TERMS AND CONDITIONS
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
PLEASE READ THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS SET FORTH BELOW, AS THEY APPLY TO YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITE. YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITE SIGNIFIES YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND BY THEM AND ANY AND ALL OTHER APPLICABLE TERMS REFERENCED HEREIN ABSOLUTELY.
PART A
1. Definitions
1.1 In these Terms, except where a different interpretation is necessary in the context, the words and expressions set out below shall have the following meanings:
(a) "Assessment Criteria" means criteria of each individual product categories for Certified Scheme Verifier to follow in assessing applications of CIC Green Product Certification. These Assessment Criteria will be amended from time to time at our sole discretion, without notice.
(b) "Certified Scheme Verifier" means a natural person who satisfies all of the requirements and is employed by the Verification Body at all times;
(c) "Disabling Code" means any virus, "back door", "time bomb", "logic bomb", "Trojan Horse", "worm", "drop dead device" or any other software, computer program or malicious code intended or designed to:
(i) permit access to or use of our computer systems or the computer systems of any third party (including the Other User); or
(ii) disable, damage, corrupt, erase, interfere, monitor, intercept, copy, or disrupt or impair the normal operation of, our computer systems, the computer systems of any third party (including the Other User), the Website, or any associated data or information;
(d) "Eco-Product Directory Application" means the application to be submitted by you in order to apply for any Product to be listed as part of the Service. The application can be found at [http://epdir.hkgbc.org.hk] which may be amended by us from time to time at our sole discretion, without notice;
(e) "CIC Green Product Certification Application" means the application to be submitted by you in order to enrol in the CIC Green Product Certification. The application details can be found at [http://cicgpc.hkgbc.org.hk/] which may be amended by us from time to time at our sole discretion, without notice;
(f) "Fees" means the requisite fee set out to be paid for each and every Eco-Product Directory Application and CIC Green Product Certification Application, which amount may be amended from time to time by HKGBC;
(g) "HKGBC", "we", "us" or "our" means Hong Kong Green Building Council Limited, a company incorporated under the laws of Hong Kong with its registered office at 1/F, Jockey Club Environmental Building,77 Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong;
(h) "Intellectual Property Rights" means any trademarks, service marks, logos, trade names, corporate names, Internet domain names, patents, registered designs, copyrights, design rights, database rights, rights in designs, inventions, semiconductor topography rights, know-how, trade secrets or any similar right exercisable in any part of the world, whether registered or not, and including any applications for the registration of any such rights;
(i) "Label" means the label awarded to a Product to certify it having low environmental impact under the CIC Green Product Certification;
(j) "Labelled Product" means the building products or materials that have been assessed under CIC Green Product Certification and awarded with a label.
(k) "Listed Product" means any Product listed or published on the Website;
(l) "Loss" or "Losses" means losses, liabilities, costs, judgments, awards, damages, fines, penalties, sanctions, settlements, claims, demands, actions, costs, charges, expenses and liabilities of whatsoever nature (including attorney/legal fees for both internal and external counsel, and costs related to investigation, arbitration, litigation or settlement) and includes:
(i) loss of profit;
(ii) loss of revenue;
(iii) loss of time;
(iv) loss of anticipated savings;
(v) loss of opportunity;
(vi) loss or corruption of data;
(vii) loss of use;
(viii) loss of business;
(ix) wasted expenditure;
(x) loss of or damage to physical property;
(xi) business interruption;
(xii) loss of or damage to goodwill; or
(xiii) cost of procuring substitute products and/or services,
(and each of the above paragraph (i) - (xiii) shall be considered independently without applying the ejusdem generis rule).
(m) "CIC Green Product Certification Applicant" means you, if you are an applicant of the CIC Green Product Certification;
(n) "Other User" means any other person, other than you, who accesses, views or uses the Website or Service;
(o) "Panel Members" means members of Standing Committees and Steering Committees
(p) "Personal Data" means any data or information relating to an individual and from which it is practicable for the identity of the individual to be directly or indirectly ascertained, and in a form in which access to or processing of the data is practicable (including, but not limited to, names, ages, addresses, occupations, contacts, other personal details and credit card information);
(q) "Privacy Policy" means our privacy policy found at [http://cicgpc.hkgbc.org.hk/], and which may be amended by us from time to time at our sole discretion, without notice;
(r) "Product" means any product, goods, material, item or object;
(s) "Registered User" means you, if you hold a Registered Account;
(t) "Registered Account" means an account established by us in connection with the Website pursuant to the application and approval procedure set out at (combined website);
(u) "Service" means the general operation of the Website, the assessment and operation of CIC Green Product Certification and Eco-Product Directory, in particular:
(i) the listing by us or provision of the Website for listing of the Product offered by third parties or you on the Website, in accordance with these Terms, to be viewed by you or the Other User;
(ii) assessment or verification services provided by us for CIC Green Product Certification
(v) "EPD Applicant" means you, if you are an applicant of the Eco Product Directory Application;
(w) "Terms" means these terms and conditions for use of the Website;
(x) "Third Party Materials" means any data, material or information, in any format whatsoever, including (without limitation) any data files, text, computer software, images, graphics, photos, video clips, sound, audio files, directories, files, databases or listings, or any other such items, provided, uploaded, transmitted, submitted or posted by or sourced from third parties that you use, download, view or access as a result of or through the Website;
(y) "Third Party Provider" means any entity or individual (including, without limitation, any Other User) that is not HKGBC, which provides, uploads, transmits, submits, posts or is the source of any Third Party Materials;
(z) "Verification Body" means any entity appointed by HKGBC to conduct assessments under the CIC Green Product Certification in accordance with the Verification Body Agreement;
(aa) "Website" means the HKGBC Eco-Product Directory & CIC Green Product Certification website at [http://cicgpc.hkgbc.org.hk/]
(bb) "Website Content" means any data, material or information, in any format whatsoever, including (without limitation) any data files, text, computer software, images, graphics, photos, video clips, sound, audio files, directories, files, databases or listings, that is made available on or through the Website, including, for the avoidance of doubt, any Third Party Materials;
(cc) "you" or "your" means you, the person or entity who is accessing or viewing the Website; and
(dd) "Your Content" means any Website Content that is provided, uploaded, transmitted, submitted or posted by or sourced from you in relation to any of your Products or Listed Products that have been listed or published on the Website.
1.2 Whenever the words "include", "includes", "including" or "in particular" (or similar derivate) are used, they are deemed to be followed by the words "without limitation".
2. Acceptance of these Terms
2.1 By accessing the Website and/or using the Service, you agree to be bound by and accept these Terms.
2.2 Your access and/or use of the Website and the Service are contingent upon you first agreeing to be bound by these Terms and the Privacy Policy. You may not use the Website or the Service if you do not agree to accept all of these Terms.
