TERM OF AGREEMENT
This Terms and Conditions Agreement (hereon after Agreement) between CreativeTek, Inc. (hereon after CreativeTek) and the client shall commence on the date the first services are rendered and continue in full force during all future interactions between the parties.
Changes to this Agreement may be made from time to time. Updates will be made available at www.creativetek.net/terms. CreativeTek will notify the Client by email of such changes. All changes are applicable, even if CreativeTek has been unable to notify the Client of such changes for any reason. This Agreement is the sole and entire agreement between the parties relating to the subject matter hereof, and supersedes all prior understandings, agreements and documentation relating to the subject matter hereof.
This Agreement shall be interpreted in accordance with the substantive law of the State of Nebraska.
REPAIR SERVICES
Computer and other device services and repairs are provided as a service in an attempt to correct or improve the condition affecting a device. Positive results cannot be guaranteed in every case due to the nature of electronics, software, age of device, and other factors. Acceptance by CreativeTek of a device for repairs does not guarantee that a repair is possible. There may be circumstances under which the repair is not possible, or the cost of services and parts necessary for the repair would be excessive and therefore deemed unreasonable by either party.
Upon request, CreativeTek may offer an estimated time or date of completion for a repair. In some cases, the length of time required to attempt or perform the repair may exceed the estimated time frame provided. There are multiple factors which may interfere with timely completion, for example: shipping of delays, problems with updates, extent of damage, or other unforeseen circumstances. In some cases, the Client must be contacted by a CreativeTek team member to request further information or to ask the Client to make a decision about the repair. If the Client is not available, work will be halted until the Client reaches back and another time slot becomes available on the team member’s schedule.
In some cases, CreativeTek may need to uninstall software from the device in order to attempt a repair. It is the Client’s responsibility to inform CreativeTek of any software of specific importance which should not be removed.
In some cases, CreativeTek may need to install software (such as anti-virus) in order to attempt a repair. This software will be removed from the device after the repair is complete unless the Client chooses to purchase and keep the software.
Some repairs may require the reinstallation of the operating system. This process requires that the Customer’s hard drive is erased in order to perform a clean reinstallation of the operating system onto the same hard drive. In such cases, and if the Client requests it, CreativeTek will make a backup of the Client’s files onto a CreativeTek-owned storage device so that the files can be restored after the reinstallation is complete. Although CreativeTek performs such backup as thoroughly as possible, in some rare cases, some files may be lost in the process. It is the Client’s responsibility to inform CreativeTek of any files of significant concern or importance so that CreativeTek can manually verify these files are backed up. Alternatively, the Client may choose to perform their own backup instead. Under no circumstances are programs transferrable during an operating system reinstall. CreativeTek will make an attempt to recover license information in order to facilitate reinstallation of programs after the repair is completed. It is ultimately the Client’s responsibility to provide license numbers and installation media for any given program. In some cases, files which were backed up and restored, cannot be opened by the Client’s computer. This situation may arise when the program which created the files is no longer present on the device after the reinstallation of the operating system. In such cases, the Client should find the original installation media and license information for such program, or purchase a new version of the program.
During any repair, the possibility of data loss, or physical damage to a device is small, but not negligible. Although precautions are in place to avoid losses or damages, electronic components are delicate and prone to fail or break. CreativeTek is not responsible for loss of data or failure or breakage of parts under any circumstance. An offer to remediate a loss – either in the form of replacement, restitution, or discount – may be made in an effort to alleviate the Client’s situation. Such offer shall not be deemed a sign of responsibility or acceptance of any fault on the part of CreativeTek.
All repairs performed via remote control and repairs performed by the Client with advice from CreativeTek are subject to the same terms and conditions.
PRODUCT SALES
CreativeTek is a value-added reseller. As such, CreativeTek not only sells boxed, unopened products directly to the Client, but also offers the option to configure, customize, assemble, and/or install the product for the Client. If customizations are requested – as in the purchase of a new computer or printer – the Client is expressly allowing CreativeTek to remove the product from its original packaging and customize it on the Client’s behalf. During this process, the product becomes an open box product per most vendors’ return policies.
