Terms and Conditions of dus.net GmbH

Right of Withdrawal

End users may cancel their order within 2 weeks of the order date. Cancellation is excluded for products or services that are by their nature unsuitable for return, such as domains that have already been applied for and registered to the end customer, or phone numbers that have already been ordered and/or activated for the customer, or porting services that have already been completed.

General Terms and Conditions

§1 Validity of the Terms; Amendments

(1) dus.net GmbH, headquartered in Düsseldorf (hereinafter referred to as dus.net), provides its services exclusively on the basis of these General Terms and Conditions (hereinafter referred to as the “GTC”), in their currently valid form. These GTC apply to all contracts between dus.net and its customers. Should additional or different terms apply to products or services utilized, these contractual terms shall apply in addition.

(2) Deviations from these terms and conditions are only effective if dus.net confirms them in writing. Employees of dus.net, with the exception of management, are not authorized to make verbal side agreements or give verbal assurances that go beyond the content of the respective contract, including these terms and conditions.

 

§2 Changes; Changes to Fees

(1) dus.net is entitled at any time to amend or supplement these General Terms and Conditions (GTC) with reasonable notice, provided that the changes to the GTC are reasonable for the customer, taking into account the interests of dus.net. The customer will be notified of any changes on our website (www.dus.net), via email, or by regular mail. The GTC are available to the customer on the website at all times. A separate postal delivery of the GTC will only be provided upon express request and for an additional fee in accordance with the currently valid price list (§6(1) GTC).

 

§3 Effect of the Changes

(1) If the customer does not agree with the validity or the changes to the terms of the contract, they may no longer use the access services provided by dus.net. If the customer continues to use the telecommunications services of dus.net after a change to the Terms and Conditions, this shall be deemed tacit acceptance of the amended Terms and Conditions.

 

§4 Conclusion of the Contract; Contracting Parties

(1) The contract for the use of telecommunications services is concluded based on a written order from the customer and acceptance by dus.net. Online registration and the returned documents shall also be deemed to constitute the conclusion of the contract. Furthermore, acceptance shall occur through a written order confirmation or through the execution of the order, as well as through the premature use of dus.net’s services. A contract may also be concluded if a service is ordered that, by its nature, does not require any further contractual provisions.

(2) dus.net is entitled to accept the customer’s request to enter into a contract for the use of dus.net’s services within a period of 14 days from the date on which dus.net becomes aware of the request.

(3) User contracts are concluded by dus.net only with natural persons of legal age or with legal entities recognized under applicable law, provided that the latter have fully and verifiably demonstrated their legally required representation relationships. Separate terms apply for more than one individual access point per household. Unless otherwise agreed, no free data allowances are granted for any individual access point beyond the first one.

 

§5 Credit Check; Termination

(1) dus.net is entitled to obtain information regarding the customer’s creditworthiness from the General Credit Protection Association (Schufa) responsible for the customer’s place of residence or, for business customers, from credit reporting agencies and credit protection companies, and to transmit the customer’s data in the event of non-contractual performance (e.g., application for a default judgment in the case of an undisputed claim, application for an enforcement order, enforcement measures).

(2) Unless otherwise agreed, the contract is concluded for an indefinite term and may be terminated by either party with 14 days’ notice to the end of the contract term. The DUStel starter prepaid plans (and existing DUStel 60 contracts) may be terminated at any time with immediate effect or as of a specified date without notice. If a minimum term has been agreed upon with the customer, the contract shall be extended by one additional month at a time following the expiration of the agreed-upon minimum term, but by no more than one year, unless it is terminated in advance with 14 days’ notice prior to the end of the contract term. The right to terminate for cause remains unaffected by this provision. Any termination can be initiated in the dus.net Customer Center with a simple mouse click. A termination date will then be displayed immediately and the termination will be automatically executed on that date. Alternatively, for the termination to be effective, it must be in writing, which is also deemed to be satisfied by email or fax. A termination via email or fax will be processed by dus.net within three business days and confirmed in writing exclusively via email. If three business days elapse without confirmation, the termination notice is deemed not to have been delivered.

