Terms of Service

1. Service Definition

Vibesmithing is a software ecosystem for music discovery, engagement, and collection. The ecosystem includes:

• Listening Rooms: High-fidelity music playback with engagement-driven art collection.
• Radio 2.0: Curated continuous playback across the platform catalog.
• The Shop: Physical merchandise (prints, apparel, phone cases, canvas, greeting cards) fulfilled by third-party print partners.
• AI Art Tools: Artist-facing tools for generating and preparing visual art variants.
• ArtCannon: A desktop relay application for community-powered content delivery.
• Community Ownership: A planned model for transferring platform governance to users.

By using any part of the Vibesmithing ecosystem, you agree to these terms.

2. Content Ownership & Licenses

Artists: You retain 100% ownership of your Intellectual Property (IP) — your music, your artwork, always. By uploading music or artwork, you grant Vibesmithing a non-exclusive, worldwide license to host, stream, distribute via the relay network, and facilitate the sale of physical reproductions through our partner vendors.

AI-Generated Art: When artists use our AI art tools (image generation, upscaling, style analysis, background removal), the artist retains ownership of the generated output. Vibesmithing retains a non-exclusive license to display and distribute the generated art within the platform ecosystem — including in the shop, collection views, and relay network. AI-generated content may be subject to the terms of underlying AI model providers; Vibesmithing does not guarantee that AI-generated outputs are protectable under copyright law in all jurisdictions.

Listeners: Unlocking a digital art variant or purchasing a physical product grants you a personal, non-exclusive license to enjoy that content. It does not grant you commercial rights, redistribution rights, or the right to create derivative works.

3. Engagement & Art Drip System

Vibesmithing uses an engagement-driven system called the Vibe Reactor to reward active listening with digital art. Here's how it works:

• Resonance Coverage: Listeners build “resonance coverage” by expressing engagement via the Vibe Reactor while listening to a track. At approximately 80% coverage, the track is considered “completed.”
• Art Unlocks: Completing a track triggers an initial art unlock (variant + sticker). Additional art variants “drip” into your Gift Inbox over time.
• Drip Pacing: The rate and selection of art drips is controlled by proprietary algorithms at the platform's sole discretion, factoring in engagement frequency, patronage level, and purchase history.
• The 50% Rule: Free engagement earns approximately 50% of available art variants. Purchasing and patronage accelerate access to additional variants.
• Monthly Ceiling: A per-user engagement cap prevents burnout and exploitation.
• Gift Inbox: Dripped art arrives as “gifts from [artist]” that can be accepted or declined. Unclaimed offers persist indefinitely.

No Guarantees: Vibesmithing does not guarantee any specific art variant, drip rate, or collection outcome. All art selection includes randomized elements. The platform reserves the right to adjust drip pacing, pool sizes, and engagement mechanics at any time.

4. Pricing & The Owner Model

Vibesmithing operates a two-tier pricing model based on art ownership:

• Owner Price: Listeners who have earned art through engagement (80%+ resonance coverage) receive a “fair deal” price — approximately cost plus a small margin. This is not a “discount”; it is the fair price for someone who has invested attention in the artist's work.
• Non-Owner Price: Listeners who have not completed the engagement threshold pay a standard retail price, still below typical retail (~15% below). Revenue split: 75% to the artist, 25% to the platform.
• Transparency: All pricing shows a clear breakdown of manufacturing cost, artist share, and platform share.

5. Tips & Patronage

Tips are sacred. The platform takes 0% of tips — ever. 100% of every tip goes directly to the artist. This is an inviolable principle.

Patronage: Listeners may support the ecosystem through a continuous patronage contribution (no fixed tiers). Higher contributions result in faster art drip rates and expanded variant pool access. Patronage revenue is split 75% to artists (proportional to listener engagement) and 25% to the platform.

Tips of $15 or more may trigger bonus art variant unlocks as a reciprocal gift from the artist. This is not a purchase — it is a gift exchange.

6. AI Art Generation & Credits

Vibesmithing provides AI-powered art tools for artists to generate and prepare visual art variants for their music. These tools include image generation, upscaling, style analysis, and background removal.

