Terms and Conditions

1.1These Terms and Conditions (the "Terms") are a binding agreement between you and CreatorMatch (identified in clause 30). They govern your access to and use of creatormatch.co.za, our apps, and every related service, feature and communication (together, the "Platform").

1.2You accept these Terms when you tick the box agreeing to them, create an Account, or use the Platform in any other way, whichever happens first. If you don't agree to these Terms, you may not use the Platform.

1.3If you use the Platform for a business, brand, agency or other organisation, you accept these Terms both for yourself and on its behalf, and you confirm that you are authorised to bind it. "You" then means both you and that organisation, and we may hold either of you responsible for the full extent of any obligation under these Terms (that is, you are jointly and severally liable).

1.4These Terms include, and must be read with, our Privacy Policy, the terms of every Deal you agree on the Platform, and any rules, plan descriptions, pricing and policies we publish on the Platform from time to time. If they conflict:

1. these Terms prevail over everything else as far as CreatorMatch's rights, obligations and liability are concerned; and
2. as between a Brand and a Creator, the specific terms of their Deal prevail on the matters these Terms allow them to agree, such as Deliverables, Deadlines, the Deal Amount, revisions and Usage Rights.

1.5The short version above, headings, FAQs, marketing pages, emails and help text explain the Platform in simplified terms. They are for convenience and do not form part of these Terms or change them, except where the law requires otherwise.

1.6We have tried to write these Terms in plain language. Where we use words like "including" or "for example", what follows is a list of examples, not a complete list.

1.7You can print or save these Terms using the button at the top of this page. We keep every version, and we will email you a copy of the version you accepted if you ask.

2.1If you are a "consumer" as defined in the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 (the "CPA") or the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002 ("ECTA"), which can include individual creators and some small businesses, you have certain rights that cannot be excluded or limited by agreement.

2.2Nothing in these Terms is intended to limit or exclude any right you have, or any obligation or liability we have, that the law does not allow to be limited or excluded. Every clause that limits our liability, places a risk on you, requires you to indemnify us, or records an acknowledgement by you applies only to the extent the law allows. If a clause goes further than the law allows, it is to be read down (narrowed) to the extent necessary, rather than falling away completely.

2.3Nothing in these Terms limits or excludes our liability for our fraud, for gross negligence by us or anyone acting for or controlled by us, or for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, where the law does not allow that liability to be limited or excluded.

2.4If any clause applies differently to you because you are a consumer, the rest of these Terms continue to apply in full.

5.1To create an Account you must:

1. as a Creator, be at least 16 years old and, if you are 16 or 17, have your Guardian's consent (clause 6);
2. as a Creator, live in South Africa. For now we can only pay Creators into a South African bank account (clause 9.7), so we can't accept Creators who live in other countries. Brands can be based anywhere;
3. as a Brand, be a genuine business or organisation (a sole proprietor counts) and sign up with an email address at a domain the business controls;
4. have the legal capacity to enter into this agreement; and
5. not have been suspended or removed from the Platform before, unless we have agreed in writing that you may return.

5.2You must give true, accurate, current and complete information when you register and while you use the Platform, and keep it up to date. You are responsible for everything in your Account and profile, including follower counts, engagement and audience figures, rates, portfolio links and company details.

5.3One person, one Account. You may not create more than one Account of the same type (for example, to get more swipes), or share, sell, transfer or lend your Account. A Brand may let its authorised staff use its Account and is responsible for everything they do on it.

5.5We review every application. We may approve or reject it, ask for more information, or later withdraw an approval, at our discretion and without giving reasons, but never on a ground of unfair discrimination prohibited by law.

5.6We and our service providers may (but do not have to) verify the information you give us, including your identity, age, business details, bank account and control of social media accounts, and may ask you for documents. If you don't give us what we reasonably ask for, we may restrict or suspend your Account, or hold Deal Funds, until you do.

5.7By linking a social media account you confirm that you own or control it, and that its followers, engagement and content are genuine. We do not control, and are not responsible for, your social media accounts or the decisions of the companies that run those platforms.

5.8Anyone who creates or uses a Brand Account confirms that the Brand has authorised them to do so and to agree Deals for it. The Brand is bound by, and responsible for, every Deal, payment, message and action made through its Account.

5.9Proving you are who you say you are (Creators). To apply as a Creator you must send us, through the Platform, a selfie, a screenshot of your own Instagram or TikTok account, or both, as we ask. They must be genuine and current, show you or your own account, and must not be edited or AI-generated. We may ask for new ones at any time, and may restrict or suspend your Account until we have them (clause 5.6). Our Privacy Policy explains how we use them, and by sending them you consent to that.

5.10Looking at those images is a check by a person at the time, made with reasonable care. It does not confirm anyone's identity beyond that, and clauses 4.5, 16.4 and 20 apply to it as they do to our other checks.

6.1In South African law anyone under 18 is a minor and needs a Guardian's assistance to enter into contracts. If you are 16 or 17, you may use the Platform only with your Guardian's consent.

