Contract

STANDARD FORM AGREEMENT

Payment Terms

Visual Obsession Pty Ltd (Trading as Visual Obsession) will accept 50% payment prior to commencement via EFT, Visa, cheque or cash. 25% Progress payment will be due halfway through project. The remaining 25% we will accept prior to final delivery or launch of the project. Payments are non-refundable.

Please Note: Any prices or hours supplied by Visual Obsession or employees of Visual Obsession are estimations only and are valid for 30 days unless otherwise negotiated.

Standard trading terms are strictly COD unless a credit application has been approved; all credit accounts are strictly 30 days net. Credit terms are subject to the approval of Credit Application and validation of trade references.

Visual Obsession requires upfront payment for any work valued at $1000 or under. Once the quoted price has been paid, Visual Obsession will commence work.

In the event that the Customer (you / the person that the quote / Invoice is addressed to) defaults in making payment to the Company (Visual Obsession) in accordance with the terms and conditions the Company may in its absolute discretion take the following steps:

  • The Company is entitled to charge interest calculated on the portion of the Customer’s overdue amount at the rate of our overdraft rate plus 2%, a late payment fee of $12.00 may also be charged to cover our administration costs.
  • If payment is not received after 45 days of due date the company will take legal action to recover the outstanding amounts. All costs including debt collection commissions, solicitor fees and any out of pocket expenses will be the liability of the customer. Credit will no longer be available.
  • Customers credit limits will be reviewed periodically and may be revoked at any time due to poor payment history whereupon all amounts owing to the Company shall be paid immediately and the account will revert to COD prior to production.

We can accept payment by the following method Direct Deposit (Preferred Method), Cheque, Cash or Credit Card (Visa & MasterCard only - all credit card payments are subject to a 1.5% surcharge).

Communication

For clarity and efficiency, any required changes to the scope of work are to be communicated in writing and sent via email or fax. Visual Obsession will not accept changes to the scope of work over the phone. Verbal changes delivered in meetings must be recorded in an email and approved in writing. All changes and requests must be given to Visual Obsession in a very clear and concise format - preferably in a numerical priority order / bullet pointed format. Visual Obsession may then issue a project change request that must be signed off by CLIENT before work commences.

Work outside the scope

Any additional work will be billed according to Visual Obsession’s package rate of $89/ hour for graphic and website design services, $165 / hour for Broadcast Video filming or $110 / hour for Broadcast video editing. This includes, but is not limited to, changes to text, spelling mistakes, design changes, email changes, email correspondence, phone calls, meetings and general labour. Additional charges are invoiced at the sole discretion of Visual Obsession.

Job Expiry Period

It is important for Visual Obsession to keep all work within the original scope of the project accepted under contract. Due to changing client circumstances and a natural decline of the relevance and effectiveness of all multimedia materials over time, Visual Obsession reserves the right to expire a quote or job on behalf of CLIENT which is considered by Visual Obsession to be taking an unreasonable amount of time (approx 1 month).

In this event, Visual Obsession will notify CLIENT and reserve the right to resubmit an updated quote for the job. This will prevent a job’s productivity from stagnating and ensures a job will be produced that suits the requirements at the time it was initially quoted upon.

Design

Draft concept designs that are provided to CLIENT by Visual Obsession may look slightly different to the final look of the product due to the functional constraints of the medium.

Visual Obsession will create an overall look and feel for the website based on one page selected by Visual Obsession (for example : Home page), using non-interactive designs created in Photoshop or other program selected by Visual Obsession. Visual Obsession will submit up to two non-interactive designs of the selected page for CLIENT to choose from. CLIENT will then be able to request two sets of minor modifications to their one chosen design. After modifications, the final signed-off design will be converted into an interactive version and reflected through the rest of the website at the discretion of the Visual Obsession developer / designer.

Any further non-interactive designs requested will be an additional charge to CLIENT, and development will not begin until they have signed off. Any design elements in the interactive website that have not been specified by the non-interactive design, will be at the discretion of Visual Obsession developer / designer, further changes to these elements will be an additional charge to CLIENT.

It is CLIENT’S responsibility to check all artwork details carefully as Visual Obsession will take no responsibility for omissions or errors after the artwork is approved. Any alterations should be clearly marked and requested in writing. All changes will be charged to CLIENT at the market price stated in the quote and/or Visual Obsession’s terms and conditions.