• Credits System: AI tool usage is billed through platform credits purchased via Stripe. Credits are charged at cost-plus pass-through pricing (actual API cost × 1.20, representing a 20% operational margin). Minimum purchase: $5.
• Non-Refundable: Credits are non-refundable once purchased. Unused credits do not expire.
• AI Providers: Generation requests are routed through third-party AI providers (see Privacy Policy for details). Vibesmithing does not guarantee the availability, quality, or consistency of AI-generated outputs.
• Content Responsibility: Artists are responsible for reviewing AI-generated outputs before publishing. Do not use AI tools to generate content that infringes on third-party IP, is illegal, or violates our Prohibited Conduct policy.
• AI Disclosure: Art created with AI assistance may be labeled as such within the platform.

7. Radio 2.0

Radio 2.0 provides continuous, curated multi-track playback across the Vibesmithing catalog. Content is sourced exclusively from approved, curated artist tracks. Radio may include callouts (artist messages between songs) and engagement rewards.

Radio listening contributes to your engagement history and may influence art drip selection. See our Privacy Policy for details on radio listening data collection.

8. Physical Artifacts (Print-on-Demand)

You can “manifest” your collection into the physical world via our print partner Gelato. Available products include posters, apparel (t-shirts, crewnecks), phone cases, canvas prints, and greeting cards.

• Revenue Split: For all physical products, the artist receives 75% of the margin above manufacturing cost, and the platform retains 25%.
• Fulfillment: Orders are manufactured and shipped by Gelato. Vibesmithing is not liable for shipping delays, manufacturing defects, or fulfillment issues caused by third-party vendors. We will facilitate support requests with Gelato on your behalf.
• Data Sharing: To fulfill orders, we share your name, shipping address, and order details with Gelato. See our Privacy Policy for full details.

9. ArtCannon Relay Network

ArtCannon is a desktop application that allows platform users (“Relay Operators”) to donate bandwidth and storage by caching and serving platform content to other listeners. By operating an ArtCannon relay node, you agree to the following additional terms:

9.1 Authorized Cache Only

Relay Operators serve as transparent caches for content that Vibesmithing has explicit authorization to distribute. You may not extract, redistribute, modify, or use cached content for any purpose outside the relay network. Content cached on your device remains the intellectual property of the respective artists and the platform.

9.2 IP Address Disclosure

Your IP address will be visible to peers you serve content to. This is inherent to the peer-to-peer delivery model. The use of Cloudflare Tunnel (built into ArtCannon) is recommended but not required to mask your IP. By operating a relay, you acknowledge and accept this exposure.

9.3 Content Integrity

All cached files are verified via SHA-256 hash comparison against the canonical source. Serving modified, corrupted, or unauthorized content will result in automatic trust score reduction and potential termination of your relay privileges.

9.4 Content Revocation

The platform may remotely revoke cached content at any time (e.g., when an artist removes a track or rights change). Relay Operators agree to honor content revocation signals promptly. The ArtCannon application handles this automatically.

9.5 Reward & Credit Farming Prohibition

Relay Operators earn virtual patronage equivalent based on bandwidth served (not monetary payout). The following are prohibited and will result in suspension: self-serving (relay and listener are the same account), coordinated serving between a small group to inflate credits, artificial traffic generation, or any attempt to game the bandwidth credit system. Anti-collusion safeguards (per-pair daily caps, minimum playback thresholds, anomaly detection) are enforced automatically.

9.6 Artist Consent

Artists who upload content to Vibesmithing consent to relay distribution as part of the platform's content delivery infrastructure. Relay distribution is functionally equivalent to CDN delivery — the listener experience is identical. Artists may not selectively opt out of relay distribution while remaining on the platform.

9.7 Platform Control

The platform determines what content each relay caches. Operators do not choose or control which tracks are assigned to their node. Vibesmithing may terminate relay privileges or deactivate any relay node at its sole discretion.

10. Community Ownership

Vibesmithing is designed to be owned by its users. The platform tracks value-creating actions (purchases, tips, patronage, referrals) toward eventual community governance, with a fixed buyout cap of $30M (January 2026 USD, CPI-adjusted).

