The Prompting Company – Terms of Use

1. Scope and Parties

1.1 These Terms of Use ("Terms") govern all use of the Ctrl0 platform and services ("Service") by customers who are businesses. They apply only if the Customer is a trader(Unternehmer) as defined in Section 14 of the German Civil Code (BGB), or a legal entity under public law or a special fund under public law. These Terms do not apply to consumers (Section 13 BGB). In particular, any statutory rights or protections granted to consumers (such as the right of withdrawal (Widerrufsrecht)) do not apply to the Service.

1.2 Ctrl0 is run by The Prompting Company GmbH ("The Prompting Company", "Provider", "we" or "us"), a company under German law. The Provider and the Customer ("you") agree that only these Terms shall govern the contract. We object to any of your general terms and conditions.

1.3 Any deviating or supplemental terms of the Customer will not become part of the contract unless we have expressly offered and/or agreed to them in text form (Section 126b BGB).

2. Services Provided by The Prompting Company

2.1****Core Service: We provide a software platform that offers AI search analytics for marketing teams. Ctrl0 is designed to help companies assess and analyze their visibility in Large Language Models (LLMs). The exact features of our service are described on our website.

2.2****Service Modifications: The Prompting Company may make reasonable changes to the Service (e.g. to improve performance or comply with laws) provided such changes do not eliminate core features of the Service. We will inform you of any material changes in a timely manner.

2.3****Third-Party Components: If our Service relies on third-party providers or data sources, availability of those external services is outside of The Prompting Company's control; if a third-party ceases to provide a necessary component, we will inform you and strive to find a suitable alternative or solution.

2.4****Interruptions: The Prompting Company uses technology on LLMs to generate data that the Customer can analyze. We do control access to LLMs and do not warrant that the Service will be completely error-free or uninterrupted, but we will use commercially reasonable efforts to promptly address any material service issues.

2.5****No Guaranteed Results: Unless explicitly agreed, The Prompting Company does not guarantee specific outcomes or results from using the Service.

3. Customer Obligations

3.1 The Customer agrees to use The Prompting Company's Service only for legitimate business purposes and in compliance with all applicable laws. You must keep confidential any login credentials and prevent unauthorized access to the Service. You are responsible for ensuring that any data or content you input into the Service does not infringe any third-party rights or violate any laws (e.g. no uploading of illicit or personal data without consent).

3.2****Prohibited Uses: You shall not reverse engineer, decompile, or otherwise misuse the Service. In the event of a breach of these obligations, The Prompting Company is entitled to temporarily suspend or restrict your access to the Service, after reasonable notice if feasible, and/or terminate the contract for cause pursuant to Section 7.3 below.

4. Intellectual Property and Data

4.1 Service IP: All intellectual property rights in the Ctrl0 Service (including the software, algorithms, models, and documentation) are and remain the exclusive property of The Prompting Company. The Prompting Company merely grants the Customer a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable right to use the Service during the term of the contract for the Customer's internal business operations, in accordance with these Terms.

4.2 Customer Data: The Customer retains all rights to the data, content, and materials that you upload or provide to The Prompting Company ("Customer Data"). By providing Customer Data, you grant The Prompting Company a license to process and use that data only to the extent necessary to perform the Service and fulfill our contractual obligations. The Prompting Company will handle Customer Data in compliance with applicable data protection laws and our Privacy Policy. We will not use or share your Customer Data for any other purposes without your consent. Upon termination of the contract, and upon your request, we will delete or return your Customer Data that remains stored with us, except to the extent we are legally required to retain it.

5. Fees, Payment Terms, and Set-off

5.1 Fees: The Customer shall pay the fees for the Service as agreed in the order or contract form (e.g. per the pricing models laid out on our website). All prices are understood to be net of applicable VAT (sales tax) which will be added as required by law.

5.2 Invoicing, Payment, and Suspension of Service: The Prompting Company will invoice fees per the agreed billing cycle (e.g. monthly or annually in advance). Invoices will be provided via Stripe –a payment service provider – or directly by us, depending on what was agreed upon. Payments are due within 14 days of the invoice date, unless a different period is specified in text form. Payment shall be made via the payment method agreed (e.g. bank transfer to the stated account or credit card). If the Customer fails to pay on time, The Prompting Company may charge statutory default interest as provided by law (Sections 288 para. 2, 286 BGB – currently 9 percentage points above the ECB base rate for B2B transactions) from the due date. The Prompting Company also reserves the right, after giving a reminder and reasonable grace period, to suspend Service access until overdue amounts are paid.

5.3 No Set-off Except for Uncontested Claims: The Customer may only set off counterclaims against The Prompting Company's payment claims if those counterclaims are undisputed by The Prompting Company or finally adjudicated by court. In other words, you cannot withhold or reduce payments by offsetting any claims you have against us, unless such claims have been acknowledged by The Prompting Company or confirmed by a final legal judgment. The Customer is not entitled to exercise a right of retention or refuse performance, except to the extent that your claim arises from the same contractual relationship and is undisputed or legally established. These restrictions are in place to ensure that payment obligations are met timely; they do not limit your right to claim damages or other remedies separately.

6. Limitation of Liability

6.1 Unlimited Liability in Certain Cases: The Prompting Company shall be liable without limit in cases of intentional misconduct or gross negligence by The Prompting Company, its legal representatives, or vicarious agents. The Prompting Company also bears full liability for any damages resulting from injury to life, body, or health caused by any negligence on our part.

