Terms of Service

1. Acceptance of Terms

By creating an account or using the Ranked mobile application ("Ranked," "the app," "the Service"), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service ("Terms"). If you do not agree, do not use the app.

These Terms constitute a legal agreement between you and Ranked ("we," "us," "our"). We may update these Terms from time to time. Continued use after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.

2. Eligibility

You must be at least 16 years old to use Ranked.

By creating an account, you represent that you meet this age requirement and that the information you provide is accurate.

3. Your Account

3.1 Account Creation

You must provide a valid email address and choose a username to create an account. You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your login credentials.

3.2 Account Security

You are responsible for all activity that occurs under your account. Notify us immediately if you suspect unauthorized access. We are not liable for losses caused by unauthorized use of your account.

3.3 Account Accuracy

You agree to provide accurate, current information. You may update your profile (username, bio, avatar) at any time in Settings.

3.4 One Account Per Person

Each person may maintain only one account. Creating multiple accounts to manipulate ratings, evade bans, or circumvent usage limits is prohibited.

4. Acceptable Use

You agree not to:

• Manipulate ratings - submit fake, bot-generated, or coordinated inauthentic ratings to inflate or deflate scores
• Spam - post repetitive, irrelevant, or bulk content (including reviews and list entries)
• Harass or abuse - target, bully, threaten, or harass other users through any feature (challenges, reviews, follows, or other interactions)
• Impersonate - create an account or profile that misleads others into thinking you are another person or entity
• Post harmful content - submit reviews or bios containing hate speech, explicit material, personal information of others, or content that violates applicable law
• Scrape or abuse the API - use automated tools to scrape data, overload our servers, or reverse-engineer the app
• Circumvent restrictions - bypass rate limits, usage limits, premium feature gates, or security measures
• Violate third-party rights - use the app in a way that infringes copyrights, trademarks, or other rights of third parties

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate accounts that violate these rules, with or without prior notice.

5. User Content

5.1 What Is User Content

"User Content" includes your star ratings, attribute ratings, text reviews, ranked lists, favorites, and any other content you create within Ranked.

5.2 You Own Your Content

You retain ownership of all User Content you create. Ranked does not claim ownership of your ratings, reviews, or lists.

5.3 License to Ranked

By submitting User Content, you grant Ranked a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, transferable license to use, display, reproduce, and distribute your User Content in connection with operating and promoting the Service. This includes displaying your ratings in feeds, taste match comparisons, community averages, and shareable cards.

This license continues for as long as your content remains on the platform. When you delete content or your account, this license terminates (except for content that has been aggregated into anonymous statistics, such as community average ratings).

5.4 Content Moderation

We reserve the right to remove User Content that violates these Terms or applicable law, without prior notice.

6. Third-Party Content and Attribution

Ranked displays metadata (titles, descriptions, images, genres, release dates) from third-party sources:

• Movie and TV data is provided by TMDB (The Movie Database). Ranked uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB.
• Game data is provided by RAWG Video Games Database.
• Music data is provided by Spotify. Spotify content, trademarks, and logos are the property of Spotify AB.

All third-party content, metadata, images, and trademarks remain the property of their respective owners. Ranked does not claim ownership of any third-party content displayed in the app.

7. Premium Subscription (Ranked+)

7.1 Subscription Plans

Ranked offers an optional premium subscription ("Ranked+") with additional features. Plans include monthly, yearly, and lifetime options.

7.2 Billing

• Subscriptions are billed through the Apple App Store or Google Play Store, depending on your platform.
• Payment is charged to your App Store or Play Store account at confirmation of purchase.
• Subscriptions automatically renew at the end of each billing period unless canceled at least 24 hours before the renewal date.

7.3 Cancellation

• You may cancel your subscription at any time through your device's App Store or Play Store subscription settings.
• Cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period. You will retain access to premium features until then.
• Ranked cannot process cancellations or refunds directly. All billing is managed by Apple or Google.

7.4 Refunds

Refund requests must be directed to the Apple App Store or Google Play Store per their respective refund policies.

7.5 Price Changes

We may change subscription prices. Existing subscribers will be notified in advance. Price changes take effect at the start of the next billing period after notice.

7.6 Free Features

The core functionality of Ranked (rating, reviewing, lists, social features, Taste DNA) is free. Premium features are supplementary enhancements.

8. Advertising and Affiliate Links

8.1 In-App Advertising

Free-tier users may see advertisements served by third-party advertising partners within the app. Ads may appear as banners, native feed placements, interstitials, or rewarded videos. Ad content is provided by our advertising partners and does not represent endorsement by Ranked.

Ranked+ (premium) subscribers enjoy an ad-free experience. No ads are displayed to premium users.

