* Terms and Conditions
Effective August 2008 HBC has partnered with the Business Performance Improvement Resource (BPIR) to provide convenient access to vast databases of benchmarking and business improvement information and its fast-growing business user community. The following terms and conditions govern the use of the Business Performance Improvement Resource (the "BPIR Online Services") and the materials available therein ("Materials"), which can be accessed through the web-site ("hbc.bpir.com"). Although this one website is specifically responsible for making these services available, this does not exclude other web-site names under which the BPIR Online Services may appear. Access to the BPIR Online Services via any other such web-site is also governed by these terms and conditions. In the context of this licence, a site is defined as a business unit, plant, or division of an organisation that is operationally and financially autonomous or independent, from the remainder of that organisation ("Site"). 1. LICENCE 1.1 Subject to the terms of this agreement, the Provider hereby grants your organisation a non-exclusive, non-transferable, limited licence to have access to the BPIR Online Services and Materials for your organisation's internal use only. This licence includes: (a) The right to display electronically Materials retrieved from the BPIR Online Services; (b) The right to obtain a printout of Materials retrieved from the BPIR Online Services. 1.2 Under this Licence you do not acquire any proprietary interest in the BPIR Online Services Materials, or copies thereof. 1.3. Except as specifically provided in Section1.1, you are prohibited from downloading, storing, reproducing, transmitting, displaying, copying, distributing, altering, recompiling, reselling, republishing, or using Materials retrieved from the BPIR Online Services without written permission of the copyright holder. Downloading of all or parts of the Materials in a systematic or regular manner so to create a collection of Materials is strictly prohibited. 1.4 All rights, title, and interest (including all copyrights and other intellectual property rights) in the BPIR Online Services and Materials (in both print and machine-readable forms) belong to the Provider of the BPIR Online Services or its third party suppliers of materials. Content from individual providers or licensors may have conditions of use applicable solely to their materials. Such special conditions will be displayed in the computer screen with the content. These special conditions shall not alter your use of the rest of the Materials. Other database documents that also form part of the Materials and which are based on interviews, reviews of books, magazines, libraries, Internet, and other public-domain sources do not usually require special conditions on use. 1.5 Except as specifically provided herein, you may not use the BPIR Online Services or Materials retrieved from the BPIR Online Services in any fashion that infringes the copyrights or proprietary interests therein. 1.6 You may not remove or obscure the copyright notice or other notices contained in Materials retrieved from the BPIR Online Services. 1.7 Other provisions that govern your use of Materials are set forth in your applicable price schedule, online descriptions of files, online notices following file selection, and individual documents retrieved from the BPIR Online Services, all of which are incorporated by reference into these General Terms and Conditions. 2. ACCESS TO SERVICES 2.1 Only individuals authorized by password in the subscribing organisation may access and use the BPIR Online Services. 2.2 Membership passwords are not to be shared. Each password represents access permission for one named individual only. 2.3 Materials and features may be added to or withdrawn from the BPIR Online Services or otherwise changed without prior notice. 2.4 Membership costs are for 12 month's access (unless stated otherwise) to BPIR Online Services. 2.5 Site membership passwords will only be supplied to organisation domain email addresses ie employeename@yourcompany.com unless otherwise arranged with the Provider of the BPIR Online Services. For Site memberships each employee within the member organisation Site wishing access to BPIR Online Services must use his/her organisation email address in order to successfully create a personal password (created on-line through a simple process). 3. LIMITED WARRANTY 3.1 The Provider of the BPIR Online Services represents and warrants that it has the right and authority to make the BPIR Online Services and Materials available pursuant to these General Terms and Conditions. 3.2 EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE PROVIDED IN SECTION 3.1, THE BPIR ONLINE SERVICES AND MATERIALS ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS", "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS AND THE PROVIDER OF THE BPIR ONLINE SERVICES OR ITS THIRD PARTY SUPPLIERS OF MATERIALS EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, REGARDING THE ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS OR TIMELINESS OF THE LICENSED MATERIALS INCLUDING THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES OF ANY KIND OR LOST PROFITS OR OTHER CLAIMS RELATED TO THE LICENSED MATERIALS OF THEIR USE. WHILE THE BPIR ONLINE SERVICES DOCUMENTS HAVE BEEN OBTAINED FROM SOURCES BELIEVED TO BE RELIABLE, ITS ACCURACY IS NOT GUARANTEED. 4. