Terms and Conditions
GBTA Website Terms and Conditions
THIS WEBSITE IS OWNED BY THE NATIONAL BUSINESS TRAVEL ASSOCIATION, DOING BUSINESS AS THE GLOBAL BUSINESS TRAVEL ASSOCIATION, AND ITS AFFILIATES (COLLECTIVELY, “GBTA ENTITIES,” “WE,” OR “US”). BY USING THIS WEBSITE, YOU AGREE TO THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF USE, ALL POLICIES AND GUIDELINES REGARDING USE THAT WE MAY POST, AND ALL LAWS OR REGULATIONS THAT APPLY TO THE SITE, THE INTERNET, OR THE WORLD WIDE WEB. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE WITH THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS, DO NOT USE THIS WEBSITE.
WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO CHANGE, MODIFY, ADD, OR REMOVE ANY OF THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND ANY OTHER CONTENT AT THE SITE AT ANY TIME. YOU SHOULD CHECK THIS PAGE EACH TIME YOU VISIT. YOUR USE OF THIS SITE IS ALSO SUBJECT TO OUR ONLINE PRIVACY POLICY, WHICH IS INCORPORATED HEREIN BY REFERENCE.
OWNERSHIP OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
We own, license, or use with permission all registered and unregistered trademarks, service marks, logos, wallpaper, icons, characters, software, information, pictures, photographs, designs, graphics, artwork, images, audio and video clips, music, sound, text, data, publications, presentations, and other material and content on this website (collectively the “Content”), as well as the arrangement and selection of the Content. Your unauthorized use of the Content may violate copyright, trademark, patent, privacy, or other U.S. and/or international laws, and may infringe upon the rights of the GBTA Entities or third parties not owned by or affiliated with us. Such unauthorized use may result in your personal liability, including potential criminal liability. You are granted a limited, non-exclusive, non-sublicensable, revocable right to access and use this website, and to download Content from this website to your own computer for your personal, non-commercial use, provided that you may not change any copyright, trademark, or other intellectual property notices that may accompany the Content. Except for Content you have posted on or submitted to this website, or unless expressly permitted by us, you may not otherwise alter, archive, copy, reproduce, distribute, publish, transmit, modify, adapt, translate, display, distribute, sell, license, prepare derivative works based upon, or otherwise use or exploit the Content. You may not use bots, data-mining technology, or any other technique intended to extract data or information from this website.
THIRD PARTY CONTENT
This website may contain content and material owned by third parties. This website may also include opportunities for users to participate in discussion groups, blogs, or other interactive features where users and other third parties can provide or post Content. The use of the names or trademarks of any third parties and any references to their products or services on this website does not constitute an endorsement by us of such parties or their products or services. In addition, we do not endorse, warrant the accuracy or reliability of, or assume any liability in connection with any Content on this website provided by third parties. Your submission or posting of any Content is also subject to any separate policies or guidelines that we may post.
LINKS TO THIRD PARTY WEBSITES
This website may contain links to or from third party websites. Links to other websites are provided solely as a convenience. We have not reviewed all of the sites linked to this website, and we are not responsible for the content of any such sites linked to this website. All activities you engage in connection with a linked site are subject to the privacy policy and terms and conditions imposed by the operator of the linked site, and we disclaim all liability in connection with such activities.
COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT
If you believe that your copyrights in a work have been infringed by a third party, such as by improper posting or distribution via this website, then you can send us a notice of alleged copyright infringement and we will respond appropriately. The notice must comply with the U.S. Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”) and include all of the following information:
(1) A legend or subject line “DMCA Copyright Infringement Notice”;
(2) A description of the copyrighted work that you believe has been infringed;
(3) The URL of the site and a description of where the allegedly infringing material is located on that site;
(4) Your address, telephone number, and e-mail address;
(5) A statement that you have a good faith belief that the alleged infringing material is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law;
(6) A statement by you, made under penalty of perjury, that all the information in your notice is accurate, and that you are the copyright owner (or, if you are not the copyright owner, that you are authorized to act on the behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed); and
(7) Your electronic or physical signature.
We reserve the right to respond to DMCA notices that do not comply with any of these requirements in our discretion.
You may send DMCA notices by mail, e-mail, or facsimile:
If by mail to:
DMCA Agent
Global Business Travel Association
123 North Pitt Street
Alexandria, VA 22314
If by e-Mail to: MemberCare@gbta.org
If by fax to: 703-342-4324
DISCLAIMERS
THIS WEBSITE AND THE CONTENT AND SERVICES PROVIDED ON OR IN CONNECTION WITH THIS WEBSITE ARE PROVIDED “AS IS,” WITHOUT ANY WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR USE OR PURPOSE, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. WE DO NOT REPRESENT OR WARRANT THAT THE WEBSITE, CONTENT, OR SERVICES AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SITE ARE ACCURATE, COMPLETE, RELIABLE, OR ERROR-FREE, THAT INFORMATION WILL ALWAYS BE AVAILABLE, OR THAT THE WEBSITE OR THE SERVERS, HARDWARE, OR SOFTWARE USED IN CONNECTION WITH THE WEBSITE ARE FREE OF VIRUSES, MALWARE, OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS. TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, NEITHER THE GBTA ENTITIES NOR THEIR OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, MEMBERS, OR AGENTS SHALL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, DAMAGES FROM LOSS OF USE OR PROFITS, OR COST OF PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES, IN CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OF THIS WEBSITE OR CONTENT OR SERVICES PROVIDED ON OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE WEBSITE.
