General Terms & Conditions (GTC)

Contract Terms

Last Updated: 26. January 2024

1.1 Reason and Purpose

The General Terms and Conditions (hereinafter referred to as GTC) serve as the legal basis for the duration of the contractual relationship between Stellare Agency and their customers who order/purchase a service or product offered. For simplicity, we refrain from using the female form. Our GTC are subject to Swiss law, and the sole jurisdiction is the corporate seat of Stellare Agency.

1.2 Start

The contract is established with the acceptance of the order, invoice, or commissioning by Stellare Agency based on the order placed by the customers. The order can come into effect via email, service provision, oral consultation, online form, or a signed document (invoice/quote/order confirmation). The earliest date of these possibilities is considered the start of the contract or subscription. Stellare Agency reserves the right to reject an order without explanation.

1.3 Duration

The initial contract period is determined by the buyer at the time of ordering from the available choices. For subscriptions with a term of less than 45 days, cancellation is required within 24 hours by one of the parties prior to renewal of the subscription. For subscriptions with a term of more than 45 days (e.g. yearly hosting costs), cancellation is required within 30 days prior to renewal. If the customer switches to another provider, all services associated with this service will be cancelled. Switching to another service provider terminates all claims to Stellare Agency's services. The termination of subscriptions results in the cancellation of all associated support and update services. However, the contract does not expire until the cancellation period has expired.

1.4 Components

For third-party services or products such as domain name service, hosting, online and offline advertising placements, print media, and email, the guidelines of the respective third parties also apply. If third parties charge a fee not included in the Stellare Agency offers, this fee is solely the responsibility of the customers.

Payment Terms

2.1 Expenses

If necessary and agreed, expenses will be invoiced separately.

2.2 Prices

The prices agreed upon in the contract generally apply. Where no explicit prices are set, the prices published at www.stellare.global primarily apply, or secondarily, an hourly rate of CHF 150.00. All prices are stated in Swiss Francs including VAT. Any discounts are considered cash discounts and are only valid if payment is made on time. Subscription prices are payable in advance and are generally billed monthly. Stellare Agency reserves the right to adjust prices based on renewed circumstances. Such changes are valid for ongoing contracts only at their renewal, whether to the advantage or disadvantage of the customers. Refund of prepaid costs in such a case or early contract termination at the request of the buyer is excluded.

2.3 Payment Deadline

Unless special payment deadlines are agreed upon, for existing customers who have consistently paid invoices on time, the term is 14 days net from the invoice date. For new customers, it is 7 days from the invoice date. Stellare Agency reserves the right to demand advance payment. Upon contract renewal, the subsequent period is generally invoiced immediately.

2.4 Settlement

If the customer does not pay on time, they are in default without reminder. Compensation of claims by the customers is excluded. If the customer has neither paid the invoice nor raised written and justified objections by the due date, Stellare Agency can interrupt the provision of all services without further notice and/or dissolve the contract immediately and without compensation.

Rights and Obligations of Stellare Agency

3.1 Image Material

If image material is required, Stellare Agency can purchase suitable images from third parties at the expense of the customers. Under no circumstances may these images be passed on to third parties. The same applies to fonts and other license-protected property rights.

3.2 Services

Stellare Agency is responsible for providing services according to the offer claimed by the customers, its product description according to the quote, or secondarily published at www.stellare.global. Stellare Agency is free in all aspects regarding the type and manner of environment necessary for these services, for example, domestic and foreign companies or third parties may be involved. Changes in this regard are at Stellare Agency's discretion.

3.3 References and Samples

From printed materials, Stellare Agency may keep a reasonable number of samples (usually 10 pieces) and use and publish them as proof of performance. Unprinted material, such as screenshots of social media profiles and general project data, can also be published by Stellare Agency as references. Furthermore, Stellare Agency is entitled to place a link to the Stellare Agency website and a reciprocal link on all internet pages and profiles of the buyers. Customer logos can be published on www.stellare.global as a reference. Upon express written customer request, naming and presentation as a reference and linking can be omitted.

3.4 Copyright

The copyrights and related protection rights to all works created by Stellare Agency generally belong to Stellare Agency. Stellare Agency can dispose of these rights according to federal law regulations.

