What is the worst that can happen to you if you simply ignore those terms of use on websites you use every day? I know, you have been lectured often enough about the significance of terms of use (just as often as you have been told to back up your hard drive, which I am sure you do diligently once a week) and you have heard enough horror stories. But there have been at least 7500 people in the UK who did not read the terms of use and gave their souls away.

Yes, you have read right. There is a British company called Gamestation that claimed the soul of their customers. Here is the excerpt from the terms of use in its entire glory:
“By placing an order via this web site on the first day of the fourth month of the year 2010 Anno Domini, you agree to grant Us a non transferable option to claim, for now and for ever more, your immortal soul. Should We wish to exercise this option, you agree to surrender your immortal soul, and any claim you may have on it, within 5 (five) working days of receiving written notification from gamesation.co.uk or one of its duly authorised minions. We reserve the right to serve such notice in 6 (six) foot high letters of fire, however we can accept no liability for any loss or damage caused by such an act. If you a) do not believe you have an immortal soul, b) have already given it to another party, or c) do not wish to grant Us such a license, please click the link below to nullify this sub-clause and proceed with your transaction.”

I know, you already caught the fact that this paragraph was only in effect on April 1 and it was a rather unusual April Fool’s joke. But there were apparently 7500 customers who, in fact, legally gave away their souls without reading the terms of use, even if such a claim may easily be challenged in court as being unreasonable.

However, there is a serious message. We just don’t read the terms of use anymore as often and as diligently as we should and if you have never spent time on some of those terms of use agreements, you would be surprised to know what you agree to. A few examples:

Google: We can change your content it in any way we want.

“By submitting, posting or displaying the content you give Google a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, and non-exclusive licence to reproduce, adapt, modify, translate, publish, publicly perform, publicly display and distribute any Content which you submit, post or display on or through, the Services. This licence is for the sole purpose of enabling Google to display, distribute and promote the Services and may be revoked for certain Services as defined in the Additional Terms of those Services. [...] You understand that Google, in performing the required technical steps to provide the Services to our users, may (a) transmit or distribute your Content over various public networks and in various media; and (b) make such changes to your Content as are necessary to conform and adapt that Content to the technical requirements of connecting networks, devices, services or media. You agree that this licence shall permit Google to take these actions.”

Twitter: You own your content, but we can treat it like it’s ours and you are responsible for what we do with it (note: this is fairly common practice around the web.)

“You retain your rights to any Content you submit, post or display on or through the Services. By submitting, posting or displaying Content on or through the Services, you grant us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license (with the right to sublicense) to use, copy, reproduce, process, adapt, modify, publish, transmit, display and distribute such Content in any and all media or distribution methods (now known or later developed). […] We may modify or adapt your Content in order to transmit, display or distribute it over computer networks and in various media and/or make changes to your Content as are necessary to conform and adapt that Content to any requirements or limitations of any networks, devices, services or media. You are responsible for your use of the Services, for any Content you provide, and for any consequences thereof, including the use of your Content by other users and our third party partners. You understand that your Content may be rebroadcasted by our partners and if you do not have the right to submit Content for such use, it may subject you to liability. Twitter will not be responsible or liable for any use of your Content by Twitter in accordance with these Terms. You represent and warrant that you have all the rights, power and authority necessary to grant the rights granted herein to any Content that you submit.”

LinkedIn: Your stuff belongs to us and we can do with it what we want.

“You do not have to submit anything to us, but if you choose to submit something (including any User generated content, ideas, concepts, techniques and data), you must grant, and you actually grant by concluding this Agreement, a nonexclusive, irrevocable, worldwide, perpetual, unlimited, assignable, sublicenseable, fully paid up and royalty free right to us to copy, prepare derivative works of, improve, distribute, publish, remove, retain, add, and use and commercialize, in any way now known or in the future discovered, anything that you submit to us, without any further consent, notice and/or compensation to you or to any third parties.”

Snapshish: We don’t have to delete your data.

“If you request cancellation of your account, Snapfish may (but is not required to) remove any and all content (photos) or other personal information from the Snapfish site, and your photos may not be accessible to you even if you choose to rejoin or reactivate your account at a later date. Information necessary for the purposes of maintaining business records regarding a cancelled account, including records of credit transactions and account ownership, will be retained in accordance with applicable law.”

Monster: Deleted resumes may not be deleted.

“You understand and acknowledge that you have no ownership rights in your MyMonster Account, and that if you cancel your MyMonster Account, all your account information from Monster, including resumes, Profiles, cover letters, network contacts, saved jobs, questionnaires and email mailing lists, will be marked as deleted in Monster’s databases and will be removed from any public area of the Monster Sites. Information may continue to be available for some period of time because of delays in propagating such deletion through Monster’s web servers. In addition, third parties may retain cached copies of your Information.”

Foursquare: If you violate copyrights, we’ll make you pay for it.

“[You] agree to pay all royalties and other amounts owed to any person or entity due to your Submission of any User Submissions to the Service.”

Apple’s general terms of service of the website are a special case and are the most aggressively worded terms of use I have read on the Internet. You can read them here.

From the Mobile Me TOS: If you die, your data dies with you.

“You agree that your MobileMe account is non-transferable and that any rights to your Subscriber ID or Content within your account terminate upon your death. Upon receipt of a copy of a death certificate your account may be terminated and all Content within your account deleted.”

Lesson learned: Read your manuals and especially the terms of use of the services you are using. You may be signing a mortgage or giving away your soul.

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