Terms of Service

1. Acceptance of Terms

These Terms of Service (“Terms”) govern access to and use of the services, technology, programs, membership offerings, and network operated by the Direct Booking Alliance™ (“the Alliance,” “we,” “our,” or “us”) (collectively, the “Services”). By accessing, using, or participating in the Services in any capacity (including as a member, operator, partner, sponsor, or guest), you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree, you may not use or access the Services.

2. Nature of the Alliance

The Alliance is an industry association and collaborative network that supports and promotes direct booking relationships between travelers and independent lodging providers, tours, and experiences (“Operators”). The Alliance:

• Is not an online travel agency, booking platform, or seller of travel.
• Does not contract with travelers for accommodations, tours, or experiences.
• Does not set or control pricing, availability, booking terms, policies, or house rules.
• Does not collect, hold, or process traveler payments for bookings.

3. Eligibility

You must be at least 18 years old and have the legal capacity to enter into binding agreements to use the Services. If you access the Services on behalf of a business or organization, you represent and warrant that you are authorized to accept these Terms on its behalf and to bind that entity to these Terms.

4. Accounts and Access

Certain elements of the Services may require registration or the creation of an account. You agree to:

• Provide accurate, current, and complete information.
• Keep your information up to date.
• Maintain the confidentiality of your login credentials.
• Be responsible for all activity that occurs under your account.

The Alliance may suspend, restrict, or terminate access to the Services at any time, with or without notice, where necessary to protect the network, enforce these Terms, or comply with legal or governance obligations.

5. Operator and Member Responsibilities

If you are an Operator or other member of the Alliance, you acknowledge and agree that:

• You remain solely responsible for your own services, profile, and content.
• You are solely responsible for compliance with applicable laws and regulations, including licensing, consumer protection, data protection, tax, and safety obligations.
• You may not represent the Alliance as an agent, intermediary, seller of travel, or guarantor of any booking.

Nothing in these Terms transfers or assigns your legal obligations to the Alliance.

6. Network Participation and Recognition

The Alliance may operate programs or mechanisms that recognize participation, collaboration, or contribution within the network (for example, membership status, program participation, or other non-guaranteed benefits). You acknowledge that:

• Any recognition or status is determined by the Alliance in its sole discretion and may change over time.
• Participation in the Alliance does not guarantee revenue, bookings, leads, or any particular economic or commercial outcome.
• Participation does not create a partnership, joint venture, fiduciary relationship, or agency relationship between you and the Alliance.

7. Fees and Payments

Membership fees, program fees, or other charges (if any) associated with participation in the Alliance will be disclosed separately (for example, in membership materials, program descriptions, or invoices). Fees are due as invoiced and may be changed prospectively at the Alliance’s discretion. Except where required by applicable law, all fees are non-refundable.

The Alliance does not collect, hold, or process traveler payments for bookings and is not responsible for payment disputes, chargebacks, or other payment issues between travelers and Operators. You are responsible for any taxes, duties, withholding obligations, or governmental assessments related to your use of the Services or participation in Alliance programs.

If amounts owed are not paid when due, or if payment reversals or chargebacks occur, the Alliance may suspend or terminate access to the Services and pursue any available remedies, including reasonable collection costs and legal fees where permitted by law.

8. Acceptable Use

You agree that you will not:

• Use the Services for any unlawful, fraudulent, or deceptive purpose.
• Submit false, misleading, or unauthorized information.
• Interfere with or disrupt the operation, security, or integrity of the Services or the Alliance’s systems.
• Misrepresent your relationship with the Alliance or imply endorsement, sponsorship, or partnership where none exists.
• Reverse engineer, decompile, scrape, harvest, or otherwise attempt to extract or copy source code, data, or content from the Services except as expressly permitted by law.

The Alliance may investigate and take appropriate action (including suspension or termination) for violations of this section.

9. User Content, Community Features, and License

The Services may include profiles, listings, forums, groups, chat functions, comments, messages, media uploads, and other interactive features that allow you to submit, post, transmit, or share content (“User Content”). You are solely responsible for your User Content and for ensuring that you have all rights, licenses, and permissions necessary to provide it.

As between you and the Alliance, you retain ownership of your User Content. However, by submitting or making User Content available through the Services, you grant the Alliance and its affiliates, service providers, and designees a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, fully paid, transferable, sublicensable license to host, store, cache, copy, reproduce, adapt, modify, reformat, translate, publish, display, perform, distribute, transmit, and otherwise use such User Content as needed to operate, provide, improve, secure, and promote the Services and the Alliance’s programs.

You may opt out of promotional use of your User Content by sending a request to hello@directbook.org. Operational uses needed to provide and secure the Services (including backups, indexing, content moderation, and technical formatting) are not subject to opt-out while your User Content remains on or in Alliance systems.

