Mix Studios.com Terms & Agreements / Privacy Policy

Section 1 – Introduction

Section 2 – Agreement Language

Section 3 – User Content Agreement

Section 4 – Terms For Record Labels

Section 5 – Featured Content Clause

Section 6 – Copyright infringement & The DMCA (DMCA is for US only)

Section 7 – Warranty & Money-Back Guarantee Information

Section 8 – Limitation Of Liability

Section 9 – Choice of Governing Law

Section 1 – Introduction

1. Mixstudios.com (THE ENGINEARS, INC) is a web based business offering affordable online audio editing, mixing, and mastering services to artists in music, film, and other forms of digital media. Our goal is to make sure every artist with a vision can play on the field of all productions to their true potential. While our services are part of a shared dream with our clients, our clients fully understand and agree to all the terms outlined in this agreement when purchasing services on www.mixstudios.com. In the unfortunate event that any client feels the need to take legal action over a matter that both parties cannot agree on, the client (customer, artist, business, etc.) is advised to show this agreement to their legal counsel prior to taking any legal action. Mixstudios.com and its affiliates believe issues of concern can be handled without legal intervention. Mixstudios.com reserves the right to make updates or changes to this agreement.

Section 2 – Agreement Language

1. In this agreement, certain language or terms maybe be used in which their definitions should be considered by the definitions outlined in this section of the agreement. All terms not elaborated upon here are to be read at face value.
   1. Client(s); refers to any artist, musician, film-maker, engineer, producer, director, business or corporate entity, customer, or potential customer in communications with a representative of mixstudios.com for servies or products.
   2. Mixstudios.com; refers to THE ENGINEARS, INC and any representative of the company operating on www.mixstudios.com.
   3. Session(s); refers to any file or document with an extension used with DAWs (Digital Audio Workstations) such as Pro Tools, Logic, Ableton, Cubase, or any other DAW or software used to provide services by THE ENGINEARS, INC.
   4. Raw Audio; refers to the audio sent to Mixstudios.com before anything has been done to alter it in any way.
   5. Project Audio; refers to the audio used in DAW sessions for a project purchased by a client. This audio may be processed or raw.
   6. Guarantee; refers to the Money-Back Guarantee advertised as offered with services provided by www.mixstudios.com.
   7. A&R(s); refers to the division of a record label or music publishing company that is responsible for talent scouting and overseeing the artistic development of recording artists and songwriters.
   8. Collaborated Content; refers to any media sent to Mixstudios.com to be edited, mixed, mastered, have instruments played on, or have production input supplied for.
   9. FCA – Featured Content Agreement. Details outlined in section 5 of this agreement.
2. Words appearing in this section may appear italicized throughout the agreement to remind the reader they may find a definition in this section.  
3. Words appearing in this section may also appear with a reference to their definition in parenthesis. This does not limit the definition of the word to the portion shown in parenthesis. All words appearing in this section should be held to the full definitions provided in Section 2 (This section) of this agreement. No parenthesis will contradict any definition in this section.

