Last updated and effective as of August 6, 2012.

Terms of Use

Please read this agreement carefully before using this website or service. By accessing this site or service in any way, including without limitation browsing this site, using any information contained on this site or service, and/or submitting any comments or information to the Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association, you agree to be bound by these Terms of Use, which together with our Privacy Policy govern TECA’s relationship with you in relation to the sites.  If you do not wish to be bound by these Terms of Use, you should not browse, access or use this website or service.

1. General

(a) This page describes the terms and conditions (these “Terms of Use”) that govern your use of the services or features of the websites owned and controlled by Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association (“TECA”, “us” or “we”), such as www.tnmagazine.org and www.tnelectric.org and any other online and mobile sites and interactive applications operated by TECA (the “Sites”).  “You” refers to the user, reader or viewer of the Sites.  You may be accessing our Sites from a computer or mobile phone device, and these Terms of Use govern your use of our Sites regardless of the means of access.  We also like to interact with you on third-party sites where we post content or invite your feedback, such as www.facebook.com/tnelectric and www.twitter.com/tnelectric (“Third-Party Sites”).  Because TECA does not own or control the Third-Party Sites, these Terms of Use do not apply to your use of the Third-Party Sites. You should always check the terms of use posted on Third-Party Sites before using or accessing those sites.

(b) TECA reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to modify these Terms of Use at any time.  Please review these Terms of Use periodically for any updates or changes. Modifications are effective when posted, and your continued use of the Sites following the posting of any updates or changes to these Terms of Use constitutes your acceptance of such changes. If you object to any provision of these Terms of Use or any subsequent modifications to these Terms of Use, you must immediately terminate use of the Sites.

(c) As part of the registration and account creation process required to access to some features of the Sites, you will select a username and a password.  You will also provide TECA with certain registration information, including your name and email address all of which must be accurate and updated.

2. Content of the Sites

(a) All contents of the Sites are owned by TECA and/or its licensors, who reserve all their rights in law and equity.  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association, The Tennessee Magazine, the Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association logo, and The Tennessee Magazine logo are trademarks of the Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association.  All other trademarks, product names and company names or logos included on the Sites are the property of their respective owners.

(b) The Sites contain copyrighted material, trademarks, service marks, trade dress and other proprietary content, including but not limited to the design, layout, look, appearance, text, software, sound, articles, photographs, images, illustrations, logos, video and graphics (the “Content”), and the entire selection, coordination, layout, arrangement and “look and feel” of the Sites and the Content are copyrighted as a collective work under United States copyright laws (collectively, “Intellectual Property Rights”).

(c) Neither these Terms of Use nor your use of the Sites transfers any right, title or interest in the Sites or the Content to you, and TECA and its third-party licensors retain all of its and their respective right, title and interest in and to the Sites and Content. Nothing contained in these Terms of Use shall be construed as conferring any other license or right, express or implied, under any of our Intellectual Property Rights or under any third party’s intellectual property rights. Any rights not expressly granted herein are reserved.

(d) Except as provided in these Terms of Use, you may not use, modify, republish, frame, print, display, perform, reproduce, license, transfer, sell, assign, post, transmit, distribute, reverse engineer, create derivative works from, or otherwise exploit any Content or information from the Sites, in whole or in part, without the express written permission of TECA.

(e) The Sites are available worldwide to anyone with Internet access. However, the Sites may not be continuously available due to maintenance or repairs or due to computer problems or crashes, disruption in Internet service or other unforeseen circumstances. Further, a reference to a product or service on the Sites does not imply that such product or service is or will be available in your location. Certain product, service, or company designations for companies other than TECA may be mentioned in the Sites for identification purposes only. The Content of the Sites, including advertising content, is intended for use and display only where its use and display are permissible in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. The Content is subject to change without notice.