(3) dus.net may also terminate the respective user agreement without stating reasons, but with one month’s notice from receipt of the notice. In addition to the reasons expressly stated in these terms and conditions, dus.net may terminate the agreement with immediate effect and without prior notice if the customer has given cause for such termination for good cause. A valid reason may exist if the customer remains in arrears despite the account being suspended. Likewise, a violation of Sections 9, 10, 11, and 15, in whole or in part, may constitute a valid reason under certain circumstances.

(4) Furthermore, dus.net reserves the right to terminate the contract with a 7-day notice period for customers who, without prior notice, via fax or mail, have not used any of the available services for more than 2 years.

(5) In the event of termination for good cause, dus.net is entitled to claim two-thirds of the total monthly fees that the customer would have had to pay had the contract continued with a timely notice of termination. Should the customer prove that dus.net has incurred no economic loss or only a significantly lesser economic loss as a result of the termination, dus.net waives this right.

 

§6 Prices; Changes

(1) Prices are fixed. Unless the main service covered by usage-independent fees is affected, dus.net determines the fees at its reasonable discretion based on the currently valid price list. For the selected contract type and additional services, the currently valid prices from the price list published at http://www.dus.net and available at any time apply.

(2) In the event of any price changes, which will be notified one month in advance, the customer may exercise their right of termination pursuant to §5(2). Use of the services following a price change, or following a change in the rate plan or the respective service, constitutes acceptance of the price changes and obligates the customer to pay.

(3) dus.net is entitled to increase fees no more than once per quarter. The price increase requires the customer’s consent. Consent is deemed granted unless the customer objects in writing to the price increase communicated in writing within four weeks of receiving the notice of change. dus.net undertakes to inform the customer of the consequences of failing to object in the notice of change.

(4) dus.net may approve credit notes under certain conditions. This may occur, for example, as part of special promotions. Credit notes based on a package with a minimum term will be paid out at the end of this minimum term or offset against corresponding services during this period.

(5) To identify accounts created using falsified data, we charge a processing fee (currently EUR 150.00 incl. 19% VAT) to the creators and users of such data/accounts.

(6) The use of dus.net VoIP is billed separately depending on the rate plan. If monthly fees apply for a rate plan, these are charged in advance. Call charges are billed retroactively at the end of the month if the rate plan is postpaid (invoiced). All prices are stored in the dus.net systems as gross prices (including sales tax), and all calculations are performed using these gross prices within the systems. The payment terms for each plan are described separately.

 

§7 Changes to Selected Services

(1) The customer may expand, restrict, or change the services currently used with dus.net at any time. The provisions of the Terms and Conditions and the special conditions for the respective services apply to such expansions, restrictions, or changes. Expansions, restrictions, or changes to services are carried out in accordance with the price list as specified in §6, Section 1 of the Terms and Conditions.

 

§8 Scope of Services; Protection of Minors and Liability

(1) The detailed service description for the respective contractual use, as well as all supplementary documents and guidelines for dus.net services, are available for inspection at the company’s headquarters. They may also be accessed electronically at no cost from dus.net or requested as a written document. For postal delivery upon request, the respective prices in the price list apply (§6(1) of the Terms and Conditions). dus.net reserves the right to expand, modify, and improve the services. dus.net is also entitled to modify the services to the extent that such a modification is customary in the industry or, taking into account the interests of dus.net, is reasonable for the customer. This includes, for example, changes to or additions of laws, technical changes, or regulations and instructions from authorities.

(2) dus.net provides the customer with access to the Internet in accordance with the preceding paragraph. Use of the Internet is exclusively at the customer’s own risk. dus.net assumes no warranty or liability for accessed content of any kind—in particular, not for the accuracy, completeness, or compliance of the content with applicable national or international law. If the customer grants minors access to the Internet via their connection, the customer assumes sole responsibility for this. The customer is aware that some Internet content may not be suitable for minors.

(3) Defects and malfunctions must be reported to dus.net immediately, but no later than two weeks after discovery, in writing or via email. Subject to the further provisions of this section, dus.net shall not be liable for any direct or indirect damages of any kind arising from information received by the customer in connection with the use of dus.net’s Internet services. dus.net is not liable for software errors, for content or programs, and in particular not for Internet content, nor for defective data carriers, errors in the network structure, or the compatibility of programs or their components. dus.net is liable only for damages resulting from its own unlawful and intentional conduct or grossly negligent omissions by its legal representatives or vicarious agents. Liability of dus.net for slight negligence is excluded.

