TERMS

OUR MISSION STATEMENT

The mission of sermon.net is to aid in the fulfillment of the Great Commission by spreading Christian teachings. To this end, sermon.net will strive to provide lessons that follow these general guidelines:

Lessons that promote the teachings of the Bible (especially those of Jesus) and/or how they are applied individually and in the church, and are based on:
- The Bible is the inspired Word of God and is the authoritative source for teaching,
- The characteristics and nature of God are revealed in the Bible, and
- Jesus is the Son of God and was born human, died, was resurrected, ascended into heaven, and provides eternal life for those who believe in him.
sermon.net reserves the right to refuse service to organizations promoting religious ideas contrary to those guidelines above.
All lessons on the sermon.net website must: not promote violence, not promote any political party, not be focused on fund-raising or advertising, follow all laws of the United States of America (including copyright laws), and not endanger the non-profit status of sermon.net

The enforcement of these policies will be done through the oversight of employees, a Policy Committee, and the Board of Advisors. In general, sermon.net will rely on an honor system for lessons to be posted, but will rely on listeners and high-level technology to report violations to its policies.

TERMS OF SERVICE

1. CONTENT

Any material (Content) that you make available to sermon.net and its affiliate providers is and remains your sole property or the property of your licensors.

By making available any Content, you automatically grant sermon.net, (the Hosting Provider) and its affiliate providers the royalty-free, non-exclusive right to store, access, view, and playback the Content through their sites in perpetuity.

2. CONDUCT

You agree to use sermon.net only for lawful purposes. You are solely responsible for the knowledge of and adherence to any and all laws, statutes, rules and regulations pertaining to your use of sermon.net.

You agree to not use sermon.net to:

a. make available any Content that you do not have a right to make available;

b. make available any content that infringes any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright or other proprietary rights of any party;

c. make available any unsolicited or unauthorized advertising, promotional materials, junk mail, spam, chain letters, pyramid schemes, or any other form of solicitation;

d. make available any Content that is unlawful, obscene, libelous, or contains software viruses, trojans, worms, data miners, spyware, malware, or any other content judged to be unacceptable by the Hosting Provider.

sermon.net and its services are for use by individual churches and ministries. You are therefore prohibited from selling and/or marketing the services provided by sermon.net as your own. Any requests to use sermon.net for commercial or other purposes must be submitted in writing to sermon.net. This includes but is not limited to the use of one account to broadcast multiple authors, channels, or types of content. You may not use a single sermon.net account to serve as a portal to distribute the content of several authors from unique ministries. Violation of these terms can result in the immediate removal of your content and/or account entirely.

3. TERMINATION

The only right with respect to dissatisfaction with any policies or practices of the Hosting Provider in operating sermon.net is for you to discontinue using sermon.net. The Hosting Provider, in its sole discretion, may terminate or temporarily suspend your access to all or any part of sermon.net, for any reason, without notice. The Hosting Provider and its affiliate may discontinue operating sermon.net, and/or terminate this Agreement without notice at any time for any reason in their sole discretion.

4. DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES AND LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

sermon.net, IS PROVIDED BY THE HOSTING PROVIDER ON AN ‘AS IS’ AND ‘AS AVAILABLE’ BASIS. THE HOSTING PROVIDER AND ITS AFFILIATE MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO THE OPERATION OF THIS SITE OR THE INFORMATION, CONTENT, MATERIALS, OR PRODUCTS INCLUDED ON THIS SITE. YOU EXPRESSLY AGREE THAT YOUR USE OF THIS SITE IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK. TO THE FULL EXTENT PERMISSIBLE BY APPLICABLE LAW, THE HOSTING PROVIDER AND ITS AFFILIATE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE HOSTING PROVIDER AND ITS AFFILIATE WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES OF ANY KIND ARISING FROM THE USE OF THIS SITE, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, AND CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES. USER AGREES TO HOLD HARMLESS SERMON.NET AND ITS AFFILIATE PROVIDERS IN THE EVENT THAT THIS SERVICE IS TERMINATED OR CONTENT IS LOST OR NO LONGER AVAILABLE, FOR ANY REASON.