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY 4.1 The Provider of the BPIR Online Services, including its affiliates, and any officer, director, employee, subcontractor, agent, successor, or assign of the Provider of the BPIR Online Services or its affiliates and each third party supplier of Materials, their affiliates, and any officer, director, employee, subcontractor, agent, successor, or assign of any third party supplier of Materials or any of their affiliates, (collectively "the Provider") shall not be liable for any loss, injury, claim, liability, or damage of any kind resulting in any way from: (a) any errors in or omissions from the BPIR Online Services or any Materials available or not included therein; (b) the unavailability or interruption of the BPIR Online Services or any features thereof or any Materials; (c) your use of the BPIR Online Services or Materials (regardless of whether you received any assistance from the Provider in using the BPIR Online Services); (d) your use of any equipment in connection with the BPIR Online Services; (e) the content of Materials; or (f) any delay or failure in performance beyond the reasonable control of the Provider. 4.2 THE MAXIMUM LIABILITY OF THE PROVIDER (INCLUDING LICENSORS) IF ANY UNDER THIS AGREEMENT IN CONNECTION WITH ANY CLAIM ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THE BPIR ONLINE SERVICES OR MATERIALS FOR DIRECT DAMAGES, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, SHALL BE LIMITED TO THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF FEES RECEIVED BY THE PROVIDER FROM YOU HEREUNDER UP TO THE TIME THE CAUSE OF ACTION GIVING RISE TO SUCH LIABILITY OCCURRED. YOUR RIGHT TO MONETARY DAMAGES IN THAT AMOUNT SHALL BE IN LIEU OF ALL OTHER REMEDIES WHICH YOU MAY HAVE AGAINST THE PROVIDER. 4.3 IN NO EVENT THE PROVIDER (INCLUDING LICENSORS) SHALL BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES OF ANY KIND WHATSOEVER (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ATTORNEYS' FEES) IN ANY WAY DUE TO, RESULTING FROM, OR ARISING IN CONNECTION WITH THE BPIR ONLINE SERVICES, MATERIALS, OR THE FAILURE OF ANY COVERED PARTY TO PERFORM ITS OBLIGATIONS, REGARDLESS OF ANY NEGLIGENCE OF THE PROVIDER. 5. MISCELLANEOUS 5.1 These General Terms and Conditions may be changed from time to time as described below or by written agreement. Charges and payment terms may be changed in accordance with your applicable price schedule. All other provisions may be changed by the Provider at any time upon notice to the subscriber. Your subscription for access to the BPIR Online Services may be terminated immediately upon notice to the Provider of the BPIR Online Services if any change is unacceptable. Continued use of the BPIR Online Services following any change constitutes acceptance of the change. 5.2 The Provider of the BPIR Online Services or the subscribing organization may terminate the subscription for access to the BPIR Online Services. The effective date of termination shall be ten days after the receipt of an appropriate notice of termination, unless a later date is specified in the notice. The Provider of the BPIR Online Services may suspend or discontinue providing the BPIR Online Services to you without notice and without refund and may pursue any other remedy legally available to it if you fail to comply with any of your obligations hereunder. 5.3 Except as otherwise provided herein, all notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing or displayed electronically in the BPIR Online Services by the Provider thereof. Notices shall be deemed to have been properly given on the date deposited in the Hong Kong mail, if mailed; on the date first made available, if displayed in the BPIR Online Services; or on the date received, if delivered in any other manner. Notices to the Provider of the BPIR Online Services should be sent to HBC Limited Suite 903, SBI Centre, 54-58 Des Voeux Road Central, Hong Kong 5.4 The failure of the Provider of the BPIR Online Services to enforce any provision hereof shall not constitute or be construed as a waiver of such provision or of the right to enforce it at a later time. 5.5 The subscribing organization or individual may not assign its rights or delegate its duties under the subscription to access the BPIR Online Services without the prior written consent of the Provider of the BPIR Online Services. 5.6 You shall be responsible for any taxes on sales, use, local taxes, and/or import duties imposed on the BPIR Materials. 5.7 For the avoidance of doubt, the Provider shall be deemed in default of this agreement for any failure or delay or interruption in the BPIR Online Services or any failure of any equipment or telecommunications resulting from any cause or circumstance beyond the reasonable control of the Provider. 5.8 These General Terms and Conditions shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of HKSAR. 5.9 This agreement shall be effective on the first date on which the BPIR Online Services are provided to you. 5.10 HBC Limited’s partner, Massey University, provider of the BPIR Online Services, reserves the right to refuse membership applications which, at its own discretion, it considers contrary to the best interests or values of BPIR Online Services' operation. In the case of a decision on this being made retrospectively, the member's access will be cancelled and fees paid will be refunded.

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