Terms of Service

Welcome to FlowIP. These Terms of Service ("Terms") constitute a legally binding agreement between you ("User," "you," or "your") and Patenty Inc. ("FlowIP," "we," "us," or "our") governing your access to and use of the FlowIP platform, including our website at flowip.io, mobile applications, APIs, and all related services (collectively, the "Service").

By creating an account, accessing, or using our Service, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these Terms. If you are using the Service on behalf of an organization, you represent and warrant that you have the authority to bind that organization to these Terms, and "you" refers to both you individually and that organization.

If you do not agree to these Terms, you may not access or use the Service.

FlowIP is an IP Network Intelligence Platform designed for patent law firms and intellectual property professionals. Our Service provides:

• Patent case exchange network analysis across IP5 jurisdictions (United States, European Patent Office, Japan, Korea, and China)
• Law firm partnership discovery and reciprocity scoring
• Market intelligence and trend analysis for international patent filings
• Firm comparison and benchmarking tools
• Data visualization including flow diagrams and geographic mapping
• API access for data integration (subject to plan limitations)

The Service aggregates and analyzes publicly available patent data from official patent offices including KIPRIS (Korea), EPO (Europe), USPTO (United States), and J-PlatPat (Japan) to provide actionable insights for your business decisions.

3.1 Eligibility

You must be at least 18 years old and capable of forming a binding contract to use the Service. The Service is intended for business use by patent professionals, law firms, and corporate IP departments.

3.2 Account Information

When registering for an account, you agree to provide accurate, current, and complete information about yourself and your organization. You are responsible for maintaining the accuracy of this information.

3.3 Account Security

You are responsible for safeguarding your account credentials and for all activities that occur under your account. You must immediately notify us at security@flowip.io of any unauthorized use of your account or any other security breach.

3.4 One Account Per User

Each user may maintain only one account. Sharing account credentials with multiple individuals is prohibited unless you have an Enterprise plan with designated seat licenses.

4.1 Subscription Tiers

FlowIP offers multiple subscription tiers: Free, Professional, and Enterprise. Each tier provides different levels of access, features, and usage limits as described on our pricing page. Features may be added, modified, or removed at our discretion with reasonable notice.

4.2 Payment Processing by Paddle

All payments for FlowIP subscriptions are processed by Paddle.com Market Limited (for customers outside the USA) or Paddle.com Inc. (for customers in the USA), acting as our Merchant of Record (MoR). Paddle handles all payment processing, invoicing, sales tax/VAT calculation and collection, and customer billing inquiries on our behalf. When you make a purchase, you are purchasing from Paddle as the seller, and you agree to Paddle's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

4.3 Billing Cycles

Paid subscriptions are billed in advance on a monthly or annual basis, depending on your selected plan. Annual subscriptions provide a discounted rate compared to monthly billing.

4.4 Payment Terms

You authorize Paddle to charge your designated payment method for all fees associated with your subscription. All subscriptions include a 30-day money-back guarantee as described in our Refund Policy.

4.5 Price Changes

We may modify our pricing with at least 30 days' prior notice. Price changes will take effect at the start of your next billing cycle following the notice period. If you do not agree to the price change, you may cancel your subscription before the new pricing takes effect.

4.6 Taxes

Paddle calculates and collects applicable taxes, levies, or duties based on your location. The price displayed at checkout will include any applicable taxes.

4.7 Free Trial

We may offer free trials at our discretion. At the end of a trial period, your account will be converted to a paid subscription unless you cancel before the trial ends. We will provide notice before any charges are applied.

Subject to your compliance with these Terms, we grant you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to access and use the Service for your internal business purposes. You may:

• Use the analytics and insights provided by the Service for business decision-making
• Generate reports and visualizations for internal use and client presentations
• Access the Service through our web interface, mobile applications, or authorized APIs
• Export data in accordance with your subscription plan's limits
• Share insights with colleagues within your organization (subject to seat license restrictions)

You agree not to engage in any of the following prohibited activities:

• Unauthorized Access: Attempting to access accounts, systems, or data without authorization, or circumventing security measures
• Data Scraping: Using automated means to scrape, crawl, or extract data from the Service beyond the scope of authorized API usage
• Resale or Redistribution: Reselling, sublicensing, or redistributing access to the Service or its data without express written permission
• Reverse Engineering: Decompiling, disassembling, or reverse engineering any aspect of the Service
• Service Disruption: Interfering with the Service's operation or placing unreasonable load on our infrastructure
• Misrepresentation: Providing false information or impersonating any person or entity
• Illegal Use: Using the Service for any unlawful purpose or in violation of applicable laws
• Competitive Intelligence: Using the Service to build a competing product or service

7.1 FlowIP's Rights

The Service, including its design, features, functionality, software, algorithms, analytics methodologies, and all content provided by FlowIP (excluding User Content), is owned by FlowIP and protected by intellectual property laws. FlowIP and the FlowIP logo are trademarks of Patenty Inc.

7.2 Patent Data

The underlying patent data displayed in the Service is sourced from official patent offices and is generally in the public domain. Our proprietary value lies in the aggregation, analysis, algorithms, and presentation of this data, not the raw patent information itself.

7.3 User Content

You retain ownership of any content you submit to the Service ("User Content"), such as saved searches, custom notes, or uploaded data. By submitting User Content, you grant FlowIP a worldwide, royalty-free license to use, store, and process such content solely for providing the Service.

7.4 Feedback

If you provide suggestions, ideas, or feedback about the Service ("Feedback"), you grant FlowIP an unrestricted, perpetual, royalty-free license to use and incorporate such Feedback without any obligation to you.

