These terms of use (“Terms of Use” or “Terms"), together with the Privacy Policy located at https://my-profile.springernature.com/privacy-policy and any documents that the Terms incorporate by reference, govern your access to and use of this website (the "Site"), including any content, functionality, products, services, and downloads offered on the Site. Please note that these Terms apply, regardless of the means of delivery of the Site to you, and whether you are a guest or a registered user of the Site.

Any reference to ‘you’ or ‘your’ is a reference to you as a user of the Site, and any reference to ‘we,’ ‘us,’ or ‘our’ refers to Springer Nature B.V. or any affiliates worldwide (collectively, “Springer Nature”).

Our Privacy Policy, located at https://my-profile.springernature.com/privacy-policy,governs our data collection and use of information about you, including use of personally identifiable information.

You must be thirteen years of age or older to use the Site. You must be eighteen years of age or older to contribute user content to the Site.

In addition to these Terms, the Site may have supplementary terms and conditions which apply to the Site or the services available on the Site ("Additional Terms"). For avoidance of doubt, any reference to the “Terms” includes any Additional Terms. Please ensure that you read the Additional Terms, as they form part of these Terms in respect of your use of the Site. To the extent that the Additional Terms conflict with these Terms, the Additional Terms shall prevail (including, without limitation, any liability limitations or exclusions in the Additional Terms).

By using the Site, you indicate that you have read and agree to be bound by these Terms, including the applicable Additional Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the Site. You may wish to print a copy of these Terms. If anything in these Terms is unclear, please contact us as set out in Clause 2.3 below.

We reserve the right to modify or amend these Terms from time to time without notice. Your continued use of the Site following the posting of changes to these Terms will mean you accept those changes.

1. About Us

   This site is operated by Springer Nature B.V.

   Springer Nature B.V. is a company registered in the Netherlands under company number 23051097, with a registered address at Van Godewijckstraat 303311 GX Dordrecht, Netherlands, VAT Number NL00436133780.

2. Contacting Us

   1. We respect the intellectual property rights of others, and we request that our users do the same. If you think your work has been copied or used in a manner that constitutes copyright infringement, you may notify our copyright agent, who can be reached at:
      
      Springer Nature B.V.
      c/o Springer Nature Customer Service Center LLC
      One New York Plaza, Suite 4600
      New York, NY 10004
      Attention: Legal Department
      Email: copyrightagent@springernature.com
      Phone: +1-212-460-0220
      
      
      Please include all of the following in your notification:
      1. (i) Your complete contact information (including your full legal name, address, telephone number and email address).
      2. (ii) A description of your complaint
      3. iii) A description of the copyrighted material that you claim has been infringed.
      4. (iv) A description of the content which you claim is infringing. The easiest way to do this is by providing a web address or URL leading directly to the allegedly infringing content.
      5. (v) A statement that you have a good faith belief that the use you are complaining about is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law.
      6. (vi) A statement by you declaring under penalty of perjury that (a) the information in your notice is accurate, and (b) that you are the owner of the copyright interest involved or that you are authorized to act on behalf of that owner.
   2. Upon receipt of your notification, we may take whatever action, in our sole discretion, we deem appropriate, in accordance with applicable law (including The Electronic Commerce Directive 2000/31/EC).
   3. You can contact us with all other feedback, comments, requests for technical support, questions on these Terms, or other communications relating to the Site via the Springer Nature Support Portal at https://support.springernature.com/en/support/home.