The Alliance has the right, but not the obligation, to monitor, review, remove, restrict, disable access to, preserve, or disclose User Content at any time and for any reason, in its sole discretion, including to enforce these Terms, protect users or the Alliance, or comply with legal process. The Alliance does not endorse and is not responsible for User Content, and views expressed by users do not represent the Alliance.

10. Intellectual Property

All right, title, and interest in and to the Services, including software, technology, content, text, graphics, logos, trademarks, service marks, and trade names of the Alliance, are owned by or licensed to the Alliance and are protected by intellectual property laws. You receive a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to access and use the Services for legitimate business or membership purposes, subject to these Terms. You may not use Alliance intellectual property except as expressly authorized in writing.

11. Third-Party Services and Links

The Services may reference, integrate, or link to websites, tools, or services operated by third parties, including Operators, partners, or vendors. The Alliance does not control and is not responsible for third-party services, their content, or their practices. Your use of any third-party service is at your own risk and subject to that third party’s terms and policies.

12. Disclaimers

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, the Services are provided on an “as is” and “as available” basis, without warranties of any kind, whether express, implied, statutory, or otherwise. Without limiting the foregoing, the Alliance specifically disclaims any warranties regarding:

• Booking volume, leads, or commercial outcomes.
• Continuous, secure, error-free, or uninterrupted operation of the Services.

Applicable laws may not allow certain disclaimers; in such cases, some of the above may not apply to you.

13. Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law:

• The Alliance is not liable for any indirect, incidental, consequential, special, punitive, or exemplary damages (including loss of profits, revenue, data, or goodwill), even if advised of the possibility of such damages.
• The Alliance is not liable for acts or omissions of members or partners.
• The aggregate liability of the Alliance arising out of or relating to the Services or these Terms shall not exceed the lesser of (a) the total fees paid by you to the Alliance in the twelve (12) months before the event giving rise to the claim, or (b) US$100.

Any claim arising out of or relating to the Services or these Terms must be brought within one (1) year after the claim arose, or such claim is permanently barred, except where this limitation period is prohibited by applicable law. Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability where such exclusion or limitation is not permitted under applicable law.

14. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless the Alliance and its officers, directors, employees, and representatives from and against any claims, demands, liabilities, damages, losses, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of or related to:

• Your use of or access to the Services.
• Your violation of these Terms or any applicable law.
• Your services, business operations, or dealings with any third party.

15. Force Majeure

The Alliance will not be liable for any delay or failure to perform any obligation under these Terms to the extent such delay or failure results from any cause beyond its reasonable control, including but not limited to acts of God, natural disasters, war, terrorism, labor disputes, power outages, internet or telecommunications failures, regulatory changes, or acts of government.

16. No Partnership or Agency

Nothing in these Terms shall be construed as creating a partnership, joint venture, agency, franchise, fiduciary, or employment relationship between you and the Alliance. You may not hold yourself out as an agent or representative of the Alliance for any purpose.

17. Suspension, Termination, and Service Changes

The Alliance may, in its sole discretion, suspend, restrict, or terminate your access to some or all of the Services at any time, with or without notice, including where necessary to protect the network, other users, or enforce these Terms. You may stop using the Services at any time. Termination does not relieve you of any obligations or liabilities that have accrued prior to termination.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, the Alliance may at any time modify, suspend, discontinue, or impose limits on any part of the Services, including features, programs, integrations, listing visibility, or community tools, without liability to you.

18. Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

These Terms and any dispute arising out of or relating to them or the Services shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Delaware, without regard to its conflict-of-law principles.

Except for claims that may be brought in small claims court and claims by the Alliance seeking injunctive or equitable relief related to intellectual property, confidentiality, platform security, or unauthorized use of the Services, any dispute shall be resolved exclusively by final and binding arbitration on an individual basis. You and the Alliance each waive any right to a jury trial and any right to participate in a class action, collective action, private attorney general action, or representative proceeding.

Arbitration will be administered by a nationally recognized arbitration provider under its applicable consumer or commercial rules, as appropriate, and the arbitrator may award the same relief available in court on an individual basis. If any portion of this arbitration or class action waiver provision is found unenforceable, that portion will be severed and the remainder will remain in effect to the maximum extent permitted by law.

19. Privacy and Electronic Communications

Your use of the Services is also subject to the Alliance Privacy Policy, which is incorporated into these Terms by reference. By using the Services, you consent to receive electronic communications from the Alliance, including notices, disclosures, agreements, and records, and you agree that electronic signatures, acceptances, and records have the same legal effect as paper documents and handwritten signatures, to the extent permitted by law.

20. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do, we will revise the “Effective Date” above and may provide additional notice where required by law or our governance practices. Your continued use of or participation in the Services after updated Terms take effect constitutes your acceptance of the revised Terms.

21. Contact

If you have questions about these Terms or the Services, you may contact us at:

Direct Booking Alliance™
Email: hello@directbook.org