Your privacy is important to us. Our collection, use, and protection of your personal information is governed by our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated into these Terms by reference.

By using the Service, you consent to the collection and use of information as described in our Privacy Policy. You acknowledge that patent data displayed in the Service may include information about third-party individuals and organizations derived from public patent records.

9.1 API Access

API access is available to users on eligible subscription plans. Your API key is confidential and must be protected. You are responsible for all API calls made using your credentials.

9.2 Rate Limits

API usage is subject to rate limits based on your subscription plan. Exceeding these limits may result in temporary throttling or suspension of API access. Current rate limits are documented in our API documentation.

9.3 Fair Use

All usage must comply with our fair use policy. We reserve the right to throttle or suspend accounts that exhibit abusive patterns or negatively impact other users.

10.1 Uptime Commitment

We strive to maintain 99.9% uptime for the Service. Enterprise customers may negotiate specific service level agreements (SLAs) with defined uptime commitments and remedies.

10.2 Scheduled Maintenance

We may perform scheduled maintenance that temporarily affects Service availability. We will provide reasonable advance notice of scheduled maintenance windows, typically via email or in-app notification.

10.3 Data Freshness

Patent data is updated regularly from official sources, typically within 30 days of publication. However, we cannot guarantee real-time accuracy as data depends on third-party patent office systems.

The Service may integrate with or contain links to third-party websites, services, or content. We are not responsible for the availability, accuracy, or content of such third-party services. Your use of third-party services is at your own risk and subject to their terms and policies.

Key third-party services integrated with FlowIP include:

• Paddle: Payment processing and subscription management (Merchant of Record). See Paddle's Legal Terms.
• Supabase: Database hosting, user authentication, and email delivery
• Vercel: Application hosting and deployment
• Google Cloud: Patent data processing and analytics

Not Legal Advice: The analytics, insights, and data provided through the Service are for informational purposes only and do not constitute legal, business, or professional advice. You should not rely solely on the Service for making legal or business decisions. Always consult with qualified professionals for advice specific to your situation.

We do not warrant that the Service will be uninterrupted, error-free, or free of harmful components. We do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of the data displayed in the Service.

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW:

13.1 FlowIP shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, punitive, or exemplary damages, including damages for loss of profits, goodwill, data, or other intangible losses, even if advised of the possibility of such damages.

13.2 FlowIP's total liability for all claims arising out of or related to these Terms or the Service shall not exceed the greater of: (a) the amount you paid to FlowIP in the twelve (12) months preceding the claim, or (b) one hundred U.S. dollars ($100).

13.3 These limitations apply regardless of the legal theory (contract, tort, strict liability, or otherwise) and even if any limited remedy fails of its essential purpose.

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless FlowIP and its officers, directors, employees, agents, and affiliates from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or in connection with:

• Your use or misuse of the Service
• Your violation of these Terms
• Your violation of any applicable law or regulation
• Your User Content
• Your infringement of any third-party rights

We reserve the right to modify, suspend, or discontinue the Service (or any part thereof) at any time, with or without notice. For material changes that significantly reduce functionality, we will provide at least 30 days' notice to paid subscribers.

We may also update these Terms from time to time. We will notify you of material changes by posting the updated Terms on our website and, for significant changes, by sending an email to registered users. Your continued use of the Service after the effective date of the revised Terms constitutes acceptance of the changes.

16.1 Termination by You

You may terminate your account at any time through your account settings or by contacting us at support@flowip.io. Refunds upon termination are subject to our Refund Policy, which includes a 30-day money-back guarantee.

16.2 Termination by FlowIP

We may suspend or terminate your access to the Service immediately, without prior notice, if we believe you have violated these Terms or engaged in conduct that may harm FlowIP, other users, or third parties. We may also terminate accounts that remain inactive for extended periods.

16.3 Effect of Termination

Upon termination, your right to access and use the Service will immediately cease. We may delete your account data after a reasonable period following termination. Sections of these Terms that by their nature should survive termination shall survive, including intellectual property provisions, disclaimers, limitations of liability, and dispute resolution provisions.

17.1 Informal Resolution

Before initiating formal dispute resolution, you agree to first contact us at legal@flowip.io to attempt to resolve any dispute informally. We will attempt to resolve disputes within 60 days of your notice.

17.2 Arbitration

If informal resolution is unsuccessful, any dispute arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service shall be resolved by binding arbitration administered by the Korean Commercial Arbitration Board (KCAB) in accordance with its Commercial Arbitration Rules. The arbitration shall be conducted in Seoul, Republic of Korea, in English.

17.3 Class Action Waiver

You agree that any dispute resolution proceedings will be conducted on an individual basis and not in a class, consolidated, or representative action. You waive any right to participate in class actions against FlowIP.

17.4 Exceptions

Nothing in this section prevents either party from seeking injunctive or equitable relief from a court of competent jurisdiction to prevent infringement of intellectual property rights or unauthorized access to the Service.

These Terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Republic of Korea, without regard to its conflict of law principles. For users located in the European Economic Area, nothing in these Terms shall deprive you of mandatory consumer protection rights granted under the laws of your country of residence.

19.1 Entire Agreement

These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy and any other policies referenced herein, constitute the entire agreement between you and FlowIP regarding the Service.

19.2 Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found to be unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall remain in full force and effect.

19.3 Waiver

Our failure to enforce any right or provision of these Terms shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision.

19.4 Assignment

You may not assign or transfer these Terms without our prior written consent. We may assign our rights and obligations under these Terms without restriction.

19.5 Language

These Terms are provided in English. In the event of any conflict between the English version and any translation, the English version shall prevail.

If you have any questions about these Terms of Service, please contact us: