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ITLegal documents

Draft — pending legal review

This text is a working draft prepared for review by legal counsel. It has not yet been verified and may change before final publication.

Terms of Service

These Terms of Service («Terms») govern the use of the LODE (lode.fm) application, a music search and discovery service offered by [COMPANY BEING INCORPORATED](«LODE», «we»). By creating an account or using the service, the user accepts these Terms.

1. Subject of the service

LODE is a music search and discovery engine: it aggregates music metadata and lets you search, compare and organise tracks. Listening happens exclusively through the official streams made publicly available by the source platforms (e.g. Bandcamp), with a link to the purchase page on the platform itself.

  • LODE does not sell music, does not distribute it and does not host third-party music catalogues on its servers.
  • LODE does not make persistent downloads, does not circumvent technical protection measures and does not make listenable any content that the source does not already make publicly listenable.
  • Every track card links to the purchase on the source platform.

2. Account and age requirements

Using LODE requires a personal account. Registration is allowed only to those who have turned 14, in accordance with art. 2-quinquies of Legislative Decree 196/2003 (a minor’s digital consent). At registration the user declares they are at least 14; if we discover that an account belongs to a minor under 14, we may suspend or close it.

The user is responsible for keeping their credentials confidential and for the activity carried out with their account, and undertakes to provide truthful information.

3. User content and the stems feature

The «stems» feature lets you upload an audio file you have rights to, in order to separate it into isolated tracks (vocals, drums, bass, other). By uploading a file, the user declares they hold the necessary rights or are otherwise lawfully entitled to use the file for this purpose.

  • The generated stems are intended for personal and private use (study, set preparation, practice).
  • Publicly sharing, distributing or commercially exploiting stems generated from material the user does not hold the rights to is prohibited.
  • LODE may remove content uploaded in breach of these Terms and suspend the feature for accounts that abuse it.

The files in the user’s local library are never uploaded to our servers: LODE processes only metadata and numeric representations (vectors) computed on the device.

4. Social features

The social features (public DJ profile, follow, chat) are optional and off by default. The user chooses what to make visible and to whom (private / followers / public) and may change the settings at any time.

When using the social features, the user undertakes not to:

  • publish unlawful, defamatory, harassing, discriminatory content or content that infringes others’ rights (including copyright and trademarks);
  • impersonate other people or entities;
  • use the chat for spam, unsolicited commercial communications or harassing conduct;
  • circumvent the visibility or contact settings chosen by other users.

Conduct or content in breach may be reported to legal@lode.fm. LODE may remove content and suspend or close accounts in the event of violations.

5. Cart and purchases

LODE’s cart is an organisation tool: purchases are completed exclusively on the source platforms (e.g. Bandcamp or Discogs), to which LODE links via external links.

  • LODE does not process payments, does not collect any sums and does not conclude sales contracts: the purchase contract is entered into between the user and the source platform or seller, on the latter’s terms.
  • The prices shown in LODE are indicative and may differ from the actual ones on the source platform.
  • The source platforms’ trademarks are cited purely descriptively; LODE is not affiliated with or sponsored by those platforms, except where otherwise indicated.

6. Result ranking criteria

LODE’s search results and recommendations are ranked exclusively by algorithmic relevance, measured on musical characteristics (harmonic, rhythmic, timbral similarity) and on the user’s expressed preferences.

No placement is paid for: LODE does not sell visibility in results, does not host advertising and no artist, label or platform can pay to appear higher.

7. Intellectual property

LODE’s software, trademark, graphics and original content are owned by [COMPANY BEING INCORPORATED] or its respective licensors. Music metadata comes from third-party sources and remains subject to their respective regimes. Nothing in these Terms transfers to the user any rights over the music content, which remains with its respective owners.

8. Notices

Anyone who believes that content accessible through LODE infringes their rights (including copyright) may write to legal@lode.fm, indicating the reported content, its location and the reasons for the notice. We will review notices promptly.

9. Disclaimers and limitations of liability

The service is provided «as is». To the extent permitted by law, LODE does not warrant the continuity, completeness or accuracy of metadata and prices coming from third-party sources, nor the availability of the streams or pages of the source platforms, which may change or cease without notice.

The user holds LODE harmless from the consequences arising from their own unlawful uses of the service, including uploading material they do not hold the rights to and conduct within the social features.

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits LODE’s liability for wilful misconduct or gross negligence, nor the mandatory rights granted to consumers by applicable law.

10. Changes to the Terms

We may amend these Terms, for example to align them with regulatory developments or new features. Substantial changes will be communicated with adequate notice through the service or by email; continued use of the service after the changes take effect constitutes acceptance of them. If the user does not accept the changes, they may close their account.

11. Governing law and jurisdiction

These Terms are governed by Italian law. For users acting as consumers, the court of the consumer’s place of residence or domicile has jurisdiction (consumer’s forum); the mandatory rules of the consumer’s country of habitual residence remain unaffected. For other users, the courts of [OFFICE] have exclusive jurisdiction.

12. Contact

For any questions about these Terms: legal@lode.fm.

Last updated: September 2026