Terms of Service

Last updated: [EFFECTIVE DATE] · Version 1

SynchedWord is operated by [LEGAL ENTITY NAME], a [STATE] limited liability company ("we", "us"). By using SynchedWord you agree to these Terms and to our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the service.

1. Who may use SynchedWord

• Following a service needs no account and no minimum age. Anyone handed a code can follow along.
• Creating an account requires you to be 13 or older. If you are under 13, do not create one.
• SynchedWord is offered in the United States. We may decline or close accounts that appear to originate elsewhere.
• Register with accurate information, and keep one account per person.

2. Your account

Keep your password to yourself, and treat it as the key to everything under your account. You are responsible for activity under your account. Tell us at [SECURITY EMAIL] if you believe someone else has access, and sign out other devices from Settings.

3. Service codes are keys, not secrets

Every service has a code, and the code is what grants access. Anyone who has a code can see that service — its outline, its passages, and its presenter notes that are not marked private.

Codes are designed to be shared: printed in a bulletin, shown on a screen, posted online, included in a recording. They are permanent, so a code shared once can be used indefinitely. Treat everything you put into a sermon outline as public, and use the private-notes setting for anything that is not.

4. Acceptable use

You may use SynchedWord to present services, follow along, take personal notes, read Scripture, and revisit services you have joined.

You may not:

• Impersonate a church, a minister, or another person, or present a service you have no authority to present.
• Use the service to harass, threaten, defame, or incite violence against anyone.
• Upload or present content that is unlawful, or that infringes someone else's copyright.
• Guess at, scrape, or enumerate service codes, or try to reach services you were not given a code for.
• Attempt to bypass rate limits, access controls, or any security measure; probe the service for vulnerabilities without our written permission; or use bots or scrapers against it.
• Copy, redistribute or republish copyrighted Bible translations obtained through the service beyond what the publisher's licence allows.
• Resell, sublicense or commercially redistribute the service.
• Use it for any unlawful purpose.

We may remove content and suspend or terminate accounts that violate these rules.

5. Your presenter code prefix

Presenters choose a permanent four-character prefix that begins every one of their service codes. Because it is shown to whole congregations:

• It must not be offensive, deceptive, or impersonate another church or organisation. We screen for this automatically, but screening is best-effort and not a guarantee.
• It is permanent. Codes end up in bulletins and recordings, so we do not let presenters change a prefix once claimed.
• We may revoke one that violates these Terms. Codes already issued keep working; only new services get the replacement prefix.

6. Your content, and ours

You own what you write — your personal notes, and, if you are a presenter, your sermon outlines. We claim no ownership of them.

You grant us only the permission we need to run the service: to store your content, and to display it to the people you have chosen to show it to — your own notes back to you, and a presenter's outline to the congregation holding that service's code. Nothing more. We do not publish your content, use it in marketing, or train any model on it.

SynchedWord itself — the software, design and name — remains ours. The SynchedWord name and logo may not be used in a way that suggests we endorse, sponsor or are affiliated with you or your church without our written permission.

Reports. Anyone can report a shared service as copying someone else's work, as harmful, or for anything else, with the Report this sermon link under it. We review every report, and may take a service down; its presenter is told why. A copyright report may be passed to the presenter so they can respond.

What presenters share is theirs. Sermon outlines, headings and presenter notes are written by the presenters and churches who use SynchedWord, not by us. We do not review, edit or endorse them, and they do not represent the views or teaching of SynchedWord. Questions about something a presenter shared are for that presenter or church.

Copyright complaints

If you believe something shown through SynchedWord infringes your copyright, use the Report this sermon link under the service and choose copyright (it asks for everything below), or send a notice to our designated agent at [LEGAL EMAIL] or [MAILING ADDRESS] with: your contact details; the work you say is infringed; where it appears in SynchedWord (for example the service code); a statement that you believe in good faith the use is not authorised; and a statement, under penalty of perjury, that your notice is accurate and that you are the owner or authorised to act for them, with your physical or electronic signature. We respond to valid notices under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, may remove the material, and close the accounts of repeat infringers. Where we can, we remove only the part complained of — for example a single note — and leave the rest of the sermon up; people following it see a short line saying something was removed after a report. We tell the presenter what was removed and why. A presenter can change what was removed and ask for a review from the sermon editor, and if your content was removed and you believe that was a mistake, you may send a counter-notice to the same address. Removed material is not deleted, so it can be restored.

