Terms of Service

Terms of Service

Placeholders in square brackets, like [LEGAL ENTITY NAME], are details of the operating company that will be added once it is registered. Until then, "HearStage", "we" and "us" mean the operator of HearStage.

1. Who we are and what these terms cover

HearStage is an audio-first social app for voice posts, statuses, music, beats, studio recording, battles, live rooms and podcasts, gifts, avatars and bookings, available at hear-voice-sync.com and in our apps.

• Operator: [LEGAL ENTITY NAME], a limited liability company organized in Connecticut, USA, [REGISTERED ADDRESS].
• Contact: [LEGAL CONTACT EMAIL], or in the app under Settings.

These Terms are a contract between you and us. By creating an account or using HearStage you agree to them, to our Privacy Policy and to the other policies they mention: Community Guidelines, Payment & Coins Terms, Copyright Policy, Cookie Notice and, when you use those features, the Private Room Agreement, People Booking Agreement and Release Terms. If a feature-specific agreement conflicts with these Terms, the feature agreement wins for that feature.

Important for US users: section 17 contains a binding arbitration agreement and a class-action waiver, with a 30-day right to opt out.

2. Who can use HearStage

• You must be at least 13 years old, or older where your country sets a higher age for using online services without a parent's consent (for example 14 to 16 in some EU countries, 16 in Australia for social media). If you are in India, you must be 18, because we do not yet offer verifiable parental consent.
• If you are under 18 (or the age of majority where you live), a parent or guardian must agree to these Terms for you and supervise your use. Buying coins, cash-out, private rooms and People Booking are for adults (18+) only.
• You may not use HearStage if we have banned you, or if the law where you live forbids it, including sanctions laws.
• We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 13. If we learn that a child under 13 has an account, we delete it.

3. Your account

• Give accurate information, including your real date of birth. It is set once; corrections go through us and may require an age check.
• Keep your login safe and tell us if you think someone else has accessed your account. You are responsible for activity on your account.
• One person per account. You may not sell, transfer or rent your account or handle.
• You can delete your account at any time in Settings → Danger zone → Delete account.

4. Your content

• You own what you create. Voice posts, statuses, recordings, comments, chat messages, songs, artwork and other content you post ("Your Content") stay yours.
• Licence to us. So that HearStage can work, you give us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sublicensable (only to our service providers) licence to host, store, copy, stream, transcode, mix (for example with background music you choose), display and distribute Your Content inside HearStage and to promote HearStage within the app, for as long as the content is on HearStage plus a short time for backups to roll over. Releases you choose to distribute outside HearStage follow the Release Terms.
• Licence to other users. Other users may listen to, view and share links to content you make public within HearStage. They may not download, re-upload or use it outside HearStage without your permission, except where the law allows (for example quotation or fair use).
• Your promises. You have all the rights needed for Your Content, including the beats, samples, lyrics and every voice in it, and it does not break the law or these Terms. Get consent before posting anyone else's voice.
• Moral rights. Where the law allows, you agree not to assert moral rights against the normal technical changes the service needs (such as compression, trimming or mixing levels).
• No AI training. We do not use your voice or private content to train AI models, and we do not sell Your Content.

5. Live rooms, podcasts and private rooms

• Public live rooms and podcasts are broadcast live to everyone in the room. The host controls who speaks and may accept or decline raised hands, mute, remove or pass the floor. Listeners can chat, react and send gifts. Anything you say or type in a public room can be heard or seen by everyone there.
• In public rooms, people can save short audio clips of the stage (up to 30 seconds). The room shows everyone when a clip is being recorded and by whom. If you do not want to be in a clip, do not speak while it is recording, or leave the room. Clips are public content and follow these Terms.
• Private rooms are never recorded by HearStage. Audio is relayed in real time and is not stored, transcribed or analysed. Do not record anyone with another device without the consent of everyone involved; in many places (including several US states) that is illegal.
• Hosts are responsible for running their rooms within these Terms and the Community Guidelines.

6. Beats, background music and sounds library

• Free library beats. Beats and tracks marked as free in the official HearStage library (including the podcast-only tracks) are licensed to you for free, non-exclusive use inside HearStage only: in your voice posts, statuses, live rooms, podcasts, battles and Studio sessions. You may not download them for use elsewhere, resell them, register them with a content-ID or royalty system, or claim them as your own. Podcast-only tracks may be used only in podcasts. All other rights stay with their owners.
• Beats and sounds from other users follow the licence shown on each item (for example free-to-use in the app, or bought with coins). Sellers promise they own the rights to what they sell.
• Content that mixes a library beat with your voice is Your Content for the voice part; the beat stays licensed as above.

7. Coins, gifts, tips and purchases

Coins, gifts, tips, avatar items, tickets and other purchases are covered by the Payment & Coins Terms, which form part of these Terms. In short: coins are a limited licence to use features in HearStage, have no cash value outside the creator earnings rules, and are not refundable except where the law requires. Paid features currently run in test mode and no real money is charged.

8. Avatars and wardrobe

Characters, accessories and other avatar items, including those bought with coins, are a personal, non-transferable licence to use the item in HearStage. They are not property and have no cash value. We may change how items look to improve the graphics; if we permanently remove an item you paid for, we will give you an equivalent item or a coin credit.

9. Bots and demo accounts

Some accounts are run by us to show how features work. They are always labeled (for example "Crew · demo"). They use test coins only, are not independent users, and their activity is not counted as real engagement. We never use bots to mislead you, to send you spam or to pressure you into buying.