Copyright

The product supplied to CLIENT may be made up of various elements, each with different copyright requirements. Copyright of each element will fall into one of the below categories:

Open Source material licensed under the GNU General Public License
Visual Obsession does not own copyright on this material and therefore cannot transfer copyright ownership to CLIENT. Neither the act of delivery of the product to CLIENT, nor final payment by CLIENT, will in any way change the licensing status of this material or hinder Visual Obsession or any party operating under the GNU General Public License, from using this material at any time for themselves or any future client. For CLIENT to use and edit the open source material, they will be bound under the laws that are applicable to GNU General Public License.

Material that was hand-coded by Visual Obsession and not released to the public in any way or licensed under the GNU General Public License
Under Australian copyright law, Visual Obsession retains full copyright ownership of this material and may continue to use it in the daily course of their business activities without any restrictions. Visual Obsession reserve the right to encrypt any or all code within a website at any time without notice. Once all outstanding monies owed to Visual Obsession are paid in full, exclusive license is granted to CLIENT to use this material only within current or future implementations of the product, in a lawful manner in which it was intended. It is the responsibility of CLIENT to ensure that any use of, or modifications to, the product are in compliance with all relevant copyright and licensing laws.

Graphic design elements developed by Visual Obsession specifically for CLIENT
Upon final payment for the product, Visual Obsession confirms that CLIENT has the right to use or modify this material as they see fit. It is the responsibility of CLIENT to ensure that any use of, or modifications to, this material are in compliance with all relevant copyright and licensing laws.

Material supplied to Visual Obsession by CLIENT
This includes stock images and text. This material has never belonged to Visual Obsession in any way. Payment and delivery of the product will not in any way change the licensing status of this material.

Royalty-paid material sourced and used by Visual Obsession
This includes stock images and video. While Visual Obsession has the right to use this material in the product, the material has never belonged to Visual Obsession. Payment and delivery of the product will not in any way change the licensing status of this material, or grant CLIENT the right to use it for any other project.

Content disclaimer for all multimedia products

Visual Obsession does not accept responsibility for the content within your website, print material and other multimedia products, including but not limited to, all illegal / inaccurate claims, defamatory material and inappropriate images. All material within your product must be used for lawful purposes only and must comply with the laws of Australia and the world. By accepting the services of Visual Obsession CLIENT accepts responsibility for all of the content within the product. This includes but is not limited to, spelling mistakes, phone numbers, images, image colours, designs, logos, trademarks, explicit material, political claims and personal or other private information. Capitalised letters, punctuation and grammar are elements of content, not design.

All content supplied by CLIENT must be of the highest possible quality – Visual Obsession does not accept responsibility for any quality issues due to CLIENT supplying content that is not of industry standard. Photos and images intended for print must be 300DPI. Logos must be in a vector format using CMYK colour. Images supplied by CLIENT will be cropped to maintain consistent aspect rations. If CLIENT does not want images to be cropped, they accept responsibility for inconsistent image sizes throughout the product. All images and designs will be converted to CMYK for print, or RGB for screen. CLIENT accepts any colour variations resulting from this conversion. Any video footage supplied must be in broadcast quality 16:9 unless advised otherwise by Visual Obsession.

All material supplied to Visual Obsession by CLIENT, including but not limited to, images, designs, audio tracks, code, video footage, logos / trademarks from suppliers, or any material from companies other than CLIENT’S company, is used by Visual Obsession with the understanding that CLIENT has permission from any third party involved to use the material that CLIENT provides. CLIENT accepts responsibility for all supplied material. Upon request by Visual Obsession, client must provide all written release, copyright and legal permission from talent and location. Externally sourced videos will need to meet the following industry standards:

  • Video must be shot in broadcast quality 16:9 aspect ratio (widescreen)
  • Audio must be recorded stereo at 44100khz, 16-bit, supplied to Visual Obsession peaking at no greater than -1db.
  • All video content must be supplied at a resolution of 1024x576 (without safe-frame) in .mov format using a globally readable codec (a codec included in Apple’s ‘QuickTime’ software).

All video footage must be true 16:9 aspect ratio shot in broadcast quality, converted to a Visual Obsession acceptable file format and file size by any other supplier.