• Provisional Tracking: Share capacity and engagement scoring are currently tracked internally in a mock/pre-legal phase. No shares have been formally issued. Your tracked engagement will convert to actual ownership rights when the legal structure is finalized.
• Not a Security: Tracked share capacity is not a financial instrument, security, or investment product. It does not entitle you to dividends, returns, or financial payouts until a formal legal structure is established.
• No Financial Promises: Vibesmithing makes no guarantees regarding the timeline of community ownership transition, the value of any future shares, or the structure of post-buyout governance.
• Non-Transferable: When shares are formally issued, they will be non-transferable. They cannot be sold, gifted, or used as collateral. Redemption will be available only through the platform.

11. Prohibited Conduct

Do not:

• Upload content you do not own or have rights to distribute.
• Scrape, download, or extract assets (audio, images, art variants) from the platform.
• Manipulate engagement metrics, automate listening, or use bots to inflate resonance coverage.
• Operate ArtCannon relays in violation of the Operator Agreement (Section 9).
• Use AI art tools to generate content that infringes third-party IP, depicts illegal content, or is intentionally misleading.
• Create multiple accounts to game engagement, drip, or ownership tracking systems.
• Interfere with the platform's infrastructure, security, or other users' experience.

We reserve the right to terminate accounts that violate these principles, with or without notice.

12. Limitation of Liability

Vibesmithing is provided “as-is.” We are a platform for creative expression and community. We are not liable for: the content of individual Listening Rooms; loss of digital artifacts due to service interruptions; AI-generated art quality, availability, or legal status; third-party print fulfillment issues; relay network performance; or any consequential damages arising from use of the platform.

13. Account Deletion & Recovery

You may delete your account at any time via your account settings. Upon deletion:

• 14-Day Recovery Window: Your account will be marked for deletion but can be recovered within 14 days by contacting support.
• Data Removal: After the recovery period, your personal data (profile, listening history, interactions) will be permanently removed.
• Credits: Unused AI art credits are forfeited upon account deletion and are non-refundable.
• Relay Nodes: Any active ArtCannon relay nodes will be deactivated and cached content should be deleted from local storage.

14. Artist Departure & Content Preservation

If an artist deletes their account:

• Audio Removal: Music content (audio files, rooms) associated with the departing artist will be removed from the platform and revoked from the relay network.
• Listener Collections Preserved: Artwork, stickers, and other visual assets that listeners have earned through the platform will remain in their collections. What you've earned stays with you.
• Orphaned Art Pricing: When the original artist has departed, physical goods featuring their art can still be printed at a reduced price (no artist share applies).

15. Listening Data & Artist Analytics

Your listening activity — what you played, how long, and your reactions — provides valuable feedback to artists.

• Artist Property: Aggregated and anonymized listening data belongs to the artist and the platform. This data helps artists understand what's working.
• Data Sovereignty: Artists own their audience data. If an artist leaves, they take their data.
• Retained After Deletion: If you delete your account, your anonymized listening patterns remain as part of the artist's analytics. We do not delete this data, as it represents the artist's creative impact.

16. Platform Principles

The following principles are embedded in our platform constitution and cannot be amended by any steward, successor, or vote:

• The platform will not be sold — not to a corporation, not to investors. Only to the community.
• Tips will never be extracted — the platform takes 0% of tips. Ever.
• Artists own their IP — 100% of their music, always.
• Listening is free — no paywalls on music.
• No dark patterns — no manipulation, no selling listening habits to advertisers.

See our full Platform Constitution for details.

17. Governing Law & Disputes

These terms are governed by the laws of the State of Texas, United States, without regard to conflict of law principles. Any disputes arising from these terms or your use of the platform shall be resolved through good-faith negotiation, followed by binding arbitration if necessary.

18. Changes to These Terms

We may update these terms as the platform evolves. Material changes will be communicated via email or in-platform notification. Continued use of the platform after changes constitutes acceptance. The “Last Updated” date at the top of this page indicates when these terms were most recently revised.