TERMS OF USE

PLEASE READ THESE TERMS & CONDITIONS OF USE CAREFULLY AND THOROUGHLY BEFORE USING DAASTAN.

 

These Terms & Conditions of Use (the “Terms”) govern the terms and conditions of your use of this website, which is a portal for self-publication of books and for availing related services (the “Services”) from a Service Provider (“Daastan”).

If you are a visitor to this website and are not the recipient of our Services, the provisions of these Terms shall apply to the extent of the use of this website only.

Your use of Daastan creates a binding and legally-enforceable contract between yourself and Daastan. By accessing Daastan, you acknowledge that you have read, understand and accept these Terms. If you do not understand or accept any of these Terms or do not wish to be legally bound by them, you should discontinue use of Daastan.

 

1.             User Account

 

1.1          Eligibility Criteria: By creating an account with Daastan (hereinafter referred to as your “Account”), you represent that you are at least eighteen (18) years of age. Furthermore, you have not been convicted of any financial crime, including fraud and money laundering. If you are a minor, your parent or guardian can open the Account on your behalf in his or her own name and, in such case, the term “you” in these Terms shall refer to you and your parent or guardian.

 

1.2          Account Creation: If you fulfill the eligibility criteria mentioned in Clause 1.1 above, you are entitled to create your Account, purchase a book or publish a book with Daastan. You shall ensure that all information that you provide in the process of creation of your Account is accurate and verifiable. You further represent that you are in possession of all the original documents to confirm the information provided by you in such process and authorize Daastan to require and verify such information and documents, if it considers necessary.

 

1.3          No Multiple, Fake Accounts: You are only permitted to use one account at a time. You may not create an account on behalf of any person, whether authorized or not. You may not impersonate any other person while using Daastan.

 

1.4          Natural Persons: The Services only extend to natural persons and not to corporate or juridical persons. Any artificial person wishing to receive the Services shall sign a separate contract with Daastan, which shall apply to its use of Daastan and not these Terms.

 

1.5          No Assignment: The account created by you under this Clause is for your personal use only. You shall not transfer, assign or sub-license your account to any third party.

2.             Eligibility of E-Books

 

2.1          Rules to Apply: In addition to the criteria described hereinbelow, all books upload by you (the “E-books”) shall be in compliance with the following rules:

 

1. Your E-book shall not contain any defamatory material.

 

 

(ii)           You shall refrain from any obscene language, pictures or other forms of expression in your E-book.

 

 

(iii)          Your E-book shall not contain hate speech, any inflammatory or incendiary language or material that may discriminate between any classes of persons.

 

(iv)          Your E-book shall not contain language that expresses disrespect for the any sovereign state and any institutions thereof.

 

(v)           While writing your E-book, you shall abide by the laws of Pakistan or any other state that may have jurisdiction over your participation vis-à-vis Daastan.

 

(vi)          Your E-book shall not infringe upon the rights of privacy of persons.

 

2.2          Intellectual Property Rights: You hereby warrant that your E-book does not infringe upon the intellectual property rights of third parties, is not pirated and does not contain material that is illegally obtained (such material hereinafter referred to as “Infringing Material”). Without prejudice to the foregoing, if it comes to your notice that your E-Book contains Infringing Material, you shall immediately (i) withdraw the same from Daastan; (ii) notify Daastan; (iii) refund Daastan of any royalties received from the E-book; and (iii) shall hold Daastan harmless in this regard.

 

2.3          Banned Books: In the event that your E-book is in violation of any law in the jurisdiction in which it is planned to be sold, you shall notify Daastan immediately, and shall also send a written request to Daastan to withdraw the publication of such E-book. In addition, if there is a judgment, decree or order binding upon yourself to prevent or delay the publication of the E-book, you shall notify Daastan immediately and withdraw its publication, regardless of whether it has been published or is in the process.

 

2.4          Corrupted Data: You warrant that any E-book you upload is uncorrupted and free from bugs, viruses, errors or defects. You further warrant that you have scanned your E-book from an internationally recognized virus scanner prior to uploading the same.