3.  Acceptable Use

The Content is for your general information and personal, noncommercial use only.  You shall abide by all additional copyright notices, information, or restrictions contained in any Content accessed through the Sites and shall maintain all copyright and other notices contained therein.  Copying or storing of any Content for other than personal use is expressly prohibited without prior written permission from TECA, or the copyright holder identified in the copyright notice contained in the Content.  You may view, copy, retransmit and print the Content subject to the following conditions:

(a) the Content is used solely for personal, informational, or non-commercial purposes;
(b) the Content is not provided, sold, licensed or leased (nor is access provided to the Content) for any fee or other consideration;
(c) all copyright, trademark and other proprietary rights notices included in the Content as presented on the Sites appear on all copies;
(d) the Content is not modified or altered in any way; and
(e) no graphics are used separately from accompanying text.

You may also link or hyperlink to the home page of the Sites from any Acceptable Site (as defined below), but only if:

(a) You do not frame the Sites or any portion of the Sites;
(b) you do not deep link into the Sites (i.e., you do not link into any page other than the home page);
(c) the hyperlink to the Sites is not used in a way that suggests that TECA endorses you or your website;
(d) the link to the Sites is not used or presented in any way that disparages TECA or tarnishes, blurs or dilutes the quality of TECA’s name or trademarks or any associated goodwill; and
(e) the link to the Sites is not displayed on any web page that displays objectionable content or links.

An “Acceptable Site” means a website that displays no objectionable content, including, but not limited to, any content, information in any medium or format, such as text, data, graphics, audio or video, that:  (i) is libelous or defamatory, pornographic, sexually explicit, unlawful or plagiarized; (ii) a reasonable person would consider harassing, abusive, threatening, harmful, profane, obscene, racially, ethnically or otherwise objectionable or offensive in any way; (iii) constitutes a breach of any person’s privacy or publicity rights, a misrepresentation of facts or hate speech; or (iv) violates or encourages others to violate any applicable law.

You represent, warrant and covenant:

(a) that no materials of any kind submitted by you and/or through your account, including without limitation Submissions (as defined below) will (i) violate, plagiarize, or infringe upon the rights of any third party, including copyright, trademark, privacy or other personal or proprietary rights; or (ii) contain libelous or otherwise unlawful material; and

(b) that you are at least thirteen years old.

You hereby agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless TECA and all officers, directors, owners, agents, information providers, affiliates, licensors and licensees (collectively, the “Indemnified Parties”) from and against any and all liability, claims, losses and costs, including, without limitation, reasonable attorneys’ fees, incurred by the Indemnified Parties in connection with any claim arising out of any breach by you or any user of your account of these Terms of Use or the representations, warranties and covenants made herein. You shall cooperate as reasonably required in the defense of any such claim. TECA reserves the right, at its own expense, to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter subject to indemnification by you.

4.  User Conduct

By using the Sites in any way, including all Content and services available through them, you agree that you shall not:

(a) delete, modify, hack or attempt to change or alter any of the Content on the Sites;
(b) use any device, software or routine intended to damage or otherwise interfere with the proper functioning of the Sites or servers or networks connected to the Sites, or take any other action that interferes with other parties’ use of the Sites;
(c) use any robot, spider or other automatic or manual device or process for the purpose of harvesting or compiling information on the Sites for purposes other than for a generally available search engine;
(d) use any TECA names, service marks, or trademarks without our prior written consent, including without limitation as metatags, search engine keywords, or hidden text;
(e) use any material or information, including images or photographs, which are made available through the Sites in any manner that infringes any copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, or other proprietary right of any party;
(f) upload, transmit or otherwise distribute files that contain viruses, Trojan horses, worms, time bombs, cancelbots, corrupted files, or any other similar software or programs that may damage the operation of another’s computer or property; or
(g) defame, abuse, harass, stalk, threaten or otherwise violate the legal rights of any third party, or upload to or otherwise distribute on the Sites any libelous, defamatory, obscene, pornographic, abusive or otherwise illegal material.

5.   Other Sites; Third-Party Content, Products and Services

The Sites may contain links to other Internet sites, resources, and advertisers (“Linked Sites”). Since we are not responsible for the availability of these outside resources, or their contents, you should refer to the separate terms of use, privacy policies, and other rules posted on Linked Sites before you use them.  TECA does not author, edit or monitor these Linked Sites, and is not responsible or liable for: (a) the availability of or content provided on such Linked Sites, nor does inclusion of any link imply endorsement of the Linked Sites by TECA, or vice versa; (b) third-party content accessible through such Linked Sites; (c) any loss or damage whatsoever you may incur from dealing with any Linked Site; or (d) your dealings with any third parties found on or through the Sites.