2.3 You may not access or use the Website or the Service and may not accept these Terms if:
(a) you are under the age of 18; or
(b) you are a person barred from accessing or using the Website under the laws of Hong Kong or under the applicable laws of the jurisdiction you are ordinarily resident in or from which you are accessing the Website.
3. Change of Terms
3.1 We may amend the Terms and Assessment Criteria of each product categories of CIC Green Product Certification from time to time in our sole discretion without notice or liability to you. By continuing to use the Website or the Service following such amendments to the Terms, you agree to be bound by such amendments.
3.2 In the event of a conflict or inconsistency between these Terms and any other representation on the Website, these Terms shall prevail to the extent of such conflict or inconsistency.
4. Changes to the Website
4.1 We may, in our sole discretion and at any time, without notice to you, add to, amend or remove any Website Content or Your Content (including, for the avoidance of doubt, your Listed Products), or alter the presentation, substance, or functionality of the Website or the Service.
4.2 HKGBC reserves the right, but shall have no obligation to, pre-screen, review, flag, filter, modify, refuse or remove any or all Website Content or Your Content from the Website, at its sole discretion.
5. Your Conduct
5.1 You agree to use the Website and the Service only for purposes that are permitted by:
(a) these Terms; and
(b) any applicable law, regulation or generally accepted practices or guidelines in the relevant jurisdictions.
5.2 You agree not to use the Website, the Service or any Website Content:
(a) in any way that is unlawful and/or breaches any applicable laws, regulations, codes, guidelines or orders;
(b) to contravene or infringe upon any third party's rights (including Intellectual Property Rights); or
(c) to send, communicate, knowingly receive, upload, download or use any material or engage in any harassing, disruptive, offensive, abusive, threatening, indecent, defamatory, obscene or menacing behaviour, or behaviour that causes annoyance, inconvenience, needless anxiety or are intended to deceive.
5.3 You agree that:
(a) you will not engage in any activity that interferes with or disrupts the Website or the servers and networks through which the Website is provided;
(b) you will not copy, reproduce, download, re-publish, sell, distribute or resell any part of the Website, the Service or Website Content;
(c) you will not copy, reproduce, download, compile or otherwise use any part of the Website, the Service or Website Content for the purposes of operating a business that competes with the Website, or otherwise commercially exploits the Website, the Service or Website Content;
(d) use of the Website, the Service or any Website Content for any purpose not expressly permitted in the Terms is prohibited;
(e) when using the Website or the Service, you, and your employees, sub-contractors, agents or affiliates, shall not install, import or transmit (and shall take reasonable measures to prevent against the installation, importation or transmission of) any Disabling Codes or similar malicious instructions, codes, techniques or devices capable of disrupting, disabling, damaging or shutting down the Website or the Service or other telecommunications or computer systems or devices;
(f) you shall not take any action or allow any third party to take any action that would enable you, or any third party, to gain unauthorised access to, or to tamper with or use any of our computer systems or networks; and
(g) You shall refer to the downloadable manual below from the website and strictly follow the instructions from the corresponding manuals for assessment procedures and guidelines of CIC Green Product Certification:
(i) CIC Green Product Certification Applicant manual downloadable from [http://cicgpc.hkgbc.org.hk/download/ApplicantManualv2.pdf]
(ii) Verification Body manual downloadable from [http://cicgpc.hkgbc.org.hk/download/ManualforVBv2.pdf]
(iii) Certified Scheme Verifier manual downloadable from [http://cicgpc.hkgbc.org.hk/download/ManualforCSVv2.pdf]
(h) You are solely responsible for, and HKGBC has no responsibility to you or to any third party (including, for the avoidance of doubt, the Other User) for any breach of your obligations under these Terms, and for the consequences of any such breach.
(i) Should any problem arise with the company of CIC Green Product Certification’s Applicant that related to business crisis / scandal and may lead to bad publicity, HKGBC has the right to pend / delay the application for CIC Green Product Certification until further notice to CIC Green Product Certification’s Applicant.
(j) If CIC Green Product Certification’s Applicant refuses to pay the license fee for the use of label, accreditation would not be completed and only a provisional certification would be issued CIC Green Product Certification’s Applicant shall not use the notification letter with assessment result of CIC Green Product Certification as a certificate or for any promotional purposes. Based on the professional judgement by the original VB / CSV, assessment and / or an on-site audit shall be suggested by the original VB / CSV, however, HKGBC shall have the final decision and approval on whether the onsite audit should be conducted. Upon the approval, HKGBC shall select another VB / CSV for the onsite audit to ensure the integrity of CIC Green Product Certification.
6. Third Party Material
6.1 You acknowledge and agree that HKGBC shall not be obligated to (but reserves the right at its sole discretion to) actively monitor or exercise any control whatsoever over any Third Party Material. HKGBC does not endorse, verify or otherwise certify any Third Party Material.
7. Intellectual Property Rights
7.1 You acknowledge and agree that HKGBC or its licensors, own all legal rights, titles and interest, including any Intellectual Property Rights, in and to the Website and the Service.
7.2 You acknowledge that any Intellectual Property Rights in any Website Content shall belong to HKGBC or its licensors. You shall not modify, copy, rent, lease, loan, sell, distribute or create derivative works based on the Website Content (either in whole or in part) unless you have received HKGBC's express authorisation in writing.
7.3 Nothing in these Terms shall give you a right to use any of HKGBC's Intellectual Property Rights, trade names, trademarks, service marks, logos and/or domain names. Notwithstanding the foregoing, HKGBC agrees that if your Product is a Listed Product or a Product awarded with the Label, HKGBC will permit you to make reasonable reference to such fact provided that HKGBC's written consent is obtained prior to each use.
7.4 You agree that you shall not remove, obscure, or alter any proprietary rights notices (including copyright and trade mark notices) which may be affixed to or contained within the Website or Website Content.
8. Notification of Infringement of Your Intellectual Property Rights
8.1 This Clause 8 is without prejudice to Clauses 10 and 11 of these Terms.
8.2 In the event that you believe any of your Intellectual Property Rights have been infringed on the Website by the Other User or any Third Party Provider, you may notify us in writing via our contact details stated at [http://cicgpc.hkgbc.org.hk/subpagex.php?serial=150]. To facilitate the processing of any notice received by us from you, you must include the following:
(a) a reference to this Clause 8.2 of the Terms;
(b) proof of your identity;
(c) your contact details;
(d) proof of your ownership of the Intellectual Property Rights;
(e) a copy of, and the hyperlinks to, the relevant listing on or that part of the Website that allegedly infringes your Intellectual Property Rights;
(f) a description of the alleged infringement; and
(g) you are solely responsible for, and HKGBC has no responsibility to you or to any third party (including, for the avoidance of doubt, any Other User) for any breach of your obligations under these Terms, and for the consequences of any such breach.