Section 3 – User Content Agreement

1. Mixstudios.com (THE ENGINEARS, INC) does not own any portion or rights of products produced for unsigned artists by our services unless otherwise agreed to in written form, i.e. email or contract, outside of this agreement. Record Labels, A&Rs, Signed artists, and corporate funded projects must follow the rules outlined in “Section 4 – Terms For Record Labels.” Otherwise the creator of the audio uploaded remains in full control and ownership of produced media including the following:
   1. Final Mixes bounced to Mp3 or Wav format
   2. Instrumental Versions
   3. Audio Stems of separate musical or audio elements
   4. Vocal Tracks
   5. Edited vocals
   6. Replaced drum sounds and/or sound fx
   7. Mastered and Unmastered Mixes
   8. Final audio for film
   9. Instrumental performances
2. Mixstudios.com does not turn over sessions to any client unless otherwise clearly agreed upon through email or contract. These sessions contain techniques and strategies for mixing, editing, and mastering that are not available to be shared with the general public or clients by Mixstudios.com. These are considered trade secrets and the client is agreeing they will not demand the session and trade secrets during any point leading up to and including completion of the project.
3. Mixstudios.com reserves the right to store and keep files affiliated with projects purchased, audio uploaded, and audio reveiwed with Mixstudios.com. The content will remain in compliance with the company’s privacy policy and this agreement.
4. Mixstudios.com (THE ENGINEARS, INC) reserves the right to use final mixes in the audio gallery/portfolio of the website www.mixstudios.com with written permission (i.e. product checkbox, contract, or e-mail.) This will be allowed under the terms of the “Featured Content Agreement.” Employees/affiliates for Mixstudios.com may also use final mixes or refer to them in their own business prospects, portfolios, or resumes distributed to potential employers or collaborators. Upon request the client may have the product removed from www.mixstudios.com if they feel necessary for privacy or copyright purposes.
5. Mixstudios.com (THE ENGINEARS, INC) may also use project audio for ‘before and after’ samples on the web site for potential clients to hear the quiality of work provided. Unsigned artists agree to this by purchasing services. If the client is a signed artist, they must read and agree to the terms outlined in Section 4 of this agreement. The artist or client may request, by e-mail, that either;
   1. The vocals used in the ‘before’ option are tuned to preserve a certain image of the singer
   2. The before clip be removed entirely to preserve the image of the project
6. It is the responsibility of the artist to write Mixstudios.com by email and request one of these options to relinquish Mixstudios.com of the right to use them in this fashion without notice. Once the email request for change or removal is sent, Mixstudios.com will then have fifteen (15) calander days to adhere to the request. This request does not take away the gallery and portfolio rights outlined in Section 3.4 of this agreement. In order for the request to be valid, the email must come from the e-mail address used during the purchase of the project the request is for.
7. Raw files stored may be shown in private for training of new staff or review by potential business collaborators. Mixstudios.com reserves the right to show raw audio and finished audio under these circumstances without permission beyond this agreement.

