Terms

1. Scope, right to amend, content of the contract, change of contracting party

1.1

We provide all deliveries and services exclusively on the basis of these terms and conditions.

1.2

We are entitled to amend the content of this contract with the customer’s consent, provided that the amendment is reasonable for the customer, taking our interests into account. Consent to the amendment is deemed to have been given if the customer does not object to the amendment within four weeks of receipt of the notice of amendment. We undertake to inform the customer in the notice of amendment of the consequences of failing to object.

1.3

We do not recognise general terms and conditions of the customer that deviate in whole or in part from these terms and conditions unless we have expressly agreed to them in writing. These terms and conditions also apply exclusively if we provide our services without reservation in the knowledge of conflicting terms and conditions of the customer.

1.4

The various top-level domains (TLDs) are administered by a large number of different, mostly national organisations. Each of these domain allocation organisations has established different conditions for the registration and administration of the top-level domains, the associated sub-level domains and the procedure for domain disputes. Insofar as top-level domains are the subject of the contract, the corresponding allocation conditions apply in addition. Insofar as .de domains are the subject of the contract, the DENIC registration conditions also apply.

1.5

We are entitled to transfer our rights and obligations under this contract to one or more third parties (assumption of contract). In the event of an assumption of contract, the customer has the right to terminate the contract without notice.

2. Obligations to perform

2.1

We guarantee an availability of our servers of 99% on an annual average. This excludes times when the server cannot be reached due to technical or other problems beyond our control (force majeure, fault of third parties, etc.). We may restrict access to the services if this is required for the security of network operations, the maintenance of network integrity, in particular the avoidance of serious disruptions to the network, the software or stored data.

2.2

Only one of our plans can be used for each internet domain of the customer.

2.3

Unless otherwise agreed, a data transfer volume of two gigabytes per month is included in the plan. The data transfer volume used is the sum of all data transfers connected with the customer’s order (e.g. e-mails, downloads, uploads, web pages). For determining the data transfer volume, one gigabyte equals one thousand megabytes, one megabyte one thousand kilobytes and one kilobyte one thousand bytes.

2.4

The customer selects a specific plan when ordering. Different promotional offers cannot be combined.

3. Domain registration, indemnification, domain disputes, domain buy-back

3.1

When obtaining and/or maintaining domains, we act merely as an intermediary in the relationship between the customer and the respective domain allocation organisation. We have no influence on domain allocation and give no guarantee that the domains applied for on behalf of the customer will be allocated at all and/or that allocated domains are free of third-party rights or will remain in existence permanently. Domains are always registered in the customer’s name; the customer is entered as Owner-C, Admin-C and Tech-C.

3.2

The customer guarantees that the domain applied for by them does not infringe any third-party rights. The customer indemnifies us, our employees and vicarious agents, the respective domain allocation organisation and any other persons involved in the registration against claims for compensation by third parties and against all expenses based on the impermissible use of an internet domain by the customer or with the customer’s approval.

3.3

The customer is obliged to notify us without delay of any loss of their domain. If the customer intends to buy back their domain from a third party, they are obliged to inform us without delay of the commencement of negotiations with the third party, to answer enquiries from us or our partners about the status of negotiations with the third party and to grant us the priority right to buy back on behalf of the customer, if and to the extent that this does not unreasonably impair the customer’s interests.

4. Licence agreements, copyright

4.1

For the term of the contract, the customer receives from us a non-exclusive right to use the programs (licence). If the customer is authorised by us for multiple licences of the program, the following terms of use apply to each of these licences. The term program includes the original program, all reproductions (copies) thereof and parts of the program, even if these are combined with other programs. A program consists of machine-readable instructions, audiovisual content and the associated licence materials. In all other respects, the licence terms of the respective program manufacturers apply.

4.2

The customer undertakes to ensure that anyone who uses this program complies with this licence agreement. The customer may use the program on only one computer at a time. A program is in use when it is in the main memory or on a storage medium of a computer. A program that is installed on a network server solely for the purpose of program distribution is deemed not to be in use.

4.3

The licence fees charged by us depend on the frequency of use (for example the number of users), the resources (for example processor size) or a combination of both. If access to a program is controlled by a licence management program, copies may be made and stored on all machines under the control of this licence management program, but use may not exceed the total number of permitted users or resources. Some programs intended for use at home or when travelling may be stored on a primary and one additional computer, but the program may not be actively used on both computers at the same time.

