Affiliate Agreement
MASTER
AGREEMENT
This Master Agreement ("Agreement") is made between Vehicle
Information Services also known as VIS, Inc. ("Merchant") and you, a
sales affiliate enrolled in The AutoWorld.com Network ("Partner").
Please read this entire document carefully.
This
Co-Branding AGREEMENT (“Agreement”) is entered into this___ day of_____,
2001, between VIS, Inc. Hereafter referred to as (“VIS”) located at 6613
West Surrey Ave., Glendale, AZ. 85304 and
________________________________________, hereafter referred to as
(“Company”) a __________________corporation, having its primary offices at
________________________________________________.
WHEREAS,
Company desires to Co-Brand at VIS’s world wide web site AutoWorld.com for the
benefit of Company’s individual customers desiring VIS’s content. VIS shall
provide Company with suitable content formatted for Internet viewing. Company to
use VIS’s material with links returning to Company’s web site.
1.
Promotion of Relationship
As
a partner, VIS will make available to Company (via ”VIS's web sites"
site) a variety of services, content, graphic and textual links (each of these
sometimes being referred to herein as "Links" or, individually, as a
"Link"), which, subject to the terms and conditions hereof, Company
may display as often and in as many areas on Company’s site as Company
desires. The Links and services contained herein will serve to identify
Company’s co-branded site as a member of our network and will establish a link
from Company’s site to the co-branded site created and maintained by VIS for
Company. The Links may connect to the main co-branded site, car buying area,
classifieds area, car selling area, automotive news area, popular car areas,
dealer areas, survey areas, car pricing areas of the co-branded site.
a.
Agreements Regarding Links:
In utilizing the Links provided by VIS to Company, Company also agrees that Company will allow VIS to display in Company’s co-branded site those graphic or textual images (indicating a Link and or advertisement) that are provided by VIS and/or Company, and VIS will substitute such images with any new images provided by VIS and/or Company from time to time throughout the term of this Agreement based on written approval by both parties. Company’s co-branded site(s) shall display such graphic and/or textual images prominently in relevant sections of the co-branded site. All Links and or advertisements may be modified and/or expanded from time to time throughout the term of this Agreement pursuant to the mutual agreement of the parties hereto. Each URL(s) or Link(s) connecting users of Company’s site and/or URL(s) to the pertinent area of the co-branded site will in no way alter the look, feel, or functionality of VIS’s site.
2.
Responsibilities
Partner,
__________ will provide promotion of Autoworld.com on main web page above the
fold.
Partner,
__________ will promote Autoworld.com once a month in e-mail messages and/or
newsletters to Partners users. Including an announcement e-mail to all users in
the first two weeks.
Partner,
__________ will place promotion of Autoworld.com in all appropriate site
categories or sections to insure maximum opportunity for Partner and
Autoworld.com to optimize our revenue producing ability.
VIS
will be responsible for providing all information necessary to allow Company to
make appropriate Links to the co-branded site(s).
VIS
will make available the graphic search box that connects to VIS’s customized
information and pricing search engine for Company to use on Company’s
co-branded site.
VIS
will be solely responsible for processing every request placed by a customer
following a special Link from Company’s site into the co-branded site for
tracking the volume and amount of advertising and leads generated by Company’s
co-branded site.
VIS
will be responsible for processing and related customer service in reference to
the car buying and selling area’s of the co-branded site.
VIS
will be responsible for the on-going development and maintenance of the VIS
content and services found within the co-branded site.
VIS
will list the Company and included in all VIS promotional materials as needed.
3. Commission Payment
(There are
several ways a partner can generate revenue with us. For further details, please
call 561-394-0610)
When the total commissions due to Company exceed one hundred dollars
($100.00) for leads and advertising, VIS will send a commission check for the
applicable commission (less any taxes required to be withheld under applicable
law) and a statement of activity to Company.
If the total for such commissions due to Company is less than one hundred
dollars ($100.00), VIS shall send only a statement of activity to Company.
Such commission checks and statements of activity will be sent
approximately thirty (30) days after the end of each month anniversary of the
date hereof.
Company shall have the right to examine the books and records of VIS to the
extent reasonably required to ascertain whether VIS has calculated
correctly the Commission Payments set forth herein.
Such examination shall be conducted at Company’s expense not more than
once in any twelve (12) month period.
If
such audit reveals that VIS has under-reported the Commission Payments in excess
of three percent (3%), then VIS shall immediately be responsible for paying the
costs and expenses of such audit in addition to the unpaid Company Commission
Payment and one point five percent (1.5%) monthly interest thereon.
