At the address use.metropolis.org you can find a further official Metropolis city network website.
Operator of the website is the Berlin Senate Chancellery - Metropolis Regional Secretariat Europe, Jüdenstraße 1, 10178 Berlin, Germany (hereinafter: Metropolis). The website is hosted in Berlin and therefore in Germany.
This online service is provided on the basis of the following general terms of use. Note: For a German translation of the Terms and conditions, click here.
§ 1 Area of application
(1) These general terms and conditions apply to use of the internet portal use.metropolis.org.
(2) Deviating, conflicting or additional terms and conditions from the user or amendment to these terms shall not apply.
§ 2 Object of use, access and operation
(1) Requisite to use use.metropolis.org is online access to the internet. Connecting to the internet may be subject to connection or telephone charges from the applicable provider.
(2) The user can acquire information about Metropolis in the scope of the portal. All new offers from Metropolis that broaden and/or improve the scope of service to date are also subject to these terms of use.
(3) Use of the service is free of charge insofar as no charges are cited in conjunction with the respective service. Metropolis expressly reserves the right to introduce charges for individual services.
(4) The user must first register before using certain services. In this case, the user must provide authentic, accurate, current and full information about themselves in accordance with the respective registration form and to update these details when required so that these remain authentic, up to date and complete. In the event of a breach, Metropolis has the right to temporarily or permanently exclude the user from the use of the service. Metropolis reserves the right to only provide certain services to adult users.
(5) Metropolis has the right to change, redesign, withdraw or otherwise modify the website at any time. For technical reasons this may incur restrictions to time and/or content availability of the system. There is no claim to correct access to the portal at all times or undisturbed functioning or availability of the service offered. This shall particularly apply insofar as access to the services and portal are disrupted by causes outside the control of Metropolis.
(6) Metropolis makes every effort to enable access to the website for all users 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Temporary service interruptions on the grounds of customary servicing, system , system immanent disruption of the internet by third party providers or third party internet operators as well in the event of force majeure are however possible. User shall however have no claim to a permanent, undisrupted access to the internet portal.
§ 3 Liability for content
(1) Metropolis endeavours to provide accurate and complete information, shall however not assume any guarantee that information provided on this site is up-to-date, accurate or complete.
(2) For own content that Metropolis has provided for use; Metropolis grants users a simple, non-transferable right to private use on a single position system. Own content shall be monitored for viruses by Metropolis with customary programmes.
(3) As regards content and third party information that Metropolis stores for a user, liability on the part of Metropolis is in accordance with Sect. 10 of the German Telemedia Act (TMG). It is the obligation of the user to ensure the accuracy and legality of third party content and information and that these are free of viruses.
(4) Portal users have the possibility through direct and indirect links to access third party websites that are not operated by Metropolis or its responsibility. Metropolis assumes no liability for the content of these third party websites or services. Metropolis can therefore not be held liable for damage or losses arising through or in conjunction with the use or trust in such content or that are incurred or arise on the grounds of goods or services that are acquired via such third party sites or sources.
(5) Metropolis expressly declares that at the time the links were placed, no illegal content on linked sites was evident. However Metropolis has no influence on the current or future structure of the linked content and information.
§ 4 Links
Linking on the website is generally permitted and free of charge.
§ 5 Duties of the user
(1) User activities that are aimed at causing the services from Metropolis to malfunction or to prevent, hinder or delay their use are prohibited and may be pursued by Metropolis in civil and criminal law. Users are specifically prohibited from distributing or installing files with executable programmes or scripts (e.g. cgi, perl, php formats) so-called junk or spam mails, viruses, worms or Trojans etc., operating e-mail bombing or denial of service attacks, to distribute works protected by copyright without authorisation (e.g. software, mp3-files, audio formats, image formats) and from using products intended by Metropolis for private use for commercial purposes(e.g. through banner advertisements).
(2) In the scope of activities of use, the user is to ensure that particularly no third party rights such as copyrights, trademarks, patented rights and general personality rights are violated.
(3) The user is obligated to exempt Metropolis from all third party rights that are asserted against Metropolis on the grounds of or in conjunction with user activities under the terms of paragraph 1, insofar as the user is responsible. Metropolis has the right to temporarily or permanently exclude the user from using all services as soon as Metropolis becomes aware of a violation against paragraph 1.
(4) The user grants Metropolis a simple, nonexclusive exploitation right to reports he has authored. The aforementioned simple exploitation right includes the right for Metropolis to edit contributions where necessary, e.g. to shorten or rewrite these.
§ 6 Data security
The internet is a publically accessible system. The disclosure of information on the part of the user via the internet is at own risk. Data may get lost or obtained by unauthorised persons. Nevertheless, Metropolis warrants that the programme-related information provided in its system shall be protected in accordance with customary standards and the statutory provisions.