4.4

The customer may carry out data backups in accordance with recognised technical standards and make the necessary backup copies of the programs for this purpose. If the manual is available on a data carrier, it may be printed on paper. The customer may not alter or remove our copyright notices. The customer is not entitled to use, copy, edit, transfer, convert into another form of expression (reverse compile) or otherwise translate the program in any way other than as described herein, unless such conversion is mandatorily provided for by express statutory provisions. The customer is not entitled to rent or lease the program or to grant sub-licences.

4.5

If the customer has been granted a time-limited right to use the programs or advertising materials, or if the right of use ends due to termination, the customer must return to us all data carriers containing programs, any copies and all written documentation and advertising aids. The customer deletes all stored programs from their computer systems unless they are legally obliged to retain them for longer. The customer’s other ancillary contractual obligations towards us continue to apply after any termination or end of the contract.

4.6

For each case of breach of the obligations set out in clauses 4.1 to 4.5, the customer promises to pay us a contractual penalty of EUR 1,500.00.

5. Contractual offer, conclusion of contract, termination of contract

5.1

We are entitled to accept the customer’s offer to conclude the contract within a period of 14 days after the order is placed by telephone or sent by the customer.

The contract is only concluded when we countersign the customer’s application or with the first act of performance. The customer’s right of withdrawal expires early if, with the customer’s express consent, the provider has begun to perform the service (e.g. domain registration, account setup and activation, etc.) before the end of the withdrawal period and both parties have fully performed, or if the customer has initiated this themselves (e.g. downloading software programs, online orders as part of real-time ordering, online orders, etc.).

5.1.1

In the event of an effective withdrawal, the services received by both parties must be returned. This means in particular that you must financially compensate for domains registered for you as well as for expenses for setup or support received and for third-party costs such as bank charges, etc.

5.1.2

The customer’s right of withdrawal expires early if, with the customer’s express consent, the provider has begun to perform the service (e.g. domain registration, account setup and activation, etc.) before the end of the withdrawal period and both parties have fully performed, or if the customer has initiated this themselves (e.g. downloading software programs, online orders as part of real-time ordering, online orders, etc.).

5.1.3

Obligations to refund payments must be fulfilled within 30 days. For you, the period begins when you send your notice of withdrawal; for us, when we receive it.

5.2

The contract is concluded for an indefinite period. For web hosting products, either party may terminate the contractual relationship without giving reasons with 30 days’ notice to the end of the month of its minimum term. The contract is always extended by the package-specific minimum term.

If a minimum term has been agreed with the customer, the contract is extended for an indefinite period after the minimum term has expired. This does not apply if something different has been agreed separately with the customer. In contracts in which a minimum term applies for the customer, we are entitled to terminate the contract with 30 days’ notice to the end of the month of the minimum term.

Office365 and HostedExchange have a minimum term of 12 months and are automatically extended by 12 months at a time unless terminated no later than 90 days before expiry.

The homepage builder has a minimum term of 12 months and is automatically extended by 12 months at a time unless terminated no later than 40 days before expiry.

E-mail archiving has a minimum term of 9 months and is automatically extended by 9 months at a time unless terminated no later than 45 days before expiry.

Domains are billed in advance for their respective term; domains are renewed unless they are terminated 33 days (60 days for .jetzt and AG and 140 days for NL and KR under old contracts) before expiry. Please understand that for legal reasons we cannot cancel domain orders. For domains with the option of taking over the remaining term (e.g. AT), terminated domains with a remaining term of more than 3 months are handed over by us to the registrar so that it can contact the domain owner; the NIC then contacts the domain holder and clarifies further use.

5.3

We are entitled to release the customer’s domain after termination of the contract. At the latest upon this release, all rights of the customer arising from the registration expire.

5.4

If third parties assert claims against us on account of an actual or alleged infringement of rights pursuant to clause 9.2, we are entitled to transfer the customer’s domain to the care of the registrar without delay and to block the customer’s corresponding presence. For each account suspension we charge a processing fee of EUR 9.60.

5.6

The right of both parties to terminate without notice for good cause remains unaffected. Good cause exists for us in particular if the customer is more than 20 calendar days in arrears with payment of the fees, culpably breaches one of the obligations set out in clauses 4., 9.1, 9.2, 10.1, 10.4 or 10.8, fails, despite a warning, to redesign web pages within a reasonable period so that they meet the requirements set out in clause 10.5, or culpably breaches the allocation conditions or allocation guidelines.

5.7

To be effective, any termination must be in writing; this requirement is deemed to be met by a signed letter or fax.