Client to supply

  • Comprehensive brief including preferred styles & fonts.
  • Design examples and sources of inspiration.
  • All required content for product, unless specifically organised with Visual Obsession.

All content supplied by CLIENT must conform to the following criteria. Any content that is not supplied correctly may incur additional charges for CLIENT.

  • All text must be supplied in an electronic format that can be copied and pasted by Visual Obsession.
  • All text must include correct spelling, grammar etc.
  • All images and graphics must be either vector (EPS, INDD or AI formats only) or 300dpi high-resolution bitmap (JPG, TIFF, or RAW formats only). Supplied images and graphics must not be scaled up due to loss of quality.
  • All design elements associated with CLIENT's company brand must be in vector format and be supplied with exact CMYK colour references.
  • All material not created solely by CLIENT must be supplied with written approval from the copyright owner for the use of the material within CLIENT’s production.
  • All video footage must be provided on DVCPRO50 or mini digital tape.

Delivery

Once a product has been signed off by CLIENT and delivered by Visual Obsession, CLIENT accepts full responsibility for the product and its use. All work completed by Visual Obsession may be included in the Visual Obsession portfolio (including, but not limited to, the Visual Obsession website, Visual Obsession magazine, Visual Obsession proposals and media releases) at the sole discretion of Visual Obsession. Visual Obsession may also, at their discretion, include a “website by Visual Obsession” notice (including a link to the Visual Obsession website) on any or every page of any website built by Visual Obsession.

For anything that is being delivered from Visual Obsession to CLIENT via post, CLIENT should allow approximately 3 working days for delivery depending on destination. Any estimate of delivery date is made from the information available to Visual Obsession at the time. Circumstances beyond Visual Obsession’s control may change this date.

Notification of Claim

All products and services provided by Visual Obsession must be promptly checked by CLIENT upon receipt, for defects, faults, errors or damage and Visual Obsession must be notified in writing of any claims within seven (7) days of the date that the product was delivered.

Claim notifications must be made in writing and include:

  • Clear explanation of the defect, fault, error or damage
  • Name of Visual Obsession staff members and CLIENT staff members involved with inspection of the product / service
  • Any other information that is pertinent or requested by Visual Obsession
  • Visual Obsession reserves the right to inspect, investigate and verify all reported claims. Failure to comply with the foregoing conditions constitutes a waiver of all rights.

Definitions

“CLIENT” means “You” the person sourcing services from Visual Obsession Pty Ltd and the organisation / business that you represent.

Validity

These terms and conditions are valid from 3rd April 2009 for all projects, including those started prior to this date. Visual Obsession retains the right to modify the terms and conditions at any time without notice to CLIENT.

Work conduct Policies

Visual Obsession operates under all Australian laws. Our customers / clients are expected to conduct business under the same laws also. Visual Obsession will refuse to perform work for any business or individual that chooses not to conduct themselves in an appropriate manner, or in any manner that we deem inappropriate or detrimental to the wellbeing of our employees. For more information, please visit: http://www.business.gov.au/business-topics/employing-people/bullying-and-harassment/Pages/default.aspx

PRINTING / DUPLICATIONS

Visual Obsession will endeavour to turn-around print work within 15 working days from date of receipt of signed artwork approval form.

Artwork Proof

Visual Obsession recommends you view a printed preview of your artwork before approval for print as colours on the screen may not be identical to colours in the final print. A number of factors can contribute to this including various paper types, stocks and types of coating.

Visual Obsession strives to make our branding of colours as accurate as possible, but accept no responsibility for printer or paper colour variation. We provide design for print using a CMYK colour scheme only. If you require a different scheme, additional costs may be involved. Printed approval (proof) must be requested by CLIENT in writing. If you require a printed approval, the deadline for the job may need to be extended as this process takes longer than an electronic approval. Printed proofs may be charged as an additional item at the discretion of Visual Obsession.

INTERACTIVE CD / DVD’S

All interactive CD-ROMs and DVD-ROMs developed by Visual Obsession are only designed to be used on a PC (Personal Computer) running a recent Microsoft Windows operating system (including Vista and Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10). While the product may work on other platforms, the media is not designed for use outside of the Microsoft Windows operating system. Unless otherwise specified, all interactive CD-ROMs and DVD-ROMs will be designed and developed to a screen resolution of 1024x768 and will not ‘scale’ based on the end users resolution.

Minimum System Requirements

Visual Obsession develops interactive CD-ROMs and DVD-ROMs to meet the following minimum system requirements:

  • Screen Resolution of 1024x768
  • Microsoft Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8
  • 1 GHz processor
  • 512 MB of system memory
  • Support for DirectX 9+ graphics and 128 MB of graphics memory
  • DVD-ROM drive
  • Audio Output
  • Internet access

If a computer running a multimedia product developed by Visual Obsession does not have the minimum system requirements stated in these Terms and Conditions, Visual Obsession does not accept any responsibility for performance or quality of the product.

WEBSITES, EMAILS AND EMAIL STATIONERY

Client to Supply

  • Website text for sample 1-5 pages. (Rewriting to include keywords in the text may help to increase your rankings).
  • A minimum of five Keywords for each sample page in order of priority.

Required Information

Before the production of your website and or email account(s), Visual Obsession requires the following information:

  • Company name & ABN number
  • List of current email addresses and passwords
  • FTP details for existing website(s) including
    • Host address
    • Account Username
    • Account Password
  • Domain name details for any domains currently owned by CLIENT including
    • Domain registrar (Melbourne IT, Netregistry, Austdomains etc…)
    • Domain username
    • Domain password
    • Domain registry key
  • Written permission for Visual Obsession to delegate your domain name to your new website.

Also the following if applicable:

  • Exact spelling of any additional domain names CLIENT may be interested in purchasing
  • Current and required email type (POP3, IMAP, Exchange).
  • Current primary email client (Outlook Express, Windows Mail, Microsoft Outlook 2007 etc…)
  • Access to current CPANEL and/or DNS settings.
  • IP address of current mailserver
  • IP address of current webserver

Cross Browser compatibility

Visual Obsession endeavours to make their websites as versatile and future-proof as possible. Having said this, browser upgrades (which are beyond our control) can affect websites or pieces of software that were cross-browser compatible at the time the job was completed. To update a website, making it compatible to a browser upgrade is a chargeable task. No work will be undertaken on doing this without prior approval from CLIENT.

Cross browser compatibility applies only to the publicly accessible area of a website built by Visual Obsession. The password protected area for content management is designed to be compatible with recent versions of Google Chrome. Google Chrome is a free download and Visual Obsession STRONGLY recommends that it be used for all website updates and content management due to the way it handles various complex coding languages used in the Content Management System. Visual Obsession will not accept responsibility for any issues that may arise from using other browsers.

Websites built by Visual Obsession will work in the latest versions of all majorly supported internet browser programs. Specifically, this includes Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, Microsoft Internet Explorer, Apple Safari and Opera. As each of these individual browser programs render code output with slight variations, Visual Obsession will not be responsible for any slight variations in website appearance. This includes, but is not limited to, button appearance, bullet list appearance, and image and paragraph padding.

Specifically, Visual Obsession does not support Internet Explorer versions 10 & lower, as per recommendations from Microsoft and numerous web authorities. Please refer to https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/windowsforbusiness/end-of-ie-support for more information. 

Security Disclaimer

Visual Obsession puts forth every effort to ensure websites have a measure of security; however they cannot guarantee security of your information or the security of your website in general. If an assurance of security is important to you, we recommend that you hire an internet security consultant.

Server Storage & Usage

Visual Obsession's Hosting packages allow for 2 Gigabytes of file and Database Storage, and allow 3 Gigabytes of data transfer per month. We are open to extending these limits for specific use-cases. If you require advanced storage or transfer capabilities please let us know and we can accommodate your requirements.

Visual Obsession does NOT allow their server infrastructure to be used for generic file storage or application serving. This includes installing custom software, storing files with File transfer protocol, gaining shell access and creating custom webpages (HTML or otherwise). You must only use the resources provided by Visual Obsession to perform actions on your website. Operations of this nature can introduce security risks, and in the case of a security issue: the organisation/individual responsible for introducing the risk will be fully responsible for any damages, downtime or issues. Please let us know if you require advanced hosting requirements and we can create a proposal to match your project.