3.             Upload and Distribution Rights

 

3.1          Upload of E-book: You shall prepare your E-book in accordance with internationally accepted standards for books at your own cost and expense. By the time you upload the E-book at Daastan for distribution, it shall be ready in every form and aspect as it would be for commercial sale on any on-line sales portal. (Unless, you have come to mutual agreement with Daastan to avail it’s Services for your book, in which case dastan shall work on your book and get final approval from you).

 

3.2          Information: You shall procure and provide, at your own expense, relevant and accurate information regarding the book, including without limitation: (i) full title, (ii) author, (iii) language, (iv) edition, (v) ISBN number (unless procured through Daastan), and (vi) number of pages.

 

3.3          Cover Page: Your E-book shall contain a clear and legible cover page which shall be created by you with your own expertise and expense. Daastan has a right to object to the Cover Page if it does not meet the eligibility criteria mentioned above. A book cover can also be ordered from Daastan, in which case the usual procedure shall be followed as is followed for the availing of Services.

 

3.4          Withdrawal: In the event that you wish to withdraw your E-book out of your own choice and not if it fails to meet the eligibility criteria mentioned in these Terms, you may do so with an advance written notice of fourteen (14) days. Notwithstanding the same, you shall honour all the orders for your E-book which have already been made or are in process.

 

3.5          Assignment of Rights: By submitting your E-book to Daastan, you assign all publication and distribution rights with respect to the E-book for the entire world. This assignment is limited to on-line publications only and shall not affect or prevent your rights with respect to physical publication of the E-book in any territory.

 

4.             Reviews

 

You may also provide reviews on books on Daastan. You shall abide by the rules for E-books provided in Clause 2.1 while writing your reviews.

 

 

 

5.             Pricing

 

5.1          List Price: You may provide a price at which your E-book may be sold, which shall be referred to as the “List Price”. The List Price shall be inclusive of all taxes, dues and levies under the laws of the respective jurisdiction.

 

5.2          Multiple Currencies and Prices: Daastan may sell the E-book in multiple currencies. If the E-book is sold at a currency different from the List Price, Daastan may convert the List Price into the required currency at the exchange rate it determines, and may also make further adjustments to ensure a reasonable price at its sole discretion. On the other hand, you may also provide multiple prices in multiple currencies to suit your needs.

 

5.3          Price Re-adjustment: In the event that any price set by you falls below or exceeds an acceptable range in Daastan’s sole discretion, it may notify you regarding the same and you shall negotiate a more acceptable price with Daastan.

 

5.4          Refunds: Any claims for refunds will be determined by Daastan in its sole discretion. In the event of a refund, Daastan may either claim refund from you for your royalty for the concerned E-book or set off this amount against any subsequent sale.

 

6.             Royalties

6.1          Percentage of Royalty: You shall be entitled to a royalty which is determined as a percentage as set forth in the Royalty Schedule.

 

6.2          Payment Schedule: You shall be paid your royalty by means of Bank Account, as per current rules and regulations (subject to change)

 

6.3          Deduction of Taxes: Daastan shall be entitled to deduct all taxes, fees and dues that it is obligated to deduct under the laws of the relevant jurisdiction.

7.             Disclaimer

 

7.1          Inaccuracies: While Daastan attempts to provide accurate information regarding E-books, it assumes no responsibility or liability for any inaccuracy. Information may include typographical errors. Daastan may change or alter the information regarding books for the purposes of accuracy, at any time and without prior notice. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any information that you rely on while using Daastan is at your own risk and Daastan does not claim to have checked the accuracy, veracity, currency or validity of any content provided by or through Daastan.

 

7.2          Errors and Defects: Daastan does not warrant that the electronic functions contained in or on the Services will be uninterrupted or error free, that defects will be corrected, or that Daastan, or the server that makes it available, are free of viruses or bugs or represents full functionality.

 

7.3          Protection of Data: Daastan remains committed to protecting the integrity and privacy of your data. However, Daastan shall not be liable for any unauthorized access or use of your information or any other negative consequence despite its best efforts to avoid the same.

 

7.4          No Warranty: The Services and all information and/or material contained therein, provided therewith, available on or accessed through it are provided on “as is” and “as available” basis only, without warranty of any kind. Daastan disclaims, to the fullest extent permitted by law, all warranties, either express or implied, statutory or otherwise, conditions, representations, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of title, merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, accuracy, reliability, timeliness, completeness, adequacy, currentness and non-infringement of third party rights. Except where prohibited by law, this disclaimer also includes any expressed or implied warranties arising from any course of dealing, usage, or trade practice.

 

7.5          Liability: When using Daastan, information may be transmitted over a medium that is beyond the control and jurisdiction of Daastan. Accordingly, Daastan assumes no liability for or relating to the delay, failure, interruption, or corruption of any data or information transmitted in connection with the Services.

 

7.6          Infringement Claims: Daastan is not responsible for, and has not conducted, any verification of the title to the intellectual property in the E-books and hereby disclaims all liability arising out of any infringement claims or proceedings with respect to the E-books. In the event of such a claim or proceeding, you agree that you are solely liable and shall hold Daastan harmless against all such claims and proceedings arising out of the E-books you upload

 

8.             Personal Information

 

The personal information you submit Daastan is governed by these Terms and the Daastan Privacy Policy (the “Privacy Policy”). To the extent that there is any inconsistency between the Terms and the Privacy Policy, the Terms shall prevail, but only to the extent of the inconsistency.

 

9.             Data Protection

 

9.1          Passwords: You are responsible for taking all reasonable steps to ensure that no unauthorized person has or gains access to your Daastan password or Account. It is your sole responsibility to (i) control the dissemination and use of your login name(s) and password(s); (ii) authorize, monitor, and control access to and use of your Account and password; and (iii) promptly inform Daastan if you believe your Account or password has been compromised or if there is any other reason you need to deactivate your Account. To send us an e-mail, use the "Contact Us" link located on the Daastan website, which is provided above. Daastan cannot and does not assume any responsibility or liability for any information you submit, or your or third parties' use or misuse of information transmitted or received using Daastan. Daastan does not assume any liability for misappropriation of your royalties if your Account is misused by persons not authorized by yourself.

 

9.2          Protection: You are responsible for implementing sufficient procedures, checkpoints and safeguards to satisfy your particular requirements for accuracy of data input and output, and for maintaining means for the reconstruction or recovery of lost data.

 

10.          Use of Daastan

 

10.1        Intended Purpose: Your use of Daastan shall be limited to the purpose for which it is intended only.

 

10.2        Compliance with Law, Rules: You shall use Daastan or the Services in compliance with:

 

(i)            your obligations under any contract(s)/agreement(s) with third parties;

(ii)           any judgment, decree or writ binding upon yourself;

(iii)          all laws, rules and regulations of your jurisdiction, including laws pertaining to confidentiality, privacy and security; and

(iv)          best practices and professional code of conduct.

 

10.3        Prohibited Uses: You shall NOT use Daastan and/or the Services:

 

(i)            for any illegal, fraudulent, harmful, malicious or unlawful activity;

(ii)           to upload information or make claims that may be misleading;

(iii)          to disseminate any political, religious or ideological messages or information;

(iv)          to form any interest groups or unions;

(v)           to form any romantic or affectionate relationships;

(vi)          in an abusive manner, by gaining unauthorized access to the same or by altering or affecting the Services; or

(vii)         to advertise yourself by damaging the reputation of your professional competitors.

 

 

11.          License Term and Termination

 

11.1        Term: These Terms be effective from the date of your registration with Daastan and shall continue for as long as your account with Daastan remains active (the “Term”).

 

11.2        Termination by You: You may terminate the Term by deactivating your Account.

 

11.3        Termination by Daastan: Daastan may suspend or terminate your account:

 

(i)            if there has been a breach of the Terms by you;

(ii)           to comply with any government or court order;

(iii)          to comply with any legal provision requiring the same;

(iv)          if any criminal proceedings have been commenced against you;

(v)           if you become insolvent or become party to insolvency proceedings.

 

11.4        Maintenance Downtime: Daastan may, in rare cases, be required to suspend its Services temporarily for maintenance and/or up-gradation. While this suspension may be undesirable for you, Daastan will try its best to avoid this outcome and it will do so only when it is absolutely necessary and in the best interests of its valued customers.

 

12.          Limited Liability

 

Neither Daastan nor any of its holdings, affiliates, subsidiaries, associated companies, or their respective shareholders, directors, executives, employees or other representatives, shall be liable or responsible for any direct, indirect, special, incidental, punitive and/or consequential damages arising out of the use, or the inability to use, access to, or reliance upon the information and/or materials on Daastan, in whole or in part, under any circumstances.

 

13.          Indemnity

 

By using Daastan, you agree to defend and indemnify it, its owner(s), shareholder(s) (if applicable), director(s) (if applicable), officers, employees, affiliates, agents, licensors and suppliers and hold them harmless from and against all or any consequences, actions, claims, losses, liabilities, demands and settlements including, without limitation, reasonable legal and accounting fees, resulting from, or alleged to result from, or arising out of, or alleged to arise out of:

 

(i)            your breach or violation of any of the Terms;

(ii)           your misuse of Daastan;

(iii)          the actions of any person using the User ID and password assigned to you for Daastan;

(iv)          any misrepresentations made by you while using Daastan;

(v)           any failure by you to meet your obligations and their deadlines while using Daastan;

(vi)          any violation of any applicable laws, rules, regulations and code of conduct whether knowingly or otherwise, while using Daastan.

 

14.          Intellectual Property Rights of Daastan

 

14.1        Title to Intellectual Property: Save as otherwise stated, all intellectual property in Daastan, its software and the Services, whether in trademarks, copyrights, patents, designs, methods, secrets, source codes, or otherwise, whether registered or unregistered, shall vest in and is the sole and exclusive property of Daastan (the “Intellectual Property”). This Intellectual Property also includes but is not limited to:

 

(i)            the "Daastan" name and logo;

(ii)           all text, images, artwork and graphics in Daastan, including its layout and design of the Daastan application;

(iii)          all copyrights in the software of Daastan.

 

14.2        Use of Intellectual Property: You may only use this Intellectual Property in a manner expressly permitted by Daastan. Your use of Daastan or otherwise receipt of the Services does not give you the right to copy, modify, distribute, reproduce, broadcast, publish, sell, license or derive the source code of any or all of the Intellectual Property. You may only make one copy of the Intellectual Property for internal backup purposes only.

 

14.3        Third Party Breach: In the event that you suspect a breach of the Intellectual Property rights of Daastan by a third party, you shall promptly notify Daastan of such breach, and shall provide all reasonable information in Daastan’s attempts to take all legal measures necessary to protect its Intellectual Property.

 

14.4        International Protection: The Intellectual Property is protected by national copyright law and international copyright conventions. Any use of the Intellectual Property not expressly permitted by the Terms shall be considered a breach of the Terms.

 

14.5        Violation: If you violate or breach any of the Terms, your permission to use Daastan and the Intellectual Property automatically terminates.

 

14.6        Rights Reserved: All rights not expressly granted herein or are reserved by Daastan.

 

14.7        Survival: This Clause shall survive the termination of these Terms.

 

15.          Links to Third-Party Resources

 

Any hyperlink to any third party source or resource on Daastan is provided for your convenience and ease of reference only. Daastan does not necessarily recommend, endorse or approve, and is not responsible or liable for, any third-party content that may be accessed through any hyperlink on Daastan.

 

16.          Independent Contractors

 

Nothing in the Terms shall be construed to create a relationship of agency, partnership, joint venture or other formal business entity or fiduciary relationship between you and Daastan (collectively as the “Parties” and individually as a “Party”).