5.8

The subject of this contract is all domains applied for by the customer, insofar as they have been allocated to the customer. Insofar as individual domains of a plan are terminated by the customer or on the basis of binding decisions in domain disputes, the customer has no claim to apply for a free replacement domain. In the case of domain terminations, the registrar may bring forward a dated termination by up to 45 days; we have no influence on this. No refund is made for individual domains of a plan or for additional individually booked domains in the event of early termination, unless the termination was caused by us. Domains terminated by you for transfer are charged for existing packages until the transfer has been carried out. Where applicable, after termination you will receive the auth code for the domain at the address on file. For DE domains, the auth code is valid for 30 days through DENIC; reissuing it is subject to a charge in accordance with the price list at https://www.twosteps.net/addon.php. This also applies to other separable individual services of a plan or additionally booked options.

5.9

In the event that, under the provisions of the respective registry of certain top-level domains, we cannot maintain the registration of a customer’s sub-level domain, we are entitled to terminate the contract with the customer for these services extraordinarily with 14 days’ notice to the end of the month.

6. Prices and payment

6.1

As with any service provided on a long-term basis, the costs of the services provided by twosteps GmbH may change due to external changes such as increases in energy and telecommunications costs. We are entitled to adjust the fees at our reasonable discretion no more than once a year. If a price adjustment is caused by an external influence such as exceptionally sharp increases in telecommunications or energy costs, we assure the customer that the price will be adjusted in their favour if this influence ceases to apply. Any changes to the tax rate are implemented immediately and do not constitute a price adjustment.
If the adjustments are to the customer’s disadvantage, the customer will be informed by e-mail.
The prices are fixed prices and can be found for packages at https://www.twosteps.net/ and for add-ons at https://www.twosteps.net/zusatz.php.
For domains not included in the package, the prices updated daily at https://www.twosteps.net/addon.php always apply.
Insofar as the main performance obligation, i.e. the obligation to pay the usage-independent basic fee, is not affected, we determine the fees according to the current price list at our reasonable discretion. For short-term and joke orders, we charge the domain costs in every case. If the short-term or joke order concerns a server, shop or personalised offer, setup and handling costs of 19.90 euros are deducted. In the event of a direct debit objection, return of a direct debit, refusal to pay or continued – even partial – default in payment, we are entitled to suspend the account. In the event of default, we charge interest of ten per cent per annum and are entitled to block the customer’s internet presences immediately, including those of the reseller’s customer. The statutory default interest is in any case the minimum rate. In the event of a direct debit objection, the expense of 18.66 euros is automatically charged and the matter handed over to a debt collection agency of our choice. The customer is informed of this with an alternative final payment deadline; if payment is made within this alternative deadline to the debt collection agency or, by way of credit, to us, we assure the customer of the uninterrupted acceptance of incoming e-mails and the reactivation of the account.

6.2

Usage-based fees are due upon invoicing; the customer must indemnify us against bank charges. Package prices that include domain costs are not refunded. The customer must pay other fees in advance. The billing period is determined by the plan ordered (according to the current service description), at least the period corresponding to the accumulated domain price in 3/6/9 or 12 monthly instalments, but no longer than twelve months. Separate agreements with the customer take precedence. Special items in accordance with the price list at https://www.twosteps.net/zusatz.php are charged immediately. The invoice is sent at the time of invoicing, at most seven days before the end of the billing period, by e-mail as a PDF to the address provided by the customer. The customer must ensure that invoices from twosteps GmbH can be received. If the customer requests that the invoice be sent by post, we are entitled to charge EUR 1.94 per invoice. For returned direct debits, we charge a processing fee of EUR 9.60 per direct debit plus the bank charges incurred by us.

6.3

The customer authorises us to collect the payments due from them by debiting an account to be named by the customer. Until all outstanding invoices have been paid in full, twosteps GmbH retains title to the domain(s) of the party liable to pay. Changes of account must be entered by the customer online in the customer menu no later than ten days before invoicing; transmission of account details by e-mail is not accepted and is rejected for legal reasons.

6.4

We are entitled to activate a domain only after payment of the fees agreed for its registration.

6.5

The customer may only offset against our claims with claims that are undisputed or have been established by a final court decision.