(4) dus.net guarantees an average annual service availability of 99%. Excluded from this are periods during which service is unavailable due to technical or similar issues beyond the control or responsibility of dus.net. These include, among other things, force majeure, natural disasters, terrorism, and the fault of third parties. dus.net may restrict Internet access and other services to the extent necessary to ensure the security of network operations and the maintenance of network integrity. In particular, dus.net may take measures to prevent serious disruptions in the pursuit of its business objectives. In particular, measures to protect dus.net’s customers must be approved without prior notice to any affected customers (shutting down hacked websites, disabling scripts, DoS attacks, packet flooding, etc.).

(5) If a root server is the subject of the contract or part of a contract, it shall be supplied by dus.net and installed in the dus.net data center. The contract terms and notice periods are governed individually by each contract. The minimum contract term is 3 months. Any one-time fees become due upon provision of services.

(6) The customer is responsible for maintaining the root server. The customer alone has full access to the system. dus.net acts only on behalf of the customer and performs commissioned work, the fee for which is specified in the contract (remote hands). All other contractual parameters for root servers are defined in the root server contract.

(7) If equipment housing is the subject or part of the contract, dus.net shall provide a corresponding space in the data center for the customer’s contractually defined equipment. Additional services are also defined in the housing contract.

 

§9 Customer’s Duties and Obligations; Consequences of Breaches of Obligations

(1) The Customer is obligated to provide, at its own expense, the electrical power required for installation, operation, and maintenance, as well as any necessary equipotential bonding, including grounding.

(2) The Customer agrees to reimburse expenses incurred for an inspection of the technical facilities carried out in response to a fault report from the Customer if no fault in the technical facilities within dus.net’s area of responsibility existed and the Customer should have recognized this upon reasonable inspection.

(3) The customer warrants that the information provided by them (personal data, bank details, mailing address, or similar) is accurate and that they will inform dus.net immediately in the event of any changes.

(4) The customer is obligated to immediately notify dus.net of any change to their name, address (for companies, this also includes changes to legal form, representation, billing address, or place of business), and bank details.

(5) Incorrect or incomplete information, or failure to report changes, may result in dus.net refusing to provide services or in dus.net immediately terminating the user agreement without prior notice.

(6) Information, notifications, and changes will be sent by dus.net primarily to the client’s email address provided during registration. The client agrees to check this email address regularly for new messages. If this is not done, the information is nevertheless deemed to have been delivered. If this email address changes, the client must notify dus.net immediately.

 

§10 User Regulations (NuO)

(1) Details regarding the interaction of customers with one another and with the public are governed by dus.net through a User Policy (NuO). These regulations are binding on the customer. Violations of the provisions of this NuO entitle dus.net, following a single unsuccessful warning, to terminate the contractual relationship without notice. In serious cases, dus.net may also waive the warning and terminate the relationship immediately pursuant to §5(3). The right to any legal claims on the part of dus.net or third parties remains unaffected by this.

(2) The customer is obligated to manage their usage in such a way that excessive strain on services, the backbone, or infrastructure does not occur.

(3) The customer is personally responsible for all content produced or transmitted via their access or access credentials. Content includes, among other things, forum posts, websites, newsgroup postings, emails, chats, etc. dus.net does not monitor this content. The customer may not subsequently insist on the deletion of content. The customer has no legal claim to subsequent deletion arising from this.

(4) If a web server is the subject matter or a service of the contract, the customer is obligated to create an imprint on the publicly accessible pages and to clearly identify it as such. The imprint must be accessible from the first webpage. Further legal labeling requirements arise from the services offered, and the customer must comply with these as well. The customer indemnifies dus.net against all claims arising from a breach of the obligations set forth in §9.

(5) If a mail server and/or a web server is the subject of the contract and/or a service provided by such a server, the customer is obligated not to violate applicable law. Likewise, the customer is obligated to uphold public decency and the rights of third parties (copyright, name, trademark, and data protection rights, etc.). In particular, the Customer undertakes not to offer any pornographic content or any commercial services that involve pornographic and/or erotic content (images, videos, streams, etc.). Search engine entries are only permitted through the use of keywords that do not violate the aforementioned obligations and rights. Should the Customer violate this obligation and/or violate applicable law in this context, the Customer shall be obligated to pay a contractual penalty in the amount of EUR 6,000.00 (six thousand) immediately upon request by dus.net. This shall not affect further criminal prosecution or the assertion of damages.

