grant you any intellectual property rights, ownership interest, royalties, or ongoing rights in the funded work. All funded works are released under CC0 and are freely available to everyone, including Donors.

5. Platform Fee

Collective Media retains 5% of the total funded amount of each successfully funded project as an operational fee to cover platform development, hosting, payment processing costs, and nonprofit overhead. This fee is deducted before disbursement to the Creator.

No platform fee is charged on projects that expire without reaching their funding goal. The platform fee is separate from and in addition to any payment processing fees charged by Stripe, which are deducted from wallet top-up amounts at the time of the Stripe transaction.

6. Refunds

• Expired Projects. If a project reaches its funding deadline without achieving its full funding goal, all donor allocations to that project are automatically returned to each Donor's Platform wallet. No action is required by the Donor.
• Funded Projects. Contributions to successfully funded projects are non-refundable. Once a project reaches its funding goal and the IP assignment is triggered, funds are committed and will be disbursed to the Creator.
• Wallet Balance. Unallocated wallet balances are not automatically refunded to your payment method. To request a return of an unallocated wallet balance, contact support. Processing time and any applicable restrictions will be communicated at that time.

7. Public Domain Dedication

Upon receipt of all intellectual property rights in a fully funded work, Collective Media irrevocably dedicates the work to the public domain under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication (creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/).

Under CC0, the work is released with no restrictions whatsoever. Anyone — anywhere in the world — may copy, modify, distribute, perform, or build upon the work, even for commercial purposes, without asking permission or providing attribution.

Collective Media will maintain a public registry of all CC0-dedicated works accessible through the Platform.

8. Prohibited Content

The following project submissions are strictly prohibited on the Platform:

• Works that are plagiarized or substantially derived from third-party material without authorization.
• Works for which the Creator does not hold full and unencumbered intellectual property rights.
• Works that infringe any copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, or other intellectual property right of any third party.
• Content that is defamatory, harassing, obscene, or otherwise illegal under applicable law.
• Content that promotes hate, discrimination, or violence against any person or group.
• Any submission that misrepresents the nature, scope, or ownership of the proposed work.

Violations of this policy may result in immediate project removal, account suspension, and reporting to appropriate legal authorities. Collective Media reserves the right to determine, in its sole discretion, whether content violates this policy.

9. Governing Law

These Terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the [State of Incorporation], without regard to its conflict of law provisions.

Any dispute arising under or relating to these Terms that cannot be resolved informally shall be submitted to binding arbitration in [State of Incorporation] under the rules of the American Arbitration Association, except that either party may seek injunctive or other equitable relief in any court of competent jurisdiction.

10. Changes to Terms

Collective Media reserves the right to modify these Terms at any time. For material changes — including changes to the IP assignment provision, platform fee, or donor refund policy — we will provide at least 30 days' notice via email to all registered users and a prominent notice on the Platform prior to the changes taking effect.

Non-material changes (such as typographical corrections or clarifications that do not alter your rights or obligations) may take effect immediately. Your continued use of the Platform after the effective date of any changes constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

11. Contact

Questions about these Terms should be directed to our legal team:

Collective Media, Inc.
Email: legal@collectivemedia.org