Liquidated Damages

DentalPlans.com, Inc., its subsidiaries and corporate affiliates (collectively, “our,” “us” or “we”) operate websites, provide products and services through mobile and other applications, and develop software that are governed, as applicable, by our terms of use (our “TOU”). This liquidated damages policy (this “Policy”) applies to our sites and services and are incorporated into our TOU. If there is any conflict between this Policy and our TOU, this Policy will control. By using our sites and services, you are a “user” and you accept and agree to our TOU and this Policy as a legal contract between you and us.
Certain terms used in this Policy have the meanings set forth in our TOU. In addition, for purposes of this Policy:

  • “Item of Content” means each and every instance of content of any type posted to, stored on or transmitted via our sites and services by any user (or any other third party in any manner). For example, each single post to our sites and services (including but not limited to any ad, comment, flag or message posted to the sites and services), each single data file stored on our sites and services (including but not limited to any account information, text, code, images, video or binary file), and each single communication transmitted via our sites and services (including but not limited to any email or response to an email) is a single “Item of Content.” Each “Item of Content” shall be considered and treated as an individual, discrete “Item of Content” even if it contains the same or substantially similar content as one or more other Items of Content.
  • “Account” means each and every account of any type applied for, requested or created by any means.
  • “Instance of Unauthorized Conduct” or “Instance” means each individual time our sites or services are accessed in connection with or in facilitation of a violation of the TOU.  With respect to the Instances of Unauthorized Conduct enumerated in paragraph 5 below, each day that our sites and services are accessed to facilitate one or more of the violations enumerated therein shall constitute one Instance of Unauthorized Conduct.
  • “Attempt” shall be defined pursuant to California law.

TOU violations harm the functionality, integrity, and reputation of our sites and services; interfere with and detract from users’ and customers’ beneficial use and enjoyment of our sites and services; and are detrimental to our business.  Pursuant to Sections 10 (Damages) and 11 (Injunctive Relief) of the TOU, you acknowledge and agree that we incur actual damages as a result of any TOU violations detailed below. You further acknowledge and agree that actual damages caused by such violations are extremely difficult, impossible or impractical to determine or quantify. Consequently, you agree it is fair and reasonable for us to obtain injunctive relief to prohibit future violations of the TOU and recover liquidated damages for past violations of the TOU.  You further acknowledge that the amounts set forth below reflect reasonable estimates of our actual damages from each such violation and that such estimates are reasonably related to the actual damages incurred by us by each such violation.
For each TOU violation below, you therefore agree to pay liquidated damages to us in the amount specified. You further acknowledge and agree that the imposition of liquidated damages for each such TOU violation is independent and distinct, and that the assessment of total liquidated damages for multiple TOU violations is cumulative. Any conduct or content that is permitted pursuant to a written license agreement with us shall not be deemed in violation of the TOU as long as the conduct or content is specifically authorized pursuant to the terms of the license agreement.

1. $50 Per Item of Content.  You agree to pay $50 per Item of Content posted or stored on, or transmitted via our sites and services either by you or on your behalf: (a) using any automated means to perform any step of any process for submitting content (in whole or in part); (b) by any means that circumvent any technological measure implemented by us to restrict the manner in which content may be submitted on our sites and services or to regulate the manner in which content (including but not limited to email) may be transmitted to other users; or (c) using Accounts that are created or used in violation of Section 3(b) (Accounts) of the TOU.
Liquidated damages under this Section 1 are in addition to liquidated damages that may be applicable pursuant to other sections of this Policy and are agreed to be a reasonable estimate of our actual damages for such violation described in this Section 1 in addition to the liquidated damages incurred by us set forth elsewhere in this Policy.

2. $100 Per Item of Content.  You agree to pay $100 per Item of Content posted or stored on, or transmitted via our sites and services either by you or on your behalf: (a) that offers, promotes, advertises or provides links to unsolicited products or services (except that the content described in section 4(g) of this Policy shall be subject to liquidated damages as provided in section 4(g)); (b) that violates guidelines for particular categories or services; or (c) for purposes of affiliate marketing or in connection with any affiliate marketing system, scheme or program in any manner and under any circumstance (including but not limited to ads, emails and other communications with users of the service).
Liquidated damages under this Section 2 are in addition to liquidated damages that may be applicable pursuant to other sections of this Policy and are agreed to be a reasonable estimate of our actual damages for such violation described in this Section 2 in addition to the liquidated damages incurred by us set forth elsewhere in this Policy.