6.3Until we have received the Guardian's consent in the way we specify, a minor Creator can set up a profile but cannot Match with Brands, agree Deals or receive Deal Funds. We may ask for proof of age, identity and guardianship at any time.

6.4Minors may not take part in, and Brands must not offer minors, Briefs or Deals for age-restricted or sensitive products and services. These include alcohol; tobacco, nicotine and vaping products; gambling, betting and lotteries; adult, sexual and dating products and services; weight-loss and slimming products; prescription or scheduled medicines; firearms and weapons; cryptocurrency, trading and other high-risk financial products; and anything else that the law or the Advertising Regulatory Board's Code of Advertising Practice says may not be advertised to or by children. Brands are solely responsible for checking that a Creator is old enough for their Brief.

6.5Deal Funds for a minor Creator are paid into a South African bank account in the name of the minor or their Guardian, as nominated with the Guardian's consent.

6.6If anyone gives false information about a Creator's age or a Guardian's consent, we may close the Account immediately, and the person who gave the false information (and the Guardian, where applicable) is responsible for any resulting Loss.

6.7If anyone under 18, including a Creator's own child, appears in Content, the Creator confirms that they are that child's parent or guardian or have that parent's or guardian's written consent, and that the Content respects the child's dignity, safety and privacy. Brands must handle that Content in line with the rules in the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 ("POPIA") for children's personal information.

6.8A Creator aged 16 or 17 sends the same selfie or screenshot as every other Creator (clause 5.9), and by giving consent a Guardian agrees to us processing it as the Privacy Policy describes.

7.1Brands may post Briefs. A Brief must be accurate, complete and lawful, and must clearly state the deliverables, the Deal Amount (or, for a Gifting Deal, the product and its retail value), the timing, the Usage Rights the Brand wants, and any requirements about claims, scripts, disclosures or exclusivity.

7.2A Brief may set genuine creative requirements, such as language, location, age range, look or audience, but must not unfairly discriminate on any ground prohibited by law.

7.3Brands must not use Briefs to ask for free "test" or "spec" Content, collect Creators' ideas without paying for them, promote anything illegal, or recruit Creators for work outside the Platform.

7.4We may refuse, edit (for format, clarity or compliance), pause or remove any Brief at any time.

7.5Swipes, Super likes, Matches and chats show interest only. A Match is not a Deal, and nobody has to agree a Deal because of a Match.

7.6We decide how Briefs and profiles are shown, ranked, filtered and recommended, and may change this at any time. Plan features such as priority placement, being shown higher, seeing who liked you, Super likes and swipe allowances improve your visibility or options within our system. They do not guarantee any number of views, likes, Matches or Deals.

7.7Plan allowances, such as daily swipes, reset at times we set and may change. Unused allowances do not carry over and have no cash value.

7.8We do not guarantee any particular number or quality of Briefs, Brands, Creators, Matches or Deals on the Platform, or that any User will respond to you.

8.1A Deal is formed when a Brand and a Creator both accept the Deal terms on the Platform. Those terms must record at least the Deliverables, the Deadline, the Deal Amount (or, for a Gifting Deal, the product), the Usage Rights, and any agreed extras such as additional revisions, raw footage, exclusivity, or posting on the Creator's own channels.

8.2Each Deal is a contract only between the Brand and the Creator. Each of them is responsible for performing their own obligations and for their own breaches. CreatorMatch is not a party to, guarantor of, or liable for any Deal.

8.3The Brand and Creator must make sure the Deal terms are complete and correct before accepting them. Anything not recorded in the Deal is governed by the defaults in these Terms. The Deal record and chat history kept on the Platform are evidence of what was agreed unless someone proves otherwise.

8.4Unless the Deal says otherwise:

1. one round of revisions is included (clause 10.4);
2. Deliverables must be watermark-free, in the format and aspect ratio stated in the Brief, and suitable for the use described in it;
3. the Creator keeps copyright and gives the Brand the default Usage Rights in clause 13.3 once paid;
4. the Brand gets no exclusivity;
5. the Creator does not have to post the Content on their own channels; and
6. raw footage is not included.

8.5Any change to a Deal must be agreed by both parties on the Platform. Our payment protection and dispute process may not cover anything agreed elsewhere.

8.6A Deal may be cancelled:

1. by either party, before it is Funded; and
2. once it is Funded, only by both parties agreeing on the Platform, automatically under clause 9.8 if nothing is Delivered, or by a CreatorMatch Decision. A Brand cannot cancel a Funded Deal on its own because it has changed its mind.

8.7Brands must give accurate Briefs; provide all information, assets, approvals and products the Creator needs, in good time; respond within the Review Period; use Content only within their Usage Rights; and pay for every Deal through the Platform.

8.8Creators must accept only Deals they can perform; wait until a Deal is Funded before starting work (work done earlier is at the Creator's own risk); create original Content that meets the Brief; Deliver by the Deadline; communicate promptly; and comply with clauses 13 and 14.

