Terms & Rules

The rules and terms for using AVForums to foster a better community for everyone

Terms & Rules

The providers ("we", "us", "our") of the service provided by this web site ("Service") are not responsible for any user-generated content and accounts. Content submitted express the views of their author only.

This Service is only available to users who are at least 16 years old. If you are younger than this, please do not register for this Service. If you register for this Service, you represent that you are this age or older.

All content you submit, upload, or otherwise make available to the Service ("Content") may be reviewed by staff members. All Content you submit or upload may be sent to third-party verification services (including, but not limited to, spam prevention services). Do not submit any Content that you consider to be private or confidential.

You agree to not use the Service to submit or link to any Content which is defamatory, abusive, hateful, threatening, spam or spam-like, likely to offend, contains adult or objectionable content, contains personal information of others, risks copyright infringement, encourages unlawful activity, or otherwise violates any laws. You are entirely responsible for the content of, and any harm resulting from, that Content or your conduct.

We may remove or modify any Content submitted at any time, with or without cause, with or without notice. Requests for Content to be removed or modified will be undertaken only at our discretion. We may terminate your access to all or any part of the Service at any time, with or without cause, with or without notice.

You may not access the Service through automated or programmatic means (such as through a content scraper) without prior permission from us.

You are granting us with a non-exclusive, permanent, irrevocable, unlimited license to use, publish, or re-publish your Content in connection with the Service. You retain copyright over the Content.

These terms may be changed at any time without notice. This revision is effective from 30th July 2023 at 09:00. Altered text is highlighted in yellow.

The AVForums.com forum rules set out below are considered part of these terms.

If you do not agree with these terms, please do not register or use the Service. Use of the Service constitutes acceptance of these terms. If you wish to close your account, please contact us.

Primary forum rules

Users of AVForums

We find that the vast majority of forum members have no problem with the above rules. However, if any of them are broken, then moderators will take appropriate action to ensure the forums remain a pleasant place to visit.

Disputes with moderators

If any forum member feels they would like to dispute a moderator's decision, first contact the moderator who made the decision at issue, or another moderator within that forum if the original moderator is unavailable. Politely explain why you disagree and request that they review their decision. If after their review, you are still unhappy, and the issue is important, you may escalate the issue by starting a new thread in this forum.

Rules for trading

All classified adverts must be placed within the appropriate classifieds forums. Those of you who will be trading on AVForums must read and abide by the additional classified trading rules set out here.

Additional and more detailed rules and guidelines

New members may find the following guidelines useful. They are here to help you make the most of AVForums.

Your account

  1. Login names must not be offensive. Additionally if you use a login name which is considered to be too similar to an existing user's login name (to the extent that it would cause confusion) then we reserve the right to change your login name. Login names must not include include business names unless the member is an advertiser with AVForums.
  2. If there is a dispute over the use of avatars, the user who first used an avatar has the option of retaining it and the new user of the avatar will have to select an alternative. We reserve the right to remove people's avatars as we see fit.
  3. Please make sure your email address is kept up-to-date. If you change ISP or move jobs etc., please remember to update your profile with your new email address. In addition, if you install a spam filer, please specifically allow our emails through. We regularly send out messages to forum members and if an email sent to you bounces back for any reason we may well deactivate your registration.

When submitting Content

  1. Search for existing answers in the forums before posting a new question. You may find an answer much more quickly if you use the search facility.
  2. Post questions once only. Even if you think it is relevant in several forums, you should pick the most relevant and post it there. Your question will be seen by lots of people wherever you post it. Duplicate posts swamp the forums and will most likely get deleted.
  3. Please do not post text in ALL UPPER CASE. The internet community considers this to be SHOUTING and therefore discourteous.
  4. Please avoid using txt speak. There is plenty of capacity for creating eloquent, correctly punctuated posts. Txt speak will not get a good response from forum members.
  5. Threats of suicide. We believe that advice to people contemplating suicide should only be given by people suitably trained to do so. We suggest anyone feeling suicidal should contact an organisation in your country which can give appropriate advice. The Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123 (free call) in the UK or the Republic or Ireland. Threats of suicide either explicit or implicit made in the forums will likely result in the message being removed.

More about rule 7

Members who own, operate, represent or who are affiliated with a commercial enterprise or competing website may not submit messages which reference that organisation in any way, directly or indirectly unless they have sponsor accounts on AVForums. This includes promotion of and providing support for that organisation. Request advertising information here.

If we were to allow organisations to promote their businesses in the forums, we would have many posts from manufacturers advertising their products and retailers selling their wares. This would both annoy readers and undermine important advertising activities.

It may be tempting to some individuals representing companies to covertly invite business by pretending to be, for example, a 'satisfied customer'. This is very unwise, since if such dishonesty is discovered (either by members or moderators), and publicly exposed (as it often is), it could embarrass or even tarnish the reputation of the company in question.

Exceptions for advertisers
There is a situation when rule 7 can work against the ethos of the forums. Let's look at a reasonably common example. Someone asks for a retailer in their local area. One of our advertisers is not allowed to reply to their question yet another member is allowed to recommend a non-advertiser. That seems very unfair because advertisers with AVForums are putting in the effort to contribute to the forums, yet are gagged by our rules and are unable to help a poster.

To redress this unfairness, we allow advertisers to post in reasonably unrestricted way. Specific details are available upon request and to existing advertisers here.

More information about advertising here.

Exceptions for Content Partners
Content Partners are creators, usually experts in their field, who are allowed to promote their content in exchange for sharing their expertise on AVForums. Their content will be YouTube videos in the main, but could be media from other platforms.
They are not representatives of commercial organisations such as retailers, distributors or manufacturers.
Content Partners are identified by the Content Partner badge on their profile and have limited exemption from rule 7.

Right of Reply
Organisations have a right to reply to criticism on AVForums, but they must do this without making any self promotion.

  • Published
    Sep 13, 2013
  • Page views
    150,731
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