Platform Services Agreement

1.1 Platform Services

Airballoon provides a conference-management platform that enables you to manage registration, process payments through Stripe, communicate with registrants and committee members, and access registration analytics.

1.2 Payment Processing Services

Payment processing is performed by Stripe, Inc. as an independent service provider. Stripe's services are governed by Stripe's own agreements between Stripe and you. Airballoon is not a payment processor and does not hold registrant funds.

2.1 Account Options

You may either:

• Option A — Express Account. Create a new Stripe Express account through Airballoon. We facilitate the onboarding flow; Stripe will collect the information required to verify your account.
• Option B — Connect Existing Account. Connect an existing Stripe account you already operate, via Stripe's OAuth authorization flow.

2.2 Account Information

You represent that information you provide to Airballoon and Stripe in connection with the connected account is accurate, complete, and current. You will keep this information up to date.

3.1 Platform Fee by Tier

Airballoon charges a Platform Fee on each registration transaction, set by the tier you select when creating the conference. The Platform Fee is collected automatically from registration proceeds before disbursement to your Stripe account.

• Light: 10% per registration.
• Standard: 15% per registration, reducing to 12% per registration with the volume discount described in §3.2.
• Full: 20% per registration, reducing to 15% per registration with the volume discount described in §3.2.
• Custom: Rate negotiated separately and recorded on the conference's commitment record.

3.2 Volume Discount

For Standard and Full tiers, the Platform Fee rate decreases retroactively once the conference exceeds 1,500 paid registrations:

• Standard tier: 15% per registration up to 1,500; drops to 12% per registration once that threshold is exceeded. The 3% difference on registrations 1–1,500 is refunded as a single batch at conference end.
• Full tier: 20% per registration up to 1,500; drops to 15% per registration once that threshold is exceeded. The 5% difference on registrations 1–1,500 is refunded as a single batch at conference end.

The Light tier's flat 10% rate is not subject to the volume discount.

3.3 Third-Party Payment Processing Fee

Stripe's per-transaction payment processing fees are included in the Platform Fee set out in §3.1. Airballoon settles Stripe's processing fees on your behalf out of the Platform Fee, so you are charged only the single Platform Fee rate on each registration transaction — no separate Stripe processing line item is deducted from your proceeds.

This bundling covers Stripe's standard per-transaction fees, including the base card-processing rate and the additional surcharges Stripe applies for international cards, manually entered cards, and currency conversion. Stripe's published rates are available at stripe.com/pricing for reference. Non-per-transaction Stripe charges that fall outside ordinary processing — for example chargeback/dispute fees, instant payout fees, and any fees arising from your direct relationship with Stripe — remain your responsibility under Stripe's own agreements with you.

3.4 Fee Collection Authorization

You authorize Airballoon to deduct the Platform Fee from each registration transaction prior to disbursement to your Stripe account, and to adjust amounts to reflect refunds, chargebacks, or disputes processed through your account.

3.5 Fee Non-Refundability

All Platform Fees are non-refundable. Stripe processing fees are non-refundable under Stripe's terms. In the event of a refund or chargeback, you bear the full cost of these fees.

3.6 Post-Conference Retention

After the conference completes, Airballoon retains your data as follows:

• 3 years of free storage for submissions, registration records, program materials, and presentation files.
• After year 3, annual per-item renewal applies: $0.20 per file and $1.00 per recorded video, billed annually until renewal lapses or the Organizer requests deletion.
• Metadata (titles, abstracts, author names) and DOI-assigned papers are retained for the duration of the contract years specified in your conference's commitment record.

3.7 Currency

Fees are stated in U.S. dollars (USD) unless otherwise specified. Cross-currency transactions may be subject to Stripe's currency-conversion fees and rates.

4.1 Registration Data

You authorize Airballoon to collect, store, and process registration data (including registrant names, emails, organizations, payment status, and metadata) for the purpose of operating the Platform on your behalf. Airballoon will display this information to you in administrative consoles and may use it to generate analytics for conference management.

4.2 Data Ownership

As between you and Airballoon, you own conference registration data. Airballoon retains the right to use de-identified, aggregated data for service improvement, fraud prevention, and analytics.

4.3 Data Security

Airballoon implements commercially reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect Platform data. You are responsible for safeguarding your own credentials and access controls within your conference.

4.4 Privacy Compliance

You are responsible for compliance with privacy laws applicable to your conference, including providing accurate privacy notices to registrants and obtaining any required consents. See Airballoon's Privacy Policy for our processing of personal data on your behalf.

5.1 Compliance

You will comply with all laws applicable to your conference, including consumer protection, tax, anti-money-laundering, and sanctions laws, and with Stripe's terms (including its Acceptable Use and Restricted Businesses policies).

5.2 Refund Policy

You are solely responsible for establishing, publishing, and honoring a refund policy for each conference, and for bearing all costs associated with refunds and chargebacks. See §9 (Refunds and Chargebacks).

5.3 Prohibited Activities

You will not use the Platform for:

• Fraudulent or illegal activities
• Events promoting violence, discrimination, or illegal content
• Money laundering or terrorist financing
• Any activity prohibited by Stripe's Acceptable Use Policy

6.1 Platform Availability

We use commercially reasonable efforts to maintain Platform availability, provide technical support for Platform-related issues, deliver security updates, and communicate scheduled maintenance in advance.

