Welcome to PenEarn. These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the PenEarn website, services, and applications (collectively, the "Service"). By creating an account or otherwise using the Service, you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.
1. Acceptance of Terms
By signing up, accessing, or using PenEarn, you confirm that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these Terms and our Privacy Policy. If you are using the Service on behalf of an organization, you represent that you are authorized to bind that organization to these Terms.
2. Your Account
Eligibility
You must be at least 13 years old to use PenEarn. If you are under 18, you confirm that you have a parent or legal guardian's permission. Certain features (including monetization) may have higher age requirements.
Account Information
You agree to provide accurate, current, and complete information when you register and to keep that information up to date. You are responsible for safeguarding your password and for any activity that occurs under your account.
One Account Per Person
You may not create more than one account, share your account with others, or transfer your account to another person without our prior written consent.
3. Your Content & License Grant
You Own Your Work
You retain all ownership and copyright in the original works you publish on PenEarn — books, chapters, reviews, comments, images, and any other material you submit (your "Content").
License to PenEarn
To operate the Service we need permission to display, distribute, and process your Content. You grant PenEarn a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, transferable, and sublicensable license to host, store, reproduce, adapt, publish, translate, and display your Content for the purpose of operating, promoting, and improving the Service.
This license ends when you delete your Content, except to the extent we have already shared it with other users (e.g., a reader who has bookmarked your book) or are required to retain it by law.
Responsibility for Your Content
You are solely responsible for your Content and the consequences of posting it. You represent and warrant that you own or have the necessary rights to your Content and that it does not infringe on the rights of any third party.
4. Acceptable Use
You agree not to use the Service to post or share content that:
- Infringes copyright, trademark, or other intellectual property rights of others.
- Contains sexually explicit material involving minors, or any other content that exploits or endangers minors.
- Promotes violence, hate, or discrimination against individuals or groups based on race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or other protected characteristics.
- Is defamatory, harassing, threatening, or invades someone else's privacy.
- Is fraudulent, deceptive, or misleading.
- Contains malware, spam, phishing links, or other harmful technical content.
- Violates any applicable law or regulation in your jurisdiction.
You also agree not to: (a) scrape, crawl, or programmatically access the Service except via APIs we expressly publish; (b) attempt to bypass our access controls, rate limits, or moderation systems; (c) impersonate any person or misrepresent your affiliation with any person or entity; (d) manipulate Aura points, rankings, badges, or other engagement features through fraudulent activity, including operating multiple accounts.
5. Virtual Currency & Purchases
Currencies
PenEarn uses in-app virtual currencies — including Gold Coins, Rubies, and Sapphires — to unlock chapters, send gifts, promote books, and access other paid features. Virtual currency has no cash value and cannot be redeemed for cash or transferred outside the Service except as expressly permitted by PenEarn.
Purchases
Purchases of virtual currency are processed by third-party payment providers. All sales are final and non-refundable except where required by applicable consumer protection law. Once virtual currency is credited to your wallet, it generally cannot be reversed.
Author Withdrawals
Authors who earn currency through gifts and chapter unlocks may be eligible to withdraw earnings subject to minimum balance thresholds, identity verification, and applicable tax obligations. Withdrawal terms are subject to change.
Forfeiture
We may suspend, reduce, or revoke virtual currency balances obtained through fraud, abuse, chargebacks, or violations of these Terms.
6. Promotions & Featured Books
Authors may purchase promotional slots to feature their books. Promotion slots expire after the period you purchase and revert to default books selected by PenEarn administrators. We make no guarantee of increased views, bookmarks, sales, or any other outcome from a promotion. We reserve the right to remove or decline any promotion at our discretion, particularly if the promoted content violates these Terms.
7. Moderation, Suspension & Termination
We reserve the right to review, remove, or restrict access to any Content, and to suspend or terminate accounts that violate these Terms. Specific consequences may include:
- Temporary suspension (typically 7 days) for first-time or moderate violations.
- Permanent ban for severe or repeated violations.
- Content removal independent of, or in addition to, account-level action.
- Forfeiture of virtual currency obtained or used in violation of these Terms.
You may delete your account at any time. After deletion, we may retain certain information as required by law or for legitimate business purposes (see the Privacy Policy).
8. Intellectual Property
Except for your Content, all software, designs, trademarks, and other materials that make up the Service are owned by PenEarn or its licensors. You may not copy, modify, or create derivative works of the Service without our written permission.
Copyright Complaints
If you believe Content on the Service infringes your copyright, email us at support@penearn.com with: (a) a description of the work you claim is infringed, (b) a link to the allegedly infringing Content, (c) your contact information, and (d) a statement that you have a good-faith belief that the use is not authorized.
9. Disclaimers
The Service is provided "as is" and "as available"without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including without limitation warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, non-infringement, or that the Service will be uninterrupted, secure, or error-free. Content posted on the Service is the responsibility of the user who posted it; PenEarn does not endorse or guarantee its accuracy.
10. Limitation of Liability
To the maximum extent permitted by law, PenEarn and its officers, directors, employees, and agents will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages — including lost profits, lost data, or lost virtual currency — arising out of or related to your use of the Service. Our total liability for any claim arising out of these Terms will not exceed the greater of (a) the amount you have paid PenEarn in the 12 months preceding the claim, or (b) USD 100.
11. Changes to These Terms
We may update these Terms from time to time. If we make material changes, we will notify you by email or via an in-app notice before the changes take effect. Your continued use of the Service after the effective date constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.
12. Contact
Questions about these Terms? Email us at support@penearn.com.