If a presenter deletes a sermon, or their account

Once a service has been presented, it is also part of the libraries of the people who followed it, with their own notes written under its passages. So that those people do not lose their notes:

• Deleting one sermon that has been presented removes it from the presenter's list, and the presenter can no longer edit, present or copy it. Everyone who followed it keeps it in their library as it was, and its service code keeps working. A sermon that was never presented is deleted completely.
• Deleting a presenter account deletes the account and its sign-in details, the church name and location, and every sermon that nobody saved to their library, including all drafts. For each sermon that at least one person saved, we keep only what they need to go on using it: its title and date, its Scripture references, and each person's own notes. We delete the presenter's notes on it (shared and private), its passage headings, and its link to the presenter and their church. Its service code keeps working and always leads to that sermon. The presenter's code prefix becomes free, so anyone — including the same church later — may claim it for new services.
• If a title names a person, rename the sermon before deleting your account.

By presenting a service, a presenter agrees that the parts listed above may be kept in this way, for the people who received them, after the presenter deletes the sermon or their account. Each person's own notes are theirs, and they can delete them, or their whole account, at any time.

7. Bible text

Public-domain translations are provided as part of the service. Copyrighted translations are provided under licence from their publishers and remain subject to their terms; you may not copy or redistribute them beyond personal study. Attribution appears wherever the text does. See Bible copyright.

8. What SynchedWord is, and is not

SynchedWord is a tool for following and recording a service. It is not a system of record for your church, and it is not a backup service.

It depends on things we do not control — your internet connection, your church's wifi, your device, and our hosting providers. A live service can be interrupted by any of them. If being able to present matters to you, keep a paper or offline copy of your outline. We strongly recommend this and do not consider it optional.

Scripture references and passage lookups are provided as-is. Verse text comes from third-party sources and published translations, and we do not warrant that any passage is complete or free of error. Check the printed text for anything that matters.

9. Availability and changes

We aim to keep SynchedWord running, but we do not promise uninterrupted or error-free service. We may modify, suspend or discontinue features. If we discontinue the service entirely we will give reasonable notice and a way to export your notes.

Other companies' services

Parts of SynchedWord rely on other companies: payments are taken on Stripe's checkout pages under Stripe's own terms; copyrighted Bible translations come from their publishers through api.Bible, under the publishers' terms; and the app runs on hosting, database and email providers named in our Privacy Policy. SynchedWord may also link to other websites. We are not responsible for other companies' services, websites or content, and your use of them is governed by their terms.

10. Price, and supporting SynchedWord

Following a service, taking notes and reading Scripture in SynchedWord are free. Today there is no paid tier and nothing is locked behind a payment.

You may optionally support the app, one time or monthly. Please read this section before you do.

Supporters get nothing extra

Supporting SynchedWord unlocks no features, no badge, no early access and no priority of any kind. The app is identical for everyone whether they support it or not.

It is support, not a charitable donation

SynchedWord is operated by [LEGAL ENTITY NAME], a limited liability company. It is not a registered charity or a 501(c)(3) organisation, and your support is not tax-deductible. We do not issue charitable receipts and nothing we send should be treated as one. If you need a deductible gift, give to your church rather than to us.

Monthly support renews automatically

If you choose monthly support:

• You are charged the amount you chose immediately, and then once every month on the same date (or on the last day of a month that is shorter).
• It continues until you cancel it. There is no end date and no minimum term.
• The amount and the schedule are shown to you on the payment page before you confirm, and repeated in your receipt.
• We email a receipt for every charge, including each renewal — you will never be charged without a record arriving.
• Right after you start, we email a confirmation that repeats these terms — the amount, that it renews monthly, and how to cancel — so you have them in writing.
• At least once a year we remind you that your monthly support is still running, what it costs, and how to cancel it.
• If a payment fails (an expired or declined card, for example), our payment processor retries it a few times over the following days and emails you so you can update your card. If it still fails, your monthly support simply stops. We never charge a fee for a failed payment and never try to collect a missed one.

Cancelling. Cancel at any time with the Cancel or change monthly support button on the support page or in Settings, from the link in any receipt, or by emailing [SUPPORT EMAIL]. Cancelling takes effect at the end of the period you have already paid for, and there is no cancellation fee. No phone call, no explanation, and nothing you have to talk us out of.

One-time support is charged once. Nothing is stored to charge you again and nothing repeats.