6.2 Limitations

Airballoon is not responsible for:

• Stripe service outages or payment-processing failures
• Third-party integrations or services outside our control
• Data loss resulting from your actions or those of your collaborators
• Events outside reasonable control (see §11.8 Force Majeure)

7.1 Term

This Agreement is effective upon your acceptance and continues until the conference completes and all fees are settled, or until terminated under §7.2 or §7.3.

7.2 Termination by Organizer

You may terminate by providing written notice, settling all outstanding Platform Fees, and completing any pending refund obligations.

7.3 Termination by Airballoon

We may suspend or terminate this Agreement if:

• You breach a material term of this Agreement
• Your Stripe account is suspended or terminated
• You engage in prohibited activities
• Required by law or regulatory authority

7.4 Effect of Termination

Upon termination, all outstanding fees become immediately due. Airballoon will provide reasonable data-export assistance. Provisions that by their nature should survive termination — including §3 (for amounts owed), §8 (Limitation of Liability), §9 (Refunds and Chargebacks for amounts owed), §10 (Indemnification), and §11 (General Provisions) — survive.

8.1 Disclaimer of Warranties

The Platform is provided "as is" and "as available", without warranty of any kind. To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, Airballoon disclaims all warranties — express, implied, or statutory — including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title, non-infringement, and any warranties arising from course of dealing, course of performance, or usage in trade. We do not warrant that the Platform will be uninterrupted, error-free, or secure, and are not liable for delays or failures in third-party services (including Stripe) or other systems outside our control.

8.2 Limitation on Indirect Damages

Except for Excluded Claims (§8.4) and to the maximum extent permitted by law, neither party will be liable for any indirect, consequential, special, reliance, incidental, exemplary, or punitive damages, or for lost revenue, profits, savings, goodwill, business interruption, or loss of data, regardless of the legal theory and even if advised of the possibility.

8.3 Liability Cap

Except for Excluded Claims (§8.4), each party's total aggregate liability arising out of or related to this Agreement shall not exceed the total Platform Fees paid by Organizer to Airballoon during the twelve (12) months preceding the event giving rise to the claim. Organizer's payment obligations (Platform Fees, processing fees, taxes, and indemnification amounts) are not subject to this cap.

8.4 Excluded Claims

The exclusions and cap above do not apply to:

• A party's indemnification obligations under §10
• A party's gross negligence, fraud, or willful misconduct
• A party's infringement of the other party's intellectual property
• A party's breach of confidentiality obligations
• Liability that cannot be limited or excluded under applicable law

8.5 Allocation of Risk

The limitations in this Section 8 survive any failure of essential purpose of any limited remedy. Organizer acknowledges that the Platform Fees reflect this allocation of risk and that these limitations are an essential basis of the bargain.

9.1 Organizer Responsibility

You are solely responsible for refunds, chargebacks, and any dispute fees on registrations processed through your connected Stripe account, and for any cancellation, postponement, or material change of the conference. Airballoon is not a party to the contract between you and registrants and does not refund registrants or arbitrate disputes on your behalf.

9.2 Non-Refundable Fees

Platform Fees and Stripe processing fees are non-refundable.

9.3 Negative Balances

You authorize Stripe to debit your connected bank account for any negative balance arising from refunds, chargebacks, or fees in excess of available Stripe balance.

9.4 Published Refund Policy Required

You must publish a refund policy that is visible to registrants at the time of payment. The published policy must comply with applicable law and Stripe's terms.

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Airballoon and its officers, directors, employees, and agents from any claims, damages, losses, or expenses arising from:

• Your breach of this Agreement
• Your violation of applicable laws
• Claims by registrants or attendees related to your conference
• Your negligence or willful misconduct

11.1 Entire Agreement

This Agreement, together with the Terms of Service and any policies incorporated by reference constitutes the entire agreement between the parties regarding its subject matter and supersedes all prior agreements and understandings.

11.2 Amendments

Airballoon may update this Agreement with reasonable notice. Continued use of the Platform after notice constitutes acceptance of updated terms.

11.3 Governing Law

This Agreement is governed by the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia, without regard to conflict-of-law principles.

11.4 Dispute Resolution

Any disputes arising under this Agreement shall be resolved through binding arbitration in accordance with the rules of the American Arbitration Association.

11.5 Severability

If any provision of this Agreement is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions continue in full force and effect.

11.6 Assignment

You may not assign this Agreement without Airballoon's prior written consent. Airballoon may assign this Agreement in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets.

11.7 Notices

Notices to Airballoon may be sent to legal@airballoon.com. Notices to you will be sent to the email address on file for your account.

11.8 Force Majeure

Neither party will be liable for any delay or failure in performance (other than payment obligations) caused by events beyond its reasonable control, including acts of God, natural disasters, pandemics, war, civil unrest, internet or utility outages, third-party service failures (including Stripe and hosting providers), cyberattacks, or governmental orders. The affected party will use commercially reasonable efforts to mitigate the impact and resume performance as soon as reasonably practicable.