Terms of Service

Effective January 01, 2009

Indiqo.media, founded in january, 2006 by Maximilian Bartel is a small enterprise mostly servicing small to medium businesses which require visually appealing print and web solutions. As time has passed, revenues and client projects have grown drastically and have raised expectations of service, quality and professionalism. This evolution was never anticipated and the basic policies of how indiqo.media was to be operated were unwritten with a reliance upon good faith between company and client. Such an informal system has become less relevant and the need for a mature, formalized general contract has become apparent. This document has been written in order to address that need. It is intended to clarify the obligations and expectations between company and client so that a mutually beneficial business relationship can be conducted in an atmosphere of professionalism and as a means to protect the interests of both parties involved.

Services Offered

Indiqo.media offers design services in print and web applications. Every effort is made to provide quality design products that comply with the latest technical standards. For specific enquiries about particular projects, it is best to contact Maximilian Bartel at max@indiqo.eu to ensure the feasibility of a particular project. Indiqo.media does not formally provide print brokering services and is not formally equipped to quote press costs or to coordinate deliveries of printed products. It is best to secure your own printing service that can best meet your budget and deadline constraints.

Indiqo.media provides professional web design services. Static and dynamic web site design services are available, using the open source Content Management System Concrete5, Subdreamer CMS, ExpressionEngine, Joomla, WordPress and Symphony. Please ensure that your web hosting provider supports PHP and MySQL for dynamic and interactive web services. As web development involves long-term planning and production, please allow several weeks before launching a live website. This time delay will vary on a per project basis.

Rates

The current design charge is based on a €38,00 EUR per hour rate. A flat fee can be negotiated in advance and will be based on the estimated time required to complete a project based on this rate in adherence to a well-defined purview of included services. Any services or work required outside the defined purview of an estimated flat fee will be charged additionally at the current hourly rate. If the current rate changes, all clients will be advised in advance by email and all current projects prior to the rate change will be charged at the previous rate. All new projects will be charged at the new rate.

Interdiction of Speculative Work

No work will be performed for speculative purposes. The client must agree in advance that any initial design work that he or she rejects at the outset with an intent to cease the project must be compensated to indiqo.media at no less than 3 hours work or 96,00 EUR. The client also agrees that any work submitted by indiqo.media and rejected immediately cannot be in turn used in any form, shape or fashion and any use of the rejected work in whole or in part will immediately put the client in a position of legal liability even after compensation for cessation of the project in question.

Availability of Services

Indiqo.media is not liable for services not rendered within a certain time period unless otherwise stated. Direct contact by phone during normal business hours is just possible for German speaking clients. It is recommended to correspond by email. All messages are monitored throughout the day as best as possible.

Indiqo.media does operate on weekends, but timely services are not guaranteed unless negotiated in advance. Under no circumstances will design services be done past 12 pm CET or before 6 am CET. Contact with indiqo.media during these off hours must be done by email and will be addressed the following day. Please allow enough time to complete a project well in advance of your desired deadline to compensate for unforeseen circumstances.

Because of certain health issues and circumstances beyond my control, indiqo.media may not be available to provide services on a continuous basis. This is the disadvantage of a single-person freelance operation and it is highly recommended that clients have a backup plan with an alternate supplier in crucial situations should operations be suspended due to incapacitation. Should services become suspended or delayed, the client has a right to completely cancel a project in progress thus incurring zero charges, in which case any material produced is discarded and prohibited from use, or a charge to be levied to the client at a discount to transfer materials in mid-production to the client for completion by an alternate supplier. The client may also choose to place the project in progress on hold and suspend production till operations resume where it will go forward from thereon. A discount due to a delay in production may be applied at the discretion of indiqo.media in the most serious cases. Discount rates are to be assessed by indiqo.media on a per case basis and every attempt will be made to reach a mutually fair settlement.

Invoicing and Payment

Indiqo.media operates in Germany, but can service clients in the United States and further abroad. All invoice totals are in European Euros.

Invoices are issued by email to the primary client contact. Clients have thirty days (30) following the issuance date on the invoice to pay the full amount after which a 5% APR late payment interest charge will be applied to the total bill amount and compounded annually. Clients with late payments will be advised by email thirty (30) days following the delinquent invoice's issuing date and every fifteen (15) days thereafter.

Payment may be made by PayPal to sales@indiqo.eu using an existing PayPal account or a credit card.

No single client may carry an account balance exceeding €500 EUR. Any client carrying such a balance must pay a partial payment to bring their account under the €500 outstanding limit. Failure to do so will suspend all work in progress till such settlement is paid.

Clients are free to dispute a charge on an invoice and every effort will be made to reach a mutually agreeable settlement. Refusal to pay an invoice will result in barring the client in question from all future services till payment is made, including interest charges for delays exceeding the thirty (30) day limit.

50% of the estimated value of a project will be charged in advance, another 50% on completion.

Even though it was never necessary in the past, all deposit and balance fees paid are non-refundable due to the fact that creative property can't be controlled once released and compensation for the work accomplished is required.

Ownership of Produced Materials

The client retains the right to repurpose material supplied by indiqo.media in all appropriate applications for branding and promotional purposes. Digital back up of materials are retained by indiqo.media, but cannot be guaranteed to be always available in the case of mechanical failure, natural disaster or theft. Digital materials already produced and paid for can be requested free of charge in the case of misplacement by the client.

The client gives indiqo.media the right to use the image of their completed or incomplete project, including any and all intermediary unpublished drafts, as part of a portfolio for display on web sites, company collateral and other media outlets for the purposes of promoting its services.

Compliance with this General Contract

By ordering design services from indiqo.media, you are acknowledging these service terms and conditions presented herein and agree to comply therewith. Failure to comply with this general contract constitutes a breach of agreement and releases indiqo.media of any obligation to fulfill services requested and constitutes a waiver of all liability on the part of indiqo.media until compliance is reestablished in accordance with the terms and conditions set herein. If the client does not wish or cannot comply with these terms and conditions I suggest to contact me to negotiate modifications on a per case basis.

If there are any comments or concerns regarding this general contract, you may direct them by email to max@indiqo.eu.