If during the customization process, CreativeTek discovers a product to be defective, CreativeTek will not sell such product to the Client. A new product of the same specifications will ordered and/or prepared for the Client. CreativeTek will negotiate return or replacement of the defective item with the vendor. After delivery of the product has been made to the Client, any defects discovered thereafter are considered warranty issues. The client may choose to contact the manufacturer or to hire CreativeTek to conduct the process on the Client’s behalf. CreativeTek offers an Extended Warranty subscription service with covers eligible products in case of warranty issues.
If a product being customized for the Client is discovered to be defective, shipping of a replacement product may delay the estimated delivery date. Other than defects which may be discovered during customization process, CreativeTek does not perform any specific tests to ensure the product is not defective. For purposes of manufacturer warranty, unless a defect is discovered during customization, the Client assumes ownership of the product at the time delivery is made to the Client. The Client may be liable for shipping costs if the manufacturer’s warranty excludes shipping.
In some cases, the clients existing files – transferred from another computer – cannot be opened by a Client’s new computer. This situation may arise when the program which created the files is not present on the new computer. In such cases, the Client should find the original installation media and license information for such program, or purchase a new version of the program.
On purchases of software which is to be installed by CreativeTek on the Client’s behalf, the Client assumes ownership of the product the moment it is opened or unsealed for purposes of installation. This provision applies even if the Client’s computer is unable to support the software for any reason. CreativeTek shall conduct a reasonable compatibility assessment prior to the sale. However, some assumptions may be necessary, for example, that the Client’s computer is not obsolete, or that there aren’t pre-existing problems with the computer which may render the software useless unless the problems are repaired.
Due to the nature of technology products, CreativeTek has a strict return policy. All sales are final with the following exceptions: 1). an in-stock product in unopened, sealed and undamaged packaging can be returned for store credit within 30 days of the invoice date, 2). a special-order item in unopened, sealed and undamaged packaging can be returned for store credit within 7 days of the invoice date subject to a 20% restocking fee. A product which has been customized or is in open box condition is not returnable or refundable. CreativeTek assumes no responsibility over the product or its suitability or defects.
WARRANTIES
There are no express or implied warranties other than those provided by the manufacturer of products sold to the Client. No warranties whether express or implied, including, but not limited to, any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose shall apply. No other express or implied warranty or guarantee given by any person, firm or corporation with respect to these products and services shall be binding on CreativeTek. CreativeTek assumes no responsibility that the product and/or service will be fit for any particular purpose for which the Client may be buying the product and/or service, except as otherwise provided in the manufacturer’s warranty or in applicable law. CreativeTek shall not be liable for loss of data, loss of revenue, profits, failure to realize savings or other benefits, or any other special, incidental or consequential damages caused by the use, misuse, or inability to use these products and/or services, regardless of the legal theory on which the claim is based, and even if CreativeTek has been advised of the possibility of such damages. No recovery of any kind against CreativeTek shall be greater in amount than the purchase price of the products and/or services sold by CreativeTek and causing the alleged damage. The Client assumes all risk and liability for loss, damage or injury to the Client and the Client’s property and to others and their property arising out of the use, misuse, or inability to use these products and services.
The parties acknowledge that during the provision of services under this Agreement, the Client may experience outages or other downtime across the Client’s IT ecosystem. CreativeTek shall use its best efforts to prevent such loss and shall not be liable for any losses caused by such outages or downtime.
SECURITY
CreativeTek sells, customizes, supports, and installs, devices which are connected to the Internet and therefore may become targets for hackers, viruses, malware, and other threats inherent to the Internet. CreativeTek takes a reasonable degree of care to ensure such devices are not readily exposed to threats. New computers sold and customized by CreativeTek may include an antivirus software, whether purchased by the Client or free for a trial period. Network devices installed and customized by CreativeTek may be enabled with security features out of the box, except when such features would incur an additional cost. In such cases, and if the feature seems necessary, the Client may be presented with the option to buy the additional features.