(6) If a mail server and/or web server is the subject of the contract and/or a service thereof, the customer is obligated to design their website in such a way as to avoid placing an excessive load on the server itself, e.g., through scripts that require high computing power or an excessive amount of memory. dus.net is entitled to block access to and/or use of web servers that do not meet the above requirements by the customer and third parties. dus.net will immediately notify the customer of such measures and request that they be rectified. If the customer can demonstrate that such improvements have been made, dus.net will make the affected services accessible again to the customer and third parties. dus.net is not obligated to check the website for legal violations. If dus.net identifies legal violations or becomes aware of content that is prohibited under §5(9), (10), (11), and (15), dus.net is entitled to block such content or the entire website. dus.net will immediately notify the customer of such measures.

(7) The customer is obligated not to send or cause to be sent any emails containing advertising to one or more recipients without their express permission. This applies in particular if such emails are sent in bulk (SPAM). If the customer violates this obligation, dus.net is entitled to immediately block the customer. This does not preclude further legal action by third parties.

(8) Unless the customer has agreed to a different plan, internet access is limited to 1024 kbit/s. The customer is not authorized to use the access credentials on more than one computer. If the plan provides for or even requires multi-user access (router), this central Internet access is also not transferable to another device (router). This restriction applies only in the context of simultaneous use of the access points.

(9) Any software delivered with the hardware is subject to the license and terms of use of the respective manufacturers.

 

§11 Passwords

(1) The customer is obligated to keep the passwords agreed upon for access strictly confidential. If there is a possibility that third parties may nevertheless have gained knowledge of the password, the customer must report this immediately. The customer is liable for all usage fees and damages arising from the use of the customer’s own access, regardless of the persons using the access or the username used.

(2) The use of Internet access by third parties or subletting is not permitted without the express consent of dus.net. Should a violation become known, termination shall occur in accordance with §5(3)

 

§12 Billing; Billing Period

(1) If the customer is billed for data transfer volume, the volume shall be calculated as follows: one gigabyte equals one thousand megabytes, one megabyte equals one thousand kilobytes, and one kilobyte equals 1,000 bytes. If a free data allowance is included in a plan, it shall be determined according to the above rules. Excess usage is determined in the same manner and billed to the customer in accordance with §6(1).

(2) The respective billing period covers one month. The billing month begins on the day the service becomes operational. The billing month ends one day before the same day of the following calendar month. If this day does not exist in a calendar month, the last day of that calendar month applies. Internet connections that extend beyond the last day of the billing month into the following billing month are carried over to the following billing month.

(3) dus.net reserves the right to issue an interim invoice and debit this amount once the accrued amount in the current month reaches EUR 25.00. For new customers, dus.net reserves the right to debit an accrued amount of EUR 10.00 from the new customer’s account without issuing a separate invoice.

(4) If equipment housing or one or more root servers are the subject or part of a contract, all data volumes are measured and calculated based on the bandwidth consumed. Any included bandwidth is always deducted. The basis for calculation is the customer’s incoming and outgoing data traffic at the switch port. Calculation is performed via transfer measurements every 5 minutes. The bandwidth is then averaged over a 2-hour period at the end of a calendar month, and the resulting bandwidth is calculated. The formula for the calculation is:

Measured incoming bandwidth = EBI
Measured outgoing bandwidth = EBO
Included bandwidth = IB
Additional chargeable bandwidth = EGB
(EBI+EBO)-IB=EGB

Prices for additional bandwidth used are always calculated in full Mbit/s (megabits per second). The prices for additional Mbit/s are defined in the respective contract.

 

§13 Billing and Payment Terms

(1) Invoices are generally sent via email to the designated email address on file with dus.net or posted in the customer’s personal account area. Business customers receive an electronically signed invoice from a certification authority approved by the Federal Network Agency. dus.net will make invoices available at least two business days prior to the direct debit. All fees are due immediately upon receipt of the invoice without deduction. Amounts are generally collected via direct debit. Exceptions to this payment method must be agreed upon separately. The customer authorizes dus.net to collect any fees incurred via the bank account details provided by the customer to dus.net. The bank statement contains all invoice-related data (invoice number, input tax, etc.) in a format suitable for bookkeeping. A traditional invoice will only be issued upon express request, for an additional fee in accordance with the currently valid price list (§6(1) of the General Terms and Conditions), and sent by mail.