3. $100 Per Account/Instance.  You agree to pay $100 per Account/Instance of Unauthorized Conduct: (a) if you create, maintain or use at any time more than one Account to post content; (b) if you create one or more Accounts for or on behalf of another; (c) if you permit, enable, induce or encourage someone else to create one or more Accounts on your behalf; (d) if you use other users’ Accounts (with or without their knowledge or consent) (including but not limited to your use of any Account you purchase or otherwise do not personally create); (e) for any Account you purchase, offer, market, sell, or distribute; (f) for any Account you create for another; (g) for any Account you create by any automated means; (h) if you use any Accounts created in circumvention of any technological restriction or security measure in the Account creation process; (i) if you create any Accounts in circumvention of any technological restriction or security measure in the Account creation process; (j) for any product, software, or tool (including but not limited to CAPTCHA credits) you acquire, purchase, offer, market, sell, or distribute, that facilitates circumvention of any technological measure implemented by us to restrict the manner in which content may be posted on the service or to regulate the manner in which content may be transmitted to other users; (k) if you collect users’ personal information (including but not limited to email addresses, IP addresses and telephone numbers), or (l) for any activities (including but not limited to posting voluminous content) that are inconsistent with use of the service in compliance with the TOU or that may impair or interfere with the functionality, performance or quality of all or any part of the service in any manner.
Liquidated damages under this Section 3 are in addition to liquidated damages that may be applicable pursuant to other sections of this Policy and are agreed to be a reasonable estimate of our actual damages for such violation described in this Section 3 in addition to the liquidated damages incurred by us set forth elsewhere in this Policy.

4. $1,000 Per Item of Content.  You agree to pay $1,000 per Item of Content that contains: (a) illegal content; (b) content that facilitates the creation, advertising, distribution, provision or receipt of illegal goods or services; (c) offensive content (including, without limitation, defamatory, threatening, hateful or pornographic content); (d) content that discloses another’s personal, confidential or proprietary information; (e) false or fraudulent content (including but not limited to false, fraudulent or misleading responses to user ads transmitted via the service); (f) malicious content (including, without limitation, malware or spyware); or (g) content that offers, promotes, advertises, provides links to or solicits posting or auto-posting products or services, account creation or auto-creation products or services, bulk telephone numbers, or any other product or service that if utilized with respect to the service would violate the TOU or our other legal rights.
Liquidated damages under this Section 4 are in addition to liquidated damages that may be applicable pursuant to other sections of this Policy and are agreed to be a reasonable estimate of our actual damages for such violation described in this Section 4 in addition to the liquidated damages incurred by us set forth elsewhere in this Policy.

5. $25,000 Per Instance of Unauthorized Conduct.  Technology can be misused to facilitate harm to our sites and services, users, and/or our business on a massive scale.  Accordingly, you agree to pay $25,000 per Instance of Unauthorized Conduct that includes: (a) copying, aggregating, displaying, distributing or creating derivative use of our sites or services or any content posted on our sites and services (including, but not limited to, by means of spiders, robots, crawlers, scrapers, framing, iframes, or RSS feeds); (b) access to or use of our sites or services to design, develop, test, update, operate, modify, maintain, support, market, advertise, distribute, or otherwise make available any program, application or service (including, without limitation, any device, technology, product, computer program, mobile device application, website, and mechanical or personal service) that enables or provides access to, use of, operation of, or interoperation with our sites and services (including, without limitation, to access content, post content, respond to content, transmit content, create accounts, use accounts, circumvent security measures, or flag content); or (c) decompiling, disassembling or reverse engineering all or any part of our sites or services in order to identify, acquire, copy, or emulate any source code or object code.
Liquidated damages under this Section 5 are in addition to liquidated damages that may be applicable pursuant to other sections of this Policy and are agreed to be a reasonable estimate of our actual damages for such violation described in this Section 5 in addition to the liquidated damages incurred by us set forth elsewhere in this Policy.

Last updated: October 30, 2017.