In short
- We follow the law of Georgia and the rules of our payment partners. You follow the laws that apply to you.
- Sanctioned Persons, and anyone in a comprehensively sanctioned country or region, cannot use paid features or receive Payouts.
- No fake or circular sales, no sales of anything unrelated to Films, Screenings, Festivals or Sphere Paid Services, and no payment for a Listing outside checkout.
- We give authorities information only when the law requires it or to report sexual content involving Minors or a threat to life.
1. Scope and our commitments
Paid features open in stages. This document applies to each paid feature from the moment the Service offers it with a price and a checkout. The rest of this policy applies now.
Buyers accept this policy at checkout with the other policies listed in the Purchases, Cancellations and Refunds, section 3 "Before you pay".
We follow the law of Georgia, including its consumer, electronic commerce, sanctions and anti-money laundering rules, and the rules of the Payment Processor and the card schemes.
Use the Service only lawfully and follow the laws that apply to you.
2. Sanctions and export controls
A Sanctioned Person is a person or entity listed under the sanctions of Georgia, the United Nations Security Council, the European Union, the United Kingdom or the United States, as applied by our payment partners, or anyone acting for them.
These may not buy, sell, use paid features or receive Payouts:
- Sanctioned Persons;
- anyone located or ordinarily resident in a country or region under comprehensive sanctions of those authorities.
Sanctions screening. We screen Sellers during Verification, and we and the Payment Processor may screen Orders and Payouts and ask you for information to clear a possible match.
On a match. If a person or a payment matches a sanctions list, or we reasonably suspect a match, we may refuse or cancel the Order, pause Listings, hold Payouts and suspend or close the Account. Where the law requires a payment to be frozen, the Payment Processor freezes it, and a Refund or Payout may then be impossible.
Export controls. Do not use the Service in breach of export control rules.
3. Anti-money laundering and fraud
Payments in the Service are only for Listings and Sphere Paid Services. You may not:
- buy your own Listings, or have others buy them, to move money or to inflate sales;
- use checkout to pay for anything other than what the Listing offers;
- pay or take payment for a Listing outside checkout;
- split payments or use several Accounts to avoid limits or checks;
- use a payment card or account you have no right to use;
- give false information about yourself, your business or your funds.
Our measures. We verify Sellers, and we and the Payment Processor may review transactions for signs of fraud or money laundering (see the Transaction Security Policy, section 4 "Fraud prevention") and, where the law or the Payment Processor requires it, ask about a transaction or the origin of funds. Without a satisfactory answer, we may refuse or cancel the transaction, apply a Payout Hold and suspend the Account.
Reports to authorities. Where the law requires, we report suspicious transactions to the competent authorities, and we do not tell you about a report when the law forbids it.
4. Prohibited business activities
The following may never be sold, bought or paid for through the Service:
- pornography, other sexually explicit material and sexual services;
- gambling, betting, lotteries, raffles and prize draws (Festival competitions judged on merit are allowed);
- donations, crowdfunding, tips and charity collections;
- financial products, investments, loans, securities and crypto-assets;
- weapons, drugs and other goods or services whose sale is restricted by law;
- pirated or infringing Content, or Content you have no right to sell;
- fees to apply for a role, to audition or to be considered for work (see the Casting and Hiring Terms, section 5 "What is not allowed in casting");
- anything unrelated to Films, Screenings, Festivals or Sphere Paid Services.
We remove Listings that break this section and may refuse payments and suspend selling (see the Creator and Organizer Terms, section 13 "Suspension and ending your selling").
5. Cooperation with authorities and payment partners
Courts and authorities. We disclose information, including Personal Data, to courts, law enforcement and other competent authorities when a lawful request or order requires it, when the law obliges us to report, and on our own initiative to report sexual content involving Minors or a threat to someone's life or safety. We share only what that purpose needs. Requests from authorities go to legal@sphere.art or to our legal address. When we answer a request about a User, we tell that User where the law allows.
Payment partners. We give the Payment Processor the information its terms require, such as Order details, Seller identity and the Buyer details collected at checkout. All recipients of Personal Data are listed in the Privacy Policy, section 7 "Service providers and other recipients".
6. Reporting a concern
If you believe someone is using the Service to evade sanctions, launder money, commit fraud or run a prohibited business, write to legal@sphere.art with what you saw, links and dates. We keep your identity confidential as far as the law allows, and we may be unable to tell you the outcome. To report Content or a User's conduct, follow the Community Guidelines, section 7 "How to report".
7. Changes and contact
We may update this document. We tell you about material changes by email and in the Service at least 14 days before they take effect, and at least 30 days before for changes to Seller fees, Payouts or selling rules, as set out in the Terms of Service, section 15 "Changes to the Service and the Legal Documents". Earlier versions of this document are available on request at legal@sphere.art.
Write to legal@sphere.art about compliance concerns, requests from authorities and formal legal notices. Our company details are on the Company Details page.