8.3 Upon receipt of your notice and the required information stated in Clause 8.2 above, we may (in our sole discretion) take any action we deem appropriate, which may include any of the following: (a) remove any listings and/or the alleged infringing Website Content; (b) notify the Third Party Provider responsible for the listing(s) regarding your claim of infringement of Intellectual Property Rights; or (c) terminate or suspend the Registered Account of the relevant Third Party Provider in respect of any repeated claims of Intellectual Property Rights infringement claims.
8.4 You represent and warrant that any claim submitted by you to us alleging that your Intellectual Property Rights have been infringed shall be true, accurate and correct.
8.5 You shall indemnify and hold HKGBC harmless from all Losses arising out of or in relation to any Intellectual Property Rights infringement claim made by you, any amendment, deletion or removal of a Eco-Product Directory and/or Website Content (including Third Party Material) or termination or suspension of a Registered Account pursuant to your Intellectual Property Rights infringement claim.
8.6 Any action taken by HKGBC shall not be construed as any endorsement or rejection of any Intellectual Property Rights infringement claim. Any claims regarding Intellectual Property Rights infringement shall be resolved by the relevant parties.
9. Hyperlinks
9.1 The Website may include hyperlinks to other websites, content or resources, which are hosted, offered or provided by third parties unrelated to HKGBC. You understand and agree that: (a) HKGBC has no control over and does not monitor such third party websites, contents, or resources; (b) HKGBC makes no guarantee or warranty, and is not responsible for any such external sites, contents or resources (or any products, goods or services promoted, referred to or offered on such external sits, contents or resources); and (c) HKGBC does not endorse any websites linked to the Website, or any advertising, products, goods, services or other materials on or available from such websites, contents or resources.
10. Warranties and Disclaimers
10.1 The Service and all Website Content is for your general reference only, and is not intended to amount to any advice and/or recommendation on which you should rely for any purpose whatsoever. This is notwithstanding the fact that any Product has been approved for listing or publishing or labelling by HKGBC, which approval does not mean any assumption of responsibility for or endorsement of any Product or its quality, functionality or performance. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking or refraining from taking any action based on the Service or Website Content or using any Listed or Labelled Product. You are responsible to ensure that your use of the Website Content, any Listed Product, Third Party Material and/or the Service complies with your requirements and all applicable legal requirements.
10.2 You expressly understand and agree that your use of the Service and Website: (a) is at your sole risk and that the Service and Website is provided "as is" and "as available"; and (b) does not form a "contract of sale" between HKGBC and you, for the purposes of the Sale of Goods Ordinance (Cap. 26), as HKGBC is not acting as a "seller" of any goods.
10.3 Without prejudice to and notwithstanding Clause 10.2(b) above, to the fullest extent permitted by the applicable law, HKGBC, its directors, officers, panel members, appeal board members, employees, partners, licensors, agents, representatives and affiliates expressly disclaims any and all conditions and warranties, whether express or implied, in relation to any Listed Product including, but not limited to the implied conditions and warranties of quality or fitness for a particular purpose.
10.4 Without prejudice to the generality of Clause 10.3 above, HKGBC, its directors, officers, panel members, appeal board members, employees, partners, licensors, agents, representatives and affiliates make no representations or warranties: (a) as to the accuracy, quality, completeness, currentness, adequacy, reliability or validity of any information or material provided on or through the Website, including, without limitation, the Website Content or the Service; (b) as to any Products or any third parties listed, referred to, offered, displayed, published or posted on the Website, as part of the Website Content or the Service; (c) that the manufacture, importation, export, distribution, offer, display, purchase, sale and/or use of any products listed or published, or labelled, or the Service offered or displayed on the Website does not violate any third party rights or any laws; (d) that the Website, Website Content, Listed Products, Labelled Product, Third Party Materials, Your Content or the Service will meet your requirements, or are free of defect, error, omission, virus, malware or anything which may change, erase, add to or damage your software, data or equipment; (e) that your use of the Service or the Website will be uninterrupted, timely, secure or error-free; or (f) that defects in the operation or functionality of the Website will be corrected.
10.5 Any materials, including Website Content, downloaded or otherwise obtained through the use of the Service or Website is done at your own discretion and risk and you shall be solely responsible for any damage to your computer system or other devices or loss of data or any other loss or damage that results from the downloading of any such material.
11. Limitation of Liability
11.1 Nothing in this Clause 11, or Clause 10 above, shall exclude or restrict any warranty or liability: (a) for death or personal injury caused by HKGBC's negligence; (b) for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation; or (c) that may not be lawfully excluded or limited by the applicable law.
11.2 HKGBC , its directors, officers, panel members, appeal board members, employees, partners, licensors, agents, representatives and affiliates shall not be liable to you in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty or otherwise for any Losses whatsoever (including whether general, special indirect, direct, nominal, punitive, incidental or consequential) which may arise in relation to the Listed Products, the Labelled Products, the Service, the Website Content, the Website, Your Registered Account, Your Content or Third Party Materials, whether or not HKGBC were advised in advance of the possibility of such Losses including any Losses resulting from or in relation to: (a) your use, access or inability to use or access the Website, Website Content, the Service, your Registered Account or Your Content; (b) the availability of the Website, Website Content and/or the Service to the public at any time; (c) any changes made by HKGBC to the Service, the Website, Website Content, your Registered Account, or Your Content, or for any permanent or temporary cessation in the provision of the Service, the Website, the Website Content, your Registered Account, or Your Content (in whole or in part); (d) any approval or refusal by HKGBC to list or publish or label any Product on the Website, or a decision by HKGBC to allow a Product to be listed or published or labelled on the Website or to remove any Listed Product or Labelled Product from the Website; (e) technical breakdown of the computer system or the Website, and upon occurrence of such breakdown you are obliged to resubmit your Eco-Product Directory Application or the CIC Green Product Certification’s Application; (f) any deletion of, corruption of or failure to store any content and other communications data maintained or transmitted by you through the use of the Service or Website; (g) any Third Party Materials accessed, viewed, downloaded, used, relied on or otherwise obtained by you in relation to or via the Website, Website Content or the Service; (h) any services, samples, information, data, or any Products whatsoever, purchased or obtained by you or any Other User through the use of the Website or the Service or information obtained from the Website, Website Content, Your Content or the Service; (i) any statements made by or the conduct of any third party on the Website; or (j) violation of your Intellectual Property Rights by any third party.
11.3 Clause 11.2 above shall apply irrespective of whether or not HKGBC, its directors, officers, panel members, appeal board members, employees, partners, licensors, agents, representatives or affiliates have been advised or should have been aware of the possibility of any such Losses arising. 11.4 Without prejudice to Clauses 11.1 to 11.3 above, you hereby agree that the maximum liability of HKGBC, its directors, officers, panel members, appeal board members, employees, partners, licensors, agents, representatives and affiliates in aggregate to you for all claims arising out of or in connection with the Service, the Website Content, the Website, your Registered Account, Your Content and/or these Terms, whether arising under contract, tort, or otherwise, shall be limited to one Hong Kong dollar only.