8.9Briefs, unreleased products, campaign plans, rates and anything marked confidential are the Brand's confidential information. Creators must keep it confidential, use it only for the Deal, and not publish or share the Content or the information until the Brand has made it public or given permission. Brands must keep Creators' personal information and rates confidential. These duties continue after the Deal ends.

8.10For Gifting Deals:

1. the Brand is solely responsible for the product, including its safety, quality, legality, labelling, delivery and any claims about it;
2. ownership of and risk in the product pass to the Creator on delivery, and the Creator does not have to return it unless the Deal says so;
3. we do not hold, inspect or deliver products, and no Agency Fee or Processing Fee applies, but the Brand pays the Gifting Fee to confirm the Deal (clause 11.1);
4. the Creator is responsible for any tax due on the value of what they receive; and
5. a delivery address shared for the gift may be used for that purpose only.

8.11The Brand and Creator arrange shipping of any product between themselves. We are not responsible for products that are lost, late, damaged or defective.

9.1Every paid Deal must be paid through the Platform.

9.2Payments are processed by our Payment Partner, and Deal Funds are held by or through our Payment Partner in an account kept separate from CreatorMatch's own operating funds until they are released or refunded under these Terms. Deal Funds are not a deposit or an investment, they earn no interest for you, and we are not a bank. Your payment may also be subject to the Payment Partner's own terms.

9.4Once a Deal is agreed, the Brand pays the Deal Amount plus the Processing Fee using a payment method we offer. The Processing Fee is shown before you pay. A Deal is Funded only once the payment has cleared, and EFT payments can take time to clear. Creators should not start work until the Deal shows as Funded.

9.5Deal Funds are released to the Creator, less the Agency Fee, when the Brand approves the Deliverables on the Platform.

9.7We pay released Deal Funds into a South African bank account in the Creator's name (or as clause 6.5 allows). We aim to start each payout within 3 Business Days of release, but timing depends on our Payment Partner and the banks and is not guaranteed. You are responsible for giving us correct bank details. We are not responsible for a payment made to the details you gave us, and we may need to verify bank details before paying out.

9.8Refund if nothing is delivered. If the Deadline passes with nothing Delivered, and no extension has been agreed on the Platform, the Deal closes and the Deal Amount is refunded to the Brand's original payment method (or by another method if that isn't possible). The Processing Fee is not refundable, unless the law requires a refund or we decide otherwise. Refunds can take time to reflect, depending on banks and card issuers.

9.9In any other case, we refund Deal Funds only if both parties agree on the Platform or a CreatorMatch Decision requires it.

9.15All amounts are in South African rand. Brands are responsible for any bank, card or currency conversion charges their bank adds.

9.16We or our Payment Partner may need to collect information about you to comply with the Financial Intelligence Centre Act 38 of 2001 and other laws, and may report transactions to the authorities where the law requires.

9.17If we cannot pay out released Deal Funds because you have not given us valid bank details, we will try to contact you. If the funds remain unclaimed after a reasonable time, we will deal with them as the law requires.

10.1Creators Deliver through the Platform. Content sent any other way, for example by WhatsApp, email or a file-sharing link, does not count as Delivered unless it is also uploaded to the Platform.

10.2After Delivery, the Brand has a Review Period of 7 days to approve the Deliverables, request one revision, or open a dispute.

10.3Once the Brand approves the Deliverables, or they are treated as approved under clause 9.6, they are accepted and the Deal Funds are released. After that the Brand cannot get a refund through the Platform, including because it has changed its mind, the Content did not perform as hoped, or its campaign has changed.

10.4One round of revisions is included unless the Deal says otherwise. A revision request must be specific, made on the Platform, and within the original Brief. It cannot add new deliverables, change the concept, or require a reshoot for reasons outside the Creator's control (such as the Brand changing its own script). The Creator must Deliver the revision within 3 Business Days of the request unless the parties agree otherwise, and a new Review Period then starts. Further revisions need both parties' agreement and may be charged for.

10.5Either party may open a dispute on the Platform before the Deal Funds are released, by giving reasons and any supporting evidence. We may ask both parties for information and set deadlines for it. If a party does not respond in time, we may decide without their input.

10.6We will consider the Brief, the Deal terms, the chat, the Content and any evidence provided, and decide in good faith whether the Deal Funds should be released to the Creator, refunded to the Brand, or split between them. We are not acting as an arbitrator, court or expert, we do not have to follow any particular procedure, and we do not have to give detailed reasons.

10.9Users must try to resolve problems with each other in good faith, ideally before opening a dispute. We may help, but we do not have to.

10.10We may restrict, suspend or remove Users who repeatedly fail to deliver, miss Deadlines, abuse the revision or dispute process, or do not pay.