3. Using Sites

   1. Access to the Site is permitted on a temporary basis and we reserve the right to withdraw or amend any service we provide on the Site without notice.
   2. You are solely liable and responsible for any third-party charges incurred by you in accessing and using the Site, including in particular any network charges for fixed or mobile internet use.
   3. We grant you a limited, revocable, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to access and use the Site and the content and applications on the Site for your personal use. Except as permitted by law and as expressly permitted herein, the content on the Site may not be reproduced, sold, resold, or otherwise exploited for any purpose without our express written consent. Any unauthorized use automatically terminates the permissions and licenses granted by us to you, and may violate copyright, trademark, and other laws. We reserve all rights to the content on the Site not expressly granted herein.
   4. You may occasionally print individual pages of the Site for your personal, non-commercial use, provided that such printing is not substantial or systematic and our trademarks, copyright notices, and other proprietary notices are preserved.
   5. From time to time we may restrict access to some parts of the Site, or to the entire Site, to users who have registered with us. Registered users may be able to customize some features of the Site to create personalized areas of the Site for their own private non-commercial use. Except as permitted by law, you must not otherwise alter, adapt or reverse engineer any part of the Site.
   6. You may only play video or audio files using the media player on the Site or on the website of one of our licensees who is displaying such material with our authorization. Where any videos or other materials are displayed through a third-party embedding service you must comply with all applicable conditions of that third party.

4. Prohibited Uses

   1. You must not use, or allow others to access or use, all or any part of the Site or the contents and/or applications on it for commercial purposes without our permission. Use of all or any part of the Site or the contents and/or applications on it for commercial purposes may, if permitted, be subject to separate terms and conditions and may be subject to a fee.
   2. You may not use the Site in a way that violates any applicable federal, state, local, or international law or regulation (including, without limitation, any laws regarding the export of data or software to and from the US or other countries).
   3. Except as permitted by law or these Terms, you must not (whether directly or indirectly):
      1. a. remove any copyright, trademark or other proprietary notices from material found on the Site, or fail to obtain permission before reusing any copyrighted material that is available on the Site.
      2. b. distribute, transmit, syndicate, sell or offer to sell or otherwise make available any content, files, feeds or data from the Site, whether publically available or not, except as specifically permitted by the Site and in compliance with any applicable conditions or restrictions;
      3. c. copy, download, or store any content, files, feeds or data from the Site, whether publically available or not, to make or populate a database or publication of any kind whatsoever;
      4. d. reproduce or store any part of the Site in another website or in a public or private electronic retrieval system or service without prior written permission;
      5. e. collect or use any product listings, descriptions, or prices;
      6. f. modify, translate, or create derivative works from any content, files, feeds or data from the Site, in any medium
      7. g. alter, adapt, reverse engineer, disassemble, decompile, or attempt to derive the source code of any part of the Site;
      8. h. engage in systematic or automated downloading (including using robots, spider, or crawlers) to search, extract, link, or index content on the Site;
      9. i. attempt to override, circumvent, or disable any encryption features or software protections;
      10. j. attempt to gain unauthorized access to any portion of the Site, attempt to interfere with the proper working of the Site, or attempt to breach or test the security or authentication measures of the Site; or
      11. k. violate applicable domestic and international laws, statutes, ordinances, and regulations regarding your use of the Site.
   4. Notwithstanding the above, if any material is marked "Open Access," that material may be used in accordance with the relevant Open Access license.
   5. If you engage in any of the prohibited uses or otherwise violate these Terms, your right to use the Site will terminate immediately.

5. Linking.

   1. You may establish a link to the Site on another website, provided that:
      1. a. linking is permitted by the third party website;
      2. b. the link is legal and not detrimental or damaging to and/or does not take unfair advantage of our reputation or business;
      3. c. links are clearly and visibly marked as such;
      4. d. such linking is not for advertising or promotional purposes (unless we have expressly agreed to it);
      5. e. the link is not on any website which promotes any political or religious views, or promotes or depicts intolerance, hatred, discrimination, violence, pornography or illegal activity;
      6. f. the link does not falsely or misleadingly imply or suggest that we endorse, approve of or are associated with the linked website, its webpages or any of its contents;
      7. g. the Site is not framed on any other website;
      8. h. the link will not result in automatic download; and
      9. i. you do not provide access to the Site or any part of it under any other URL.

