Charaforio Common Terms of Use – Charaforio Help Center

These "Charaforio Common Terms of Use" (hereinafter referred to as "these Terms") apply to all users (hereinafter referred to as "Users") of the UGC submission service "Charaforio" (hereinafter referred to as "the Service") provided by Sanrio Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "the Company").

Chapter 1: Introduction

Article 1: Definitions
The terms used in these Terms are defined as follows:

"The Company" refers to Sanrio Co., Ltd.
"The Service" refers to the UGC submission service "Charaforio" provided by the Company.
"User" refers to all users of the Service.
"Individual Terms, etc." refer to various provisions such as terms of use or guidelines for specific functions, in addition to these Terms.
"Account" refers to the authority to use the Service issued to a User who has created an account following the procedure set by the Company.
"Registration Information" refers to the information required to create an account.
"Applicant" refers to a person who wishes to create an account.
"Registered Email Address" refers to the email address information provided by the User to receive the Service.
"ID" refers to a string of characters used to identify an account when using the Service. One ID is issued per account.
"Password" refers to a string of characters used to identify the individual by matching with the registered email address when using the Service.
"Registered Email Address, etc." refers to the registered email address, password, and ID.
"Submissions, etc." refers to the general actions of users disseminating content, including distribution, submission, uploading, registration, and editing of images, videos, texts, music, etc.
"Submission Information" refers to all data or information submitted by Users using the Service. It includes, in addition to works defined below, comments on works, etc.
"UGC" refers to user-generated content.
"Works" refers to submission information such as illustrations, novels, etc., posted as works on the Service in a manner specified by the Company.
"IP" refers to copyrighted works to which the User themselves hold legitimate rights or works for which they have obtained permission from the rightful owner.
"Registered IP" refers to IP registered on the Service in the manner specified by the Company.
"Fan Creation Guidelines" refers to the conditions set individually by the user who registered the registered IP for the use of the registered IP and other usage as submission information.
"Personal Information" refers to personal information defined under Article 2, Paragraph 1 of the Act on the Protection of Personal Information (Act No. 57 of 2003), specifically, (i) information concerning a living individual that can identify a specific individual by name or other description included in the information, and (ii) information concerning a living individual that includes an individual identification code.
"Anti-Social Forces" refers to persons who fall under any of the following items:
(1) Organized crime groups, members of organized crime groups, persons who have not been a member of an organized crime group for five years from the day they left, semi-members of organized crime groups, organized crime group-affiliated companies, corporate racketeers, social movements pretending to be political or social activists, special intelligence crime groups, and others equivalent to these (hereinafter collectively referred to as "organized crime group members, etc.").
(2) Persons recognized to have a relationship where organized crime group members, etc. have control over management.
(3) Persons recognized to have a relationship where organized crime group members, etc. are substantively involved in management.
(4) Persons recognized to improperly utilize organized crime group members, etc. for the purpose of seeking illicit profits for oneself, one's company, or a third party, or for causing harm to a third party.
(5) Persons recognized to be providing funds or convenience to organized crime group members, etc.
(6) Persons with a socially reprehensible relationship with organized crime group members, etc., where an officer or person substantially involved in management has such a relationship.
"Anti-Social Acts" refers to the following acts: (i) Violent demands, (ii) Unjust demands beyond legal responsibility, (iii) Acts using threatening behavior or violence in transactions, (iv) Acts that damage the Company's credibility or interfere with the Company's business by spreading rumors, using deceit, or force, and (v) Other acts equivalent to these.

Article 2: Agreement to the Terms

These Terms set forth the conditions for providing the Service and the rights and obligations between the Company and Users concerning the use of the Service and apply to all relationships between the Company and Users concerning the use of the Service.
Users must use the Service in compliance with laws and regulations and these Terms.
Users must agree to these Terms before using the Service. If the User is a minor, they must use the Service with the consent of their legal guardian.

Article 3: Individual Terms, etc.