(2) The invoice amount depends on the choice of tariff, which is agreed upon separately with the customer or selected by the customer online. If the tariff or agreement includes a monthly fee, dus.net has the right to collect this in advance, at the earliest upon the start of the defined service provision. Other fees are due immediately upon invoicing after the service has been provided.

 

§14 Invoice Data, Customer Objections to Usage Fees

(1) The connection data stored for invoicing and billing purposes will be deleted by dus.net eighty days after the date of invoicing for data protection reasons. The customer must raise any objections to the invoices in writing within six weeks of receiving the invoice at the address specified on the invoice. Failure to raise objections in a timely manner shall be deemed approval. dus.net will inform the customer of the objection period and the legal consequences of missing the deadline.

(2) If, for technical reasons or at the customer’s request, no connection data is stored or stored connection data is deleted, dus.net shall have no obligation to provide evidence for individual connections.

 

§15 Return Charges, Advance Payment, Default, and Its Consequences

(1) If dus.net becomes aware of a deterioration in the customer’s financial circumstances, such as through a petition for the opening of bankruptcy or composition proceedings or a bill of exchange lawsuit, dus.net is entitled to demand advance payment or security deposits. This also applies to irregularities in payment transactions (returned direct debits, etc.).

(2) In the event of a chargeback, a processing fee of EUR 10.00 will be charged unless the customer can prove that dus.net is responsible for the chargeback. If a chargeback occurs and the customer cannot prove that dus.net is at fault, the customer must transfer the amount of the chargeback plus the processing fee to one of dus.net’s accounts within 5 business days.

(3) If the customer falls into arrears on their payment obligations in a significant amount, dus.net is entitled to suspend Internet access as well as all other services covered by the contract at the customer’s expense. The obligation to pay overdue fees, as well as monthly fees, remains unaffected by this. If the customer falls in arrears with the payment of fees for two consecutive months or with a significant portion of these fees whose due date extends over more than two months, this entitles dus.net to terminate the contractual relationship without notice.

(4) In the event of late payment, dus.net may charge interest at a rate of 5% above the base rate of the Deutsche Bundesbank or the European Central Bank from the relevant date. The right to claim higher interest damages remains unaffected.

 

§16 Domains

(1) If a contract whose services include a domain terminates, dus.net may return this domain to the respective registry following ordinary or extraordinary termination of the contract. This shall extinguish all of the customer’s rights to this domain. This applies to all domains that the customer has registered with dus.net during the term of the contract. If a domain is removed from availability to the customer due to disputes or legal orders, the customer has no right to a replacement.

(2) The customer may obtain a domain at any time by placing an order with dus.net. However, the final allocation of a domain is subject to availability, the allocation guidelines, and the provisions of trademark and copyright law. Should the allocation of a domain fail for the aforementioned reasons, the customer is obligated not to attempt to circumvent these reasons.

(3) If a domain is the subject of the contract, dus.net acts solely as an intermediary in the procurement and/or maintenance of the domain in relation to the customer and the respective registry. When assigning a domain, dus.net makes no warranty that it is or will be free of third-party rights or that it will remain valid in the long term.

(4) When ordering a domain, the customer guarantees that it is free from third-party rights and/or does not infringe any trademark, copyright, name, or other rights. In the event of an impermissible registration, use, or application of this domain in this sense, the customer indemnifies dus.net, its employees and vicarious agents, the respective domain registry, and other persons involved in the order against claims for compensation by third parties.

 

§17 Voice over IP

(1) dus.net VoIP is a DSL-provider-independent VoIP plan that can only be ordered via the website of dus.net GmbH.

(2) dus.net VoIP enables the customer to connect to other dus.net VoIP connections as well as to the public landline and mobile networks specified in the service description. The exact content and scope of the services are set forth in the current version of the service description for dus.net VoIP.

(3) dus.net VoIP is offered by dus.net within the limits of what is currently technically and operationally feasible. Temporary restrictions may occur due to factors beyond dus.net’s control. dus.net therefore assumes no liability for restrictions or interruptions in service caused by factors outside of dus.net’s sphere of responsibility.