6. Third-Party Content

   1. We are not liable or responsible for any third party content on the Site. Third party content includes, for example, comments, blogs and articles posted by any third parties, the content of advertisements, applications posted by other third parties and content accessed through applications.
   2. The Site may contain links to third-party sites or resources. These links are provided for your convenience only. We do not endorse and are not responsible or liable for any content, advertising, products or other materials on or available from external sites or resources linked to from the Site, including links contained in advertisements, including banner advertisements and sponsored links. If you decide to access any of the third-party websites linked to the Site, you do so entirely at your own risk and subject to the terms and conditions of such websites. We take no responsibility for transactions that occur between you and any third party.

7. Intellectual Property Rights

   1. Unless otherwise set out herein, all of the content featured or displayed on the Site, including without limitation text, graphics, photographs, images, moving images, sound, and illustrations, is owned by us, our licensors, vendors, and content providers. All elements of the Site, including without limitation the general design and the content, are protected by trade dress, copyright, moral rights, trademark and other laws relating to intellectual property rights and are reserved in full. Our status (and that of any identified licensors) as the authors of content on our site must always be acknowledged.
   2. The names Springer Nature, Springer Nature B.V., and all related names, logos, product and service names, designs, and slogans are trademarks of our company or its affiliates or licensors. You must not use such marks without our prior written permission. All other names, logos, product and service names, designs, and slogans the Sites are the trademarks of their respective owners.

8. Monitoring.

   We reserve the right to monitor and track your visits to the Site in accordance with our Privacy Policy, available at https://my-profile.springernature.com/privacy-policy.

9. Maintenance of the Site

   1. We may update the content on the Site from time to time, but its content is not necessarily complete or up to date. Any of the material on the Site may be out of date at any given time, and we are under no obligation to update such material.
   2. You acknowledge and agree that from time to time we may need to suspend access to all or part of the Site while we:
      a. fix defects and errors in the Site; b. install updates and undertake general diagnosis and maintenance of the Site; and c. undertake emergency maintenance and/or suspend access to the servers. As a result, the Site may be less accessible or unavailable to you from time to time. We shall not be liable for any unavailability or lack of accessibility.

10. Registration; Springer Nature User Profile

    1. Where you are required to register to use the Site or part of the Site, it is a condition of your use of the Site that all the information you provide is correct, current, and complete. We are entitled to rely on any such registration details you provide to us. Your registration with the Site must be in your own, real, name, not under any false or assumed name and not with any other person’s identity. Each person may open only one account.
    2. You must be thirteen years or older to register an account.
    3. Unless stated otherwise, each registration is for a single user only and not for multiple users. We do not permit anyone other than you to use the sections of the Site requiring registration by using your name or password, or access to be made available to multiple users on a network or otherwise. You also agree to ensure that you exit from your account at the end of each session.
    4. If you choose, or you are provided with, a user identification code, password or any other piece of information as part of our security procedures, you must treat such information as confidential. You must not disclose it to any third party. You may be responsible for any loss or damage you or we may suffer as a result of your failure to do so.
    5. If you know or suspect that anyone other than you has access to your user identification code or password, you must promptly notify us.
    6. You must provide a valid email address when you register for any Site. If you provide an email address to us then you warrant to us that you are entitled to receive email to such email address. You also acknowledge and agree that we may stop sending emails to you without prior notification. You may be responsible for everything done using your registration details. You must not disclose your login details to any other person or allow anyone to access the Site using your registration details. If you think that another person may have access to, or be using, your registration details, you must inform us immediately.
    7. All information you provide to register, and all data related to your actions under this registration, is governed by our Privacy Policy. We reserve the right to monitor your account.
    8. We may suspend or terminate your access to the Site, or prevent you from registering on the Site, at our sole discretion, without stating reasons. Where we suspend, terminate or prevent your registration, you no longer have a right to access the Site for which the registration is needed. You must not attempt to re-register or submit any content, material or applications without our prior written consent.
    9. You may terminate your registration at any time without stating reasons. Notice of termination should be made to the email address provided in clause 2.3 of the Terms.
    10. Springer Nature User Profile: The Springer Nature Profile functionality available through this Site allows you to create an online account with Springer Nature with a credential tied to it (i.e. a username and password). That credential can be used to authenticate to Springer Nature platforms and websites to use online products and services of Springer Nature across different platforms and websites. A Springer Nature Profile will enable users, once authenticated, to take actions such as submitting a manuscript, purchasing a journal subscription or book, and signing up to email alerts. When you engage with any affiliated Springer Nature products or services on other platforms or websites, the Terms of Use and other legal terms applicable to those platforms and websites will apply.