In addition to these Terms, individual conditions of use are set forth by Individual Terms, etc. concerning the use of the Service. These Individual Terms, etc. apply as part of the contract based on these Terms.
The following are the Individual Terms, etc. related to the Service:
(1) Individual Terms for IP Registration
(2) Prohibited Conduct Guidelines
(3) Other policies, guidelines, etc., designated by the Company in relation to the Service
If there is any contradiction between the Individual Terms, etc. and these Terms, the provisions of the Individual Terms, etc. will prevail unless otherwise specified.
If the application of these Terms is excluded by Individual Terms, etc., only those Individual Terms, etc. will apply.

Article 4: Changes to the Terms

The Company may change these Terms without prior consent from Users if any of the following apply:
(1) The change is in the general interest of Users.
(2) The change is reasonable, considering the necessity of the change, the reasonableness of the content after the change, and other circumstances related to the change.
When changing these Terms, the Company will appropriately notify Users in advance of the changes and their content, as well as the time when the changes will take effect, by a method determined by the Company.

Chapter 2: Account Registration, etc.

Article 5: Account Creation and Identity Verification, etc.

Some content in the Service may only be available to Users who have created an account.
Applicants must apply for account creation by the method prescribed by the Company, having agreed to the content of these Terms.
Applicants must provide true, accurate, and up-to-date information as registration information when applying for account creation.
The account creation for the Applicant will be completed when the Company has verified the identity of the Applicant as prescribed and has accepted the application.
The Company may, at its discretion, without disclosing the reason, not accept the application of an Applicant if any of the following apply or are likely to apply:
(1) The Applicant is an Anti-Social Force or has a relationship with an Anti-Social Force.
(2) The Applicant engages in Anti-Social Acts.
(3) The Applicant does not comply with the identity verification or other requests specified by the Company.
(4) The Applicant resides in a country or region other than Japan or another country or region recognized by the Company.
(5) The Applicant is a minor residing in Japan or another country or region recognized by the Company and has not obtained the consent of their legal guardian.
(6) The Applicant applied for or attempted to apply for account creation by a method other than the one specified in Paragraph 2.
(7) The Applicant applied for or attempted to apply for account creation with false, forged, altered, untruthful, or misleading content.
(8) The Applicant has violated laws or these Terms or is likely to do so in the future.
(9) The Company deems the application inappropriate for other reasons.
If the Company does not accept the application for account creation, it has no obligation to disclose or explain the reason to the Applicant.
If the Company suspects that a User has submitted false, forged, altered, untruthful, or misleading materials during identity verification, impersonation is suspected, or the Company deems it necessary, the Company may request the submission of specific proof documents or responses to inquiries indicated by the Company. If the User does not submit these proof documents or respond to the inquiries by the deadline specified by the Company, the Company may, without notice, suspend the User's use of the Service, cancel the account settings, etc. The User also agrees that they may be restricted from using part or all of the Service until the proof documents specified by the Company are submitted.
Even if the Company restricts the use of part or all of the Service, suspends use, or cancels account settings based on each provision of this article, the Company will not be liable for any damages (including, but not limited to, attorney fees and other costs and compensation paid by the Company in response to such disputes) suffered by the User unless the Company is intentionally or negligently at fault.

Article 6: Holding an Account

In principle, a User can only hold one account per person.
Under no circumstances may a User allow their account to be used by a third party, including other Users, or transfer or lend it.

Article 7: Account Deletion

If a User wishes to delete their account, they must request it according to the method specified by the Company. Upon receipt of the request, the Company will delete the account by a method prescribed by the Company. However, if the User has an unfulfilled contractual relationship with another user (such as an IP holder) regarding the Service, the Company will not delete the account until the contractual relationship is fulfilled.
When the account is deleted, the User will be unable to use the Service. The Company will not return or provide a refund for any assets, paid items, or the like that the User had before deletion, and the Company will not be liable for any damages incurred by the User.
If the User does not delete their account according to the prescribed procedure but instead cancels the email address used for the Registered Email Address, etc., or otherwise renders the Registered Email Address, etc. unusable, the Company may delete the account at its discretion without notifying the User.
The Company is not obligated to restore any user registration information, posted information, registered IP addresses, or other posts deleted based on the preceding section, regardless of the reason.