Section 4 – Terms For Record Labels

1. The prices posted by Mixstudios.com (THE ENGINEARS, INC) on www.mixstudios.com offer affordable access to proffessional services for projects by unsigned artists and clients that don’t have large budgets. Well funded projects may also access prices posted on www.mixstudios.com; however Record Labels, A&Rs, Signed Artists, and Corporate funded projects must agree and accept the terms outlined in this agreement. Record Labels, A&Rs for Labels, Signed Artists, and Corporate-funded projects for television and radio are not considered as the demographic Section 3 of this agreement stands behind. Section 4 of this agreement outlines the ‘User Content’ agreement for Record Labels, A&Rs, Signed Artists, and Corporate funded projects.
2. Mixstudios.com does not own any portion of products produced by our editing, mixing, and mastering services unless otherwise agreed to in written form, i.e. email or contract, outside of this agreement. The creator of the audio uploaded remains in full control and ownership of produced media including the following:
   1. Final Mixes bounced to Mp3 or Wav format
   2. Instrumental Versions
   3. Audio Stems of separate musical or audio elements
   4. Vocal Tracks
   5. Edited vocals
   6. Replaced drum sounds and/or sound fx
   7. Mastered and Unmastered Mixes
   8. Final audio for film
   9. Custom mix passes
3. Mixstudios.com has right to negotiable ownershp of a song for a Record Lable or signed artist that contains production or performances provided by Mixstudios.com. While Mixstudios.com may negotiate more under circumstances of more work, this will be no less than 25% ownership over the rights of the song version, and no less than 12% royalties on all revnue generated by the version of the song containing the provided content. Services/performances that fall under this agreement are:
   1. Performance of any instrument
   2. Replaying of any musical part
   3. Reproduction and remixes
   4. Writing of musical elements
4. Mixstudios.com does not turn over sessions to any clients unless otherwise clearly agreed upon through email or contract. These sessions contain techniques and strategies for mixing, editing, and mastering that is not available to be shared with the general public or clients by mix studios. These are considered trade secrets and the client is agreeing they will not demand the session and trade secrets at any point leading up to and including the completion of the project.
5. Mixstudios.com is entitled to a minimum of 2.5% royalties on all songs mastered by the company or any of its affiliates. Mixstudios.com is entitled to minimum of 4% royalties for any songs both mixed and mastered by Mixstudios.com or any of the company’s affiliates.
6. Mixstudios.com (THE ENGINEARS, INC) reserves the right to use final mixes in the audio gallery/portfolio of the website www.mixstudios.com with written permission (i.e. product checkbox, contract, or e-mail.) This will be allowed under the terms of the “Featured Content Agreement.” Employees/affiliates for Mixstudios.com may also use final mixes or refer to them in their own business prospects, portfolios, or resumes distributed to potential employers or collaborators.
7. Mixstudios.com may only use project audio for ‘before and after’ samples on www.mixstudios.com if the client agrees to it through e-mail or contract. Without that permission, Mixstudios.com may only post audio under the FCA outlined in Section 5 of this agreement. ‘Before and after’ content is used for potential clients to hear the quality of work provided. Even after agreeing to being used for ‘before and after’ content, the client may at any time after request by e-mail that either;
   1. The vocals used in the before option are tuned to preserve image of the singer
   2. The before clip be removed entirely to preserve the image of the project
8. It is the responsibility of the client to write Mixstudios.com (THE ENGINEARS, INC) by email and request one of these options to relinquish Mixstudios.com of the right to use them in this fashion without notice. Once the email is sent, Mixstudios.com will then have fifteen (15) calander days to adhere to the request. This request does not take away the gallery and portfolio rights outlined in ‘section XII of the ‘Terms For Record Labels’ portion in this agreement. In order for the request to be valid, the email must come from the e-mail address used during the purchase of the project the request is for or provide proof of ownership over the digital media.
9. In the event that a Record Label, A&R, Signed Artist, or Corporate funded project strongly disputes Section 4.5 of this agreement PRIOR to purchase, Mixstudios.com may offer, but are not obligated, to relinquish Section 4.5 of this agreement for that individual purchase so long as the client pays four (4) times the amount posted on www.mixstudios.com.
10. Record Labels, A&Rs, Signed Artists, and Corporate funded projects are not entitled to Mixstudios.com’s guarantee for purchases over the amount of two hundred-fifty (250) U.S. Dollars.  

Section 5 – Featured Content Agreement

1. When purchasing services for a project, there will be a checkbox that leads containing the following text: “I’m okay with Mix Studios Online featuring this project in their gallery after I make it available to the public.”
2. If the client selects ‘yes,’ Mixstudios.com will confirm a release date of the material and will not post any content in galleries on www.mixstudios.com until after that date.
3. If the client selects ‘no,’ Mixstudios.com will not post the audio on the website’s gallery even after the date it is released. However, even if the audio will not be posted in the gallery, employees may reserve the rights for resumes and portfolios outlined in Section 3.4 and Section 4.6 of the Mix Studios Online Terms & Agreements.
4. Featured Content is all finished products. Being featured in the gallery will be the finished product displayed with the Artist name and image retrieved through the internet or provided by the client.
5. In the event that a client decides they don’t like their final product and ask for their money back, the FCA for that individual project will be dissolved and Mixstudios.com will no longer be able to post the finished product in the web site’s gallery.
6. Once the guarantee is committed, so is the FCA. If a client can’t get their money back anymore for any reason outlined in section 7 of this agreement, the client may no longer dissolve the FCA.