11. User Content

    1. The Site may offer you the opportunity to contribute user content, including, without limitation, articles, commentaries, photographs, text, music, video, audio recordings, computer graphics, pictures, data, questions, comments, suggestions or personally identifiable information (“User Content”).
    2. The contribution of User Content by a minor is subject to the consent of his/her parent or guardian. We advise parents who permit their children to use the Site that it is important that they communicate with their children about their safety online. Minors who are using the Site should be made aware of the potential risks to them.
    3. You acknowledge that you are responsible for any submission you make, including the legality, reliability, appropriateness, originality and copyright of any such material. You represent, warrant, and agree you own all rights to the User Content you post or otherwise control sufficient rights to grant the rights you grant by these Terms; that the User Content is accurate; that use of the User Content you supply does not violate these Terms and will not cause injury to any person or entity; that you will not upload to, distribute or otherwise publish through the Site any User Content that: (i) is libelous, defamatory, obscene, threatening, invasive of privacy or publicity rights, infringing on intellectual property rights, abusive, illegal, deceptive, or otherwise objectionable; (ii) may constitute or encourage a criminal offense, violate the rights of any party or otherwise give rise to liability or violate any law; (iii) gives the impression that it emanates from or is endorsed by us or any other person or entity, if that is not the case; or (iv) may contain software viruses, political campaigning, chain letters, mass mailings, or any form of "spam." If you submit any video content through the Site, you further represent, warrant and agree that you have the written consent or permission of each identifiable individual in such content to use their name and likeness and grant the rights you grant in these Terms. You may not use a false email address, impersonate any person or entity, or otherwise mislead as to the origin of any User Content. You may not upload commercial content onto the Site.
    4. You grant to us a nonexclusive, royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, transferable and fully sub-licensable right to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative works from, distribute, display and perform your User Content (including any name, voice, and likeness contained in User Content) throughout the world in any media now known or hereafter invented, including all promotion, advertising, marketing, merchandising, publicity and any other ancillary uses thereof. You will retain any ownership rights you may have in the materials you submit, subject to the licenses granted to us in these Terms. You also understand and agree that users of the Site who may access the User Content you submit are granted a non-exclusive license to access, use, reproduce, distribute, display and perform your User Content. By submitting your User Content, you warrant that you have the right to grant this license. Any such User Content is deemed non-confidential and we shall be under no obligation to maintain the confidentiality of any information, in whatever form, contained in any User Content.
    5. We have the right but not the obligation to review User Content before or after it is posted on the Site, and cannot ensure prompt removal of objectionable material after it has been posted. Accordingly, we assume no liability for any action or inaction regarding transmissions, communications, or content provided by any user or third party. We have no liability or responsibility to anyone for performance or non-performance of the activities described in this section. We may edit, refuse to post, or remove any User Content at our discretion.
       We have the right to: (i) take any action with respect to any User Content that we deem necessary or appropriate in our sole discretion, including if we believe that such User Content violates the Terms, any intellectual property right or other right of any person or entity, threatens the personal safety of users of the Site or the public, could create liability for us, might adversely affect our reputation or goodwill, or should be taken down for any other reason determined at our discretion; (ii) disclose your identity or other information about you to any third party who claims that material posted by you violates their rights, including their intellectual property rights or their right to privacy; (iii) take appropriate legal action, including without limitation, referral to law enforcement, for any illegal or unauthorized use of the Site; (iv) terminate or suspend your account or your access to all or part of the Site for any or no reason; and (v) cooperate fully with any law enforcement authorities or court order requesting or directing us to disclose the identity or other information of anyone posting any materials on or through the Site. Any User Content which is deleted by us will no longer be available to you. Deleted User Content may be stored by us in order to comply with certain legal obligations and in such circumstances may not be retrievable without a valid court order. We exclude liability for actions taken under this clause. The responses described in this section are not limited, and we may take any other action we reasonably deem appropriate in respect of any content which we determine is in breach of these Terms.
    6. For the avoidance of doubt, where we suspend or terminate your account or otherwise prevent your access to the Site, if you have contributed User Content, we may continue to publish or use any User Content provided by you in accordance with the Terms and any other Additional Terms applicable to the Site.
    7. By submitting User Content to the Site, you waive, and agree not to bring at any time, any claims of any type whatsoever against Springer Nature B.V. or its affiliates, or their officers, directors, employees, contractors, agents, licensors or suppliers in any way arising from or relating to the submitted User Content, including without limitation any claims asserting: (i) infringement of rights of publicity or misappropriation of likeness or image; (ii) invasion of privacy; (iii) false light (such as any allegedly false or misleading portrayal of you); (iv) infliction of emotional distress (whether intentional or negligent); (v) breach of contract; (vi) copyright or trademark infringement; (vii) defamation; (viii) fraud; or (ix) false designation of origin.