Chapter 3: Service Content

Article 8: Posting and Other Activities

Users must fully understand and comply with these Terms and any additional prohibited activity guidelines or individual terms, and must not engage in any prohibited actions specified in the prohibited activity guidelines.
Users may not post content that infringes or risks infringing on the rights of the Company or third parties. When using registered IPs, users must adhere to the fan creation guidelines and not infringe upon the rights of the IP rights holders.
When using registered IPs for posting or other activities, users must specify the particular registered IPs using the method prescribed by the Company.

Article 9: Pledges Regarding Posted Information

Users guarantee that posted information does not infringe upon the rights of third parties, and in the event of any disputes with third parties, the user will resolve the issues at their own expense and responsibility, and will not cause any damage or loss to the Company.
Users are responsible for managing and storing all data related to posted information, including images and texts created by them. The Company assumes no responsibility for the storage or management of such data.
Users must comply with relevant laws and guidelines when posting information, and ensure appropriate display of such information at their own responsibility.
The Company may delete or modify the range of visibility of posted information, whether or not it is illegal or in violation of these Terms, in the following cases. However, the Company is not obligated to take such measures or to disclose the reasons for taking them:
(1) If there is posting of information prohibited by the prohibited activity guidelines.
(2) If a public agency or expert indicates that the posted information is illegal or infringes on others' rights.
(3) If a claimant asserts that the posted information infringes their rights. However, this applies only if the claimant provides reasonable evidence to support their claim and the Company, after careful consideration, determines that the claimant is a rights holder and that the information does infringe rights, or if the Company has sought the poster’s consent to delete part or all of the posted information and does not receive a response within 7 days. (4) If the Company determines that issues or risks arise from the character encoding in the posted information that could cause problems with the service.
(5) If the volume of posted information exceeds the capacity prescribed by the Company.
(6) If there is a report from a user who has registered the IP or a third party who has rights related to the registered IP, regarding a creation or post involving the registered IP. In this case, the procedure in the exception clause of Item 3 will apply.
(7) If the Company deems it necessary to delete the information according to laws and social norms.

Article 10: Confirmation Duties

The Company and any third parties entrusted by the Company may, at their discretion, verify that users are using the service in accordance with these Terms, and check for any violations or fraud, provided that communication secrecy is not infringed.
If a user reports inappropriate content in Charaforio's messaging feature (DM function), and the Company determines that the message contains inappropriate content, the Company may take measures as stipulated in Article 16, Section 1 for the sound operation of the service. In this case, "posted information" in that section will be interpreted as "the message in question."

Chapter 4: User Responsibilities and Prohibited Actions

Article 11: User Responsibilities

Users are responsible for compensating any damage incurred by the Company or third parties due to violations of these Terms.
Responsibility for all information posted using the service lies with the user. The Company assumes no responsibility for the content of user-posted information.
Transactions between users using the service are direct transactions between the users, and the Company will not be a party to such contracts. All tasks, communications, legal obligations, and handling of disputes related to user-to-user transactions are the responsibility of the users involved.
Users must resolve disputes arising between them and third parties related to the service at their own responsibility and expense. The Company will not be involved in such disputes.
Users must compensate the Company for any damage arising from disputes related to the preceding two items.

Article 12: Changes to Registration Information

Users must promptly notify the Company of any changes to their registration information using the method prescribed by the Company. If changes are not notified, the Company may treat the registration information as unchanged.
The Company assumes no responsibility for any disadvantages resulting from a user’s failure to notify changes.

Article 13: Provision of Usage Environment

Users are responsible for preparing all necessary communication equipment, telecommunication lines, software (including communication costs), and other usage environments required to use the service.
Users must take measures to prevent computer virus infections, unauthorized access, and information leaks according to their usage environment.
The Company will not be involved in or assume responsibility for users' usage environments. Responsibility and damage resulting from the user's equipment, lines, software, or errors while using the service are the user's responsibility, and the Company assumes no responsibility.