Section 6 – Copyright infringement & The DMCA (DMCA is for US only)

1. By purchasing with Mixstudios.com and accepting this agreement, the user understands that Mixstudios.com will not claim any responsibility for the creation of any copywritten material uploaded to Mixstudios.com unless legaly entitled to under the ‘Terms For Record Labels’ sestion of this agreement. Mixstudios.com respects copyright law and in any situation where a client feels the rights of their copywritten material are at risk or have been violated, the artist or cient will contact mix studios by e-mail and provide twenty-five (25) days for the situation to be rectified before any legal recourse is approached and agree not to pursue legal action so long as Mixstudios.com coopoerates within the said twenty-five (25) mentioned in this section.
2. By purchasing with Mixstudios.com (THE ENGINEARS, INC) the user agrees that all permission needed for Mixstudios.com to act accordingly with the ‘User Content’ and ‘Terms For Record Labels’ portions of this agreement are granted and Mixstudios.com is not in violation of the client’s rights under the DMCA (Digital Mellinium Copyright Act) or any other national orinternational copyright laws.

Section 7 – Warranty & Money-Back Guarantee

1. Mixstudios.com (THE ENGINEARS, INC) offers a money-back guarantee with the first song a client purchases. There are, however, limitations to the guarantee and situations where this guarantee may be relinquished without notice. By the terms of this agreement the client, artist, or record label accepts those limitations and situations outlined in this session of the agreement.
   1. On any purchase in which a representative of the company working on the project emails the client saying Mixstudios.com cannot guarantee the work, that will be the last opportunity for a refund. After that email is sent, the client has twenty-four (24) hours to respond with a request for refund otherwise work will move forward and rights to the guarantee are relinquished.
   2. Notification of a lack of guarantee may be stated to the client via the chat interface on mixstudios.com during discussion of a project with an artist. These scenarios will be non-refundable from the point of purchase. This is only if the company representative states “we can not guarantee this work” during chat. These conversations are stored for reference.
   3. If at any point Mixstudios.com notifies the client they can not guarantee the project, Mixstudios.com reserves the right to not begin the project unil the client responds. However, Mixstudios.com still reserves the right to complete the work after twenty-four (24) hours of notice and no response. At this point the client is committed to the purchase through terms outlined in ‘Section 7.1.1 ’ of this Warranty & Money-Back Guarantee section of this agreement.
   4. When sending initial mixes and samples, Mixstudios.com sends copies of the audio with mutes or sound manipulation and random points for sampling purposes. Once the client has been sent final mixes without sampling edits, they are committed to the purchase.
   5. Once a mix is sent, the client has seven (7) days to respond with either revision requests of a request for refund, if neither request has been received seven (7) days after the mix is sent, the purchaser relinquishes their money-back guarantee and is committed to the purchase. The client is still entitled to e-mail & live revisions included in their purchase to complete the project.
2. GUARANTEE LIMITATION: The guarantee is only available for the first song purchased by a client to sample the quality of the services provided on www.mixstudios.com. If a client returns to www.mixstudios.com for a second purchase or beyond, they no longer have the moneyback guarantee available to them as they have already sampled the quality of services provided.
3. PACKAGES AND THE GUARANTEE: When a first time buyer purchases a package of three or more songs at a discounted rate, one song will be done for a sample. Once approved, the client is committed for the rest of the package. If a client has a preference of which song they will get as a sample, they may request a particular song in the notes for the purchase.