Third Party Modifications / Development

By default, Visual Obsession does not provide administrator level access to any website, and does not allow writing/editing the website's internal files. Visual Obsession cannot provide warranty, fixes or be liable for any damages in any of the following circumstances:

  • Administrator level access to software has been provided to the client.
  • Internal website files are modified in any way by members of the clients organisation, 3rd party developer or anyone else.
  • A copy of the site in full has been provided to the client, or the client has been given FTP or SSH access to any part of the software. Changes made from this point are totally unrelated to Visual Obsession in any way.

Cache

Once a website is uploaded or updated, certain computers may still display the old information. This is because computers store information locally in a ‘cache’ in order to speed up the display of websites. Caching systems are usually cleared automatically after a certain period of time. Manual refreshing can usually be applied to the computer that is having problems; however some networks and intranets also have caching systems. Support for internal systems is beyond the scope of Visual Obsession’s services and is an issue central to browsers, operating systems, and various other hardware/software devices used on a local network. In the instance that content is removed from a website, it is sometimes still available on the internet via servers that cache content, including Google. Visual Obsession accepts no responsibility for information that is available to the public after deletion from CLIENT's website.

Data Retention and Liability

Visual Obsession cannot be liable for data loss on any website or service we provide, unless an agreed scope of work includes such a clause (such as database or file backups). Data loss due to hardware failure, operating errors by a client, or errors in software (whether in-house or 3rd party) cannot be deemed the responsibility of Visual Obsession.

Domain Name Registration

Domain name registration is provided as a service by Visual Obsession. If you would like to register your own domain name, you will need to either supply Visual Obsession with the registrar website, Username and Password or delegate to nameservers specified by Visual Obsession at the time of the website upload / update.

If you would like Visual Obsession to register a domain name, particularly with the extension .com.au – Visual Obsession require all of the following information:

Organisation of the Domain

  • Eligibility Type: ie. Company, Registered Business, Sole Trader, Partnership etc…
  • Eligibility ID Type: ie. ABN, ACN, other
    Eligibility ID Number:

Transferring a domain name away from Visual Obsession will be initiated by the new registrar and will not be the responsibility of Visual Obsession. Change of registrant details may incur an additional cost to CLIENT.

Domain Name Delegation

Once a website has been approved, Visual Obsession will delegate the domain name(s) to the correct nameservers. If Visual Obsession does not have access to the domain name administration, delegation must be performed by CLIENT.

Once delegated, domain names can take up to 72 hours to show the data on the new server. For this reason, website approval must be 72 hours before the live website is required. If Visual Obsession has not registered the domain name(s) we will need the details supplied to us in writing prior to delegation. This period is usually used to check for any abnormalities that may occur.

During the delegation process, Visual Obsession may disable the user login account on the website. This is to ensure there is no mis-match of data.

Spam

It is not the responsibility of Visual Obsession to protect your company from spam. Unsolicited emails can only be dealt with by the CLIENT and it is the responsibility of CLIENT to ensure that they are careful with the way in which they advertise their email address, who they send their email address to, how it is forwarded to other people etc. It is recommended that company email addresses are not used for personal emails.

We recommend you purchase spam software such as “Spam Bully” (www.spambully.com) and follow the directions to streamline your email handling.

We also recommend that you do not display your email address on the website, but instead use contact forms with spam prevention in the form of a CAPTCHA (Completely Automated Public Turing test for telling Computers and Humans Apart).

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

Search Engine Optimisation is one of the most important aspects of a website as it determines whether an end user can find your website easily.

It always helps to think about which words your visitors are likely to type in, and optimise your website based on those words. We call these words ‘keywords’. If you are in a particularly broad or international industry, and have many competitors, we recommend that you thoroughly research the industry to find the most effective keywords and source other businesses to link to you. Visual Obsession can incorporate your keywords into many areas of your website. You may also consider hiring a copywriter who can write your copy to incorporate your keywords as much as possible.

What you can do to improve your Search Engine rankings is to get other websites to link to your website. Often, people will be willing to link to your website if you link back to theirs. Visual Obsession would like to stress that it is your responsibility to solicit links to your website from other websites in your line of business. Visual Obsession cannot approach third party businesses to solicit links for you. It is important that you acquire these incoming links as they are a large factor in your overall rankings.

In the case of Search Engine Optimisation, Visual Obsession cannot guarantee that your website will come first on any given page, or that your ranking will hold steady over time.