5. PRIVACY AND FREE SPEECH

We are committed to protecting your privacy. The personal information we collect is only that which is needed to provide the services we offer. We do not divulge this information to other parties unless we deem it necessary to resolve a dispute regarding these Terms of Service.

We support freedom of speech in the use of our services. However, your speech must be done in a lawful and responsible manner. You agree that the Hosting Provider is not responsible for your content, and the views and opinions expressed are your own.

6. GENERAL

By using sermon.net, and as provided through its affiliate, you agree to the above stated terms of use and to our site policies. By using sermon.net and providing us your email address, you agree to receive periodic emails to the account contact(s) with information pertinent to the account. sermon.net pricing is subject to change to the prices in effect at the time of delivery. sermon.net reserves the right to make any corrections to prices quoted due to clerical errors or errors of omission. In the event of any specific requirements (including without limitation any design, specification, ordered quantity, or data changes) representing a price increase, Buyer will be notified and afforded an opportunity to decline ongoing use of the system. These terms of service can be modified at the discretion of sermon.net. The venue for all actions under this Agreement shall be the appropriate state or federal court sitting in Tulsa County, Oklahoma.

FREE 2 WEEK TEST-DRIVE

Take your Sermon Studio for a 2 week test-drive. This trial will give you access to all features, and is good for 14 Days or 15 GB of Usage, whichever comes first.

* We provide free on-boarding support to help you get started! Select a time-slot on this calendar for some direct assistance.

- https://www.cloudhq.net/meeting/paul@sermon.net

* Get Started Questionnaire (help us help you)

- https://forms.gle/z3rdr4nirwdyuk2w8

NOTE: You must have payment information on file (credit card, or ACH / electronic check) in order to activate your trial account.

TYPES OF ACCOUNTS

Live and on-Demand, Audio & Video: Starting at only $15 per month (with 12 month commitment), or $19 per month (month-to-month), you can upload or live stream your media. You are provided 25 GB per month of Usage to work with. (*more on Usage below)

NOTE: The only thing that changes across the different payment plans is the amount of Usage (Storage + Delivery/Bandwidth) that you are allotted. All features are included across all plans. If you surpass the usage allotment you will be changed a $0.55/GB overage fee.

WHAT IS USAGE?

Your total monthly usage is the total of 3 areas: storage, on-demand delivery/bandwidth, and live broadcasting delivery/bandwidth.

Storage is the running total of all files you have archived, like a folder on your computer, if you add to it and never remove anything it will accumulate and grow each month.

On-demand delivery is people listening, watching, or downloading your archived files.

Live broadcasting delivery is people watching in real-time.

Restreaming to Facebook, YouTube, etc… any views from those platforms (live or on-demand) do not count against your Sermon Studio Usage allotment.

You can monitor your Usage by viewing the Studio Usage meter on the Dashboard of your Sermon Studio.

TERMS (month-to-month, or annual contract)

A] Month-to-Month (paid monthly)

B] Annual Contract - Paid Monthly (12 month commitment, paid monthly). Receive a discount with annual commitments.

C] Annual Contract - Paid in Full (one year contract, paid in one lump sum). Receive an additional 5% discount with annual, lump sum, contract.

All term option include:

No setup-fees.
Free support.
Re-streaming to Facebook, YouTube, etc… any views from those platforms (live or on-demand) do not count against your Sermon Studio Usage allotment.

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A] Month-to-month Terms

Your license begins as soon as your initial payment is processed. Your first payment will be prorated for the remainder of the current month. Your license will automatically renew each month without notice until you cancel. You authorize us to store your payment method(s) and to automatically charge your payment method(s) every month until you cancel. We will automatically charge you the then-current rate for your plan, plus applicable overage fees, every month upon renewal until you cancel.

If your payment method fails, we may suspend your subscription. You can edit your payment information anytime in your Sermon Studio > My Account > Billing Info page.

Cancellation Terms

You can cancel your subscription anytime by submitting a Support ticket from within your Sermon Studio. If you cancel your service will continue until the end of that month’s billing period.

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B] Annual contract, paid monthly Terms (cost-per-month discount)

Your one-year (12 month) term license begins as soon as your initial payment is processed. Your first payment will be prorated for the remainder of the current month. You are committed to twelve (12) monthly license payments.

You authorize us to store your payment method(s) and to automatically charge your payment method(s) every month until you cancel. We will automatically charge you the then-current rate for your plan, plus applicable overage fees, every month until you cancel.

If your payment method fails, we may suspend your subscription. You can edit your payment information anytime in your Sermon Studio > My Account > Billing Info page.

AUTO RENEWAL: After a one-year term concludes, your next one-year (12 month) term license begins as soon as the next payment is processed. You are committed to twelve (12) more monthly license payments.

Cancellation Terms

Should you cancel prior to the end of your one-year term, you’ll be charged the difference between the month-by-month (no commitment) plan and the discounted (with 12 month commitment) plan, based on the level of Usage (GB Plan) you are currently on. This difference is multiplied by the number of invoices that have been issued during the current annual term.

For example: If you cancel an annual commitment in your 6th month, and you are on the $30 for 100 GB plan (a $6 monthly discount because of the annual commit), the cost to cancel would be 6 (months used) x $6 (discounted difference) = $36 cost to cancel.

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C] Annual contract, prepaid (additional 5% discount)

Your one-year (12 month) term license begins as soon as your payment is processed. You will be charged, in one lump sum, the annual rate stated at the time of purchase. Your contract will automatically renew on your annual renewal date until you cancel.

You authorize us to store your payment method(s) and to automatically charge your payment method(s) every year until you cancel.

If your payment method fails, we may suspend your subscription. You can edit your payment information anytime in your Sermon Studio > My Account > Billing Info page.

Cancellation Terms

Your payment is non-refundable, and your service will continue until the end of your contracted term.

PRICING PLANS

1] Starter Church Media Center - 25 GB plan. Great for Live Video Simulcasting to Facebook & YouTube, and/or on-demand audio storage and delivery - podcasting.

$15 per month with annual contract (paid monthly, receive an additional 5% discount if paid in full)

(or $19 per month, month-to-month)

(+ $0.55/GB overage)

2] Growing Church Media Center - 100GB plan, bandwidth for 50-60 households watching your stream every Sunday*

$30 per month with annual contract (paid monthly, receive an additional 5% discount if paid in full)

(or $36 per month, month-to-month)

(+ $0.55/GB overage)

3] Outreach Church Media Center - 300GB plan, bandwidth for 150-175 households watching your stream every Sunday*

$60 per month with annual contract (paid monthly, receive an additional 5% discount if paid in full)

(or $70 per month, month-to-month)

(+ $0.50/GB overage)

4] Outreach Church Media Center - 700GB plan, bandwidth for 350-400 households watching your stream every Sunday*

$110 per month with annual contract (paid monthly, receive an additional 5% discount if paid in full)

(or $140 per month, month-to-month)

(+ $0.50/GB overage)

5] Beyond Church Media Center, Event pricing

$150 up-to 1 TB (+ $0.50/GB overage)

Bandwidth for an event for 2,000 households. Or 500 - 600 households watching your stream every Sunday*

$275 up-to 2 TB (+ $0.50/GB overage)

Bandwidth for 1000 - 1200 households watching your stream every Sunday*

$360 up-to 3 TB (+ $0.50/GB overage)

Bandwidth for an event for 6,000 households. or 1500 - 1700 households watching your stream every Sunday*

$450 up-to 5 TB (+ $0.09/GB overage)

Bandwidth for an event for 10,000 households. Or 2500-3000 households watching your stream every Sunday*

* Based on a 1100 Kbps combined audio + video bitrate.

CALCULATING USAGE

Storage: If you archive 4 video files in a month and each file is 0.5 GB, at the end of the first month your storage would be 2 GB. If you repeat this in month 2 and do not remove anything, your total at the end of month 2 would be 4 GB. As you can see this number will continue to grow if nothing is removed, each month consuming a larger portion of your available GB of usage.