Section 8 – Limitation of Liability

1. In the event that a client feels this agreement has been compromised or broken by Mixstudios.com and the issue can be settled simply, the client will notify Mixstudios.com by e-mail and provide twenty (20) days for the issue to be corrected. Acceptable corrections for possible issues may be:
   1. Client was denied purchased content: Content must be provided if purchase was legitimate and shown.
   2. Client claims material was used without permission: Material is removed from usage upon confirming the media content was used without proper permissions.
   3. Client claims to have been refunded the wrong amount: Proper difference of funds are refunded after confirming proper amount and error.
   4. Client wishes for removal of ‘Before’ audio in a sample: Before audio is removed. Mixstudios.com reserves right to use final product in gallery as stated in Sections 3.4 and 4.6 of this agreement.
   5. Client feels the work has taken too long to be done and has not agreed to new timeframes through email: Client may receive a full refund for the amount paid on the project in question. The client may not pursue more than the amount paid upon purchase.
2. In the event that Mixstudios.com is found to be in breach of this agreement, Mixstudios.com will:
   1. Relinquish rights to store raw audio and project audio for the project in which the violation occurred. Mixstudios.com may reserve rights over previous projects not tied to the breach of this agreement.
   2. Relinquish rights to show content for the purchase on www.mixstudios.com. Samples and gallery audio for the purchase in which the violation occurred must be taken down and deleted from any Mixstudios.com hard drive.  
   3. Provide a full refund for purchase during which the violation occurred.
3. The act of deleting stored files for a project in reference to Section 8.2.1 will be done in good faith. Mixstudios.com will not be obligated to release any evidence of the files being deleted as this would force Mixstudios.com to show hard drives/personal storage devices containing other sensitive or personal data for staff and other clients; showing this to any client or court may violate the privacy of staff  or other clients and by accepting this agreement the client is stating that this act being done in good faith is acceptable.
4. In the event that a client manages to prove Mixstudios.com did not delete files within fifteen (15) days of agreement breach, the client may legally pursue a maximum limit of five hundred (500) U.S. dollars to settle all disputes relating to the breach by Mixstudios.com.
5. In the event that Mixstudios.com fails to refund a client within thirty (30) days of refund request, the maximum amount a client may pursue through legal action as a result is twice the amount owed by Mixstudios.com. For Example, if the refund is $1,000, the max amount a client may pursue with legal action over the matter is $2,000.
6. The maximum amount a client may legally pursue Mixstudios.com for over a breach of this agreement or other matters regarding services provided over www.mixstudios.com, copyright disputes with collaborated content through www.mixstudios.com, breach of Mixstudios.com’s Terms & Agreements or Privacy Policy is one thousand (1,000) U.S. dollars unless the scenario is limited differently by another portion of Section 8 of this agreement. Pursuing more will be a breach of this section. The only exception to this limit is outlined in Section 8.5 of this agreement should twice the purchase amount be more than one thousand dollars.
7. Any legal dispute regarding this agreement carried out by a client in which more than one thousand (1,000) U.S. dollars is pursued will result in the client paying all and any court fees including, but not limited, to attorney’s/legal fees, travel expenses, loss of profits in absence of work, and possible punitive damages brought on by any lengthy legal process exceeding the accepted settlement maximum in Section 8 of this agreement.
8. In the event that the client pursues more than the agreed one thousand (1,000) U.S. dollars in any dispute regarding this agreement, they will also relinquish rights to the agreed one thousand (1,000) U.S. dollar max settlement fee on top of accepting all other fines and fees explained in Section 8.5 of this agreement.
9. Any dispute resulting in a client seeking monetary compensation of up to one thousand (1,000) U.S. dollars must provide Mixstudios.com the opportunity to settle the dispute without legal action prior to any action being taken. Disputes seeking more than one thousand (1,000) U.S. dollars are subject to the same expectations outlined here, but must also consider Section 8.7 of this agreement.
10. In the event that a client demands an amount over a dispute involving this agreement or services and Mixstudios.com refuses to pay after being approached as outlined in Section 8.9, the client may then take Mixstudios.com to small claims court for the amount of up to one thousand (1,000) U.S. dollars. Whichever side the court rules against must cover court costs and legal fees for both parties involved. This is only if Mixstudios.com has been given the opportunity to settle outside of court and the amount is equal to or less than one thousand (1,000) U.S. dollars.
11. It is the sole responsibility of both the client and Mixstudios.com respectively to be aware of their liabilities outlined in Section 8 of this agreement.

Section 9- Choice of law or Governing law

1. This agreement is governed by and shall be construed in accordance with laws of Washington State in the United States Of America