Terms and Conditions
Effective Date: 19th November, 2025
Welcome to Emerge! These Terms and Conditions ("Terms") govern your use of our website and services ("Platform"). By creating an account or using Emerge, you agree to be bound by these Terms.
1. Account Registration
To access certain features, you must create an account and provide accurate, complete information. You’re responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your login credentials and for any activity under your account.
To help keep the community safe and ensure that all collaboration happens through Emerge, do not include personal contact info (like email addresses, phone numbers, or social handles) or links to external sites that contain that info in your public profile, portfolio, or project listings. This helps protect your privacy and ensures a safe, accountable environment for all users.
No External Contact Info in Portfolios
To protect user privacy and maintain the integrity of Emerge, you may not include personal contact details (e.g., email addresses, phone numbers, social handles, or third-party portfolio links) in your public profile, project listings, or artwork descriptions. All collaboration must occur through the platform.
2. User Content
By uploading, posting, or submitting content (including artwork, scripts, concepts, and messages) to Emerge, you represent that:
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You own the content or have the right to use it.
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Your content does not infringe any third-party rights or violate any laws.
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You retain full ownership of your content.
2A. Derivative Works and Fan Art
Users may upload artwork that includes derivative content, such as fan art based on copyrighted characters or worlds. By uploading such content, you confirm that:
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You understand the legal rights to those characters belong to their respective owners.
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Your uploaded content is for portfolio, collaboration, or educational use only, and not for direct sale or commercial promotion by Emerge.
Emerge will not use fan art or derivative works in platform marketing or promotional materials without explicit permission from both the user and the original rights holder, where required.
If you are a rights holder and believe your intellectual property has been used inappropriately, please contact us at support@emergeapp.co and we will respond promptly under our Copyright Policy.
3. License to Use Content
We will not use your original content in public platform marketing or promotional materials without obtaining your explicit permission first. Once permission is granted, we will make reasonable efforts to credit you as the creator.
4. Collaborations and Payments
Users may engage in collaborative projects. Emerge is not a party to these agreements unless explicitly stated. We provide tools to facilitate communication and, in the future, payment features like invoicing and escrow.
Each user is responsible for:
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Setting their own rates, timelines, and deliverables.
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Honoring agreements made through the platform.
5. Collaborator Agreements
When users exchange and accept offers through the Emerge platform—whether through project listings, direct messaging, or collaboration requests—both parties are entering into a direct agreement based on the terms shown in the offer (including role, service, payment method, rate, and scope of work).
These offers are considered binding once accepted, and Emerge will retain a record of the agreement for reference. Emerge is not a party to these agreements but provides tools and documentation to support transparency and accountability.
Users are responsible for honoring the terms of accepted offers. If you do not agree with the terms of an offer, you may decline or submit a counter-offer before work begins.
6. Prohibited Conduct
You agree not to use Emerge to:
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Post or share unlawful, plagiarized, or malicious content.
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Post or share content that promotes hate, violence, or discrimination based on race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or other protected characteristics.
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Harass, bully, defame, or threaten other users.
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Circumvent platform moderation tools or misrepresent your identity or affiliations.
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Share personal contact details or external links for the purpose of bypassing platform communication.
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Upload or promote content that violates another party’s intellectual property rights.
6A. Content Moderation & Reporting
Emerge supports a wide range of creative expression, including content that explores mature, political, religious, or challenging themes. However, the platform maintains standards to ensure respectful and inclusive collaboration.
By using Emerge, you agree to the following:
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User Responsibility: You are responsible for tagging and labeling your content appropriately. You must not upload content that incites hate, glorifies violence, or targets specific individuals or groups with the intent to harm, harass, or demean.
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Community Reporting: Users may report content they believe violates these Terms. Reports must include a reason (e.g., hate speech, graphic violence, stolen content, harassment) and will be reviewed by Emerge moderators.
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Moderation Process: Emerge reserves the right to remove content, restrict visibility, or suspend accounts that repeatedly or egregiously violate these guidelines. We will make reasonable efforts to notify users of moderation actions and provide an opportunity to appeal.
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Creative Freedom with Boundaries: Emerge allows for mature or controversial content if it is relevant to the artistic or narrative purpose of the project and complies with these Terms. Content that is clearly marked (e.g., Mature, 18+, Satire) may remain accessible to logged-in or age-confirmed users, as determined by platform features.
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Transparency and Fairness: We aim to moderate consistently and transparently. Our goal is to foster a community of mutual respect, where diverse creative voices can thrive without fear of censorship or harm.
7. Termination
We reserve the right to suspend or terminate accounts that violate these Terms or harm the integrity of the platform.
You may delete your account at any time. Upon deletion, we will remove your content from public areas within a reasonable timeframe.
8. Limitation of Liability
To the maximum extent permitted by New Zealand law, Emerge provides the platform on an “as is” and “as available” basis without warranties of any kind. Emerge shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, or consequential damages, including loss of profits, data, or goodwill, arising out of your use of the platform or any disputes between users. In no event shall Emerge’s total liability to you exceed $100 NZD or the total amount you paid to Emerge in the past twelve months, whichever is greater.
9. Changes to These Terms
We may update these Terms from time to time. We’ll notify users of major changes via email or platform notices. Continued use after updates indicates your acceptance of the revised Terms.
10. Contact
For questions or requests, including opting out of promotional content usage, contact us at:
Email: support@emergeapp.co
11. Governing Law and Jurisdiction
These Terms and your use of the Platform shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of New Zealand. Any dispute, controversy, or claim arising out of or in connection with these Terms, including the breach, termination, or validity thereof, shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of New Zealand.