CreativeTek employs the use of complex passwords created on behalf of the Client when customizing a product which requires passwords. CreativeTek also employs such complex passwords in the creation of wireless networks on access points.
To help alleviate the exposure to threats, CreativeTek offers additional security services, such as Monitoring and Security and Maintenance. Such services are offered at a cost and invoiced separately. Unless such services are purchased or received as a trial, the Client should not assume that CreativeTek is monitoring or in any way actively maintaining any device.
The Client acknowledges that there are an ever-growing number of threats on the Internet and within the local network. Individuals and Corporations of all sizes can be breached or attacked at any given time. CreativeTek assumes no responsibility for any breach or attack.
The parties acknowledge that in the course of performing the services under this Agreement, a risk for data loss exists. CreativeTek will use its best efforts to prevent data loss. CreativeTek shall not be liable for data loss during the provision of services under this Agreement. As the owner and/or operator of the computers, firewalls, and all other connected devices, the Client, Client’s employees, agents, and other authorized persons (hereon after collectively Authorized Persons) have the ability to change settings and use the devices in ways which can increase the risk of breach or attack. The Client is encouraged to develop and maintain usage policies governing the behavior of the Client’s Authorized Persons. CreativeTek is not liable for any security compromise or damages resulting from an Authorized Person’s actions, whether intentional or accidental.
THIRD PARY ACCESS
The parties acknowledge that remote access to the Client’s systems may be provided to third parties through commercially available remote support tools as necessary to provide services to the Client. Such third parties may include the Client’s software vendors or CreativeTek contractors, software vendors, or tech support agents. The parties acknowledge that third-party applications may monitor and collect details about the systems regarding CPU, Memory, Hard Drive and other items for the purposes of detecting suspicious activity, malware, and performance issues.
In all instances when third parties are allowed remotely access the Client’s systems, a CreativeTek team member will monitor the session and ensure the third-party’s remote session is ended.
PAYMENTS AND COLLECTIONS
Full payment is expected on or before the due date of every invoice. Advanced payment may be required for special order products. In cases when a special-order product is purchased by the Client, but prepayment is not required, payment is due on the due date indicated on the invoice regardless of whether the product has been delivered.
CreativeTek accepts cash, checks, all major credit cards, and electronic check payments. Payments made by check may be processed electronically the same day they are received and may clear the Client’s bank account as soon as the next business day.
A late payment penalty of up to 3% but not to exceed $25 may be assessed on all past-due invoices. Furthermore, interest charges will be applied to all past due invoices. The rate of interest is calculated at 12% per year. An amount is considered delinquent 30 days after the invoice due date. CreativeTek reserves the right to pursue available means of collection on delinquent amounts. The Client is responsible for the costs incurred by CreativeTek in attempts to collect the debt.
CONFIDENTIALITY
CreativeTek and the Client acknowledge that in the course of performing under this Agreement, each party may be provided with or given access to information, in oral, recorded, electronic or written form, which information is proprietary and confidential to the other party. The parties agree that each shall use the same degree of care in preventing the disclosure of any confidential information to any third party as each party uses with regard to its own information of similar importance, however, in no event shall either party employ less than a reasonable degree of care to protect any proprietary or confidential information. Confidential information shall only be disclosed to employees, agents or independent contractors who have a need to know the information for the purposes of providing services under this Agreement. CreativeTek does not otherwise sell, publish, or share confidential information.
Confidential Information, as used herein, shall not include, and neither party shall have any obligations of confidentiality with respect to information that:
Confidential Information shall include all material, non-public, business related information, whether written or oral, regardless of whether it is marked as confidential, that is disclosed or made available to either party by the other party, directly or indirectly, through any means of communication or observation by the disclosing party or its representatives and shall include, at a minimum, any information protected by the laws of the State of Nebraska or any federal legislation (i.e. HIPAA, FERPA, etc.).
ACCEPTANCE OF THIS AGREEMENT
By engaging with CreativeTek in the purchase of products and/or services, the Client agrees to these terms and conditions of service. By continuing to use CreativeTek’s services after receipt of any changes contained herein, an existing Client agrees to these terms and conditions of service as modified.