12. Indemnity
12.1 You hereby agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless HKGBC, its directors, officers, panel members, appeal board members, employees, partners, licensors, agents, representatives and affiliates from and against all Losses that may arise directly or indirectly out of or in connection with: (a) any breach or non-compliance by you of any representation, warranty, condition or obligation in these Terms or applicable policies; (b) your use of the Service, Website, Website Content or Third Party Material; (c) Your Content or Listed Products or Labelled Products, including: (i) any use by HKGBC, the Other User or other third parties of Your Content or Listed Products or Labelled Products; (ii) any claim that Your Content or Listed Products or Labelled Products violates any applicable law or infringes the rights of a third party (including a third party's Intellectual Property Rights); (d) any products or services provided by you (including any Products); (e) any violation, trespass, contravention, breach or infringement of HKGBC's or any third party's Intellectual Property Rights, or the unauthorised use or misappropriation of any trade secret of HKGBC or any third party, caused by you, or your employees, agents or affiliates; (f) any Third Party Materials downloaded, used or otherwise obtained by you; or (g) any breach by you of the Hong Kong Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance (Cap. 486) and/or any other applicable data protection laws.
12.2 You shall cooperate fully in the defence of any claim made by third parties. HKGBC reserves the right to assume the exclusive defence and control of any matter subject to indemnification by you.
12.3 You hereby acknowledge that damages for improper use of the Service or Website may be irreparable, and HKGBC is entitled to seek equitable relief, including injunctions and preliminary injunctions, in addition to all other remedies.
13. Your Privacy and Privacy of Others
13.1 If you use the Website you agree to be bound by our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree to the Privacy Policy, you must not use or access the Website.
13.2 If you receive information (including personal data) about the Other User through the Website, you must only use it for the purposes for which the information was provided to you. You may not disclose or distribute the Other User's Personal Data to a third party or use the Personal Data for marketing purposes unless you receive the Other User's express consent to do so.
13.3 You may not send unsolicited emails to the Other User or use the Website for sending, or assisting in sending, unsolicited emails to third parties.
14. Data Security
14.1 We take responsible steps to protect all of our data from misuse and loss, and from unauthorised access, modification and disclosure. All reasonable efforts are made to ensure that any data held by us is stored in a secure and safe place and accessed only by our authorised employees or authorised third parties.
14.2 Notwithstanding the above, you should be aware that no system is impenetrable and no information provided over the Internet can be guaranteed to be completely secure. Accordingly, we cannot guarantee the security of any data stored and/or transmitted by us. In particular, transmission of any information via the Internet is not secured by encryption.
15. Confidentiality
15.1 Without limiting the provision of any clause in these Terms, you agree that HKGBC, its directors, officers, panel members, appeal board members, employees, partners, licensors, agents, representatives and affiliates are not under obligation to you whatsoever to keep any information provided by you confidential from the general public, including but not limited to any information provided in the Application of Eco-Product Directory or/and CIC Green Product Certification unless all of these conditions are met: (a) The information is clearly marked "Business Confidential - Not to be Disclosed"; (b) HKGBC has provided written confirmation to you that it will not disclose such information; and (c) Disclosure is not required for any of the following purposes: (i) providing the Services; (ii) processing the application of Eco-Product Directory / CIC Green Product Certification (iii) seeking advice from its advisors including but not limited to Verification Body (VB), Certified Scheme Verifier (CSV), Appeal Board Members, Standing Committee and Steering Committee (iv) HKGBC's own administrative requirements; (v) complying with any request made by any regulators, government bodies and/or law enforcement agencies, without regards to whether such request is reasonable or supported by any Court order; or (vi) required and/or otherwise permitted by law.
15.2 You may not, without the prior written consent of HKGBC, whose consent may be given or withheld at HKGBC's sole discretion, disclose (including but not limited to publication of and disclosure either in written or oral form) any information you receive from HKGBC in respect of and/or arising out of the Services, the Eco-Product Directory or CIC Green Product Certification’s Application and/or the Website that is not published by HKGBC on the Website to any third party including your affiliates unless such disclosure is strictly required under law. In such case, you must give prior notice to HKGBC before such disclosure is made.
16. General
16.1 Governing Law and Jurisdiction. These Terms are governed by the laws of Hong Kong, and are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Hong Kong.
16.2 Notices. All legal notices or demands to or upon you shall be effective and deemed to be in writing if delivered personally, sent by courier, certified mail, by facsimile or email to the last-known correspondence address, fax number or email address provided by you to us, or by posting such notice or demand on an area of the Website that is publicly accessible, without a charge. You shall be deemed to have received any such notice, if and when: (a) HKGBC are able to demonstrate that the notice has been sent to you; or (b) Immediately upon HKGBC posting such notice on an area of the Website that is publicly accessible without charge.
16.3 Force Majeure. Without prejudice to the generality of Clauses 10 and 11 above, under no circumstances shall HKGBC, its directors, officers, panel members, appeal board members, employees, partners, licensors, agents, representatives or affiliates be liable for any delay or failure or disruption in relation to the Website, Website Content, the Service or Your Content resulting directly or indirectly from anything beyond our reasonable control, including without limitation, Internet failures, computer, telecommunications or any other equipment failures, electrical power failures, labour disputes, war, riots, civil disturbances, shortages of labour or materials, fires, flood, typhoons, earthquakes, explosions, acts of God, actions or orders issued by governmental or regulatory authorities or any courts or tribunal with applicable jurisdiction, or non-performance of third parties.
16.4 Severability. If any of these Terms are held invalid, illegal or unenforceable by any court or tribunal of competent jurisdiction, it will be severed and the remaining terms will continue in full force and effect as if these Terms had been made without the invalid, illegal or unenforceable terms. Each clause and sub-clause herein shall be treated as a separate and independent provision, and the unenforceability of any one clause shall in no way impair the enforceability of any of the other clauses herein.
16.5 Entire Agreement. These Terms contain the entire agreement between you and HKGBC and replaces all previous written or oral agreements relating to its content.
16.6 Waiver. A failure or delay by HKGBC to exercise any right or act upon a breach under these Terms will not be a waiver of that right or breach. Any waiver by HKGBC of any of its rights or of a breach of these Terms must be in writing, and such waiver is limited to the particular right or breach stated therein.
16.7 Assignment. You may not transfer any of your rights or obligations under these Terms without the written consent of HKGBC. HKGBC may transfer its rights or obligations or both to any person or entity, including any of its affiliates, without your consent.
16.8 No Partnership or Agency. Nothing in these Terms is intended to, or shall be deemed to, establish any partnership or joint venture between you or HKGBC, constitute you as the agent of HKGBC, or authorise you to make or enter into any commitments for or on behalf of HKGBC.
16.9 Language. These Terms are drafted in the English language. If these Terms are translated into any other language, the English language version shall prevail in the event of inconsistency.