11.1Brands. Registering, posting Briefs, swiping, Matching and chatting are free. When a Brand funds a paid Deal it pays the Processing Fee, which at the date of these Terms is about 3% of the Deal Amount. The exact amount is shown before payment. Gifting Deals have no Processing Fee; instead, when a Brand confirms a Gifting Deal it pays the Gifting Fee, which at the date of these Terms is R99 per Creator. The Gifting Fee is shown before payment and is not refundable, unless the law requires a refund or we decide otherwise. Music Accounts pay the same Fees as other Brands; in a Sound Campaign, each Creator's video is a separate paid Deal or Gifting Deal.

11.2Creators. At the date of these Terms the Plans are: Starter, free, with a 20% Agency Fee; Growth, R99 a month or R990 a year, with a 15% Agency Fee; and Pro, R499 a month or R4 990 a year, with a 12% Agency Fee. What each Plan includes is described on our pricing page. Gifting Deals have no Agency Fee.

11.3The Agency Fee is deducted from the Deal Amount when Deal Funds are released. The rate is the one for the Creator's Plan at the time the Deal was agreed. The Agency Fee is earned in full on release and is not refundable. No Agency Fee is charged on Deal Funds refunded to a Brand, and where Deal Funds are split, it applies only to the part released to the Creator.

11.4Billing and cancelling. You can pay for a Subscription monthly or yearly.

1. A monthly Subscription is billed monthly in advance and renews automatically each month until cancelled. You can cancel at any time; cancellation takes effect at the end of the month you have paid for, you keep your Plan benefits until then, and you then move to Starter. We do not refund part-months, unused swipes or other unused benefits, except where the law requires it or these Terms say so.
2. A yearly Subscription is paid once, in advance, for 12 months, and costs less than 12 monthly payments. You can cancel it at any time by giving us 20 Business Days' notice by email. You keep your Plan benefits until the notice ends and then move to Starter. We then refund what you paid, less the monthly price of your Plan for each month, or part of a month, from the start of your year to the end of the notice. This deduction only takes back the yearly discount: if it comes to more than you paid, you get no refund but owe nothing more.
3. Between 40 and 80 Business Days before your yearly Subscription ends, we will tell you the date it ends, any changes that would apply after that, and your options. Unless you tell us to end it or choose another year, it then continues as a monthly Subscription at the monthly price in force at the time.

11.5If ECTA gives you a cooling-off right, you may cancel a Subscription within 7 days of buying it by emailing us, and we will refund what ECTA requires. You ask us to start your Subscription immediately, so ECTA's exception for services that have already begun may apply.

11.6If a Subscription payment fails, we may retry it and may move you to Starter until it is paid. New Deals then carry the Starter Agency Fee.

11.7We may change Fees, Plans and features. We will give you at least 30 days' notice of any increase in Subscription prices or Agency Fee rates. An increase applies from your next billing month (for a yearly Subscription, not before the year you have paid for ends), or to Deals agreed after it takes effect. If you don't agree, you may cancel before it takes effect. Fee changes never affect Deals already agreed.

11.8Our Fees include VAT where CreatorMatch is registered for VAT and VAT applies.

11.9Each User is solely responsible for their own taxes, including income tax, provisional tax and VAT, and tax on products received. Creators are independent contractors and must declare their income to SARS. Brands are responsible for deciding whether any tax must be withheld or paid in connection with payments to Creators. We do not give tax advice. We may provide statements of Deal Funds and Fees for your records, and may report or withhold amounts where the law requires.

11.10CreatorMatch invoices only for its own Fees. If a Brand needs a tax invoice for a Deal Amount, that is a matter between the Brand and the Creator.

12.1For 12 months after a Brand and a Creator are first Introduced, they must not agree, perform or pay for any content creation, influencer, endorsement or similar work with each other except through the Platform. This also applies to the Brand's related companies and to anyone acting for either party, such as an agency or manager.

12.2You must not use the Platform to ask for or share phone numbers, email addresses, messaging handles or payment details in order to deal off the Platform; to suggest paying or being paid outside the Platform; or to reduce or avoid Fees, for example by understating a Deal Amount. You may share details that are strictly necessary to perform a Funded Deal, such as a delivery address for products.

12.3Dealing off the Platform is entirely at your own risk. We have no responsibility for any arrangement made, money paid or Content exchanged outside the Platform, and our payment protection and dispute process do not apply to it.

12.5If a Brand and a Creator want to work together directly within the 12-month period, they can ask us for a buy-out, for a fee we will quote.

12.6If anyone asks you to take a deal off the Platform, please tell us at hello@creatormatch.co.za.

13.1Creators own the copyright and other intellectual property in the Content they create, subject to the rights of others in any material included in it (such as the Brand's trade marks and packaging, or licensed music). Nothing in these Terms transfers ownership of Content unless the Deal expressly says so.

13.2No use before payment. Until the Deal Funds for a Deal are released, the Brand may view the Deliverables only to review them on the Platform, and must not download, publish, share, edit or otherwise use them. If a Deal is cancelled or refunded, the Brand gets no rights in the Content and must delete any copies it has. Using Content without paying for it infringes the Creator's copyright and breaches these Terms. The Brand will be liable to the Creator, must pay the full Deal Amount on demand, and must indemnify us against any resulting Loss.