3.5 Property Rights

Until complete payment, all services of movable items remain the property of Stellare Agency.

3.6 Changes

Stellare Agency reserves the right to adapt the GTC, further contract components according to item 1.4, or an offer or individual components thereof at any time without notification to changing circumstances. Unless announced otherwise, such changes take effect immediately. Reference is made to item 4.9 in this regard.

3.7 Service Interruption

In the event of non-compliance with an obligation of the customers according to item 4 - whether intentional, unknowing, or due to third-party fault - Stellare Agency is entitled to immediately block or remove the relevant profile (account), server, service, content, program, etc. By remedying the issue, the customer can free themselves from the respective sanction if necessary. In the case of a serious or repeated breach of duty, Stellare Agency reserves the right to terminate the contract immediately and without compensation and to take legal action against the buyers.

3.8 Notifications

Stellare Agency may send all notifications to the customer by email, including but not limited to announcements about product renewals or technical maintenance, invoices, payment reminders, setup or cancellation confirmations, lost access data, etc. If Stellare Agency has a contact address that has been invalid since the customer's order, Stellare Agency is entitled to make additional inquiries of entries (through dashboards provided by Stellare Agency, public WHOIS database for domain names, etc.), with which the contact address can be assigned as clearly authorized.

3.9 Early Contract Termination

If the customer desires early contract termination despite a valid contract and collaboration is no longer possible due to a lack of customer support, Stellare Agency may voluntarily agree to early contract termination against compensation. Stellare Agency can either charge the actual effort or, particularly for fixed prices without detailed hourly accounting, demand a lump sum compensation. The lump-sum compensation from the original order volume is 50% up to the project start, 85% in the first month after project start, and thereafter 100%. The project start is any order execution by Stellare Agency.

Rights and Obligations of the Customers

4.1 Cooperation

The customer is obliged to cooperate and to comply with defined tasks and deadlines, so that Stellare Agency can provide the desired services optimally.

4.2 Third Party Rights

The customer is solely responsible for the legal permissibility of the domain name and content of their internet pages and printed materials, as well as for data and information supplied by them (design work, texts, electronic data, image files, etc.), including the search terms, the same applies to the protection of third-party rights, especially in criminal, copyright, and competition law aspects.

4.3 Miscellaneous

The customer is obliged to check all documents for incompleteness or errors of any kind and to return them with possible corrections/comments immediately. With confirmation, also tacit, i.e., without objection, the buyer approves print materials, postings, or other service information and ideas and thereby agrees with the idea or template, or implementation.

4.4 Complaints

The services and products provided by the Stellare agency must be checked by the customer after transmission / publication. Stellare Agency may, at its discretion, assess the complaints and consult and rectify them free of charge or at additional cost. Revisions requested by the customer are usually associated with corresponding costs. Complaints must be made in writing immediately, at the latest within 7 days.

4.5 Delays

Delivery dates are generally non-binding. Mentioned dates correspond to the current planning status. In case of non-compliance, a reasonable grace period must be granted to Stellare Agency. Stellare Agency is not responsible for any resulting delays, especially not those caused by changes requested by the customer. In relation to the consumer, Stellare Agency is liable according to Swiss law, but not for immaterial damages or loss of income. Stellare Agency is not liable in cases of force majeure.

4.6 SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

Stellare Agency in no way guarantees the success of services and measures provided. The ranking (position) of a website in search engines depends on dozens of factors over which Stellare Agency has no control, so that services by Stellare Agency alone may not lead to success.

4.7 Device and Browser Compatibility

Stellare Agency also provides web services based on new and common technologies. This can lead to varying presentations. Compatibility is not guaranteed for technology with a market share in Switzerland of less than 10%, as well as for outdated operating systems and browsers. Smartphones (mobile devices) and tablets typically have small screens, with sizes and resolutions varying greatly. Therefore, the display of web pages is aligned to a standard width unless otherwise agreed.