12. Representations and Warranties; Disclaimer.

    1. You represent that you: (i) have the right and authority to enter into these Terms, and if you do so on behalf of an entity, to bind that entity, (ii) are fully able and competent to satisfy the terms, conditions, and obligations herein, (iii) your use of the Site is and will be in compliance with all applicable laws, and (iv) you have read, understood, agree with, and will abide by these Terms.
    2. WE DO NOT GUARANTEE CONTINUOUS, UNINTERRUPTED OR SECURE ACCESS TO OUR SITE, AND OPERATION OF THE SITE MAY BE INTERFERED WITH BY NUMEROUS FACTORS OUTSIDE OF OUR CONTROL. YOUR USE OF THE SITE, ITS CONTENT, AND ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITE IS AT YOUR OWN RISK. THE INFORMATION, MATERIALS AND SERVICES PROVIDED ON OR THROUGH THE SITE ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND ANY WARRANTIES THAT MATERIALS ON THE SITE ARE NONINFRINGING; THAT ACCESS TO THE SITE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR-FREE; THAT THE SITE WILL BE SECURE; THAT THE SITE OR THE SERVER THAT MAKES THE SITE AVAILABLE WILL BE VIRUS-FREE; OR THAT INFORMATION ON THE SITE WILL BE COMPLETE, ACCURATE OR TIMELY. NO ADVICE OR INFORMATION, WHETHER ORAL OR WRITTEN, OBTAINED BY YOU FROM US OR THROUGH OR FROM THE SITE SHALL CREATE ANY WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. WE MAKE NO WARRANTIES OR REPRESENTATIONS REGARDING THE USE OF THE MATERIALS ON THIS SITE IN TERMS OF THEIR COMPLETENESS, CORRECTNESS, ACCURACY, ADEQUACY, USEFULNESS, TIMELINESS, RELIABILITY OR OTHERWISE. THE FOREGOING EXCLUSIONS OF WARRANTIES DO NOT APPLY TO THE EXTENT PROHIBITED BY LAW. PLEASE REFER TO YOUR LOCAL LAWS FOR ANY SUCH PROHIBITIONS. IF YOU ARE A CONSUMER RESIDENT IN THE UK, PLEASE NOTE THAT UK LAW PROVIDES THAT IF YOU CAN SHOW THAT A FAULT WITH OUR DIGITAL CONTENT HAS DAMAGED YOUR DEVICE, AND WE HAVE NOT USED REASONABLE CARE, AND SKILL, YOU MAY BE ENTITLED TO A REPAIR OR COMPENSATION. NO ADVICE OR INFORMATION, WHETHER ORAL OR WRITTEN, OBTAINED FROM US OR THROUGH THE SITE WILL CREATE ANY WARRANTY NOT EXPRESSLY MADE HEREIN.