7. Indemnification claim

We will defend the customer against all claims arising from an infringement by us of an industrial property right or copyright in the Federal Republic of Germany and will bear the costs and damages imposed on the customer by a court, provided that the customer has notified us of such claims in writing without delay and that all technical and legal defence measures and settlement negotiations remain reserved to us. The aforementioned obligations on our part do not apply if third-party claims are based on hardware or programs having been modified or used together with hardware or programs not supplied by us.

8. Liability

8.1

We are liable for damage only if we or one of our vicarious agents has breached an essential contractual obligation (cardinal obligation) in a manner that jeopardises the purpose of the contract, or if the damage is attributable to gross negligence or intent on our part or on the part of one of our vicarious agents. If the culpable breach of an essential contractual obligation (cardinal obligation) is not grossly negligent or intentional, our liability is limited to the damage that was reasonably foreseeable for us when the contract was concluded. Towards entrepreneurs, we are liable for indirect and consequential damage and for loss of profit only in cases of intent and gross negligence. In this case, our liability is limited to the damage typically foreseeable under the contract, up to a maximum of 100% of the annual product rent.

8.2

Our liability for warranted characteristics, for personal injury and on the basis of mandatory statutory provisions remains unaffected.

8.3

Within the scope of application of the Telecommunications Customer Protection Ordinance (TKV), the liability provision of § 7(2) TKV remains unaffected in all cases.

9. Internet presence, content of web pages

9.1

The customer is obliged to identify content placed on their website as their own content, stating their full name and address. The customer is advised that a further statutory identification obligation may exist, for example if teleservices or media services are offered on the web pages. The customer indemnifies us against all claims based on a breach of the aforementioned obligations.

9.2

The customer may not violate statutory prohibitions, public morals or the rights of third parties (trademark, name, copyright, data protection rights, etc.) through the internet presence, banners displayed there or the designation of their e-mail address. In particular, the customer undertakes not to offer, or have offered, any pornographic content, warez or file sharing, or any profit-oriented services whose subject matter is pornographic and/or erotic content (e.g. nude images, peep shows, etc.). The customer may not register their internet presence in search engines insofar as the customer violates statutory prohibitions, public morals or the rights of third parties through the use of keywords in the registration. The customer must design their website in such a way that no security vulnerabilities are known to them and that known ones are closed immediately. When using third-party software (CMS, shop system, framework), the customer is obliged to ensure that their system always runs smoothly with the current server software released by the developer (usually PHP) and that all updates offered by the manufacturer of their software are installed no later than 14 days after publication. For each case of breach of any of the above obligations, the customer promises to pay us, excluding the assumption of a continuing offence, a contractual penalty of EUR 5,050.00 (in words: five thousand and fifty euros).

9.3

We are not obliged to check the customer’s internet presences for possible legal violations. After detecting legal violations or content that is impermissible under clause 9.2 or 10.5, we are entitled to block the plan. We will inform the customer of such a measure without delay.

10. Obligations of the customer

10.1

The customer warrants that the data provided to us are correct and complete. The customer can enter or change their address and payment data online in their customer menu at any time; for data protection reasons, employees of twosteps GmbH have no (write) access to your data. The customer undertakes to inform us of any changes to the data provided without delay via the configuration menu and, at our request, to reconfirm their accuracy within 15 days of receipt. All contract-related communication takes place exclusively via the address data stored with us. This concerns in particular

the customer’s name and postal address as well as current e-mail address,

the name, postal address, e-mail address and telephone and fax numbers of the technical contact for the domain and billing,

the name, postal address, e-mail address and telephone and fax numbers of the administrative contact for the domain, and

if the customer provides their own name servers: additionally the IP addresses of the primary and secondary name servers including the names of these servers.

10.2

The customer must retrieve incoming messages in their e-mail mailboxes at regular intervals of no more than four weeks. We reserve the right to return incoming personal messages for the customer to the sender if the capacity limits provided for in the respective plans are exceeded. The retention period for e-mails outside the deleted items folder is at least 60 days.

If the total quota according to the package scope or additional booking is exceeded, we automatically and evenly reduce the individual mailbox quotas until the total quota is reached.

10.3

The customer undertakes to keep strictly secret the passwords received from us for the purpose of accessing our services and to inform the provider without delay as soon as they become aware that unauthorised third parties know the password. If, through the customer’s fault, third parties use our services by misusing the passwords or through software used by the customer, the customer is liable to us for usage fees and damages. In the event of active misuse of the account, twosteps GmbH blocks the customer account until all updates and countermeasures have been fully and permanently applied. The customer is advised that it is their responsibility to carry out a data backup after every working day on which the data stock has been changed by them or their vicarious or auxiliary agents, whereby data stored on our servers may not be backed up on these servers. The customer must carry out a complete data backup in particular before any work by us begins or before installing hardware or software supplied. In addition, the customer thoroughly tests every program for freedom from defects and usability in their specific situation before beginning operational use of the program. This also applies to programs received from us under warranty and maintenance. The customer is expressly advised that even minor changes to the software can affect the operability of the entire system.

