Terms of service

Terms of service, also called “general terms and conditions” or “terms of use,” are the terms imposed by the creator of the site, serving as an agreement between users and the service provider. This document can be posted on a website, but this isn’t required by law.

Terms of service are generally structured around the following concepts:

• a brief description of the site;
• the rights and obligations of the user;
• the rights and obligations of the site publisher;
• the conditions of use of the site, especially if it contains a forum;
• the limited liability of the publisher;
• the right to intellectual property protection; and
• the terms of settlement for any disputes, e.g., both parties will agree to use third-party arbitration to solve an issue.

In contrast to the terms of service, other pages are mandatory and particularly regulated by national and international organizations, such as:

• the legal notices that make it possible to identify the publisher and the host of the website.
• the terms of sale if it’s a commercial site for individuals. They constitute a contract between the publisher of the site and the consumer customer. Note that the general conditions of sale aren’t mandatory if it’s an online sales site for professionals.
• the privacy policy of the site's users.
• information about cookies.

In addition, there are other optional but recommended pages. They may concern the following:

• the scope of the services offered;
• the modalities of navigation on the website; and
• certain clauses aimed at limiting the responsibility of the publisher, allowing them to benefit from optimal protection.

In general, the purpose of these pages is to inform the internet user of the website’s content. They also protect the publisher against possible disputes with the user.