General
The General Terms and Conditions of Corporate Image Consulting GmbH (CIC for short) with its registered office in 4030 Linz, Schörgenhubstraße 41, are based on the General Terms and Conditions for Austrian advertising agencies and management consultants. The Terms and Conditions have general validity for all business transactions between the client and CIC. The version valid at the time of conclusion of the contract shall be authoritative in each case.
Deviating, conflicting or supplementary General Terms and Conditions of Business of the Client, even if known, shall not become part of the contract unless their validity is expressly agreed.
The various top-level domains ("domain extensions") are administered by a variety of different, mostly national, organizations.
Each of these organisations for the allocation of domains has established different terms and conditions for the registration and administration of the top-level domains, the associated sub-level domains and the procedure in the event of domain disputes. Insofar as domains are the subject of the contract, the corresponding terms and conditions for the allocation of domains apply in addition, which can be found at the various registries/ domain providers, which are available at CIC as information.
Conclusion of contract
The basis of the business relationship is the order confirmation signed by the client or promised verbally, in which the scope and extent of the order are defined between the contracting parties in as much detail as possible in a service description. The client will ensure that all documents necessary for the performance of the order are submitted to CIC in good time without the client's express request and that CIC is informed of all processes and circumstances that are of importance for the performance of the order. This also applies to documents, processes and circumstances which only become known during the performance of the order. CIC is entitled to have the order carried out (in whole or in part) by experts, dependent employees or commercial/freelance cooperation partners.
Service and fee
CIC is entitled to payment of an appropriate fee by the client in return for the provision of its services. Unless otherwise agreed, CIC's fee claim arises for each individual service as soon as it has been performed. If the service is a work to be produced, the service is deemed to have been provided when the work is handed over. CIC is entitled to demand advance payments to cover its expenses. All services provided by CIC which are not expressly covered by the agreed fee will be remunerated separately. This applies in particular to all ancillary services provided by CIC. An appropriate fee will be charged for corrections that exceed a time frame of 2 working hours.
All cash expenses incurred by CIC which go beyond the normal course of business (e.g. for messenger services, shipping costs or travel) are to be reimbursed by the customer.
Cost estimates from CIC are non-binding. If it is foreseeable that the actual costs will exceed the estimated costs by more than 20 percent, CIC will inform the customer of the higher costs. The customer will be deemed to have approved the cost overrun if he does not object in writing within three days of being informed of the overrun and at the same time informs CIC of more cost-effective alternatives. CIC will be entitled to appropriate remuneration (30% of the agreed fee) for all work carried out by CIC that is not carried out for whatever reason. On payment of this remuneration, the client acquires no rights whatsoever to this work; rather, concepts, drafts, etc. that have not been executed are to be returned to CIC without delay. Support lump sums are concluded for an indefinite period and can be terminated at the end of the month subject to a 3-month period of notice, unless they are governed by a separate agency contract.
Hourly rate for graphic services: 95 Euro
Hourly rate for programming services: 109 Euro
Hourly rate for conception: 120 Euro
Discounts are regulated separately via hourly rates and contracts.
In the hosting area, CIC guarantees a network availability of 98% on an annual average for the infrastructure of the servers. If the security of network operation or the maintenance of network integrity is at risk, CIC may temporarily restrict access to the services as required. If the customer wishes to register his Internet presence with one or more search engines (online search services for Internet content), we shall only be liable for mediation in this case too. The operator of the respective search engine alone decides on the inclusion in the search engine and the time.
Data security
Insofar as data is transmitted to CIC, the customer shall make back-up copies. Insofar as this is included in the respective offer, the servers will be backed up regularly. In the event of a loss of data occurring nevertheless, the customer shall be obliged to transmit the relevant data files to CIC again free of charge. Furthermore, the client can request a backup of his system/database at any time. CIC backs up all client data on a daily basis and, depending on the cycle, sometimes keeps the backups for several months. These backups are a voluntary service of CIC and only serve to restore the systems in case of emergency. CIC is not obliged to restore accidentally or intentionally deleted data by the client, and rather offers its own services for this purpose. If the backup is no longer available for any reason, CIC is not responsible for the loss. CIC accepts no liability for direct damage, consequential damage or loss of profit due to technical problems and malfunctions.
CIC shall only be liable to entrepreneurs for indirect damage and consequential damage as well as for loss of profit in the event of intent and gross negligence. In this case, CIC's liability is limited to the contract-typical foreseeable damage, max. to 100% of the annual product rental of the hosting.
Data protection
The customer has a right to information as well as a right to correction, blocking and deletion of his stored data. If a deletion is contrary to legal or contractual storage obligations or other legal reasons, the data will be blocked.
Presentation
For participation in presentations, CIC is entitled to an appropriate fee which covers at least the entire personnel and material expenses as well as the costs of all external services. If CIC does not receive an order after the presentation, all services provided by CIC, in particular the presentation documents and their content, remain the property of CIC; the client is not entitled to make further use of them - in whatever form; the documents must rather be returned to CIC without delay.
If the ideas and concepts contributed in the course of a presentation are not used for the solution of communication tasks, CIC is entitled to use the ideas and concepts presented elsewhere. The transfer of presentation documents to third parties and their publication, reproduction or distribution is not permitted without the express consent of CIC. If the presentation leads to an order, the presentation fee is to be credited.
