Terms of Service

1. Scope of these Terms

AKIHO+ supports authorised AKIHO-related digital activities, which may include member and account access, member-linked organisational information, Akita Inu registry and pedigree-related information, exhibition and judging information, organisational workflows, documents, records, submissions and communications.

Additional terms, rules or procedures may apply to particular activities, including membership, exhibitions, registrations, entries, payments or services provided by Akita Inu Hozonkai Headquarters or an authorised club or branch. Where additional terms apply, they govern that activity to the extent of any conflict with these Terms.

2. Who we are

AKIHO+ is operated by AKIHO Europe.

Contact: info@akitainu-hozonkai.eu

3. Relationship with AKIHO and participating organisations

AKIHO+ is a digital platform supporting AKIHO-related activities in Europe. It does not replace the authority, rules, records or formal decisions of Akita Inu Hozonkai Headquarters in Japan or of an authorised AKIHO body where that body has final responsibility.

Information shown in AKIHO+ may originate from AKIHO Headquarters, AKIHO Europe, another authorised AKIHO club or branch, members, exhibitors, breeders, owners, judges or authorised administrators.

Where a record is identified as provisional, pending, submitted, under review or otherwise not final, it must not be treated as a final official determination until the relevant authorised body has confirmed or published it.

4. Acceptance of the Terms

By accessing or using AKIHO+, you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, you must not use the Service.

Where access is provided on behalf of an organisation, club, branch or other body, you also confirm that you are authorised to use the Service in that capacity.

5. Eligibility, accounts and access

Certain parts of AKIHO+ require an account or institutional authorisation. Access may depend on membership status, organisational role, a specific invitation, a pilot or administrative grant, or another recognised relationship with AKIHO or an authorised AKIHO body.

You are responsible for:

• providing accurate account information;
• keeping access methods and devices reasonably secure;
• not sharing account access with an unauthorised person;
• promptly notifying AKIHO Europe if you believe your account or authentication method has been compromised; and
• ensuring that actions performed through your account are authorised.

AKIHO Europe may restrict, suspend or revoke access where reasonably necessary for security, administration, compliance, protection of records or suspected misuse.

6. Authentication and security

AKIHO+ may support passwordless email sign-in, passkeys, social sign-in providers and other authentication methods.

You must not attempt to bypass authentication, access controls, rate limits, bot protection or other security measures. You must not test, scan or probe the Service for vulnerabilities without prior written authorisation.

7. Records and data accuracy

AKIHO+ may display registry, pedigree, membership, exhibition, organisational or other records.

Users who submit or amend information must take reasonable care to ensure that it is accurate, complete and supported by appropriate source material where required.

AKIHO Europe may correct, annotate, restrict, supersede or remove information where necessary to reflect authoritative records, resolve errors, preserve auditability or comply with instructions from the responsible AKIHO body.

Because some information may be provisional, historical, imported or awaiting verification, AKIHO Europe does not guarantee that every displayed record is complete or final at all times.

8. Visibility and publication status

Different records may have different visibility levels. Information may, for example, be visible only to the submitting user, an owner, a connected club or branch, AKIHO Europe, AKIHO Headquarters, authorised officials or the public.

A record that is accessible inside AKIHO+ is not necessarily publicly published. Visibility, publication and formal approval are separate states and may change as a record proceeds through an authorised workflow.

Users must respect the visibility and confidentiality status of information presented to them and must not republish restricted information without permission.

9. User submissions

Where AKIHO+ allows you to submit text, documents, images, records, pedigree information, exhibition information or other material, you remain responsible for the content you submit and for having the rights or authority needed to provide it.

You grant AKIHO Europe a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to store, reproduce, process, display, transmit and otherwise use submitted material to the extent reasonably necessary to operate, administer, preserve and document AKIHO-related activities through the Service.

This licence does not transfer ownership of your material and does not override rights held by AKIHO Headquarters or other rights holders.

10. Intellectual property

Unless otherwise stated, the software interface, design, original text, graphics and other original AKIHO+ materials are protected by applicable intellectual-property law and belong to AKIHO Europe and/or the relevant rights holders.

AKIHO names, emblems, historical materials, official standards, publications, photographs, documents and other material may belong to Akita Inu Hozonkai, AKIHO Europe, another AKIHO body, an author, photographer or other rights holder.

Access to the Service does not grant a licence to reuse such material outside the purposes for which it is made available, except where permitted by applicable law or by the relevant rights holder.

11. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• use the Service unlawfully or in a way that infringes the rights of others;
• gain or attempt to gain unauthorised access to accounts, records or systems;
• introduce malware or interfere with the operation or security of the Service;
• scrape, harvest, bulk-download or systematically collect content or data without authorisation;
• use automated systems to circumvent access controls or rate limits;
• alter, falsify or misrepresent registry, pedigree, membership, exhibition or organisational information;
• impersonate another person or falsely claim an office, role, affiliation or authority; or
• use information obtained through restricted access for a purpose inconsistent with the reason access was granted.

12. Third-party services

AKIHO+ relies on third-party infrastructure and service providers for functions such as hosting, authentication, email delivery, security and optional social sign-in.

Those providers may have their own terms and privacy notices. Use of a third-party authentication provider, such as Google or Apple, may also be subject to that provider's terms.

13. Availability and changes to the Service

AKIHO Europe may maintain, improve, change, suspend or discontinue parts of AKIHO+ where reasonably necessary. Availability may also be affected by maintenance, security incidents, failures of third-party providers or circumstances outside our reasonable control.

We may introduce, modify or retire features as AKIHO+ develops. Where a change materially affects users' rights or obligations, appropriate notice will be given where required by law.

14. Disclaimers

AKIHO+ is provided on an “as is” and “as available” basis to the extent permitted by law.

While reasonable efforts are made to maintain accurate and secure information, AKIHO Europe does not warrant that the Service will always be uninterrupted, error-free, complete or current.

Nothing displayed in AKIHO+ should be interpreted as overriding an authoritative AKIHO record or formal decision where another AKIHO body has final authority.

15. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, AKIHO Europe is not liable for indirect, incidental, special or consequential loss arising from use of or inability to use AKIHO+.

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability where exclusion or limitation is prohibited by law, including mandatory consumer protections where applicable.

16. Privacy

Personal data processed through AKIHO+ is handled as described in the AKIHO+ Privacy Policy. That policy forms part of the information governing use of the Service but is not incorporated into these Terms as a contractual waiver of statutory privacy rights.

17. Changes to these Terms

AKIHO Europe may update these Terms from time to time. The current version will be published through AKIHO+ with its effective date. Where required by law, material changes will be communicated to affected users.

18. Governing law and jurisdiction

These Terms are governed by the laws of Italy. Disputes shall be subject to the competent courts of Torino, Italy, unless mandatory law provides otherwise.

19. Contact

Questions about these Terms may be sent to info@akitainu-hozonkai.eu.