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
PLEASE READ THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS SET FORTH BELOW, AS THEY APPLY TO YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITE. YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITE SIGNIFIES YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND BY THEM AND ANY AND ALL OTHER APPLICABLE TERMS REFERENCED HEREIN ABSOLUTELY.
PART A
1. Definitions
1.1 In these Terms, except where a different interpretation is necessary in the context, the words and expressions set out below shall have the following meanings:
(a) "Assessment Criteria" means criteria of each individual product categories for Certified Scheme Verifier to follow in assessing applications of CIC Green Product Certification. These Assessment Criteria will be amended from time to time at our sole discretion, without notice.
(b) "Certified Scheme Verifier" means a natural person who satisfies all of the requirements and is employed by the Verification Body at all times;
(c) "Disabling Code" means any virus, "back door", "time bomb", "logic bomb", "Trojan Horse", "worm", "drop dead device" or any other software, computer program or malicious code intended or designed to:
(i) permit access to or use of our computer systems or the computer systems of any third party (including the Other User); or
(ii) disable, damage, corrupt, erase, interfere, monitor, intercept, copy, or disrupt or impair the normal operation of, our computer systems, the computer systems of any third party (including the Other User), the Website, or any associated data or information;
(d) "Eco-Product Directory Application" means the application to be submitted by you in order to apply for any Product to be listed as part of the Service. The application can be found at [http://epdir.hkgbc.org.hk] which may be amended by us from time to time at our sole discretion, without notice;
(e) "CIC Green Product Certification Application" means the application to be submitted by you in order to enrol in the CIC Green Product Certification. The application details can be found at [http://cicgpc.hkgbc.org.hk/] which may be amended by us from time to time at our sole discretion, without notice;
(f) "Fees" means the requisite fee set out to be paid for each and every Eco-Product Directory Application and CIC Green Product Certification Application, which amount may be amended from time to time by HKGBC;
(g) "HKGBC", "we", "us" or "our" means Hong Kong Green Building Council Limited, a company incorporated under the laws of Hong Kong with its registered office at 1/F, Jockey Club Environmental Building,77 Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong;
(h) "Intellectual Property Rights" means any trademarks, service marks, logos, trade names, corporate names, Internet domain names, patents, registered designs, copyrights, design rights, database rights, rights in designs, inventions, semiconductor topography rights, know-how, trade secrets or any similar right exercisable in any part of the world, whether registered or not, and including any applications for the registration of any such rights;
(i) "Label" means the label awarded to a Product to certify it having low environmental impact under the CIC Green Product Certification;
(j) "Labelled Product" means the building products or materials that have been assessed under CIC Green Product Certification and awarded with a label.
(k) "Listed Product" means any Product listed or published on the Website;
(l) "Loss" or "Losses" means losses, liabilities, costs, judgments, awards, damages, fines, penalties, sanctions, settlements, claims, demands, actions, costs, charges, expenses and liabilities of whatsoever nature (including attorney/legal fees for both internal and external counsel, and costs related to investigation, arbitration, litigation or settlement) and includes:
(i) loss of profit;
(ii) loss of revenue;
(iii) loss of time;
(iv) loss of anticipated savings;
(v) loss of opportunity;
(vi) loss or corruption of data;
(vii) loss of use;
(viii) loss of business;
(ix) wasted expenditure;
(x) loss of or damage to physical property;
(xi) business interruption;
(xii) loss of or damage to goodwill; or
(xiii) cost of procuring substitute products and/or services,
(and each of the above paragraph (i) - (xiii) shall be considered independently without applying the ejusdem generis rule).
(m) "CIC Green Product Certification Applicant" means you, if you are an applicant of the CIC Green Product Certification;
(n) "Other User" means any other person, other than you, who accesses, views or uses the Website or Service;
(o) "Panel Members" means members of Standing Committees and Steering Committees
(p) "Personal Data" means any data or information relating to an individual and from which it is practicable for the identity of the individual to be directly or indirectly ascertained, and in a form in which access to or processing of the data is practicable (including, but not limited to, names, ages, addresses, occupations, contacts, other personal details and credit card information);
(q) "Privacy Policy" means our privacy policy found at [http://cicgpc.hkgbc.org.hk/], and which may be amended by us from time to time at our sole discretion, without notice;
(r) "Product" means any product, goods, material, item or object;
(s) "Registered User" means you, if you hold a Registered Account;
(t) "Registered Account" means an account established by us in connection with the Website pursuant to the application and approval procedure set out at (combined website);
(u) "Service" means the general operation of the Website, the assessment and operation of CIC Green Product Certification and Eco-Product Directory, in particular:
(i) the listing by us or provision of the Website for listing of the Product offered by third parties or you on the Website, in accordance with these Terms, to be viewed by you or the Other User;
(ii) assessment or verification services provided by us for CIC Green Product Certification
(v) "EPD Applicant" means you, if you are an applicant of the Eco Product Directory Application;
(w) "Terms" means these terms and conditions for use of the Website;
(x) "Third Party Materials" means any data, material or information, in any format whatsoever, including (without limitation) any data files, text, computer software, images, graphics, photos, video clips, sound, audio files, directories, files, databases or listings, or any other such items, provided, uploaded, transmitted, submitted or posted by or sourced from third parties that you use, download, view or access as a result of or through the Website;
(y) "Third Party Provider" means any entity or individual (including, without limitation, any Other User) that is not HKGBC, which provides, uploads, transmits, submits, posts or is the source of any Third Party Materials;
(z) "Verification Body" means any entity appointed by HKGBC to conduct assessments under the CIC Green Product Certification in accordance with the Verification Body Agreement;
(aa) "Website" means the HKGBC Eco-Product Directory & CIC Green Product Certification website at [http://cicgpc.hkgbc.org.hk/]
(bb) "Website Content" means any data, material or information, in any format whatsoever, including (without limitation) any data files, text, computer software, images, graphics, photos, video clips, sound, audio files, directories, files, databases or listings, that is made available on or through the Website, including, for the avoidance of doubt, any Third Party Materials;
(cc) "you" or "your" means you, the person or entity who is accessing or viewing the Website; and
(dd) "Your Content" means any Website Content that is provided, uploaded, transmitted, submitted or posted by or sourced from you in relation to any of your Products or Listed Products that have been listed or published on the Website.
1.2 Whenever the words "include", "includes", "including" or "in particular" (or similar derivate) are used, they are deemed to be followed by the words "without limitation".
2. Acceptance of these Terms
2.1 By accessing the Website and/or using the Service, you agree to be bound by and accept these Terms.
2.2 Your access and/or use of the Website and the Service are contingent upon you first agreeing to be bound by these Terms and the Privacy Policy. You may not use the Website or the Service if you do not agree to accept all of these Terms.