Article 14: Management of Registered Email Address, etc.

Users must register an email address that they can use and manage as the registered email address. If the registered email address is no longer under their control, they must change it to another usable email address that they can manage.
Users are responsible for preventing unauthorized use of their registered email address, etc., and for all aspects of its management. The Company shall not be liable for any damages arising from the leakage, disclosure, or use of the registered email address, etc., by third parties.
The Company will regard any action taken using the registered email address, etc., as an action by the user who registered the email address, regardless of whether it was done with or without the user's consent or if it was used fraudulently. The Company shall not be liable for any damages arising from such actions.
If information about the registered email address, etc., is leaked or is likely to be leaked to a third party, the user must promptly notify or contact the Company. In such cases, the Company may suspend or terminate the use of the service associated with the registered email address, etc., but the Company shall not be liable for any damages arising from the leakage of such information.
Users may not claim damages from the Company for temporary suspension of service use or other actions resulting from the theft, loss, or unauthorized use of their registered email address, etc.
In some parts of the service, users may be required to register a usable telephone number that they can manage. In such cases, the provisions of this article shall also apply to the registered telephone number.

Article 15: Communications

Users must immediately notify or contact the Company if they discover a violation of these guidelines by other users, etc. The Company will investigate, respond to, or disclose such violations at its discretion.

Article 16: Measures Against Violations

If the Company determines that a user has violated any provision of these terms, including the previous article, or if the Company deems it necessary, the Company may take the following measures against the user without prior notice, at the Company's discretion. However, the Company is not obligated to take these measures and is not required to disclose the reasons for such measures:
(1) Demanding that the violating or potentially violating actions cease and that similar actions not be repeated, and realizing these demands through judicial injunctions.
(2) Engaging in discussions to resolve complaints or claims with others.
(3) Requesting the deletion or correction of posted information.
(4) Deleting all or part of posted information, changing the scope of its disclosure, or making it inaccessible.
(5) Prohibiting the use of specific payment methods or restricting them in other ways, including requiring prior approval from the Company.
(6) Refusing to accept account creation applications.
(7) Temporarily suspending the use of the service.
(8) Enforcing the deletion of the user's account.
(9) Refusing further use of the service.
Users shall not object to the measures taken by the Company as stipulated in the previous paragraph and shall not hold the Company liable for any consequences arising from such measures, except in cases of intentional or gross negligence on the part of the Company.
If the Company temporarily suspends a user's use of the service or deletes a user's account as a measure stipulated in paragraph 1, the user shall immediately lose the benefit of the term for all debts owed to the Company and must pay all debts to the Company immediately.

Chapter 5: Ownership and Licensing of Rights

Article 17: Handling of Rights Infringements

Users must notify or contact the Company at the designated contact address if their rights are infringed or likely to be infringed in the service.
Users agree that the Company may take appropriate actions based on orders or requests from courts, public prosecutors, or administrative agencies.
Disputes regarding infringements specified in paragraph 1 shall be resolved at the users' own expense and responsibility. If the Company incurs damages due to such disputes, the responsible parties shall compensate for such damages.