SEO Whitepaper

The Search Engine Optimisation (“SEO”) methods used in the Visual Obsession Whitepaper are to be utilised by CLIENT ONLY. The SEO Whitepaper provided by Visual Obsession must not be shared, sold or used for any purpose other than that intended by Visual Obsession (to improve the Search Engine Rank of CLIENT’s website built by Visual Obsession).

Hosting and DNS

It is a contractual requirement that Visual Obsession host any website that we build. Websites built by Visual Obsession may not be compatible with other servers, especially older ones. If you require the website to be hosted by a different company, Visual Obsession will not support the website and will not be responsible for any compatibility issues. We provide managed dedicated server facilities at competitive rates with the major benefit of Visual Obsession being able to continually manage your website and emails from one central point. This includes email message warnings prior to, or at the time of, a problem occurring. For example; an email warning will alert Visual Obsession to promptly increase your hosting package before there is an issue.

In the case that CLIENT requires a mail server not controlled by Visual Obsession, CLIENT agrees to allow Visual Obsession to control the DNS. It is the company policy of Visual Obsession to control the DNS for the following reasons.

  • We reserve the right to change the IP address of our webservers at any time.
  • Any Sub-domains, Ftp accounts, SPF records etc. that might need to be added in the future, can be done by us without waiting for a third-party.
  • Problems with the DNS can be looked at by Visual Obsession.
  • We have never had any issues with pointing an MX record to an external mailserver.

If CLIENT chooses to use their own mail server, Visual Obsession is not responsible for loss of emails, email downtime or any other mail issue.

  • We are not a "Generic Hosting Provider", we provide this service as part of our ongoing website management / warranty.
  • FTP information / connection details to Visual Obsession's servers can never be given to the Client, due to security reasons.
  • If Client ever requires access to their website, Visual Obsession will provide a link to the website that they can download and host elsewhere.
  • If Client chooses this option, all claims to warranty will expire.

In the case that CLIENT does not honour the hosting arrangement, or fails to keep up-to-date with hosting fees, Visual Obsession has the right to undertake any or all of the following actions:

  • Display a holding page or de-activation page in place of CLIENT's website address until the issue is resolved.
  • Disable/De-activate any websites or services that CLIENT owns. This may include loss of email functionality and/or web services may become un-available.
  • Permanently remove any website file's and emails, and any other data belonging to CLIENT, from the server

While CLIENT has not honoured the hosting arrangement: Visual Obsession cannot be responsible for any loss of emails or the integrity of data being provided by other services.

When hosting with Netregistry: hosting plans may incur an excess fee when your specified usage limits are exceeded. You can view more about these charges in the "Web Hosting and Email" section of Netregistry’s Service terms & Conditions.

Google Adwords

In the instance that Visual Obsession is contracted to set up a Google Adwords campaign for a client, it is done on the Visual Obsession Google Adwords MCC (My Client Center). To maintain best practices, Visual Obsession needs to manage the Google account without access by other parties. At no time will the methods utilised by the staff member(s) be revealed by Visual Obsession to the client or a third party, although Visual Obsession can issue performance reports if this is part of the service that was agreed upon in writing between Visual Obsession and the Client. In the instance that the Client ceases to utilise Google services from Visual Obsession, the Google Adwords account hosted on the Visual Obsession MCC cannot be transferred to a third party and will be simply shut down or made inactive until the client requires the service to continue further.

Please note that any vouchers distributed by Visual Obsession during the year 2011 will expire on 31/12/2011.

Facebook

Visual Obsession reserves the right to remove or alter any piece of content on a Facebook page owned or managed by Visual Obsession. This includes entries into competitions, photo submissions, comments, posts and Facebook "Likes". Visual Obsession reserves the right to remove any content from Facebook competitions without notice.

Minimum Charge Policy

When Visual Obsession is requested to perform additional work beyond the original scope identified in the quote document, Visual Obsession will bill for all time taken to complete the requested work. This includes and covers all administration, communication and resource management costs involved in completing the task. As part of this policy, Visual Obsession charges a minimum of ONE hours work ($89 EX GST) when completing ALL small tasks. Please note that at Visual Obsessions discretion, this amount may be reduced or increased, depending on the nature of the task completed.