Dates and right of withdrawal
When an order is accepted, precise agreements must be made regarding deadlines, the time limit for the work to be carried out or the delivery, depending on the scope of the order. CIC will endeavour to meet the agreed deadlines. However, failure to meet the deadlines will not entitle the customer to assert the rights to which he is entitled by law until he has granted CIC a period of grace of at least 14 days. This period begins with the receipt of a reminder by CIC. An obligation to pay damages on the grounds of default exists only in the event of intent or gross negligence on the part of CIC. Unavoidable or unforeseen events - in particular delays on the part of CIC's contractors - shall in any case release CIC from compliance with the agreed delivery date.
Cancellation by the client is only possible with CIC's written consent. In the event of cancellation, CIC has the right to charge a reasonable cancellation fee (20% of the order total) in addition to the services rendered and costs incurred.
Copyright and rights of use
All services provided by CIC (e.g. suggestions, ideas, sketches, preliminary drafts, final artwork, concepts, concrete PR measures, etc.), including individual parts thereof, remain the property of CIC, as do the individual workpieces and design originals, and may be reclaimed by CIC at any time - in particular upon termination of the contract. By paying the fee, the client acquires only the right of use (including reproduction) for the agreed purpose and to the agreed extent of use. In the absence of any agreement to the contrary with CIC, the customer may only use CIC's services himself, exclusively in Austria and only for the duration of the contract. This also applies after termination of the contract.
Changes to CIC's services by the Customer are only permitted with the express consent of CIC and - insofar as the services are protected by copyright - of the author.
If copyright services of CIC are used beyond the agreed form, purpose and scope, the client is obliged to pay CIC a further appropriate fee for this. This also applies in the case of a new edition of a printed work.
CIC's consent is required for the use of CIC's services which goes beyond the originally agreed purpose and scope of use - irrespective of whether this service is protected by copyright. CIC and the author are entitled to a separate appropriate remuneration for this; appropriate is in principle the fee stipulated in the agreement, but at least in the amount of 7.5% of the remuneration paid by the customer to the third parties commissioned with the production, distribution or publication of the advertising material.
In the case of services of CIC protected by copyright, the scope of use of which has not yet been determined at the time of conclusion of the agreement or which are suitable for unrestricted use as a commercial object in the course of business, the fee consists of two parts: firstly, as a fee for the preparation in the original and, secondly, as remuneration for the unrestricted transfer of the rights of use (copyright).
Marking
Without the client's consent, CIC is entitled to refer to CIC in an appropriate form and, if necessary, to the author on all advertising material and advertising measures, without the client being entitled to any remuneration for this.
Approval
All services provided by CIC (in particular all preliminary drafts, sketches, final drawings, brush prints, etc.) must be checked and approved by the customer. If they are not released in good time, they are deemed to have been approved by the Customer. In particular, the Customer will have the legal admissibility of CIC's services checked, especially the admissibility under competition and trademark law. CIC will only arrange for an external legal review at the written request of the client; the client must bear the associated costs. After completion of an order or after delivery of the invoice, CIC is entitled to include the client in its reference list and to provide its logo on the CIC homepage with a link to the client's homepage.
Confidentiality
CIC, its employees and the third parties called in treat all internal processes and information received that have become known to it through its work with the client as strictly confidential. This duty of confidentiality applies both to the client and to its business relations. Only the client itself can release CIC from this duty of confidentiality in writing. This obligation also applies after termination of the contract.
Payment
Invoices from CIC are due immediately after receipt of the invoice without deduction, unless otherwise agreed. In the event of late payment, interest on arrears at the rate of 4% p.a. above the bank rate is deemed to have been agreed. Delivered goods remain the property of CIC until payment has been made in full. The Customer may only offset or assert a right of retention against undisputed or legally established claims.
Warranty and compensation
The customer must assert and justify any complaints in writing within three days of performance by CIC. In the event of a justified and timely complaint, the customer shall be entitled to improvement of the service by CIC. Claims for damages by the customer shall be excluded unless they are based on intent or gross negligence on the part of CIC.
Liability
CIC is obliged to carry out the orders placed with it carefully and professionally, safeguarding all the interests of its clients and drawing their attention to possible risks. However, the client himself is responsible for compliance with the legal provisions, in particular those relating to competition law, in the advertising measures proposed by CIC. He will only approve an advertising measure (the use of a trademark) proposed by CIC once he himself has ascertained that it is unobjectionable under competition law (trademark law) or if he is prepared to bear the risk associated with the implementation of the advertising measure (the use of the trademark) himself.
Any liability on the part of CIC for claims made against the client on the basis of the advertising measure (the use of a trademark) is expressly excluded if CIC has fulfilled its duty to inform; in particular, CIC is not liable for legal costs, the client's own lawyer's fees or the costs of publishing judgments, or for any claims for damages or similar claims made by third parties.
In the event that a claim is made against the Agency itself due to the implementation of an advertising measure, the Client shall indemnify and hold CIC harmless: the Client shall thus compensate CIC for any financial or other disadvantages (including immaterial damage) incurred by the Agency as a result of a claim made by a third party. CIC shall not assume any liability for the Client's documents provided for processing.
Applicable law, place of performance and jurisdiction
The order, its execution and any claims arising therefrom shall be governed exclusively by Austrian law. The place of performance is Corporate Image Consulting GmbH, 4030 Linz, Schörgenhubstraße 41. The place of jurisdiction for all disputes arising directly or indirectly between CIC and the customer is the court of Linz. However, CIC shall also be entitled to bring an action before another court having jurisdiction over the customer.
Other
In the event that individual provisions of the GTC should become invalid, this shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions.
Status 02/2014