Not all services are included in all plans. Please consult your Technology Plan to verify which services you have.
Prepaid Service Hours: Herein after “hours” are prepaid labor hours added to the Client’s account on the first day of every calendar month which can cover the cost of services provided to the Client. At the time any services are provided to the client, billable hours will be calculated for such services. Any available prepaid hours will be deducted from the account balance to cover the cost of any services provided. If billable hours for services rendered during a calendar month exceed the balance of hours available in the account, the excess will be billed to the Client. On the other hand, hours which are not used during the month in which they were added, can be banked (accumulated) for up to 12 months. Any prepaid hours not used within the 12-month period will expire and will be removed from the account. Types of services which can be paid using prepaid hours include Support Services, Repair Services, Installation Services and Networking Services. Hours cannot be used to pay for QuickBooks Services or Custom Services, like app development. Hours cannot be used to pay for Products, Mileage, Shipping, or other Fees. Hours have no cash value and can not be refunded or redeemed for any other items, tangible or intangible. If the Client is late making a payment on any given month, hours for said month are not added to the account until payment is received.
Emergency and After-hours Fee: Services are provided to the Client at the regular hourly rates shown on Page 1 of the Client’s Technology Plan during CreativeTek’s posted business hours. Services are usually provided within a few hours, but usually not more than two business days, from the time the Client submits a support request. CreativeTek, at its discretion may decide to prioritize support requests based on urgency, impact, and other factors. If the customer requires Services be provided outside CreativeTek’s posted business hours, or sooner than the usual response time, an Emergency Fee or After-hours Fee may be assessed on the services. The fee shall be no more than $49 per hour with a minimum of $49. The Client shall clearly request Emergency or After-hours support in order to receive support under these conditions. Prepaid Service Hours can not be applied to pay for Emergency or After-hours Fees.
Technology Roadmap: Twice per calendar year, CreativeTek shall compile and present to the Client information and reports on the Client’s account and IT ecosystem. This includes conducting IT Assessments and preparing actionable reports for the Client. Semiannual meetings covering the findings of such audits shall be offered to the Client. Technology roadmap meetings are offered in order to help the client make informed decisions regarding their business.
Monitoring and Security (Computers and Servers): CreativeTek shall install commercially available software on the client’s computers and servers which allows for a). monitoring device health status, b). apply regularly scheduled maintenance actions (see Maintenance below), c.) provide protection against viruses and malware, d). allow CreativeTek remote access to tools within the device, and e.) allow CreativeTek to remote control the device. This subscription includes software licensing and CreativeTek’s time for conducting monitoring activities such as auditing and notifying the Client. Additional services such as remediation or repairs of issues discovered by Monitoring and Security may be covered by the Maintenance subscription or may be billable separately as Support Services or Repair Services.
Maintenance (Computers and Servers): Monitoring and Security software may, from time to time, notify CreativeTek about required maintenance actions or problems with a device. CreativeTek may take one or both of the following actions when such notifications are received: a). take the necessary action to resolve the issue, b.) ask the client for permission to take the necessary action. CreativeTek shall additionally conduct periodic audits and take actions in order to maintain the Client’s devices in good working condition within the devices’ capabilities. Maintenance includes CreativeTek’s time for maintaining the Client’s devices using the tools installed for Monitoring and Security. Maintenance actions may include manual Operating System updates, driver Updates, or changes to security settings. Services deemed to be Repairs, such as virus removal, hardware replacement, or diagnosing problems are not considered Maintenance and are billable separately as Support Services or Repair Services.
Monitoring and Security (Network): CreativeTek shall conduct automated and periodic audits of the Client’s network ecosystem. These audits include a). scanning the network internally to identify unwanted devices, b). scanning the network externally to identify vulnerabilities c). verifying the configuration of network devices against our documentation to detect unauthorized changes, c). verifying that supported network devices have the latest firmware versions, and e). verifying that network devices can still receive further security updates from the manufacturer. Additional services such as remediation or repairs of issues discovered by Monitoring and Security may be covered by the Maintenance subscription or may be billable as Support Services or Networking Services.