13. Limitation of Liability.

    1. IF YOU ARE A CONSUMER RESIDENT IN THE NETHERLANDS WE SHALL USE REASONABLE SKILL AND CARE IN PROVIDING THE WEBSITE SUBJECT TO AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH THESE TERMS, BUT WE SHALL HAVE NO LIABILITY FOR ANY LOSS, DAMAGE OR COSTS IN RELATION TO THE WEBSITE: (A) DUE TO YOUR OWN FAULT; (B) DUE TO A THIRD PARTY UNCONNECTED WITH OUR OWN PERFORMANCE; (C) DUE TO ANY OTHER EVENTS WHICH ARE OUTSIDE OUR OR OUR SUPPLIERS' CONTROL EVEN IF WE OR THEY HAVE TAKEN REASONABLE CARE; OR (D) THAT ARE NOT REASONABLY FORESEEABLE BY YOU AND US AT THE TIME OF ENTERING INTO THESE TERMS. AS YOU ARE USING THE WEBSITE IN A PRIVATE CAPACITY WE SHALL NOT IN ANY EVENT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR BUSINESS-RELATED LOSS, DAMAGE OR COSTS SUCH AS LOST DATA, LOST PROFITS OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION.WE DO NOT LIMIT OR EXCLUDE OUR LIABILITY TO YOU OR ANYONE ELSE IN RELATION TO THE WEBSITE FOR DEALTH OR PERSONAL INJURY CAUSED BY OUR NEGLIGENCE OR FOR OUR FRAUD OR FRAUDULENT MISREPRESENTATION.
    2. THE FOREGOING LIMITATIONS OF LIABILITY DO NOT APPLY TO THE EXTENT PROHIBITED BY LAW. PLEASE REFER TO YOUR LOCAL LAWS FOR ANY SUCH PROHIBITIONS. HOWEVER, IN NO EVENT SHALL OUR TOTAL LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ALL DAMAGES, LOSSES, AND CAUSES OF ACTION WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, NEGLIGENCE), OR OTHERWISE EXCEED THE GREATER OF (i) TWENTY FIVE EUROS OR (ii) THE VALUE OF THE SERVICES PURCHASED OR SUBSCRIBED BY YOU ON THE SITE.

14. Indemnification.

    You agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless us and our affiliates, and our officers, directors, members, employees, contractors, agents, licensors, suppliers, and assigns from and against any and all losses, liabilities, expenses, damages and costs, including reasonable attorneys' fees and court costs, arising or resulting from any violation of these Terms or your use of the Site. If you cause a technical disruption of the Site or the systems transmitting the Site to you or others, you agree to be responsible for any and all losses, liabilities, expenses, damages and costs, including reasonable attorneys' fees and court costs, arising or resulting from that disruption.

15. Waiver and Severability.

    No waiver by us of any term or condition set out in these Terms shall be deemed a further or continuing waiver of such term or condition or a waiver of any other term or condition, and any failure by us to assert a right or provision under these Terms shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. If any provision of these Terms is held by a court or other tribunal of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable for any reason, such provision shall be eliminated or limited to the minimum extent legally required, such that the remaining provisions of the Terms will continue in full force and effect.

16. Entire Agreement.

    The Terms, our Privacy Policy, and any Additional Terms constitute the sole and entire agreement between you and us regarding the Site and supersede all prior and contemporaneous understandings, agreements, representations, and warranties, whether written or oral, regarding the Site.

17. Jurisdiction and Applicable Law.

    These terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Netherlands. Any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with these terms shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the Netherlands and the exclusive forum will be Amsterdam.

    If you are not happy with the way we deal with any disagreement then you and we may agree to refer the matter to mediation but you and we are not restricted from bringing court proceedings.

    We do not engage in out-of-court settlements before consumer arbitration bodies. However, under the regulation (EU) 524/2013 we are obliged to inform you that the European Commission provides a platform for online dispute resolution, which is available at https://ec.europa.eu/consumers/odr/.

18. No Assignment

    You may not assign your rights or obligations under these Terms to anyone.