2.3 You may not access or use the Website or the Service and may not accept these Terms if:
(a) you are under the age of 18; or
(b) you are a person barred from accessing or using the Website under the laws of Hong Kong or under the applicable laws of the jurisdiction you are ordinarily resident in or from which you are accessing the Website.
3. Change of Terms
3.1 We may amend the Terms and Assessment Criteria of each product categories of CIC Green Product Certification from time to time in our sole discretion without notice or liability to you. By continuing to use the Website or the Service following such amendments to the Terms, you agree to be bound by such amendments.
3.2 In the event of a conflict or inconsistency between these Terms and any other representation on the Website, these Terms shall prevail to the extent of such conflict or inconsistency.
4. Changes to the Website
4.1 We may, in our sole discretion and at any time, without notice to you, add to, amend or remove any Website Content or Your Content (including, for the avoidance of doubt, your Listed Products), or alter the presentation, substance, or functionality of the Website or the Service.
4.2 HKGBC reserves the right, but shall have no obligation to, pre-screen, review, flag, filter, modify, refuse or remove any or all Website Content or Your Content from the Website, at its sole discretion.
5. Your Conduct
5.1 You agree to use the Website and the Service only for purposes that are permitted by:
(a) these Terms; and
(b) any applicable law, regulation or generally accepted practices or guidelines in the relevant jurisdictions.
5.2 You agree not to use the Website, the Service or any Website Content:
(a) in any way that is unlawful and/or breaches any applicable laws, regulations, codes, guidelines or orders;
(b) to contravene or infringe upon any third party's rights (including Intellectual Property Rights); or
(c) to send, communicate, knowingly receive, upload, download or use any material or engage in any harassing, disruptive, offensive, abusive, threatening, indecent, defamatory, obscene or menacing behaviour, or behaviour that causes annoyance, inconvenience, needless anxiety or are intended to deceive.
5.3 You agree that:
(a) you will not engage in any activity that interferes with or disrupts the Website or the servers and networks through which the Website is provided;
(b) you will not copy, reproduce, download, re-publish, sell, distribute or resell any part of the Website, the Service or Website Content;
(c) you will not copy, reproduce, download, compile or otherwise use any part of the Website, the Service or Website Content for the purposes of operating a business that competes with the Website, or otherwise commercially exploits the Website, the Service or Website Content;
(d) use of the Website, the Service or any Website Content for any purpose not expressly permitted in the Terms is prohibited;
(e) when using the Website or the Service, you, and your employees, sub-contractors, agents or affiliates, shall not install, import or transmit (and shall take reasonable measures to prevent against the installation, importation or transmission of) any Disabling Codes or similar malicious instructions, codes, techniques or devices capable of disrupting, disabling, damaging or shutting down the Website or the Service or other telecommunications or computer systems or devices;
(f) you shall not take any action or allow any third party to take any action that would enable you, or any third party, to gain unauthorised access to, or to tamper with or use any of our computer systems or networks; and
(g) You shall refer to the downloadable manual below from the website and strictly follow the instructions from the corresponding manuals for assessment procedures and guidelines of CIC Green Product Certification:
(i) CIC Green Product Certification Applicant manual downloadable from [http://cicgpc.hkgbc.org.hk/download/ApplicantManualv2.pdf]
(ii) Verification Body manual downloadable from [http://cicgpc.hkgbc.org.hk/download/ManualforVBv2.pdf]
(iii) Certified Scheme Verifier manual downloadable from [http://cicgpc.hkgbc.org.hk/download/ManualforCSVv2.pdf]
(h) You are solely responsible for, and HKGBC has no responsibility to you or to any third party (including, for the avoidance of doubt, the Other User) for any breach of your obligations under these Terms, and for the consequences of any such breach.
(i) Should any problem arise with the company of CIC Green Product Certification’s Applicant that related to business crisis / scandal and may lead to bad publicity, HKGBC has the right to pend / delay the application for CIC Green Product Certification until further notice to CIC Green Product Certification’s Applicant.
(j) If CIC Green Product Certification’s Applicant refuses to pay the license fee for the use of label, accreditation would not be completed and only a provisional certification would be issued CIC Green Product Certification’s Applicant shall not use the notification letter with assessment result of CIC Green Product Certification as a certificate or for any promotional purposes. Based on the professional judgement by the original VB / CSV, assessment and / or an on-site audit shall be suggested by the original VB / CSV, however, HKGBC shall have the final decision and approval on whether the onsite audit should be conducted. Upon the approval, HKGBC shall select another VB / CSV for the onsite audit to ensure the integrity of CIC Green Product Certification.
6. Third Party Material
6.1 You acknowledge and agree that HKGBC shall not be obligated to (but reserves the right at its sole discretion to) actively monitor or exercise any control whatsoever over any Third Party Material. HKGBC does not endorse, verify or otherwise certify any Third Party Material.
7. Intellectual Property Rights
7.1 You acknowledge and agree that HKGBC or its licensors, own all legal rights, titles and interest, including any Intellectual Property Rights, in and to the Website and the Service.
7.2 You acknowledge that any Intellectual Property Rights in any Website Content shall belong to HKGBC or its licensors. You shall not modify, copy, rent, lease, loan, sell, distribute or create derivative works based on the Website Content (either in whole or in part) unless you have received HKGBC's express authorisation in writing.
7.3 Nothing in these Terms shall give you a right to use any of HKGBC's Intellectual Property Rights, trade names, trademarks, service marks, logos and/or domain names. Notwithstanding the foregoing, HKGBC agrees that if your Product is a Listed Product or a Product awarded with the Label, HKGBC will permit you to make reasonable reference to such fact provided that HKGBC's written consent is obtained prior to each use.
7.4 You agree that you shall not remove, obscure, or alter any proprietary rights notices (including copyright and trade mark notices) which may be affixed to or contained within the Website or Website Content.
8. Notification of Infringement of Your Intellectual Property Rights
8.1 This Clause 8 is without prejudice to Clauses 10 and 11 of these Terms.
8.2 In the event that you believe any of your Intellectual Property Rights have been infringed on the Website by the Other User or any Third Party Provider, you may notify us in writing via our contact details stated at [http://cicgpc.hkgbc.org.hk/subpagex.php?serial=150]. To facilitate the processing of any notice received by us from you, you must include the following:
(a) a reference to this Clause 8.2 of the Terms;
(b) proof of your identity;
(c) your contact details;
(d) proof of your ownership of the Intellectual Property Rights;
(e) a copy of, and the hyperlinks to, the relevant listing on or that part of the Website that allegedly infringes your Intellectual Property Rights;
(f) a description of the alleged infringement; and
(g) you are solely responsible for, and HKGBC has no responsibility to you or to any third party (including, for the avoidance of doubt, any Other User) for any breach of your obligations under these Terms, and for the consequences of any such breach.