§ 7 Data protection
Applicable to the handling of personal user data is the Privacy Policy (Information about data protection).
§ 8 Termination of the contractual relationship
The contractual relationship is principally concluded for an unlimited time period, unless otherwise provided in the special terms and conditions for respective services. For services from Metropolis for which no registration is required and are provided free of charge, user and Metropolis are mutually entitled to cease use or provision at any time.
§ 9 Liability of Metropolis
(1) Metropolis is liable in accordance with the statutory provisions for losses arising through death, endangerment to health or personal injury in accordance with the German Product Liability Act.
(2) For other damage, Metropolis is exclusively liable in accordance with the following provisions:
a) Metropolis is liable in accordance with the statutory provisions for damage that is initiated by Metropolis, its vicarious agents or senior employees through fraudulent or culpable acts or grossly negligent conduct.
b) Metropolis is liable for compensation restricted to the amount of foreseeable damage typical for the contract for damage arising through a soft negligent breach of significant contractual duties or cardinal duties (1st alternative) and for damage arising through Metropolis‘ simple vicarious agents through gross negligence or maliciously without the breach of significant contractual duties or cardinal duties (2nd alternative).
c) Metropolis is not liable in the scope of § 9 paragraph 2 b) 1stalternative for economic loss, indirect damage and third party claims.
(3) Metropolis is only liable for the recovery of data insofar as the user has met all requisite and reasonable data securing measures and has ensured that the data from data material that is available in machine-readable form can be reconstructed at reasonable cost.
(4) Otherwise, Metropolis excludes all other liability. In particular, Metropolis is not liable for the interruption of services or damage of any form on the grounds of denial of service attacks, e-mail bombing or computer viruses that are the responsibility of third parties and not Metropolis.
(5) The user is obligated to report any damage in accordance with the aforementioned liability provision to Metropolis in writing or via email without delay in order that Metropolis is informed as early as possible and can where applicable with the user collectively undertake measures to limit or decrease the damage. This does not prejudice the user’s duty to undertake damage limitation measures.
§ 10 Copy and trademark rights
(1) The website layout, the graphics and texts use, with the exception of the official works viewable via the portal are protected by copyright. Any reproduction or exploitation of such graphics and texts in other electronic or printed form is, excluding use for private purposes, not permitted without express authorisation from Metropolis.
(2) Metropolis makes every effort to observe copyrights and texts and graphics used in all publications or to use unlicensed graphics and texts. All named and where applicable third party protected brands and trademarks on the website are subject without restriction to the provisions of the applicable property rights and the holder rights of the respective registered owner. It should not be concluded solely based on the plain name that trademarks are not protected by third party rights.
§ 11 Grant of rights
(1) The User grants to Metropolis, with no limitations in respect of territory and term of exploitation, for the duration of the statutory term of copyright and of any possible extensions thereto
a) the exclusive and transferable right to duplicate and disseminate the Work or parts thereof, using digital storage and reproduction media, irrespective of the technical equipment used and including all digital and interactive systems (including CD-ROM, CD-I);
b) the right to store the data electronically on a database and to make the data publicly available;
c) the right to duplicate, disseminate and edit the Work in any other way, in particular by using digital, photomechanical and similar procedures (e.g. photocopies).
(2) With regard to the Work, the User also grants to Metropolis rights to types of exploitation that are unknown at the time of concluding this agreement.
(3) The User also assures that he alone has the unrestricted rights – as specified in sub-clause (1) above – to the Work, and that, to date, he has not made any arrangement contrary to this agreement and will not do so in future. To this extent, the User indemnifies Metropolis in full against all claims by third parties.
§ 12 Final provisions
(1) Metropolis has the right to amend these general terms and conditions and the special terms and conditions of use for special services without provision of grounds and at any time. The amended terms shall be announced two weeks in advance of their implementation to the contracting parties on the homepage or via email with a link to the internet site on which the currently applicable terms can be inspected. If the user continues use without objection or omits to contest the validity of the amended terms within a term of four weeks, the amended terms and conditions shall be deemed accepted. Metropolis shall separately advise the user of these legal consequences in the announcement.
(2) In business transactions with companies, legal entities under public law or special funds under public law, Berlin applies as place of performance and legal venue, unless otherwise agreed.
(3) Metropolis has the right to transfer the rights and duties arising from the agreement to a third party. The transfer shall be announced to the user in a timely manner via email with an advance notice of fourteen days. In the event of a transfer on the part of Metropolis, the user shall receive the right to terminate without notice.
(4) The law of the German Federal Republic shall apply.
(5) In the event that a provision of these general terms and conditions of use are or should become invalid this shall not prejudice the validity of the remaining provisions.