Terms

What's offered?

Read and write access to the Usenet server News.Individual.NET with over 25,000 text groups in more than 220 different hierarchies. We do not carry binary groups.

How much is an account?

10 EUR per year (annual payment). This includes the applicable German VAT.

Trial accounts are free of charge and valid for two weeks. There is no obligation to convert a trial account into a paid account. To prevent abuse, trial accounts are read-only (no posting permission).

Due to changes in European tax law coming into force on 01.01.2015, we can only offer our service to users which have their tax domicile in Germany.

How can I pay?

You can choose from the following payment options: The online payment provider PayPal, as well as bank transfer to a German bank account of Freie Universität Berlin with IBAN (International Bank Account Number) and BIC (Bank Identifier Code, SWIFT address).

What duration does my user contract have?

The contract duration is one year. It can be extended by an additional year at a time by paying 10 EUR. We will remind you by e-mail in good time that your contract is about to expire and will need to be renewed.

Freie Universität Berlin reserves the right to cancel contracts on its part, especially in cases of violation of the Rules for Usage.

When and how can I cancel my user contract?

It is not necessary to cancel your contract: At the end of a subscription period, you simply don't pay for the subsequent period. It is equally not necessary to give notice to Freie Universität Berlin. Please note that amounts paid can not be refunded, neither partly nor in full.

Which law applies?

German law applies. The application of the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG) of April 11, 1980 is excluded.

Whom exactly am I dealing with?

With the computer center of Freie Universität Berlin.

Our postal address:

Freie Universität Berlin
Zentraleinrichtung FUB-IT
Fabeckstrasse 32
14195 Berlin
Germany

How can I file a complaint?

Complaints regarding payment with PayPal should be filed with PayPal. Please check their web pages for contact information and complaint procedures.

For complaints concerning our news service, please send e-mail to "news@individual.net".

 

Data Protection Statement

Freie Universität Berlin is bound to data protection regulations, especially the Data Protection Act of Berlin. We have taken both technical and organizational measures to ensure that we comply with the data protection regulations.

Personal Data

Personal data are particulars about your personal or substantial means, e.g. your name or your address.

You agree with the processing of your data, especially with collecting, recording, blocking, erasure, and usage of your personal data. This includes the data collected during the registration process, and - as far as necessary - connection information for security and safety reasons. Please note that the connection information recorded on our servers might allow identification (e.g. IP address, date, and time). There will be no utilisation or analysis of specific personal information, but we reserve the right to compile statistics using anonymized data.

IP addresses are recorded as long as technically necessary. The recording is done due to security reasons to ensure the stability and integrity of our systems and services.

Handing out personal data to third parties

We will not hand out any of your personal data to third parties without your explicit consent unless we are legally obligated to do so, especially to law enforcement agencies.

Deleting personal data

You might demand the erasure of your personal data at any time, but data needed for billing and accounting cannot be deleted. And please keep in mind that deleting your personal data will include the deletion of your account, so you would not be able to use our service any longer.

 

Right of Revocation

You may withdraw from your user contract within two weeks after conclusion without giving reasons. The revocation must be in written form. The period of two weeks will start at the conclusion of the contract. It is sufficient to send off the revocation within the period of two weeks to keep the term. Please address the revocation to:

Freie Universität Berlin
Zentraleinrichtung FUB-IT
Fabeckstraße 32
14195 Berlin
Germany

  E-Mail: news@individual.net

Consequences of revocation

In the case of valid revocation, you will receive a refund of your usage fee. The right of revocation will forfeit earlier than the stipulated date if you have already started to use our service.
 

Rules for Usage

User of News.Individual.NET are obliged to abide by the following set of rules. Disregarding the rules may cause termination of access privileges without further notice. Amounts paid will not be refunded, neither partly nor in full.

• Sender Address
  The e-mail addresses given in "From:", "Reply-To:", and "Sender:" should be valid (= should not bounce because of invalidity). Using addresses and name space of other people without their permission is prohibited. (For more details and ways to protect yourself from SPAM see section 5.3 of our FAQ.)
   
• Netiquette
  Most hierarchies of Usenet have their own netiquette and guidelines. Users should pay attention to the relevant policies.
   
• No SPAM
  It is inadmissible to use this server to post SPAM. (To spam Usenet means to send many identical or nearly-identical messages separately to a large number of Usenet newsgroups.)
   
• No Binaries
  It is not allowed to post binary files such as images, animations, videos, sound files, executables, etc.
   
• Size Limit is 100 KB
  Even today there are still several systems running old software not able to handle large articles or systems connected to the net through slow modem lines. Therefore articles posted at this server should not exceed the size limit of 100 kilobyte.
   
• No Control Messages
  Users are not allowed to post control messages at this server. The only exception is to cancel or supersede your own articles. (For more information on control messages, please check section 1.10 of our FAQ.)
   
• No Third Party Cancels
  No user is allowed to cancel or supersede any articles other than his own. (You can find more details on this at sections 2.13, 2.14, and 2.19 of our FAQ.)
   
• Redistribution of News Articles
  Messages downloaded from this server may not be redistributed to third parties (i.e. you may not set up things like a news server, proxy or gateway using your account). Both the distribution to family members and passing on single articles are excluded from this restriction. Any other exceptions need explicit and prior approval by us.
   
• No Redistribution of Account Information
  Account information (user name, password) must not be disclosed to third parties ("Account Sharing"). Every user is obliged to keep his account information secret, to protect it against unauthorized access, and to report any loss or potential leakage.
   
• Observing the law and regulations
  This server must only be used for lawful purposes. Each user has to observe applicable law and regulations. Regulations of the Federal Republic of Germany apply implicitly, since this is where this server is located. Place of jurisdiction is Berlin, Germany.
   
• System Integrity and Resource Consumption
  Any disturbance of the system's integrity and any interference with the system's operation is prohibited. The system's resources (e.g. bandwidth or CPU time) must be treated with sense of responsibility and consideration.