(4) Upon request, dus.net will provide the customer, depending on the rate plan, with one or more local area code numbers from the local area code in which the customer demonstrably maintains their residence or business address, either free of charge or for a fee. The assigned phone numbers are subject to the number portability guarantee and can therefore be ported from dus.net to another network operator for a fee. Changes to the place of residence or business must be reported to dus.net immediately. A change in the customer’s local network will result in the loss of the phone number(s) assigned by dus.net up to that point. Exchanging the existing local area code numbers for the new local area code is possible at no cost for the same number of lines. In the event of number cancellation, reimbursement of costs incurred up to that point in connection with the allocation of local area code numbers is not possible. The emergency call functionality is guaranteed for one or more such local area network numbers assigned by dus.net. However, dus.net prohibits the use of the emergency call function in the event of nomadic use of the VoIP connection. Furthermore, the emergency call functionality is limited or unavailable compared to a landline or mobile network connection.

(5) dus.net VoIP must not be misused; in particular, the customer must refrain from making threatening or harassing calls. The customer also undertakes not to transmit any information with illegal or immoral content via dus.net VoIP. This includes, above all, information that incites hatred, encourages criminal acts, glorifies or trivializes violence, is sexually offensive or pornographic, or is likely to seriously endanger the morals of children and adolescents or impair their well-being. Furthermore, the case law and legislation of the country where the VoIP connection is used shall continue to apply.

(6) The customer agrees not to transmit any phone numbers when making calls via VoIP unless the call is made from the connection or device to which that number was assigned.

(7) Use of the DUStel complete plan is limited to private households, with only one DUStel complete plan permitted per household. Any use for non-private purposes is expressly prohibited and will result in immediate suspension of the plan by dus.net GmbH. The DUStel complete plan offers two lines that can be used simultaneously; however, when used simultaneously, the German landline flat rate applies to only one line. The second line is then billed at the specified connection rates. The flat rate includes only connections established for communication between two people without the use of automatic switching services or similar. dus.net reserves the right to bill connections to the German landline network that are not established in accordance with the aforementioned conditions at the underlying DUStel complete rate.

(8) As part of the collection of call data for billing purposes, rounding to full seconds is performed at the start and end of the connection. Due to this rounding, the connection durations reported for billing and charged may be one second shorter than the actual connection duration. Second or minute billing is based on the respective current rate plan valid at the time of the call or on the regulations of the Federal Network Agency for special number billing in their currently valid version.

 

§18 Set-off

(1) The customer may only set off claims against dus.net with undisputed or legally established claims.

 

§19 Confidentiality; Data Protection; Data Security

(1) The contracting party is hereby informed, in accordance with §33(1) of the Federal Data Protection Act and §3(5) of the Teleservices Data Protection Act, that dus.net processes their address in machine-readable form and for tasks arising from the contract. The customer is entitled at any time to view the data stored regarding their person or pseudonym at dus.net free of charge.

(2) dus.net expressly points out to the customer that, as things currently stand, data protection cannot be fully guaranteed during transmissions over open networks such as the Internet. The customer is aware that the provider may also view other data on the customer’s web server at any time from a technical standpoint. Likewise, other Internet users may be technically capable of unauthorized interference with network security and may gain access to data and messages or control their flow. The customer is solely responsible for the security and protection of data transmitted by the customer to the Internet or stored on our servers.

 

§20 Miscellaneous

(1) This contract, including rights and obligations, may only be transferred to third parties with the express, written consent of dus.net.

(2) dus.net is entitled to change its own network, the backbone, and other facilities at any time. Other changes, such as access numbers or IP addresses, may be made at any time. dus.net will notify the customer of these changes immediately and may require the customer to use only the new ones.

 

§21 Final Provisions

(1) The place of performance is Düsseldorf, Federal Republic of Germany. The exclusive venue for all claims arising from and based on this contract, including actions regarding checks and bills of exchange, as well as all disputes arising between the parties regarding the conclusion, performance, or termination of the contract, is—provided the customer is a registered merchant, a legal entity under public law, or a special fund under public law—the respective registered office of dus.net. dus.net is also entitled to sue the customer at the customer’s general place of jurisdiction.

(2) This contract is governed exclusively by the laws of the Federal Republic of Germany, excluding the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG).