8.3 Upon receipt of your notice and the required information stated in Clause 8.2 above, we may (in our sole discretion) take any action we deem appropriate, which may include any of the following: (a) remove any listings and/or the alleged infringing Website Content; (b) notify the Third Party Provider responsible for the listing(s) regarding your claim of infringement of Intellectual Property Rights; or (c) terminate or suspend the Registered Account of the relevant Third Party Provider in respect of any repeated claims of Intellectual Property Rights infringement claims.
8.4 You represent and warrant that any claim submitted by you to us alleging that your Intellectual Property Rights have been infringed shall be true, accurate and correct.
8.5 You shall indemnify and hold HKGBC harmless from all Losses arising out of or in relation to any Intellectual Property Rights infringement claim made by you, any amendment, deletion or removal of a Eco-Product Directory and/or Website Content (including Third Party Material) or termination or suspension of a Registered Account pursuant to your Intellectual Property Rights infringement claim.
8.6 Any action taken by HKGBC shall not be construed as any endorsement or rejection of any Intellectual Property Rights infringement claim. Any claims regarding Intellectual Property Rights infringement shall be resolved by the relevant parties.
9. Hyperlinks
9.1 The Website may include hyperlinks to other websites, content or resources, which are hosted, offered or provided by third parties unrelated to HKGBC. You understand and agree that: (a) HKGBC has no control over and does not monitor such third party websites, contents, or resources; (b) HKGBC makes no guarantee or warranty, and is not responsible for any such external sites, contents or resources (or any products, goods or services promoted, referred to or offered on such external sits, contents or resources); and (c) HKGBC does not endorse any websites linked to the Website, or any advertising, products, goods, services or other materials on or available from such websites, contents or resources.
10. Warranties and Disclaimers
10.1 The Service and all Website Content is for your general reference only, and is not intended to amount to any advice and/or recommendation on which you should rely for any purpose whatsoever. This is notwithstanding the fact that any Product has been approved for listing or publishing or labelling by HKGBC, which approval does not mean any assumption of responsibility for or endorsement of any Product or its quality, functionality or performance. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking or refraining from taking any action based on the Service or Website Content or using any Listed or Labelled Product. You are responsible to ensure that your use of the Website Content, any Listed Product, Third Party Material and/or the Service complies with your requirements and all applicable legal requirements.
10.2 You expressly understand and agree that your use of the Service and Website: (a) is at your sole risk and that the Service and Website is provided "as is" and "as available"; and (b) does not form a "contract of sale" between HKGBC and you, for the purposes of the Sale of Goods Ordinance (Cap. 26), as HKGBC is not acting as a "seller" of any goods.
10.3 Without prejudice to and notwithstanding Clause 10.2(b) above, to the fullest extent permitted by the applicable law, HKGBC, its directors, officers, panel members, appeal board members, employees, partners, licensors, agents, representatives and affiliates expressly disclaims any and all conditions and warranties, whether express or implied, in relation to any Listed Product including, but not limited to the implied conditions and warranties of quality or fitness for a particular purpose.
10.4 Without prejudice to the generality of Clause 10.3 above, HKGBC, its directors, officers, panel members, appeal board members, employees, partners, licensors, agents, representatives and affiliates make no representations or warranties: (a) as to the accuracy, quality, completeness, currentness, adequacy, reliability or validity of any information or material provided on or through the Website, including, without limitation, the Website Content or the Service; (b) as to any Products or any third parties listed, referred to, offered, displayed, published or posted on the Website, as part of the Website Content or the Service; (c) that the manufacture, importation, export, distribution, offer, display, purchase, sale and/or use of any products listed or published, or labelled, or the Service offered or displayed on the Website does not violate any third party rights or any laws; (d) that the Website, Website Content, Listed Products, Labelled Product, Third Party Materials, Your Content or the Service will meet your requirements, or are free of defect, error, omission, virus, malware or anything which may change, erase, add to or damage your software, data or equipment; (e) that your use of the Service or the Website will be uninterrupted, timely, secure or error-free; or (f) that defects in the operation or functionality of the Website will be corrected.
10.5 Any materials, including Website Content, downloaded or otherwise obtained through the use of the Service or Website is done at your own discretion and risk and you shall be solely responsible for any damage to your computer system or other devices or loss of data or any other loss or damage that results from the downloading of any such material.
11. Limitation of Liability
11.1 Nothing in this Clause 11, or Clause 10 above, shall exclude or restrict any warranty or liability: (a) for death or personal injury caused by HKGBC's negligence; (b) for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation; or (c) that may not be lawfully excluded or limited by the applicable law.
11.2 HKGBC , its directors, officers, panel members, appeal board members, employees, partners, licensors, agents, representatives and affiliates shall not be liable to you in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty or otherwise for any Losses whatsoever (including whether general, special indirect, direct, nominal, punitive, incidental or consequential) which may arise in relation to the Listed Products, the Labelled Products, the Service, the Website Content, the Website, Your Registered Account, Your Content or Third Party Materials, whether or not HKGBC were advised in advance of the possibility of such Losses including any Losses resulting from or in relation to: (a) your use, access or inability to use or access the Website, Website Content, the Service, your Registered Account or Your Content; (b) the availability of the Website, Website Content and/or the Service to the public at any time; (c) any changes made by HKGBC to the Service, the Website, Website Content, your Registered Account, or Your Content, or for any permanent or temporary cessation in the provision of the Service, the Website, the Website Content, your Registered Account, or Your Content (in whole or in part); (d) any approval or refusal by HKGBC to list or publish or label any Product on the Website, or a decision by HKGBC to allow a Product to be listed or published or labelled on the Website or to remove any Listed Product or Labelled Product from the Website; (e) technical breakdown of the computer system or the Website, and upon occurrence of such breakdown you are obliged to resubmit your Eco-Product Directory Application or the CIC Green Product Certification’s Application; (f) any deletion of, corruption of or failure to store any content and other communications data maintained or transmitted by you through the use of the Service or Website; (g) any Third Party Materials accessed, viewed, downloaded, used, relied on or otherwise obtained by you in relation to or via the Website, Website Content or the Service; (h) any services, samples, information, data, or any Products whatsoever, purchased or obtained by you or any Other User through the use of the Website or the Service or information obtained from the Website, Website Content, Your Content or the Service; (i) any statements made by or the conduct of any third party on the Website; or (j) violation of your Intellectual Property Rights by any third party.
11.3 Clause 11.2 above shall apply irrespective of whether or not HKGBC, its directors, officers, panel members, appeal board members, employees, partners, licensors, agents, representatives or affiliates have been advised or should have been aware of the possibility of any such Losses arising. 11.4 Without prejudice to Clauses 11.1 to 11.3 above, you hereby agree that the maximum liability of HKGBC, its directors, officers, panel members, appeal board members, employees, partners, licensors, agents, representatives and affiliates in aggregate to you for all claims arising out of or in connection with the Service, the Website Content, the Website, your Registered Account, Your Content and/or these Terms, whether arising under contract, tort, or otherwise, shall be limited to one Hong Kong dollar only.