4.8 Server Setup

Unless otherwise instructed, Stellare Agency sets up domain names and servers with factory settings for a new web presence by Stellare Agency, with the buyer not having access to server administration and configuration. Installation on third-party web servers is not included in the standard price, as these servers may not necessarily meet the required specifications. Stellare Agency's email service can be accessed via a browser with the existing user interface or through integrations for Outlook, smartphones, or other programs and devices. A transfer of ongoing hosting, an email account, or other services related to domain names and hosting must be explicitly requested by the customer.

4.9 Special/Termination

The customer has the right to terminate the contract without notice with a claim for a pro-rata refund of prepaid costs for the remaining contract duration if a disadvantage arises due to a change according to clause 3.6, which would have prevented the customer from concluding the contract at the time of ordering, which the customer must credibly demonstrate.

4.10 Payment

The customer is obligated to pay the costs for the entire duration of the contract in compliance with clause 2. In the event of late payment, a reminder fee of CHF 25.- and a default interest of 15% of the outstanding amount from the invoice date will be due for each reminder letter. The reminder will be sent every 10 days before further steps are initiated. Stellare Agency reserves the right to assign the matter for collection to a third party. In the event of repeated late payment and unsuccessful reminder, or in the case of new customers' late payment, Stellare Agency is entitled to block access or interrupt services. Reactivation will only occur after full payment, plus a processing fee of CHF 150.-.

4.11 Additional Tasks

Tasks that do not fall within Stellare Agency's area of responsibility or the performance catalog of the respective service can be rejected by Stellare Agency or billed to the customer according to the incurred effort. Examples of such chargeable services, usually at an hourly rate, include performance extensions, restoring a change made by the customer, and email support regarding external systems and interfaces as well as installations and adjustments on third-party web servers or profiles. For domain transactions, the pure processing fee is at least CHF 20.- per transaction.

4.12 Extended Usage Rights and Raw Data

The customer generally has the agreed usage rights. Especially for photo shoots or social media profiles, a number of selected photos including image editing or preparation for a specific use is common. Extended usage rights can be purchased for a small surcharge, with additional image editing billed separately. The delivery of raw data is not provided and will be billed additionally if required.

4.13 Restrictions

For services or products with limits (traffic, number of pages, number of profiles, etc.), the customer will be billed for the additional volume according to the newly agreed price if these limits are exceeded.

4.14 Usage

The customer is obligated to use the services offered to them properly in compliance with clause 1.4. The customer's right to use the services is non-transferable and is only for the customer or their company and their personnel. In the case of transferring certain usage rights, the customer is responsible for informing the respective third parties and is generally also liable for them.

4.16 Liability

The customer is solely responsible for all content, actions, and links related to the accounts, server, website, and images as well as videos they use. The same applies to manuscripts, data carriers, and templates submitted to Stellare Agency, which are of course treated with the usual care by Stellare Agency but must be secured or insured by the customers themselves. Except in cases of intent and gross negligence on the part of Stellare Agency, where the claim is limited to the immediate damage suffered and the value of the services claimed, as well as any performance guarantees granted, the customer waives any kind of claims for liability against Stellare Agency, including but not limited to claims for damages, in the event of delays, operational failures, failures of individual services or performances, data insecurity or losses, etc. Stellare Agency is not liable in cases of force majeure.

4.17 Addresses

By ordering and/or registering, the customer is obligated to provide truthful and complete information. The details include, if available, company, contact person, postal address, telephone number, and email address. The customer is obligated to notify Stellare Agency of important changes within 10 days to avoid difficulties in contacting and delays. If the contact details are incomplete, incorrect, or not current and the customer's identity can only be determined with disproportionate effort, or if messages to the customer cannot be delivered, Stellare Agency is entitled to suspend its services or to terminate the contract extraordinarily without notice and compensation. Stellare Agency is entitled to bill the customer for any costs incurred due to outdated, incomplete, or incorrect contact details, with a minimum fee of CHF 25.-.

4.18 Data Protection

The customer is responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of the website or social media profiles and their passwords. Additionally, the customer is responsible for all activities caused by granting visitors access to their website or sharing the password and is liable for all consequences of the use or misuse of their website or password. The customer agrees that data about their person can be stored and transmitted to third parties as necessary. This applies particularly to the reporting of data necessary for registering domain names, which can subsequently be published.