Article 18: Ownership and Use Licensing

Unless otherwise specified in these terms, all rights to all texts, images, videos, music, logos, services, programs, and other information on or related to the service belong to the Company.
The copyright to the works belongs to the users who created them. However, this does not apply in the following cases:
(1) When transferring copyright (including the rights stipulated in Articles 27 and 28 of the Copyright Act (Act No. 48 of 1970)) to the Company or the rightful owner of the registered IP.
(2) When explicitly stated in the fan creation guidelines or other official guidelines related to the registered IP.
(3) When there is a separate agreement between the user who created the work and the rightful owner of the copyrighted material used in the work.
(4) When the registered IP is used or modified outside the scope stipulated by the registered IP usage rules.
(5) When the work infringes on the rights of a third party.
Users grant the Company (including third parties licensed by the Company) a free, worldwide, non-exclusive, and perpetual license to use (including reproduction, modification, implementation, public display, distribution, and other uses) the user's posted information within the scope of the following purposes:
(1) For the smooth provision, construction, improvement, maintenance, or development of new features of the service (e.g., resizing posted images to fit the display format of the service or cropping parts of images or text).
(2) For promoting, advertising, and publicizing the use of the service and related services, and for the Company's performance disclosure (e.g., introduction through the Company's official SNS accounts or inclusion in materials created by the Company or incidental display on the Company's website when promoting or introducing the service).
Users shall not exercise their moral rights as authors concerning the use of the works within the scope of the license granted under paragraph 2 and the Company or third parties authorized by the Company.

Chapter 6: Service Operation and Company's Disclaimer

Article 19: Changes, Termination, etc., of the Service

The Company may change, suspend, discontinue, or delete content or make other changes to the service, in whole or in part, at its discretion, after notifying users in advance, except as provided in the next paragraph.
The Company may temporarily suspend or restrict the use of the service, in whole or in part, without prior notice to the user if the user meets any of the following conditions:
(1) Violation of these terms.
(2) Suspension of payment or insolvency.
(3) Application for seizure, provisional seizure, or auction.
(4) Subject to a disposition for the collection of public charges.
(5) Application for bankruptcy proceedings, civil rehabilitation proceedings, corporate reorganization proceedings, or special liquidation.
(6) Death of the user.
(7) Refusal to agree to changes in these terms.
(8) Acts that interfere with the operation of the service or cause disruptions.
(9) Being a person who has previously been restricted from using the service by the Company.
(10) Unavoidable circumstances due to technical or operational reasons, such as internet, computer, database, system, software, or application failures or information security incidents.
(11) Regular or urgent maintenance or repair of equipment or systems for providing the service.
(12) Overload on the system due to excessive access, etc.
(13) Need to ensure the security of the Company, users, or third parties.
(14) Other cases where the Company deems it difficult to provide the service.

Article 20: Disclaimer

The Company does not guarantee that the service is free of errors, bugs, defects, security vulnerabilities, reliability, accuracy, completeness, effectiveness, or other deficiencies and provides it as-is.
Users must comply with the laws and regulations of the country or region where they use the service or information obtained through the service, and the Company shall not be responsible for any violations of such laws and regulations by users.
The Company does not involve itself in users' communications and transactions. In the event of a dispute between users or between users and third parties, the Company shall not be responsible and shall leave the resolution to the involved parties.
The Company is not obligated to manage or store information posted by users.
The Company is not responsible for the legality or accuracy of information posted by users. The Company is also not responsible for the appropriateness of such information under internal rules of the organization or group to which the user belongs.
The Company provides a convenient and high-quality payment environment but does not guarantee accident-free transactions. The Company is not obligated to provide permanent updates, improvements, or bug fixes for the service.
If the Company believes that there is a reasonable basis to believe that a violation of these terms or a potential violation has occurred, the Company may take measures such as forcibly deleting the user account, deleting all or part of the posted information, and changing the scope of disclosure. The Company shall not be liable for any damages resulting from these actions.
The Company may, without violating communication secrecy, view, store, or disclose (hereinafter referred to as "viewing, etc.") the content of posted information in the following cases. The Company will not be liable for any damage incurred by users as a result:
(1) When the user consents to viewing, etc.
(2) When necessary to identify and resolve technical issues with the service.
(3) When receiving an official inquiry based on laws from courts, police, or other public institutions.
(4) When the Company determines that a violation of these Terms or a potential violation has occurred, making it necessary to check the content of the posted information.
(5) When the Company deems it necessary to protect human life, body, or property.
(6) When it becomes necessary for the proper operation of the service.
The Company’s liability for damages will be limited to the normal and direct damages actually incurred by the user, except in cases of willful misconduct or gross negligence by the Company as specified in the next section.
Notwithstanding any provisions in these Terms or the preceding sections, if the user suffers damages related to the service solely due to the Company’s willful misconduct or gross negligence, the Company will be liable for damages within the scope prescribed by law.