12. Indemnity
12.1 You hereby agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless HKGBC, its directors, officers, panel members, appeal board members, employees, partners, licensors, agents, representatives and affiliates from and against all Losses that may arise directly or indirectly out of or in connection with: (a) any breach or non-compliance by you of any representation, warranty, condition or obligation in these Terms or applicable policies; (b) your use of the Service, Website, Website Content or Third Party Material; (c) Your Content or Listed Products or Labelled Products, including: (i) any use by HKGBC, the Other User or other third parties of Your Content or Listed Products or Labelled Products; (ii) any claim that Your Content or Listed Products or Labelled Products violates any applicable law or infringes the rights of a third party (including a third party's Intellectual Property Rights); (d) any products or services provided by you (including any Products); (e) any violation, trespass, contravention, breach or infringement of HKGBC's or any third party's Intellectual Property Rights, or the unauthorised use or misappropriation of any trade secret of HKGBC or any third party, caused by you, or your employees, agents or affiliates; (f) any Third Party Materials downloaded, used or otherwise obtained by you; or (g) any breach by you of the Hong Kong Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance (Cap. 486) and/or any other applicable data protection laws.
12.2 You shall cooperate fully in the defence of any claim made by third parties. HKGBC reserves the right to assume the exclusive defence and control of any matter subject to indemnification by you.
12.3 You hereby acknowledge that damages for improper use of the Service or Website may be irreparable, and HKGBC is entitled to seek equitable relief, including injunctions and preliminary injunctions, in addition to all other remedies.
13. Your Privacy and Privacy of Others
13.1 If you use the Website you agree to be bound by our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree to the Privacy Policy, you must not use or access the Website.
13.2 If you receive information (including personal data) about the Other User through the Website, you must only use it for the purposes for which the information was provided to you. You may not disclose or distribute the Other User's Personal Data to a third party or use the Personal Data for marketing purposes unless you receive the Other User's express consent to do so.
13.3 You may not send unsolicited emails to the Other User or use the Website for sending, or assisting in sending, unsolicited emails to third parties.
14. Data Security
14.1 We take responsible steps to protect all of our data from misuse and loss, and from unauthorised access, modification and disclosure. All reasonable efforts are made to ensure that any data held by us is stored in a secure and safe place and accessed only by our authorised employees or authorised third parties.
14.2 Notwithstanding the above, you should be aware that no system is impenetrable and no information provided over the Internet can be guaranteed to be completely secure. Accordingly, we cannot guarantee the security of any data stored and/or transmitted by us. In particular, transmission of any information via the Internet is not secured by encryption.
15. Confidentiality
15.1 Without limiting the provision of any clause in these Terms, you agree that HKGBC, its directors, officers, panel members, appeal board members, employees, partners, licensors, agents, representatives and affiliates are not under obligation to you whatsoever to keep any information provided by you confidential from the general public, including but not limited to any information provided in the Application of Eco-Product Directory or/and CIC Green Product Certification unless all of these conditions are met: (a) The information is clearly marked "Business Confidential - Not to be Disclosed"; (b) HKGBC has provided written confirmation to you that it will not disclose such information; and (c) Disclosure is not required for any of the following purposes: (i) providing the Services; (ii) processing the application of Eco-Product Directory / CIC Green Product Certification (iii) seeking advice from its advisors including but not limited to Verification Body (VB), Certified Scheme Verifier (CSV), Appeal Board Members, Standing Committee and Steering Committee (iv) HKGBC's own administrative requirements; (v) complying with any request made by any regulators, government bodies and/or law enforcement agencies, without regards to whether such request is reasonable or supported by any Court order; or (vi) required and/or otherwise permitted by law.
15.2 You may not, without the prior written consent of HKGBC, whose consent may be given or withheld at HKGBC's sole discretion, disclose (including but not limited to publication of and disclosure either in written or oral form) any information you receive from HKGBC in respect of and/or arising out of the Services, the Eco-Product Directory or CIC Green Product Certification’s Application and/or the Website that is not published by HKGBC on the Website to any third party including your affiliates unless such disclosure is strictly required under law. In such case, you must give prior notice to HKGBC before such disclosure is made.
16. General
16.1 Governing Law and Jurisdiction. These Terms are governed by the laws of Hong Kong, and are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Hong Kong.
16.2 Notices. All legal notices or demands to or upon you shall be effective and deemed to be in writing if delivered personally, sent by courier, certified mail, by facsimile or email to the last-known correspondence address, fax number or email address provided by you to us, or by posting such notice or demand on an area of the Website that is publicly accessible, without a charge. You shall be deemed to have received any such notice, if and when: (a) HKGBC are able to demonstrate that the notice has been sent to you; or (b) Immediately upon HKGBC posting such notice on an area of the Website that is publicly accessible without charge.
16.3 Force Majeure. Without prejudice to the generality of Clauses 10 and 11 above, under no circumstances shall HKGBC, its directors, officers, panel members, appeal board members, employees, partners, licensors, agents, representatives or affiliates be liable for any delay or failure or disruption in relation to the Website, Website Content, the Service or Your Content resulting directly or indirectly from anything beyond our reasonable control, including without limitation, Internet failures, computer, telecommunications or any other equipment failures, electrical power failures, labour disputes, war, riots, civil disturbances, shortages of labour or materials, fires, flood, typhoons, earthquakes, explosions, acts of God, actions or orders issued by governmental or regulatory authorities or any courts or tribunal with applicable jurisdiction, or non-performance of third parties.
16.4 Severability. If any of these Terms are held invalid, illegal or unenforceable by any court or tribunal of competent jurisdiction, it will be severed and the remaining terms will continue in full force and effect as if these Terms had been made without the invalid, illegal or unenforceable terms. Each clause and sub-clause herein shall be treated as a separate and independent provision, and the unenforceability of any one clause shall in no way impair the enforceability of any of the other clauses herein.
16.5 Entire Agreement. These Terms contain the entire agreement between you and HKGBC and replaces all previous written or oral agreements relating to its content.
16.6 Waiver. A failure or delay by HKGBC to exercise any right or act upon a breach under these Terms will not be a waiver of that right or breach. Any waiver by HKGBC of any of its rights or of a breach of these Terms must be in writing, and such waiver is limited to the particular right or breach stated therein.
16.7 Assignment. You may not transfer any of your rights or obligations under these Terms without the written consent of HKGBC. HKGBC may transfer its rights or obligations or both to any person or entity, including any of its affiliates, without your consent.
16.8 No Partnership or Agency. Nothing in these Terms is intended to, or shall be deemed to, establish any partnership or joint venture between you or HKGBC, constitute you as the agent of HKGBC, or authorise you to make or enter into any commitments for or on behalf of HKGBC.
16.9 Language. These Terms are drafted in the English language. If these Terms are translated into any other language, the English language version shall prevail in the event of inconsistency.
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