Following any such audit, Company shall be entitled to perform a
reasonable follow-up audit to verify compliance with this section which shall
not be deemed to be in conflict with Company’s right to perform an audit once
in a twelve (12) month period.
4.
Policies and Pricing
Customers
who use VIS products and or services through the Company co-branded site will be
deemed to be joint customers of VIS and Company. Accordingly, all of VIS’s
rules, policies, and operating procedures concerning customer orders, customer
service, and VIS product sales and or services, insofar as they are communicated
to Company in writing, will apply
to those customers. Such policies and operating procedures may be amended at any
time, and any such amendments shall be communicated to Company in a timely
manner.
5.
Availability of VIS products and services may vary from time to time. Because
service changes may affect products and or services that are listed on
Company’s co branded site, VIS will use commercially reasonable efforts to
present accurate information, but VIS cannot guarantee the availability of all
services at all times.
6.
Publicity -
Company shall not create, publish, distribute, or permit other third
parties to create, publish or distribute any written material that makes
reference to us without first submitting such material to us and receiving our
written consent, which VIS agree shall not be unreasonably withheld.
7.
Licenses and Use of the VIS Logos and Trademarks
8.
Obligations Regarding Company’s Site
9.
Term of the Agreement
Either
Company or VIS may terminate this Agreement given a ninety (90) day written
notice to the other party, with or without cause, sent via certified mail after
1 year of signed agreement. Company is only eligible to earn revenue on
advertising and lead sales occurring during the term, and revenue earned through
the date of termination will remain payable only if the related VIS product or
services are not cancelled.
10.
Modification
VIS
may modify any of the terms and conditions contained in this Agreement at any
time in our sole discretion. Company will be notified by email and a change
notice will be posted on our site. If any modification is unacceptable to
Company, Company’s only recourse is to terminate this agreement. Company’s
continued participation in the VIS Network following our posting of a change
notice or new agreement will constitute binding acceptance of the change.
11.
Relationship of Parties
Company
and VIS are individual and separate companies, and nothing in this Agreement
will create any agency, franchise, or employment relationship between the
parties. Company will have no authority to make or accept any offers or
representations on our behalf. Company will not make any statement, whether on
Company’s site or otherwise, that reasonably would contradict anything in this
Section.
12.
Disclaimers
VIS
makes no express or implied warranties or representations with respect to the
VIS network or any VIS products or services offered through the VIS Network
(including, without limitation, warranties of fitness, merchantability,
non-infringement, or any implied warranties arising out of course of
performance, dealing, or trade usage). In addition, VIS makes no representation
that the operation of our site will be uninterrupted or error free, and VIS will
not be liable for the consequences of any interruptions or errors.
13.
Representations and Warranties
Company
hereby represents and warrant to us as follows:
a.
This Agreement has been duly and validly executed and delivered to Company and
constitutes Company’s legal, valid, and binding obligation, enforceable
against the drafting party, in accordance with its terms.
b.
The execution, delivery, and performance by Company of this Agreement and the
consummation by Company of the transactions contemplated hereby will not, with
or without the giving of notice, the lapse of time, or both, conflict with or
violate (i) any provision of law, rule, or regulation to which Company are
subject, (ii) any order, judgment, or decree applicable to Company or binding
upon Company’s assets or properties, (iii) any provision of Company’s
by-laws or certificate of incorporation, or (iv)
c.
Company are the sole and exclusive owner of the Company Trademarks and have the
right and power to grant to us the license to use Company’s trademarks in the
manner contemplated herein, and such grant does not and will not (i) breach,
conflict with, or constitute a default under any agreement or other instrument
applicable to Company or binding upon Company’s assets or properties, or (ii)
infringe upon any trademark, trade name, service mark, copyright, or other
proprietary right of any other person or entity.
d.
No consent, approval, or authorization of, or exemption by, or filing with, any
governmental authority or any third party is required to be obtained or made by
Company in connection with the execution, delivery, and performance of this
Agreement or the taking by Company of any other action contemplated hereby.
e.
There is no pending or, to the best of Company’s knowledge, threatened claim,
action, or proceeding against Company, or any Company of yours, with respect to
the execution, delivery, or consummation of this Agreement, or with respect to
Company’s trademarks, and, to the best of Company’s knowledge, there is no
basis for any such claim, action, or proceeding.
14.