13.3Default Usage Rights. Unless the Deal says otherwise, once the Deal Funds are released the Creator grants the Brand a non-exclusive, worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable and royalty-free licence to use, copy, edit, adapt, cut, crop, caption, subtitle, translate, and add music, graphics or branding to the Deliverables, and to publish, display, distribute and communicate them (including the Creator's name, image, likeness and voice as they appear in the Deliverables) in any media now known or developed later. This includes the Brand's websites, social media accounts, email, online marketplaces, in-store displays and paid advertising. The Brand may let its agencies, contractors and advertising platforms do these things on its behalf. Running ads through the Creator's own social media account (such as Spark Ads or partnership ads) needs the Creator's separate agreement in the Deal.

13.4Unless the Creator agrees otherwise in the Deal or in writing, the Brand must not:

1. sell, license or give the Content to anyone else for their own use (other than its agencies and platforms acting for it);
2. use the Content to promote products, services or brands not covered by the Brief, or any political, religious or adult cause;
3. use the Creator's name, image, likeness or voice outside the Deliverables, or edit the Content to suggest the Creator said or endorses something they did not;
4. use the Content, or the Creator's likeness or voice, to create AI-generated, synthetic, cloned or "deepfake" material, or to train AI models;
5. use the Content in a way that is defamatory, misleading, unlawful or likely to cause the Creator serious embarrassment; or
6. register the Content, or the Creator's name or likeness, as a trade mark.

13.5The Creator may show the Deliverables in their portfolio, profile and media kit, including on CreatorMatch, once the Brand has published them or 90 days after Delivery, whichever comes first, unless the Deal says the Content is confidential or exclusive. The Creator may not post the Content on their own channels as an advertisement for the Brand unless the Deal includes that.

13.6To the extent the law allows, the Creator consents to the edits and adaptations allowed by clause 13.3 and agrees not to object to them, provided they do not distort the Content in a way that harms the Creator's honour or reputation. The Brand does not have to credit the Creator unless the Deal says so.

13.7Creator warranties. For every piece of Content, the Creator confirms that:

1. it is original and created by the Creator, or the Creator has all the rights needed;
2. it does not infringe anyone's copyright, trade mark, privacy, image, publicity or other rights;
3. everyone who appears or can be identified in it has consented to the uses in clause 13.3, and for anyone under 18, a parent or guardian has consented;
4. it does not include music, footage, fonts, artwork, other brands' logos or other third-party material unless the Creator has the right to use it for the purposes of the Deal;
5. anything it says about the Brand's product reflects the Creator's honest opinion and genuine experience, or the claims the Brand has approved;
6. it complies with the law and with clauses 14 and 15; and
7. the Creator has disclosed any part of it that was generated or materially altered with AI, unless the Brief allowed it.

13.8Unless the Deal says otherwise, the Creator must deliver Content without copyrighted music, or with music they are licensed to use for the Brand's intended purpose. Music in a social platform's built-in library is often licensed only for non-commercial use on that platform. The Brand is responsible for licensing any music it adds, or uses in ads.

13.9The Brand gives the Creator a limited, non-exclusive licence to use the Brand's name, logos, products, scripts and other materials only to perform the Deal, and confirms that it has the right to do so.

13.10You give us a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence, which we may pass on to our service providers, to host, store, copy, process, transmit, display, format and resize your profile information and any Content you upload, for as long as we need to operate, secure and improve the Platform, process Deals, resolve disputes, keep records and comply with the law.

13.11You also allow us to use your name, business name, logo, profile picture, public profile information, ratings and the portfolio Content on your profile to promote CreatorMatch, for example on our website and social media. We will not use Deliverables from a Deal in our own marketing without both the Brand's and the Creator's permission. You can withdraw this permission for future promotion at any time by emailing us; we will not have to remove material already published or printed.

13.12The Platform, its software, design, text, graphics and data, the CreatorMatch name and logo, and all related intellectual property belong to us or our licensors. We give you a limited, personal, revocable, non-transferable licence to use the Platform in line with these Terms, and reserve all other rights.

13.13If you give us ideas, feedback or suggestions, we may use them freely without paying or crediting you.

13.14If you believe something on the Platform infringes your rights, email hello@creatormatch.co.za with your contact details, what is being infringed, where it is on the Platform, and a statement that your complaint is accurate and that you are authorised to make it. We may remove or disable the material, share your complaint with the User concerned, and close the Accounts of repeat infringers.

13.15Sound Campaigns. Clauses 13.15 to 13.21 apply to Sound Campaigns, and replace clauses 13.3, 13.5 and 13.8 for them. For them, clause 13.19 also makes the labelling in clause 14.3 a recommendation. Everything else in these Terms applies as usual. Each Creator who takes part has their own Deal with the Music Account, and the Deal Amount is the pay per video shown on the Sound Campaign.