(3) The legal successors of dus.net are also bound by the obligations arising from contracts concluded on the basis of these business relationships. Should any provision of this agreement be or become invalid, this shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions. Instead, the invalid provision shall be replaced by a substitute provision that corresponds to or at least approximates the purpose of the agreement and that the parties would have agreed upon to achieve the same economic result had they been aware of the invalidity of the provision. The same applies mutatis mutandis in the event of any incompleteness of the provisions.

 

(As of: April 2008)

General Terms of Use

§1 Principle; Amendments; User Obligations

These Terms of Use (TuU) are binding for all users of the dus.net network and are intended to ensure the highest possible quality of dus.net services. They govern the responsible quality of the dus.net network and services and prohibit abuses that impair the usability of the network and services for users as a whole. The use of modern telecommunications networks is subject to constant technical change and ongoing revisions to legal provisions and interpretations. To address these circumstances, dus.net reserves the right to review these Terms of Use on an ongoing basis and to amend them as necessary. With reference to §1 of the General Terms and Conditions at http://dus.net/agb, users are strongly advised to take note of and comply with any changes to these Terms of Use at http://dus.net/agb.php.

 

§2 Compliance with Legal Provisions

The user is responsible for ensuring that their use of the dus.net network does not violate any legal regulations or the rights of third parties.

 

§3 Content Principles; Protection of Minors; Copyrights; Prohibited Propaganda

In particular, the customer is prohibited from transmitting data in violation of copyright law, content harmful to minors without adequate safeguards against access by minors under the age of 18, or prohibited material, including in particular child pornography or prohibited political propaganda. This applies regardless of whether the user was aware of the content of the data or the legal provisions when transmitting prohibited data. If dus.net provides the customer with web space, the customer undertakes neither to store illegal information on the provided web space nor to refer in any form to criminal services offered by the customer or third parties,
nor to place hyperlinks (or similar) to such Internet addresses (or contact addresses), nor to store them in direct or hidden form. The user must refrain from any form of circumvention of legal provisions or the NuO.

 

§4 Technical Guidelines for Use

1. Network
Any unauthorized interference with the integrity of the systems, regardless of its nature, is prohibited. Spying on, tracking down, and unauthorized acquisition or alteration of data belonging to other system participants and users, regardless of the technology used, is prohibited. In particular, the user shall not attempt to circumvent the security measures of a third-party host, network, or user (commonly referred to as “cracking” or “hacking”) or to interfere with the operation of such systems.

2. Electronic Communication; Unsolicited Email
Users may not send emails to individuals who do not wish to receive such emails. It is expressly prohibited to send such “bulk mail” messages (“junk mail” or “spam mail”) of any kind (commercial advertising, political tracts, announcements, etc.) or to send these or similar messages to a large number of newsgroups (or similarly organized systems) (excessive “cross-posting” or “multiple posting,” also known as “Usenet spam”). Users may not forward or distribute chain letters or emails/postings with malicious content. Users are prohibited from forging or altering header information in emails or news articles.

 

§5 Violation of the Terms of Use

1. Data Removal; Suspension of Access; Liability for Damages
dus.net reserves the right to remove any material or data related to the violation and to suspend access to the network for one or more users if the user continues to violate the Terms of Use despite a prior request to cease such activity. Particularly serious violations may result in the immediate termination of the user’s access without prior notice. Violations will be prosecuted, especially if they endanger, impair, or prevent the reputation and standing of dus.net and its services, and the user responsible will be held liable for damages.

2. Disclosure of User Data in Case of Violation
Customers who violate these Terms of Use may be held liable under both criminal and civil law. dus.net is legally obligated to assist in investigations upon orders from authorities in cases of suspected criminal violations and to forward the user’s data to the authorities upon request. dus.net does not, as a matter of principle, review the legality of these orders from authorities.

3. Indemnification of dus.net by a User
The user agrees to indemnify dus.net against any claims or lawsuits by third parties arising from the user’s unlawful use of the network that violates applicable German or international law. The user is liable for the defense and for the assumption of all costs, claims for damages, out-of-court costs, and fees (including court fees) that are attributed to dus.net as a result of such third-party claims. The user shall notify dus.net of any such lawsuits or claims already pending against them or that are imminent.

 

§6 Further Details and Updates

Changes and technical details of the NuO are available at all times at http://dus.net/agb.