Confidentiality
Except
as otherwise provided in this Agreement or with the consent of the other party
hereto, each of the parties hereto agrees that all information including,
without limitation, the terms of this Agreement, business and financial
information, customer and vendor lists, and pricing and sales information,
concerning us or Company, respectively, or any of our Companies provided by or
on behalf of any of them shall remain strictly confidential and secret, during
the Term of this Agreement and shall not be utilized, directly or indirectly, by
such party for its own business purposes or for any other purpose except and
solely to the
extent that any such information is generally known or available to the public
through a source or sources other than such party hereto or its Companies.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, each party is hereby authorized to deliver
a copy of any such information (a) to any person pursuant to a subpoena issued
by any court or administrative agency, (b) to its accountants, attorneys, or
other agents on a confidential basis, and (c) otherwise as required by
applicable law, rule, regulation, or legal process including, without
limitation, the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the rules and
regulations promulgated thereunder, and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.
15.
Limitation of Liability
VIS
WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR INDIRECT, SPECIAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, OR ANY LOSS
OF REVENUE, PROFITS, OR DATA, ARISING IN CONNECTION WITH THIS AGREEMENT OR THE
VIS NETWORK, EVEN IF VIS HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.
FURTHER, OUR AGGREGATE LIABILITY ARISING WITH RESPECT TO THIS AGREEMENT AND THE
COMPANY NETWORK WILL NOT EXCEED THE TOTAL COMMISSIONS PAID OR PAYABLE TO COMPANY
UNDER THIS AGREEMENT.
16.
Indemnification
Company
hereby agrees to indemnify and hold harmless VIS and its subsidiaries and their
directors, officers, employees, agents, shareholders, members, and other owners,
against any and all claims, actions, demands, liabilities, losses, damages,
judgments, settlements, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys'
fees) (any or all of the foregoing hereinafter referred to as
"Losses") insofar as such Losses (or actions in respect thereof) arise
out of or are based on (i) any claim that our use of the Company Trademarks
infringes on any trademark, trade name, service mark, copyright, license,
intellectual property, or other proprietary right of any third party, (ii) any
misrepresentation of a representation or warranty or breach of a covenant and
agreement made by Company herein, or (iii) any claim related to Company’s
site, including, without limitation, content therein not attributable to us.
17.
Independent Investigation
COMPANY
ACKNOWLEDGES THAT COMPANY HAS READ THIS AGREEMENT AND AGREES TO ALL ITS TERMS
AND CONDITIONS. COMPANY UNDERSTANDS THAT VIS MAY AT ANY TIME (DIRECTLY OR
INDIRECTLY) SOLICIT CUSTOMER REFERRALS ON TERMS THAT MAY DIFFER FROM THOSE
CONTAINED IN THIS AGREEMENT OR OPERATE WEB SITES THAT ARE SIMILAR TO OR COMPETE
WITH COMPANY’S WEB SITE. COMPANY HAS INDEPENDENTLY EVALUATED THE DESIRABILITY
OF PARTICIPATING IN THE VIS NETWORK AND IS NOT RELYING ON ANY REPRESENTATION,
GUARANTEE, OR STATEMENT OTHER THAN AS SET FORTH IN THIS AGREEMENT.
18.
Governing Law
This Agreement will be governed by the laws of the State of Arizona, without reference to rules governing choice of laws. Any action relating to this Agreement must be brought in the federal or state courts located in Glendale, Arizona, and Company irrevocably consents to the jurisdiction of such courts. Subject to that restriction, this Agreement will be binding on, inure to the benefit of, and enforceable against the parties and their respective successors and assigns. Our failure to enforce Company’s strict performance of any provision of this Agreement will not constitute a waiver of our right to subsequently enforce such a provision or any other provision of this Agreement.
Exhibit
/ Addendum A
Company:
Site Information (URL(s)) and Name:
Company Address:
Company Description:
Phone:
Fax:
Url:
Contact Person:
Title:
Email Address:
City:
State:
Zip:
Country:
EIN:
Both
parties represent and warrant that they have full corporate power and authority
to execute and deliver this agreement and to perform their obligations
hereunder, and that the person whose signature appears below is duly authorized
to enter into this agreement on behalf of the party.
IN
WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have entered into this agreement as of the date
first above written:
__________________________________
_______________________________
Authorized
Company Rep./Title (Please Print) VIS,
inc. / Autoworld.com Name
_________________________________
_________________________________
Authorized Company Rep. Signature Paul Meek II - Vice President
This Form is a copyrighted work belonging to VIS, Inc. (© VIS, Inc. 2001-2002).