On-Demand Delivery: If each video file in your archive is 0.5 GB then it would use 0.5 GB of bandwidth to deliver a file to a user. If a user is playing the file online and only watches the first part, only that portion would be added to your bandwidth. A download delivers the entire file (assuming the user completes the download), in short you are charged just for what is used. This can be tracked through the On-Demand Delivery Stats page within your Sermon Studio.

Live Broadcasting Delivery: This is a function of 3 things, the size of your broadcast bitrate (quality), the duration, and the number of viewers. You should find that 1 GB provides between 2 viewing hours depending on your bitrate. Your stats can be tracked on the Live Stats page within your Sermon Studio.

OPTIMIZE YOUR USAGE ALLOTMENT

There are a few ways to reduce usage, the one that is easiest to control is your storage.

Limit Long Term Storage: We have many users that leave video available for a certain amount of time, after which they remove the video leaving the audio for each service. This reduces storage of the video file, as well as any audience member accessing that service now can only access audio which requires less usage to send the (smaller) audio file. You can remove files individually or entire Episodes with all of their media through the Batch Process option at the bottom of the Archive page in your Sermon Studio account.
If you simulcast / restream your sermon.net live broadcast to the mainstream platforms (Facebook, YouTube, etc.) the bandwidth from those platforms will not count against your Sermon Studio’s usage allotment.
Reducing your on-demand delivery can be achieved by having smaller files in the archive, or making smaller files available. You can trim a live recording so that you only archive the message portion of the When you publish your media into an Episode use a lower bitrate setting – this is good for both you and your audience as it creates smaller files for less storage and faster delivery.
You can adjust the settings at the bottom of any Episode page, in the Transcoding Profile Template section. Reducing live delivery can be achieved by reducing any of the 3 areas that affect the delivery: bitrate (send lower quality broadcast), duration (broadcast a shorter service), or reduce the number of viewers (not something you likely wish to do).

ONLINE BILLING SYSTEM & MAKING PAYMENTS

You can login to the billing system through the My Account > Billing info page within your Sermon Studio. When your account was created a “billing contact person” was provided along with a username and password, these credentials do not have to match your Sermon Studio login credentials and allow ministries to separate the duties of billing from the technical side of your sermon.net account. If you have trouble accessing the account you can request a username/password reminder, if you require further assistance please let us know.

Our system sends license users invoices on the 5th of each month for that month of service, and any overage from the previous month. Invoices unpaid will result in immediate deactivation of the account by the automated billing system. If you have a credit card or ACH on file for monthly payments, you will see the invoice marked “Paid” when the payment is processed successfully.

If you pay by check you must have a credit on your account, at the time the invoice is processed, to cover the payment, otherwise your account will be deactivated by the automated billing system.

To add a credit card, update the card on file, or add/modify the ACH, click on My Account > Billing Info. There you can update your payment information, adjust the plan that you are on and make payments to unpaid invoices.

One-Time Payments can be made by credit card or PayPal online, or sent by mail with check or postal money order. Checks must be at least $50. Any excess payment will be added as a credit balance to your account, which will be applied to future invoices as they are created each month. You can set up a PayPal account to draft from your bank account, similar to e-check payment. For payment by mail, please include your account number or invoice number.

Please mail your payments to:

sermon.net, inc.
P.O. Box 1594
Sapulpa, OK 74067

If you would like to send payment for multiple months please send a check for an amount greater than your invoice amount. Checks must be at least $50. The excess payment will be added as a credit balance to your account, which will be applied to future invoices as they are created each month. To pay in advance you will need to click on your unpaid invoice and then add the amount you want to pay within the invoice total box at the bottom. Once you pay that amount the invoice will show paid and the remainder will be placed in your account as a credit.

If you would like to change plans or if you have any questions please feel free to contact us at 800-807-1014 x 3, billing@sermon.net, or use the Help Desk within your Sermon Studio.