 

17.          Entire Understanding

 

These Terms constitute the complete agreement and sets out the entire understanding concerning the arrangement between the Parties on the subject matter hereof and shall, as of the effective date hereof, supersede all prior agreement(s) or understanding(s) between the Parties as well as all other communications, representations, promises, proposals, oral or written, negotiations, conversations, or discussions between or among the Parties relating to the subject matter of the Terms.

 

18.          Notices

 

Any notice required to be served under the Terms shall be deemed to have been served if either delivered through e-mail, registered post or courier service at the respective addresses of the Parties provided and in such a case it shall be deemed (whether it is actually or not) to have been received at the time when such e-mail, registered post or courier would, in the normal and ordinary course, be delivered to the Party to be served.

 

19.          Arbitration

 

19.1        Negotiation and Mediation: If any dispute arises between the Parties arising from or out of the Terms and/or your use of Daastan and the receipt of the Services, the Parties shall endeavour to settle the dispute through negotiation. The period within which negotiations are to be allowed, held and concluded shall not be more than thirty (30) days. If negotiations fail, the Parties shall proceed to mediation which shall be allowed, held and concluded shall not be more than an additional thirty (30) days. The Parties may, by mutual agreement in writing, waive the timelines permitted under this Clause, or vary their lengths.

 

19.2        Resort to Arbitration: If the Parties are unable to settle the dispute or difference by negotiation or mediation and the timelines provided in Clause 19.1 above lapse, then such dispute or difference shall be referred to arbitration within thirty (30) days from the receipt of a written notice by either Party demanding arbitration.

 

19.3        Appointment of Arbitrator: You and Daastan shall appoint one arbitrator each. In case the arbitrators are unable to reach agreement on the award, they shall refer the matter to an umpire to be mutually appointed by them, who shall rule on the award. The Parties shall share the costs of the arbitration equally, unless otherwise stated in the arbitration award.

 

19.4        Legal Seat: The arbitration hearings/proceedings shall be conducted under Pakistan’s Arbitration Act, 1940 (or any reenactment thereof) at Lahore, Pakistan and shall be concluded within sixty (60) days from the date of appointment of the arbitrator. For the purposes of enforcement of the arbitral award or any dispute in relation to the arbitration, the Legal Seat shall be Lahore, Pakistan.

 

19.5        Relief: The arbitrators (or the umpire) shall have authority to award any remedy or relief that a civil court in Lahore, Pakistan could grant in conformity to applicable law, except that the arbitrator shall have no authority to award lawyers’ fees or punitive damages.

 

19.6        Confidentiality: All arbitration proceedings shall be confidential.

 

19.7        Judgment: Judgment upon the award rendered by the arbitrators (or umpire) may be entered in any court in Lahore, Pakistan with jurisdiction.

 

19.8        Injunctive Relief: The arbitration mechanism provided in this Agreement shall not prevent any Party from obtaining any temporary injunctive or other equitable relief from a court of competent jurisdiction. For such purpose, both Parties hereby consent to the jurisdiction of a Court in Lahore, Pakistan with jurisdiction.

 

20.          Modification

 

Daastan may, at its sole discretion, at any time and without prior notice:

 

(i)            change, alter, revise, modify, amend or update any or all of these Terms;

(ii)           change the nature of its Services; and

(iii)          make amendments to the Daastan portal

 

without any liability upon itself, provided that this provision may not prevent Daastan from notifying you of any such changes for your convenience. Your continued use of Daastan shall indicate your acceptance of such changes.

 

21.          No Waiver

 

Any failure or delay by Daastan to exercise, enforce or demand its rights or remedies under these Terms at any time for any period shall not operate or be construed as a waiver or relinquishment of Daastan’s right to enforce strict performance thereof. No single or partial exercise or enforcement by Daastan of any right or remedy under the Terms or the law shall preclude any other or future exercise or enforcement of any right or remedy by such party under these Terms or the law. Any waiver of these Terms shall only be valid if it is in writing by Daastan.

 

22.          Headings

 

The headings in these Terms are for your use of reference only and shall not affect the construction or interpretation of these Terms.