6.2 Liability for Slight Negligence (Essential Duties): In cases of ordinary (slight) negligence, The Prompting Company will only be liable for the breach of essential contractual obligations. Essential obligations (Kardinalpflichten) are those duties which are fundamental to the contract and on whose fulfillment the Customer can rely.

6.3 Exclusion of Other Slight Negligence: The Prompting Company shall not be liable for breaches of duty caused by slight negligence if those duties are not essential contractual obligations.

6.4 Further Liability Limitations: To the extent The Prompting Company's liability is limited or excluded under the provisions above, the same limitations or exclusions apply to the personal liability of The Prompting Company's officers, employees, agents, and subcontractors.

6.5 Indemnification by Customer: The Customer shall indemnify and hold The Prompting Company harmless from any third-party claims arising out of the Customer's unlawful use of the Service or breach of these Terms, to the extent the Customer is responsible for such breach. (This clause would apply, for instance, if a third party sues The Prompting Company due to content the Customer provided or how the Customer used the Service.)

7. Term and Termination

7.1 Contract Term: The contract for use of the Ctrl0 Service begins when the Customer accepts these Terms and registers an account or otherwise enters into an agreement for the Service. The term of the contract is as specified in your order (e.g. a monthly or a 12-month subscription) or, if no specific term is agreed, it is for an indefinite period.

7.2 Ordinary Termination: Either party may terminate

Absent timely notice of non-renewal (if renewal is agreed), the contract may renew as per the agreed terms. Notice of termination must be given at least in text form (e.g. by email).

7.3 Termination for Cause: Either party may terminate the contract with immediate effect for cause (aus wichtigem Grund) if the legal requirements for such termination are met. Cause for The Prompting Company includes, for example, the Customer's serious breach of these Terms (such as misuse of the Service or persistent non-payment) that is not cured after warning, or insolvency of the Customer. In case of termination for cause by The Prompting Company, we may immediately suspend your access to the Service.

7.4 Effects of Termination: Upon termination or expiration of the contract, The Prompting Company will deactivate the Customer's account and cease providing the Service to the Customer. The Customer should export or save any data they need prior to the effective termination date. The Prompting Company may delete Customer Data associated with the account after a short retention period, except for data we must retain by law. Any fees paid in advance for periods after the termination will be refunded pro rata only if the termination was due to a fault of The Prompting Company or was an uncured breach by The Prompting Company; otherwise, there is no automatic refund for early termination of a fixed term. Any clauses that by their nature are meant to continue (such as confidentiality, liability, governing law, etc.) shall remain in effect despite termination.

8. Governing Law and Jurisdiction

8.1 Governing Law: This Agreement and any disputes arising out of it shall be governed by the laws of the Federal Republic of Germany, excluding its conflict-of-laws rules and excluding the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG).

8.2 Jurisdiction: The exclusive place of jurisdiction for all disputes arising from or in connection with these Terms shall be Berlin, Germany, provided that the Customer is a merchant (Kaufmann) as defined under the German Commercial Code, or a legal entity under public law, or a special fund under public law. This jurisdiction clause does not limit either party's right to seek interim injunctive relief in any appropriate jurisdiction if necessary.

9. Reference Use

The Prompting Company may publicly refer to the Customer as a client for marketing and promotional purposes. In particular, The Prompting Company is entitled to use the Customer's name, logo, and general branding in reference lists, on its website, in presentations, and in other marketing materials (both online and offline), provided this is done in a fact-based and appropriate manner. This right shall survive the termination of the contract, unless the Customer objects to such use in writing for legitimate reasons. The Prompting Company will not disclose any confidential information of the Customer in this context.

10. Final Provisions

10.1 Changes to Terms: The Prompting Company reserves the right to modify or update these Terms for future transactions. For existing contracts, The Prompting Company will notify the Customer in text form (e.g. email) of proposed changes at least 6 weeks in advance. The changes shall be deemed approved if the Customer does not object in text form within the notice period. The Prompting Company will specifically inform the Customer of this consequence in the change notice. If the Customer objects to the changes, each party has the right to terminate the contract by notice before the changes take effect.

10.2 No Oral Agreements: These Terms, together with any individual order or contract document referencing them, constitute the entire agreement between The Prompting Company and the Customer regarding the Service. There are no side agreements or representations other than those expressly contained in writing in this contract. Any amendments or additions to this contract must be made in text form (e.g. email confirmation), unless a stricter formal requirement is required by law. This also applies to any waiver of this text form requirement.

10.3 Severability: Should any provision of these Terms be or become invalid or unenforceable, the remainder of the provisions shall remain in effect. In place of the invalid provision, the parties agree to adopt a valid provision that most closely reflects the original economic intent of the invalid clause. If a valid adapting provision cannot be agreed, the relevant statutory provisions shall apply.

10.4 Contract Languages: This English version of the Terms of Use is the binding version for the contractual relationship. (Any German translation or version, if provided, is for convenience; in case of inconsistencies, the English text prevails.)

10.5 Contact and Imprint: The Prompting Company GmbH, 2261 Market Street STE 85636, San Francisco, CA 94114, is the provider of the Service. For any questions or communications regarding these Terms, you may contact us at [email protected]. Our legal notice (Impressum) and Privacy Policy can be found on our website.