13.16Who can post one. Only a Music Account we have approved can post a Sound Campaign. To be approved, a Music Account sends us screenshots showing that it controls the artist's or label's social media account and the artist's page on Spotify for Artists or Apple Music for Artists, as our Privacy Policy explains. We may ask for more, and may refuse or close a Music Account if we are not satisfied that it acts for the artist.

13.17Music Account warranties. For every song in a Sound Campaign, the Music Account confirms that:

1. it owns or controls the rights in the recording and the composition, or has the written permission of everyone who does (such as the label, publisher, co-writers and featured artists), to promote the song in this way;
2. the official sound it links to is the song's genuine, authorised sound on that platform;
3. Creators may use the song in Content and post it as clause 13.18 describes without paying anyone else and without infringing anyone's rights; and
4. it will indemnify the Creators who take part, and us, against any Loss arising from a claim that the song, or a Creator's use of it as the Sound Campaign asked, infringes someone's rights.

13.18Licence to Creators. The Music Account gives each Creator who takes part a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to use the song (the part the Sound Campaign names, or any part if it names none) in Content for the Sound Campaign, to post that Content on the Creator's own social media accounts on the platforms the Sound Campaign lists, and to keep it there afterwards. The Music Account can't withdraw this licence for Content already posted, unless a court or the platform requires the song to be removed.

13.19What Creators do. Unless the Deal says otherwise, a Creator taking part in a Sound Campaign must:

1. post the Content on their own account using the official sound the Sound Campaign links to, not a re-upload, screen recording or edited copy of the song;
2. keep the Content posted for at least 30 days; and
3. give the Music Account the link to the post, which is the Deliverable.

Platforms' rules on music and branded content change, and a platform may limit which sounds a paid post can use. A Creator who has followed this clause is not in breach if a platform mutes, restricts or removes a post for reasons the Creator could not control.

Labelling the post. For Sound Campaigns, clause 14.3 is a recommendation, not a requirement. We suggest that Creators switch on the platform's paid partnership or branded content label, or add "#ad", because platform rules and the Advertising Regulatory Board's Code may ask for it. Whether and how a post is labelled is for the Creator and the Music Account to decide between them. We don't require it or check it, and they are responsible for what follows from their choice, such as a platform restricting or removing the post.

13.20What the Music Account may do with the Content. The Content stays the Creator's (clause 13.1). Unless the Deal says otherwise, the Music Account may view, link to, share, repost, duet and stitch the Content on its own and the artist's social media accounts, and feature it on the song's pages, crediting the Creator where the platform allows. Using the Content in paid advertising (including Spark Ads or partnership ads), editing it, or using it for anything else needs the Creator's separate agreement in the Deal. Clause 13.4 applies.

13.21No fake streams or engagement. A Sound Campaign must not ask for, and a Creator must not use, bots, bought views, likes, follows or streams, fake accounts, engagement groups, or anything else that artificially inflates plays, streams, uses or engagement or breaks a platform's rules. Streaming services remove songs and close accounts for this. We may cancel a Sound Campaign or a Deal, and suspend Accounts, if we believe it has happened.

15.1You must use the Platform lawfully, honestly and respectfully. You must not, and must not help anyone else to:

1. break any law or infringe anyone's rights;
2. give false, misleading or incomplete information, impersonate anyone, or misrepresent your identity, age, business, authority, audience, metrics, rates, past work or relationships;
3. use fake followers, bought engagement, bots or other artificial means to inflate your profile;
4. harass, threaten, bully, stalk, intimidate, abuse or unfairly discriminate against anyone, or send sexual or unwanted messages;
5. post or send anything unlawful, defamatory, hateful, violent, sexually explicit or exploitative, or anything that sexualises or endangers children;
6. contact a User under 18 outside the Platform, ask a minor for personal contact details, or ask a minor to meet in person, without their Guardian's involvement;
7. commit or attempt fraud, scams, phishing, money laundering or payment fraud, or use stolen cards or accounts;
8. send spam, chain messages, pyramid schemes or unrelated advertising;
9. scrape, crawl, harvest or copy data from the Platform, or use it to build a competing database or service;
10. reverse engineer, decompile, probe, scan or test the vulnerability of the Platform, or get around its security, access controls, rate limits or Plan limits (including by opening several Accounts);
11. upload viruses, malware or other harmful code, or interfere with or overload the Platform;
12. access another User's Account, or collect, share or misuse other Users' personal information;
13. record, screenshot or publish private messages or Content from the Platform to embarrass or harm another User, except as evidence in legal proceedings or in a report to us;
14. manipulate or abuse ratings, reviews, disputes, refunds, chargebacks, referrals or promotions;
15. use Content you have not paid for, or beyond your Usage Rights;
16. create or share AI-generated or manipulated material that misrepresents a real person;
17. use someone else's name, photos or social media account as if it were yours, or send us a selfie, screenshot or other proof that isn't yours or has been edited or AI-generated;
18. make a report to us that you know is false, or use reports to harass, threaten or silence someone;
19. recruit Users to other platforms or services, or deal off the Platform in breach of clause 12; or
20. do anything we reasonably believe could expose CreatorMatch or its Users to harm or legal liability.