10.4

The customer undertakes not to send, or have sent, any e-mails containing advertising without the express consent of the respective recipient. Mass e-mails are not welcome with us. This applies in particular if the e-mails concerned, each with the same content, are distributed en masse (so-called spamming). Sending newsletters is permitted only after a proven double opt-in (after review, we offer customers access to a mailing server on request); we verify and check this at irregular intervals. Sending via the central mail systems is limited to between 10 and 50 e-mails per minute. In the event of complaints, proof of the double opt-in carried out must be provided for the entire mailing. If the customer breaches the aforementioned obligation, we are entitled to block the plan without delay or to throttle sending to 1 e-mail per minute. We also take the concerns of the complainant seriously: complaints are always treated confidentially; no personal data such as name, e-mail address or similar are passed on to the sender or stored.

10.5

The customer is obliged to design their website in such a way that excessive load on the server, e.g. due to CGI scripts that require high computing power or use an above-average amount of memory, is avoided. We are entitled to exclude pages that do not meet the above requirements from access by the customer or by third parties. Access by external automation sites is generally blocked by us insofar as they are known to us; if we become aware of an external automation website, we block it. We will inform the customer of such a measure without delay.

10.6

Volume for additional data transfer is made available by us within the technical capacity of the system and taking into account our performance obligations towards other customers for an additional fee, the amount of which is set out in the price list applicable at the time.

10.7

The customer may specify to us in writing up to what upper limit additional data transfer volume is to be granted to them each month. If such a specification exists and this upper limit is reached, additional data transfer is no longer possible in the month concerned.

10.8

The customer undertakes not to operate any chats on the presences hosted with us, unless the customer’s plan includes a chat provided by us.

11. Data protection

11.1

We collect, process and use a user’s personal data without further consent only to the extent necessary for establishing and performing the contract and for billing purposes. Further information is available online in the privacy policy.

11.2

We expressly point out to the customer that, according to the current state of the art, data protection for data transmissions in open networks such as the internet cannot be fully guaranteed. The customer knows that, from a technical point of view, the provider can view the web pages stored on the web server and possibly also other data of the customer stored there at any time. Other internet participants may also be technically able to interfere with network security without authorisation and to monitor message traffic. The customer is fully responsible for the security and backup of the data they transmit to the internet and store on web servers.

12. Final provisions

12.1

If the customer is a merchant, a legal entity under public law, a special fund under public law or has no place of jurisdiction in Germany, the exclusive place of jurisdiction for all disputes arising from this contract is Nürtingen. We are also entitled to sue the customer at their general place of jurisdiction. The law of the Federal Republic of Germany applies exclusively to the contracts concluded by us on the basis of these General Terms and Conditions and to claims of any kind arising from them, excluding the provisions of the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG).

Cancellation policy

1. Right of withdrawal

1.1

You have the right to withdraw from this contract within fourteen days without giving any reason. The withdrawal period is fourteen days from the day the contract is concluded. To exercise your right of withdrawal, you must inform us

of your decision to withdraw from this contract by means of a clear statement (e.g. a letter sent by post, fax or e-mail). To meet the withdrawal deadline, it is sufficient for you to send your notice of withdrawal before the withdrawal period expires.

The withdrawal must be addressed to: twosteps GmbH, Postfach 230 304, 70623 Stuttgart-Flughafen, Germany, phone: (+49) 711-489 657 40, support @ twosteps.net.

2. Consequences of withdrawal

2.1

In the event of an effective withdrawal, the services received by both parties must be returned. This means in particular that you must financially compensate for domains registered for you as well as for expenses for setup or support received and for third-party costs such as bank charges, etc.

2.2

If you have requested that the services begin during the withdrawal period (e.g. domain registration), you must pay us a reasonable amount corresponding to the proportion of the services already provided up to the time you inform us that you are exercising your right of withdrawal with regard to this contract, compared with the total scope of the services provided for in the contract.

2.3

Obligations to refund payments must be fulfilled within 30 days. For you, the period begins when you send your notice of withdrawal; for us, when we receive it.