Article 21: Handling of Personal Information

The Company will manage information obtained from users in connection with the use of the service in accordance with the Company’s Privacy Policy ([General Privacy Policy Link], [Specific Privacy Policy Link]).

Article 22: Communication Secrecy

When engaging in telecommunications business under the Telecommunications Business Act (Act No. 86 of 1984), the Company will protect the secrecy of users' communications in accordance with Article 4 of that Act.
The Company is not obligated to maintain confidentiality as described in the preceding section in the following cases:
(1) If compulsory measures or court orders are carried out under the Code of Criminal Procedure (Act No. 131 of 1948) or the Act on the Interception of Communications for Criminal Investigation (Act No. 137 of 1999), to the extent specified by such measures or orders.
(2) If compulsory measures are carried out under laws and regulations, to the extent specified by such measures or orders.
(3) If the Company determines that the requirements for disclosure requests under Article 4 of the Act on the Limitation of Liability of Providers of Specific Telecommunication Services and Disclosure of Sender Information (Act No. 137 of 2001) are met, to the extent of such disclosure requests.
(4) If the Company deems it necessary to protect the life, body, or property of others, to the extent necessary for such protection.

Article 23: Links to External Sites

The Company does not guarantee the information displayed on external sites linked from content or advertisements on this service, and the Company is not responsible for any damage or disadvantage incurred by users or third parties as a result of using such external sites.
The presence of links to external sites from the service’s information does not imply any commercial relationship between the Company and those external sites.

Article 24: Methods of Notification or Communication

Notifications or communications from the Company to users regarding the service will be made through posting on the service or on the Company’s website, or other methods deemed appropriate by the Company. Such notifications or communications will be considered to have reached the users when they become viewable by them.
The Company generally does not accept communications via telephone or in-person visits unless deemed particularly necessary.

Chapter 7: Miscellaneous

Article 25: Force Majeure

The Company shall not be liable for any damage or disadvantage incurred by users due to the performance of the service being hindered by force majeure events, including but not limited to natural disasters (such as typhoons, tsunamis, earthquakes, floods, lightning, and salt damage), fires, infectious diseases, pandemics, cyberattacks, pollution, war, riots, insurrections, terrorism, strikes, enactment or revision of laws or regulations, orders or measures by public authorities or other government actions, disputes, accidents involving transportation or communication lines, or other events beyond the Company's control.

Article 26: Entire Agreement

These Terms constitute the complete and exclusive agreement between the Company and users regarding the matters covered herein and shall supersede any prior agreements or understandings, whether oral or written, relating to such matters.

Article 27: Severability

If any provision of these Terms is determined to be invalid by applicable laws, such invalidity shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions, which shall remain in full force and effect.
If any provision of these Terms is determined to be invalid with respect to a particular user, such invalidity shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions with respect to other users, and the remaining provisions shall continue to be valid.

Article 28: Assignment of Rights and Obligations

Users may not transfer, assign, pledge, or otherwise dispose of their contractual position or any rights or obligations related to the use of the service to any third party without the prior written consent of the Company.
In the event that the Company transfers its business related to the service to a third party or undergoes organizational restructuring such as a company split or merger, the Company may transfer its position, rights, and obligations under these Terms, as well as all user information including registration details, to the third party.

Article 29: Governing Law and Jurisdiction

These Terms shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with the laws of Japan.
Any disputes arising from or related to these Terms between users and the Company shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Tokyo District Court as the court of first instance.

Article 30: Language

The Japanese version of these Terms shall be the official text. If any translations in other languages are provided for reference, only the Japanese text shall have contractual effect, and the translations shall have no legal effect.
In the event of any inconsistency between the Japanese version and any other language version, the Japanese version shall prevail.

Supplementary Provisions

These Terms will come into effect from [Month] [Day], 2024.

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