15.2We may (but do not have to) monitor, review, refuse or remove any Content, Brief, profile, review or message. We may investigate suspected illegal activity, report it to the South African Police Service or other authorities, and cooperate with them.

15.3Please report anything that concerns you, including a fake account or one that uses your identity. Use our report form (you do not need an Account), the Report button in a chat, on a profile or on a Brief, or email hello@creatormatch.co.za. If anyone's safety is at risk, contact the police first.

15.4Most UGC work is done remotely. If you choose to meet another User in person, for example for an in-store shoot, you do so at your own risk: meet in a public place and tell someone where you will be. A Guardian must be present for any Creator under 18.

15.5What happens to a report. Our team reads every report. We may ask the reporter for more information, ask the reported User to prove who they are, and restrict, suspend or close an Account under clause 25.2, with or without telling the reported User why. We are not obliged to act on a report or to tell the reporter what we decided, and we do not tell the reported User who made it unless the law requires. A report does not decide anything between Users: disputes about Deals are dealt with under clause 10.

16.1Reviews and ratings must be honest, relevant and based on a genuine completed Deal, and must not contain personal information, offensive content or threats. You must not offer or accept anything in return for a review, or threaten a bad review to get something.

16.2Reviews are the opinions of the Users who write them, not of CreatorMatch. We do not verify them and are not responsible for them. The author alone is responsible for their review, including if it is false or defamatory.

16.3We may remove, hide or decline to publish any review or rating, and may use ratings when ranking Users.

16.4A verified badge means only that, when we checked, we had reasonable grounds to believe the Creator controlled the social media accounts linked to their profile. It is not an endorsement, and it does not confirm the Creator's identity in any wider sense, or their quality, reliability, audience or metrics. Badges may be available only on some Plans, and we may remove a badge at any time. The check we make on a Creator's selfie or screenshot when they apply (clause 5.9) is separate from a badge.

16.5Our checks on Brands, such as confirming a work email or comparing an email domain with a website, confirm only what they say. They do not guarantee that a Brand is legitimate or solvent, or that it will behave properly.

17.2We keep Deal records and messages as a record of what was agreed for as long as we reasonably need them, as explained in our Privacy Policy. To the extent the law allows, our electronic records, including logs, timestamps, Deal records and messages, are accepted as accurate unless someone proves otherwise.

17.3You agree to receive communications from us electronically, including by email, in-app notification and on the Platform. Agreements, notices and other communications we send electronically satisfy any legal requirement that they be in writing.

17.4We will send you service messages about your Account, Deals, payments, security and changes to these Terms for as long as you have an Account, and you cannot opt out of them. We send marketing messages only as POPIA allows, and you can opt out of those at any time.

17.5We may give you notice by email to the address on your Account, or on the Platform. An email is treated as received when it enters your email system and can be retrieved by you, in line with ECTA. Keep your email address up to date.

17.6Send notices to us by email to hello@creatormatch.co.za, or legal notices to the address in clause 30. A notice to us counts only once we actually receive it.

18.1Our Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, share and protect personal information, and forms part of these Terms.

18.2By using the Platform you consent to us processing your personal information as the Privacy Policy describes, including transferring it to and storing it with service providers outside South Africa (for example, cloud hosting and email providers in the United Kingdom, the European Union or the United States), which we do in line with POPIA's rules on cross-border transfers.

18.4We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect the Platform and your information, but no system is completely secure. You are responsible for protecting your own devices, passwords and email account.

18.5The selfies and screenshots Creators send us, and the reports anyone sends us, are personal information, and the Privacy Policy (clauses 4.8 and 4.9) explains what we do with them. We use verification images only to check applications and handle reports, only our team can see them, and we never show them to other Users.

19.1The Platform relies on, and links to, services run by others, including social media platforms, our Payment Partner, banks, hosting and email providers, and analytics tools. Your use of them is governed by their own terms and privacy policies.

19.2We do not control and are not responsible for third-party services, including their availability, changes, content, security or decisions, such as a social media platform changing its algorithm, restricting branded content, removing a post or suspending an account.

19.3A link to another website does not mean we endorse it.

25.1You may close your Account at any time by emailing us or, once available, in your account settings. Closing your Account does not cancel Funded Deals in progress, which must first be completed, cancelled or resolved under these Terms, and does not affect any amount you owe.

25.3We may also close any Account for any other reason by giving at least 30 days' notice by email.

25.4When your Account closes:

1. your right to use the Platform ends;
2. any Fees and other amounts you owe become payable immediately;
3. we will deal fairly with any Funded Deals, which may mean completing, cancelling or refunding them, or releasing Deal Funds for work already Delivered, as we reasonably decide;
4. Usage Rights a Brand has already paid for continue;
5. we may delete your information and Content, subject to our Privacy Policy and the law; and
6. Subscription fees already paid are not refunded, except as clause 11.4 provides for yearly Subscriptions, or if we closed your Account under clause 25.3, in which case we refund the unused part.

