Terms of Use
These Terms of Use ("Terms") govern your use of Telescope — a publishing platform available at telescope.ac and through blogs hosted on it ("the Service", "we", "us"). By creating an account or using the Service you agree to these Terms.
1. The Service
Telescope lets you create blogs ("spaces"), write and publish content, collect subscribers, connect custom domains, and use the Telescope API. We continuously improve the Service; features may change, be added, or be retired.
2. Your account
- You must provide a valid e-mail address and keep it confirmed. Publishing requires a confirmed e-mail.
- You are responsible for keeping your credentials secure and for everything that happens under your account.
- You must be at least 16 years old (or the age of digital consent in your country) to use the Service.
3. Your content
- Your content remains yours. You retain all rights to what you write and upload.
- You grant us the technical license needed to operate the Service: to store, process, display, and distribute your content publicly according to your publication settings (including RSS feeds, e-mail delivery to your subscribers, and search-engine metadata).
- You are solely responsible for your content and must have the rights to everything you publish.
- You can export your content at any time (JSON backup) and delete it — deletion is real: removed content and closed accounts are erased from our systems, including uploaded files.
4. Acceptable use
Telescope exists for genuine writing. The following is not allowed:
- illegal content, malware, phishing, or content that infringes the rights of others;
- spam in any form — including link-building schemes, mass-produced SEO content, automated bulk posting, and networks of accounts created for search-engine manipulation;
- abusing the platform's e-mail delivery (subscriber notifications) to send unsolicited mail;
- circumventing rate limits, bot protection, or other technical safeguards.
To keep the platform healthy for everyone: content of new accounts may be excluded from search-engine indexing for an initial trust period; we may rate-limit, remove content, restrict search visibility, or suspend accounts that violate these Terms. We prefer proportionate measures — suspension keeps your data intact, and honest mistakes can always be resolved via support.
5. Paid plans and billing
- Paid plans (Plus, Pro) unlock additional features. Payments are processed by Paddle, our merchant of record — Paddle handles checkout, invoices, taxes, and refunds under their own terms.
- Subscriptions renew automatically until cancelled. When you cancel or a subscription lapses, paid features are disabled but your content stays.
- We may change pricing; changes never apply retroactively to an already-paid period.
6. API
API access uses personal API keys and a monthly credit allowance that depends on your plan. Keys are your responsibility; automated abuse of the API falls under section 4.
7. Termination
You can delete your account at any time from the account settings; this permanently removes your data. We may suspend or terminate accounts that violate these Terms. If we ever discontinue the Service, we will give you reasonable notice to export your content.
8. Disclaimers
The Service is provided "as is", without warranties of any kind. To the maximum extent permitted by law, we are not liable for indirect or consequential damages, loss of profits, or loss of data resulting from the use of the Service. Our total liability is limited to the amount you paid us in the twelve months preceding the claim.
9. Changes to these Terms
We may update these Terms as the Service evolves. Material changes will be announced on the platform or by e-mail. Continuing to use the Service after changes take effect means you accept the updated Terms.
10. Contact
Questions about these Terms: support@telescope.ac.