Maintenance (Network): Monitoring and Security audits may, from time to time, uncover required maintenance actions or problems with a network device. CreativeTek may take one or both of the following actions when such situations arise: a). take the necessary action to resolve the issue, b.) ask the client for permission to take the necessary action. CreativeTek shall additionally conduct periodic audits and take actions in order to maintain the Client’s devices in good working condition within the devices’ capabilities. Maintenance includes CreativeTek’s time for maintaining the Client’s network devices using the tools installed for Monitoring and Security. Maintenance actions may include manual firmware updates, new recommended configurations, or changes to security settings. Services deemed to be Repairs, such as hardware replacement or diagnosing problems are not considered Maintenance and are billable.
Web Filtering: The antivirus installed on the Client’s devices includes a browser extension which helps end users determine the risk level of Internet websites and search results. The extension has been verified to work with these browsers: Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge (Chromium), and Mozilla Firefox. It is the end user’s responsibility to ensure the extension is active. The extension uses a vendor’s database of known malicious websites to determine its rankings and suggestions.
Advanced Web Filtering: CreativeTek shall install software on the Client’s devices which restricts end users’ access to some categories of Internet content. Such content categories include, malicious websites (known to host malware), adult content, gambling, social media, shopping, and more. The Client shall have full discretion as to which categories are blocked. To improve the quality of the results, CreativeTek may also modify DNS servers at the Client’s router or server. It may occur that the software vendor mis categorizes and therefore blocks access to a website the Client would like to visit. In such cases it is the Client’s responsibility to contact CreativeTek and request a website to be whitelisted (or allowed). Labor hours are not included in this subscription, the fee is only for licensing. Other than initial setup and training, which are provided free of charge, any requests to provide training , conduct research, modify settings, or whitelist specific content are billable as Support Services.
Extended Warranty: CreativeTek shall assume the cost of replacement parts for the Client’s covered computers and servers in cases where a hardware component fails. Services provided by CreativeTek for replacing the affected part(s) are also covered, limited to the extent of returning the device to working condition. Services for restoring data, reinstalling Client-specific software, or reconfiguring Client-specific preferences are not covered under this Warranty. Loss of data, loss of income, or any other damages, tangible or intangible, are not covered under this Warranty. Consequential damage caused by external factors such as power surges, brownouts, liquid spills, physical impacts or others are not covered by this Warranty. Cosmetic damages are not covered by this Warranty. In cases where replacement parts are not available to repair the device, the Client may be offered a refurbished device of similar specifications or a new device. Alternatively, a discount equivalent to the device’s value may be offered towards the purchase of a new device from CreativeTek. Devices over 5 years old are not covered under this Warranty, in lieu of repairs, a discount may be offered towards the purchase of a new device from CreativeTek. CreativeTek does not assume any responsibility or liability from the manufacturer of the device. The purpose of this Warranty is limited to paying for repairs conducted by CreativeTek to the device in case of hardware failure.
Rapid Replacement: In cases when a computer or server needs to be replaced quickly, the Client will have preferential access over other clients to devices kept in stock at CreativeTek.
Computer and Server Backup: CreativeTek shall install commercially available software labeled as CreativeTek Backup on the client’s computers which allows for configuration of automated backups. Computer backups will be configured to run at regular intervals, usually daily. Backups may be stored on remote servers, on a local hard drive, or both. Backups may be configured to save the entire computer image, only specific user files, or both. Labor hours are not included in this subscription, the fee is only for licensing. Other than initial setup, which is provided free of charge, any requests to verify the backups, provide training, conduct research, or restore data are billable as Support Services.
Recovery Planning and Testing: CreativeTek shall conduct an annual review of the Client’s backup settings and configurations in addition to performing a test restoration of all the data. CreativeTek will prepare a report with the findings and present it to the Client. In addition, a virtual disaster recovery scenario will be prepared to illustrate the different strengths and opportunities of the Client’s IT ecosystem including data, devices, and end users.