25.6Clauses that by their nature should continue after these Terms end will do so, including clauses 2, 4, 9 (for outstanding money), 11.9, 12, 13, 14, 20 to 24, 27 and 29.

26.1We may change these Terms from time to time, for example to reflect new features, changes in the law or changes in how we operate. We will publish the new version with a new effective date and keep earlier versions available on request.

26.2We will give you at least 14 days' notice, by email or on the Platform, of any change that materially affects your rights before it takes effect. Changes needed for legal, regulatory, security or safety reasons may take effect immediately.

26.3If you don't agree to a change, you may close your Account before it takes effect, and we will refund the unused part of any Subscription. If you keep using the Platform after a change takes effect, you accept the changed Terms. We may also ask you to accept them again.

26.4Changes do not apply to Deals already agreed. Those continue under the Terms in force when they were agreed, except for changes the law requires.

26.5We may change, suspend or stop any part of the Platform, any feature or any Plan at any time. If we stop offering a paid Plan, we will refund the unused part of any Subscription you have paid for.

27.1This clause covers disputes between you and CreatorMatch. Disputes between Users about Deals are dealt with under clause 10.

27.2Talk to us first. Email hello@creatormatch.co.za with "Complaint" in the subject line, describing the problem and what you would like us to do. We will acknowledge it within 5 Business Days and aim to resolve it within 20 Business Days.

27.3If a complaint is not resolved within 30 Business Days, either of us may propose mediation by an independent mediator we agree on or, if we can't agree, one nominated by the Arbitration Foundation of Southern Africa ("AFSA"). Each party pays its own costs, and we share the mediator's fees equally.

27.4Consumers. If you are a consumer, you may also take a complaint to the Consumer Goods and Services Ombud, the National Consumer Commission, a provincial consumer protection authority or consumer court, the Information Regulator (for privacy matters), or a court with jurisdiction. Nothing in this clause stops you from doing so.

27.11South African law governs these Terms and any dispute connected with them, wherever you are.

28.1We are not liable for any failure or delay caused by events beyond our reasonable control. These include load-shedding and other power failures; failures of internet, telecommunications, hosting, payment or banking systems; cyberattacks; strikes, protests, civil unrest and riots; fire, flood, drought, storms and other natural disasters; pandemics and epidemics; government action, changes in law and sanctions; war and terrorism; and the acts or omissions of our service providers or of social media platforms.

28.2If such an event affects Deals, we may extend Deadlines and Review Periods as we reasonably decide, and we will tell affected Users where we can.

29.1Whole agreement. These Terms, with the documents in clause 1.4, are the whole agreement between you and CreatorMatch about their subject and replace any earlier discussions or understandings. To the extent the law allows, neither of us relies on any representation, warranty or promise not recorded in them. This does not limit liability for fraud, or for any statement the CPA makes binding on us.

29.2No waiver. If we don't enforce a right, delay enforcing it, or give you extra time or any other indulgence, we have not waived that right.

29.3Severability. If any part of these Terms is found to be unlawful, invalid or unenforceable, it will be enforced to the greatest extent the law allows and, if it cannot be enforced at all, it will be removed. The rest of these Terms stay in force.

29.4Transfer. We may cede, assign, delegate or transfer any of our rights and obligations under these Terms, for example if our business is sold or restructured, without your consent, and will tell you where it affects you. You may not cede, assign or transfer your rights or obligations without our written consent.

29.5Relationship. Nothing in these Terms creates a partnership, joint venture, employment or agency relationship between you and CreatorMatch, except the limited payment collection role in clause 9.3.

29.6Other people. Apart from the people protected by clauses 22.7, 23.1 and 24.1, who may accept those benefits, these Terms do not give rights to anyone else.

29.7Interpretation. Headings are for convenience only. The singular includes the plural and the other way around. "Including" means "including without limitation". A reference to a law includes that law as amended or replaced. To the extent the law allows, these Terms are not to be interpreted against CreatorMatch merely because we drafted them, except where the CPA requires an ambiguity to be resolved in a consumer's favour.

29.8Electronic agreement. These Terms are a valid agreement concluded electronically under ECTA. Ticking the box to agree, clicking to accept, and your other electronic actions on the Platform count as your signature and acceptance.

29.9Language. These Terms are written in English. If we provide a translation, the English version prevails unless the law requires otherwise.

29.10Addresses for legal notices. CreatorMatch chooses the physical address in clause 30 as its address for legal notices and service of legal process (domicilium citandi et executandi). You choose the email address, and any physical address, in your Account. Either of us may change our address by notice to the other.

29.11Our discretion. Where these Terms let us decide something at our discretion, we will act reasonably and in good faith wherever the law requires it.