10. Rules of conduct

Follow the Community Guidelines. Among other things, you must not: break the law; post content that sexualises minors; harass, threaten or dox anyone; post hate speech or violent extremism; impersonate others; post others' copyrighted work without permission; spam, scam or ask for payments outside HearStage; record people without consent; use bots, scrapers or automation without our written permission; reverse engineer, overload or interfere with the service or its security; or manipulate gifts, rankings, battles or votes.

11. Moderation, notices and appeals

• Anyone can report content or accounts in the app. Copyright notices follow the Copyright Policy.
• We may remove or limit content, restrict features, or suspend or close accounts that break the law or our rules. Unless the law forbids it or it would create a safety risk, we tell you what we did, why, which rule it is based on, whether automated tools were involved, and how to appeal (in the EU, this is a "statement of reasons" under the Digital Services Act).
• You can appeal any decision within 6 months in the app. A person who did not make the original decision reviews it. In the EU you may also use a certified out-of-court dispute settlement body, and you can always go to court.
• We may report illegal content to authorities where the law requires, including child sexual abuse material to NCMEC or equivalent bodies.

12. Third-party services

Payments are processed by Stripe, and some features rely on other providers listed in the Privacy Policy. Their terms may also apply to you when you use those features (for example Stripe's terms when you buy coins or set up payouts). We are not responsible for third-party websites you open from HearStage.

13. Our service and changes to it

We keep improving HearStage, so features may change, be added, or be removed. Some features are in beta or test mode and may not work perfectly. We will give reasonable notice before removing a paid feature you are actively using, where we can.

14. Ending your account

You can stop using HearStage and delete your account at any time. We may suspend or close your account if you seriously or repeatedly break these Terms, if the law requires it, or if your account creates risk for others. When an account is closed, unused coins and items are lost except where the law or the Payment & Coins Terms say otherwise, and pending creator earnings are handled under the Payment & Coins Terms. Sections that by their nature should survive (such as licences already granted for shared content, disclaimers, liability limits and dispute terms) continue after closure.

15. Disclaimers

HearStage is provided "as is" and "as available". To the fullest extent the law allows, we do not promise that it will be uninterrupted, error-free or secure, or that content from other users is accurate, lawful or safe. Age verification confirms age only; it is not a background check. You are responsible for your own decisions when you meet, book or deal with other users. Nothing in these Terms removes guarantees or rights you have as a consumer that cannot be excluded under the law of your country (for example under the Australian Consumer Law, EU and UK consumer law, or Brazil's Consumer Defense Code).

16. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent the law allows, we are not liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages, or for loss of profits, data or goodwill, and our total liability for any claim relating to HearStage is limited to the greater of (a) the amount you paid us in the 12 months before the claim and (b) US $100. These limits do not apply to liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud, gross negligence or wilful misconduct, or any other liability that cannot be limited by law. If you are a consumer in the EU or UK, we are liable for foreseeable loss caused by our breach of these Terms, and these limits apply only as far as your local law permits.

17. Disputes (users in the United States)

• Talk to us first. Before starting a claim, send us a written notice to [LEGAL CONTACT EMAIL] describing the issue and what you want. We both will try in good faith to resolve it within 60 days.
• Binding arbitration. If not resolved, any dispute between you and us relating to HearStage will be decided by binding individual arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association under its Consumer Arbitration Rules, not in court. The Federal Arbitration Act governs this section. The arbitration may take place by video or in your home county. We will pay the AAA filing fees above what you would pay to file in court.
• Exceptions. Either of us may bring an individual claim in small-claims court, and either of us may go to court for intellectual-property infringement or to stop misuse of the service.
• Class-action waiver. Claims may only be brought individually, not as a plaintiff or class member in any class, collective or representative action. If this waiver is found unenforceable for a claim, that claim (and only that claim) goes to court.
• Opt-out. You can opt out of this section 17 within 30 days of first accepting these Terms by emailing [LEGAL CONTACT EMAIL] with your handle and the words "arbitration opt-out".

18. Governing law and where disputes are heard

• United States and the rest of the world: these Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Connecticut, USA, without regard to conflict-of-law rules. Subject to section 17, courts located in Connecticut have exclusive jurisdiction.
• Consumers in the EU, EEA, UK, Switzerland, Brazil, Australia and other countries whose laws protect consumers: you also keep the protection of the mandatory laws of the country where you live, and you may bring proceedings in the courts of your home country. The EU's Online Dispute Resolution platform has closed; you can still contact your national consumer authority.
• Section 17 (arbitration and class-action waiver) does not apply to consumers in the EU, EEA, UK or Switzerland, or anywhere the law does not allow it.

19. Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms to reflect new features or legal requirements. We show the version and effective date at the top. For important changes we tell you in the app at least 15 days before they take effect (except for changes required by law or for safety), and we ask you to accept the new version. If you do not agree, you can delete your account before the change takes effect.

20. Other terms

• If any part of these Terms cannot be enforced, the rest stays in effect.
• If we do not enforce a right immediately, we have not waived it.
• You may not transfer these Terms without our consent. We may transfer them to a company that takes over HearStage, and we will tell you; this does not reduce your rights.
• These Terms are written in English. If we provide a translation and there is a difference, the English version applies unless your local law says otherwise.
• Apple and Google app stores: if you downloaded HearStage from an app store, these Terms are between you and us, not Apple or Google. The store is not responsible for HearStage or its support, but its own terms also apply, and Apple and its subsidiaries are third-party beneficiaries who may enforce these Terms against you.