JURISDICTION AND VENUE
This website and the server(s) that make(s) this website available may be located outside of your country of origin. We make no representation or warranty that the Content on this site is appropriate or available for use in locations outside of the United States. If you access or use this website from locations outside the United States, you do so on your own initiative and you are responsible for compliance with applicable laws. Access to this site and the Content from territories where such access or Content is unlawful or illegal is prohibited. These Terms and Conditions shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States, without regard to conflicts of law principles, and regardless of your country of origin. Any claim, cause of action or proceeding arising out of or relating to these Terms and Conditions, the website, or any Content shall be resolved by mandatory, binding arbitration in accordance with the Commercial Arbitration Rules of the American Arbitration Association, without resort to any form of class action. The arbitration shall be conducted in Alexandria, Virginia.
INDEMNIFICATION
You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless the GBTA Entities and their officers, employees, members, agents, business partners, licensors, and licensees from and against any and all claims, actions, demands, suits, proceedings, damages, liabilities, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of or relating to your use of this website, including any Content you provide to the site, or your violation of these Terms and Conditions.
SEVERABILITY
If any provision of these Terms and Conditions is deemed unlawful, void, or unenforceable for any reason, such provision shall be deemed severable from the remainder of these Terms and Conditions and shall not affect the validity or enforceability of the remainder of these Terms and Conditions.
HOW TO CONTACT US:
Global Business Travel Association
123 North Pitt Street
Alexandria, VA 22314
Phone: 703-684-0836
Fax: 703-342-4324
Email: info@gbta.org
Effective Date: January 17, 2012
4851-8297-3198, v. 3
Welcome to the GBTA Hub. The National Business Travel Association, doing business as the Global Business Travel Association, and its affiliates (the “GBTA Entities”) have developed these general guidelines for participation to ensure the best possible experience for participating GBTA members. By participating in the GBTA Hub, you agree to follow these guidelines, as well as the GBTA website Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions.
While the GBTA Entities do not assume an obligation to monitor member activity on the GBTA Hub, review, edit, or delete any content, and/or suspend or terminate participation of any member who violates these guidelines, we reserve the right to do so in our sole discretion.
PLEASE REPORT ANY VIOLATIONS OF THESE GUIDELINES TO GBTA IMMEDIATELY BY SENDING AN E-MAIL TO: MemberCare@gbta.org.
Do
- Comply with competition and antitrust laws. Most countries have their own competition laws, including the United States, European Union, China, and Japan. While these laws vary, there is a universal prohibition of cartel and other joint action by competitors that harms competition.
- Use the services in a professional, courteous, and lawful manner.
- Provide accurate information for yourself and update it as necessary.
- >Ensure that any content you post is appropriate for the audience and directed to the group for which it is intended.
- >Review and comply with any notices that GBTA may issue regarding the website and services.
Do Not
- Post or submit content that encourages or facilitates any anticompetitive agreements, such as price fixing or an agreement that leads to price fixing, a boycott of another’s business, or other conduct intended to restrict free trade.
- Post or submit content or messages that encourage or facilitate an agreement about the following subjects: prices, discounts, or terms or conditions of sale, such as quantity or timing of transactions; salaries; profits, profit margins, or cost data; market shares, sales territories, or markets; allocation of customers or territories or geographic areas; or selection, rejection, or termination of customers or suppliers; disparagement of other’s business or business practices; costs of operations, supplies, allowances or discounts, or profit margins or mark ups.
- Post or submit commercial content that advertises the availability or price of any products or service.
- Abuse, attack, harass, threaten, or intimidate other members.
- Post or submit defamatory, abusive, harassing, profane, libelous, obscene, discriminatory, threatening, offensive, inappropriate, inaccurate, or illegal content.
- Use or attempt to use another person’s account without permission or falsely state, impersonate, or misrepresent your identity or affiliations with any entity.
- Post or submit content that you do not have the right to disclose or that infringes on any other person’s patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright, privacy, or other proprietary rights.
- Post or submit any content relating to your racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, health or sexual orientation, or trade-union membership.
- Republish, repost, display, transmit, distribute, broadcast, modify, adapt, create derivative works based on, sell, license, sublicense, or otherwise transfer any content on the GBTA website (excluding content posted by you) except as permitted herein or in the GBTA website Terms and Conditions.
Legal
You are responsible and liable for all content that you post or submit on the GBTA Hub, and any activity or transactions that occur under your user name. You represent and warrant that you own the copyright or have received permission from the copyright owner for all content that you post.