Changes, refunds and your card

• We will never raise an amount you already agreed to. If you want to support at a different amount, cancel and start again at the new one. If you change it through the manage link, the new amount applies from your next monthly charge.
• Refunds: if you were charged by mistake, or a renewal caught you by surprise, email [SUPPORT EMAIL] and we will refund it. We would rather return money than keep something you did not mean to give.
• Your card. Payments are handled by our payment processor. We never see or store your card number.
• Taxes. Amounts are in US dollars. We do not provide tax advice.

If we ever introduce a genuinely paid feature, we will say so clearly in advance, and anything you are already using will not silently start costing money.

11. Disclaimer of warranties

SynchedWord is provided "as is" and "as available", without warranties of any kind, 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 any content or verse text is accurate or complete. No statement by us creates a warranty.

Some states do not allow certain warranty exclusions, in which case those exclusions do not apply to you.

12. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, we are not liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary or punitive damages, or for lost profits, revenue, data, use or goodwill, under any legal theory — including a service that fails during worship, or notes that are lost.

Our total liability is limited to the greater of the amount you paid us in the twelve months before the claim, or US$100. Given that the service is free, that is ordinarily $100.

These limits do not apply to gross negligence, willful misconduct, fraud, or death or personal injury caused by our negligence, and do not apply where the law does not allow them.

13. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless [LEGAL ENTITY NAME], its members, officers and contractors from claims and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising from your use of the service, your content, your violation of these Terms or of any law, or your infringement of anyone else's rights. We will notify you of any such claim and may control its defence with counsel of our choosing; you will cooperate.

14. Disputes

Please read this section. It affects how disputes are resolved, and may affect your right to sue in court or have a jury trial.

Talk to us first. Most problems can be settled quickly. Write to [LEGAL EMAIL] describing the issue and what you want. If it is not resolved within 30 days, either of us may begin arbitration.

Binding individual arbitration. Disputes that cannot be resolved informally will be settled by binding arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association under its Consumer Arbitration Rules, governed by the Federal Arbitration Act. The arbitrator decides all issues except the enforceability of the class waiver below, which a court decides.

You and we each waive a jury trial and the right to bring or join a class action.

Exceptions. Either of us may bring a claim in small-claims court, and either may seek an injunction for intellectual-property infringement or unauthorised access to the service.

You may opt out. Send an email to [LEGAL EMAIL] with the subject line "Arbitration Opt-Out", including your name and the email on your account, within 30 days of first accepting these Terms. Opting out costs you nothing else. If we materially change this section, you get a new 30-day opt-out window.

Costs and location. AAA consumer fee caps apply. Arbitration may be conducted by phone, video, or on documents, or in person in the county where you live. You will not be required to travel to our state.

If the class waiver is found unenforceable, this entire arbitration section does not apply, and Governing Law below survives independently.

15. Governing law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Commonwealth of [STATE], without regard to conflict-of-laws rules, and by the Federal Arbitration Act where it applies. Where arbitration does not apply, the exclusive venue is the state and federal courts located in [COUNTY, STATE], and both parties consent to jurisdiction there. Nothing here removes protections of mandatory consumer law where you live.

16. Termination

You may delete your account at any time from Settings → Your data → Delete account. For a presenter, what happens to sermons other people have saved is set out in section 6, "If a presenter deletes a sermon, or their account". We may suspend or terminate an account that violates these Terms. Sections 6 (content ownership, and what is kept for listeners), 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15 survive termination.

17. General

• Severability — an unenforceable provision is narrowed to the minimum extent, and the rest stands.
• No waiver — not enforcing a provision does not waive it; waivers must be in writing.
• Entire agreement — these Terms and the Privacy Policy supersede prior agreements.
• Assignment — you may not assign these Terms; we may, including in a merger or sale.
• Force majeure — we are not liable for failures caused by events beyond our reasonable control, including hosting and network outages.
• Time limit — any claim must be brought within one year of arising, or it is permanently barred.

18. Changes to these Terms

We will post changes here and update the date and version. For material changes we will give notice in the app, and by email to account holders, at least 30 days before they take effect. Continuing to use SynchedWord after that date means you accept them. Changes required by law, a regulator, or an app store, and terms for entirely new optional features, may take effect sooner with as much notice as is reasonable.

19. Contact

Questions about these Terms: [LEGAL EMAIL] · [MAILING ADDRESS]

Privacy Policy · Cookies · Bible copyright · Accessibility · Return to SynchedWord