By using the free tier, you acknowledge that ads are part of the service. You may opt out of personalized ad targeting through your device settings or consent preferences (see our Privacy Policy for details), but you cannot opt out of non-personalized ads on the free tier.

8.2 Affiliate Links and Commissions

Ranked may earn a commission when you click through links on the Detail screen to third-party services (such as streaming providers, digital stores, or music platforms) and make a qualifying purchase or subscription. These affiliate relationships are disclosed in-app via an informational tooltip.

Important:

• Affiliate links do not change the price you pay for any product or service
• The presence of affiliate links does not influence which streaming providers or stores are displayed. Provider availability is determined by TMDB, RAWG, and Spotify APIs based on your region
• Ranked does not share your personal data (profile, ratings, browsing history) with affiliate partners. Only a partner tracking ID is included in the outbound URL
• You are under no obligation to use affiliate links. You may navigate to any service directly if you prefer

8.3 Advertising Data

If you consent to personalized advertising, limited data (device advertising identifier, ad interaction data) may be shared with our advertising partners as described in our Privacy Policy. You may withdraw this consent at any time.

9. AI Features

Ranked offers AI-powered features (DNA Quiz, AI Search, Predicted Ratings) that use your rating data to generate personalized results via the Anthropic Claude API. These features:

• Have daily usage limits that apply to all users
• Process your data only for the duration of the API request
• May produce inaccurate or unexpected results -- AI outputs are provided for entertainment purposes and should not be considered authoritative

By using AI features, you acknowledge that your rating data will be sent to Anthropic for processing. See our Privacy Policy for details.

10. Intellectual Property

10.1 Our Property

The Ranked app, including its design, code, features, branding, and original content, is owned by Ranked and protected by applicable intellectual property laws. You may not copy, modify, distribute, or create derivative works of the app without our written permission.

10.2 Feedback

If you provide suggestions, ideas, or feedback about Ranked, you grant us the right to use that feedback without restriction or compensation.

11. Privacy

Your use of Ranked is also governed by our Privacy Policy, which describes how we collect, use, and protect your data.

12. Disclaimers

12.1 "As Is" Service

Ranked is provided "as is" and "as available" without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including but not limited to warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement.

12.2 No Guarantee of Availability

We do not guarantee that the app will be available at all times, error-free, or uninterrupted. We may modify, suspend, or discontinue features at any time without notice.

12.3 Third-Party Data Accuracy

We do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of content sourced from TMDB, RAWG, Spotify, or other third-party providers.

13. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law:

• Ranked and its operators shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising from your use of the Service.
• Our total liability for any claim related to the Service shall not exceed the amount you paid to Ranked in the 12 months preceding the claim, or 50 EUR, whichever is greater.
• This limitation applies regardless of the legal theory (contract, tort, negligence, strict liability, or otherwise).

Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of certain damages. In those jurisdictions, our liability is limited to the greatest extent permitted by law.

14. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Ranked, its operators, and affiliates from any claims, damages, losses, or expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising from:

• Your use of the Service
• Your User Content
• Your violation of these Terms
• Your violation of any third-party rights

15. Termination

15.1 By You

You may delete your account at any time from the Settings screen in the app. Account deletion permanently removes all your data (see our Privacy Policy for details).

15.2 By Us

We may suspend or terminate your account at any time if:

• You violate these Terms
• Your account is used for fraudulent or illegal activity
• Continued use poses a risk to other users or the Service

We will make reasonable efforts to notify you before termination, except where immediate action is necessary.

15.3 Effect of Termination

Upon termination, your right to use the Service ceases immediately. Sections that by their nature should survive (including Sections 5.3, 12, 13, 14, and 16) will survive termination.

16. Dispute Resolution

16.1 Informal Resolution

Before filing a formal dispute, you agree to contact us at [email protected] and attempt to resolve the issue informally for at least 30 days.

16.2 Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Federal Republic of Germany, without regard to conflict of law principles.

16.3 Jurisdiction

Any disputes that cannot be resolved informally shall be submitted to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Osnabrueck, Germany.

16.4 EU Consumer Rights

If you are a consumer in the European Union, nothing in these Terms affects your statutory consumer rights under applicable local law. You may also use the European Commission's Online Dispute Resolution platform.

17. General Provisions

17.1 Entire Agreement

These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy, constitute the entire agreement between you and Ranked regarding the Service.

17.2 Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions remain in full force.

17.3 No Waiver

Our failure to enforce any right or provision of these Terms does not constitute a waiver of that right or provision.

17.4 Assignment

We may assign our rights under these Terms. You may not assign your rights or obligations without our written consent.

18. Contact Us

If you have questions about these Terms, contact us at:

Email: [email protected]

Mailing Address: Rostocker Str. 39a, 49090 Osnabrueck, Germany