You grant to the GBTA Entities and their successors and assigns a perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free right to commercially exploit, display, publish, duplicate, distribute, create derivative works based upon, and otherwise use the content you post or submit for any commercial or non-commercial purpose, in any manner and in any medium whatsoever, in their sole discretion.
You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless the GBTA Entities and their officers, directors, employees, members, and agents from and against any and all claims damages, liabilities, losses, actions, demands, costs and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of or relating to your use of the GBTA Hub or violation of these guidelines.
THE GBTA ENTITIES PROVIDE THE GBTA HUB AS A SERVICE TO THEIR MEMBERS. THE GBTA HUB AND SERVICES ARE PROVIDED “AS IS,” WITHOUT ANY WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WARRANTIES AS TO MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PURPOSE, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. THE GBTA ENTITIES ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CONTENT POSTED BY MEMBERS, AND IN NO EVENT SHALL ANY GBTA ENTITIES OR THEIR OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, MEMBERS OR AGENTS BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL, INDIRECT, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO YOUR USE OF THE GBTA HUB OR ANY INFORMATION POSTED ON THE GBTA HUB.
The antitrust and competition laws apply within the context of the markets and economies within which the Global Business Travel Association and its affiliates (collectively, “GBTA”) and their members participate. From this perspective, GBTA’s antitrust policy recognizes that GBTA is the world’s premier business travel and meetings organization. Collectively, GBTA’s thousands of members manage billions of dollars of global business travel and meetings expenditures annually. GBTA provides its network of business and government travel and meetings managers, as well as travel service providers, with networking events, news, education and professional development, research, and advocacy. Travel management plays a significant financial role and can contribute to a corporation’s shareholder value. But, corporate travel managers also must develop and oversee corporate policies that optimize the company’s travel dollar, while at the same time ensuring that travel is both safe and productive.
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Why Competition Matters
Effective competition provides significant benefits for consumers through greater choice, lower prices, and better quality goods and services. Competition provides strong incentives for firms to be more efficient and innovative, helping raise productivity growth across the economy. To help ensure that markets function properly, governments set rules for the permissible conduct of firms and individuals, and governments create institutions to enforce them. The vast majority of the world’s national governments, and certainly all of the major economies in which GBTA members operate, enforce competition laws. While the laws of individual countries may vary, the fundamental principles that apply to GBTA activities are very similar, and competition authorities are working towards harmonization of their various systems.
Antitrust in the GBTA Context
GBTA recognizes that its members want to comply with the competition laws. GBTA supports competition law compliance and manages its activities to avoid competition law breaches in the first place.
Many agreements and activities among competitors, however, are both legal and beneficial to society and the industry. This includes the networking events, news, education and professional development, research, and advocacy functions provided by GBTA. These activities enhance and support vigorous competition and competitors. Some group activities, however, such as price fixing, are inherently suspect under the antitrust laws. All participants in GBTA activities, as well as GBTA staff and consultants, are expected to be sensitive to the legal issues involving trade associations and comply with the antitrust and competition laws, including those of the US, EU, China, Japan, Australia and other nations.
Supported GBTA Activities
GBTA provides value to its members, the industry and the broader economy. Help yourself and help others by participating fully in:/p>
- Educational programs designed to keep the public informed about the industry, or the industry informed about new regulatory or business developments.
- Government-industry cooperation programs aimed at keeping the industry advised about government actions, and government agencies advised as to the industry’s views on matters of interest.
- Promotional programs designed to advance the industry as a whole by public education as to the value of your products or services.
- Statistical programs where data from individual companies are handled confidentially and the composite information is made available to all interested parties.
- Developing proposed standards for practices or specifications that may be voluntarily followed.
- Financial and accounting methods programs which review various accounting principles of aid to members in setting up their own company’s operational systems.
- Working with GBTA to represent its members in seeking fair and reasonable treatment in transportation services or tariffs.
To support these, understand the purposes, activities and authority of each GBTA group in which you participate. Object to any discussions or meeting activities which appear to violate the antitrust laws. Disassociate yourself from any such discussions or activities, leave any meeting in which they continue, and communicate your objections to the appropriate GBTA staff member.
Activities to Avoid
While GBTA and its members can be strong advocates for the industry, the antitrust laws prohibit anticompetitive joint action. GBTA and its members do not discuss or make agreements regarding:
- Territorial restrictions, allocations of customers, group boycotts, restrictions on types of products purchased or services offered, or any other kind of market division.
- Dealing or not dealing with actual or potential individual suppliers, customers, or competitors that might exclude them from the market.
- Agreements with competitors to control, limit or allocate purchases or allocation according to customers, territories or products.
This list is not exhaustive and understanding and acting in compliance with applicable antitrust and competition laws sometimes can be difficult. If you have a question about the propriety of GBTA activities or discussions in a GBTA meeting, you are encouraged immediately to contact GBTA staff, GBTA counsel or your company’s legal counsel.