6.  Submissions; Public Comments; User-Generated Content

You acknowledge that any submissions you make to the Sites (i.e., user-generated content including but not limited to comments, forum messages, reviews, text, video, audio and photographs) (each, a “Submission”) may be edited, removed, modified, published, transmitted, displayed and/or incorporated by TECA on the Sites and you waive any rights you may have in having the material altered or changed in a manner not agreeable to you. Submissions made to the Sites may also be made available for republishing through other formats and on other platforms and media.  By making a Submission, you are consenting to its display and publication on the Sites’ associated services and for related online and offline promotional uses.  You are solely responsible for ensuring that each Submission made by you or in connection with your account complies with all applicable law, rules and regulations.  You may not upload, post or make any Submission that violates the rights of third parties, and you are not allowed to make a Submission containing any video or photo of any third party without such third party’s express permission.  By making a Submission, you warrant that you have express permission from all persons appearing in the media contained in such Submission.

You  grant to TECA a perpetual, non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, sub-licensable right and license to Submissions, which includes without limitation the right for TECA or any third party it designates, to use, copy, reproduce, print, transmit, excerpt, publish, distribute, publicly display, publicly perform, create derivative works of, host, index, cache, tag, encode, modify and adapt (including without limitation the right to adapt to streaming, downloading, broadcast, mobile, digital, thumbnail, scanning or other technologies) in whole or in part in any form or media now known or hereinafter developed, any Submission posted by you on or to the Sites or any other site or application owned by TECA, including any Submission posted on or to the Sites through the Third-Party Sites. TECA is not obliged to maintain back-up copies of any material submitted or posted on the Sites or through any other site or application.

You are solely responsible for the content of your Submissions. You acknowledge that TECA does not review every Submission or pre-screen or approve Submissions and is not responsible for the content of Submissions by you or others.  However, TECA reserves the right to review, delete, move, or edit Submissions that it, in TECA’s sole discretion, deems unacceptable for any reason, including without limitation any Submission(s) that contain abusive, defamatory and/or obscene material, or violates any intellectual property law or violates the proprietary rights or the privacy rights of others.

7. Copyright Infringement

In accordance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”), TECA has designated an agent to receive notifications of alleged copyright infringement associated with the Sites.  TECA will, upon receiving proper notice as set forth below, use commercially reasonable efforts to investigate notices of copyright infringement and take appropriate action under the DMCA. If you believe that your copyrighted work or the copyrighted work of another party is being infringed, please notify our copyright agent at [email protected] or through the address set forth at the end of this page. If material is believed in good faith by TECA to infringe a copyright or otherwise violate any intellectual property rights, TECA will remove or disable access to any such material.

8. Typographical Errors

Our goal is to provide complete, accurate, up-to-date information on our Sites. Unfortunately, it is not possible to ensure that any website is completely free of human or technological errors. The Sites may contain typographical mistakes, inaccuracies, or omissions, and some information and Content may not be complete or current. We therefore reserve the right to correct any errors, inaccuracies or omissions, and to change or update information and Content at any time without prior notice to you.

9.  Termination of Site/Modifications to Site

We reserve the right to modify or terminate your access to the Sites (or portions of the Sites) at any time, temporarily or permanently, with or without notice to you, for any reason, and we are not obligated to support or update the Sites. Sections 1-2, Sections 4-6, and Sections 9-16 of these Terms of Use shall survive any termination. We may also impose limits on certain Content and services, restrict your access to part or all of the Sites, or charge fees for access to portions of the Sites without notice or liability. You acknowledge and agree that TECA will not be liable to you or any third party in the event that we exercise our right to modify or terminate access to the Sites or portions of the Sites.  If you create an account, you may terminate your account at any time by emailing [email protected] or through the address set forth at the end of this page. Upon termination, you will receive an automated confirmation via e-mail that the cancellation was processed, and your access to the Sites will be suspended within 24 hours.

10.  Disclaimer of Liability

TECA does not represent or endorse the accuracy or reliability of any advice, opinion, statement, or other information displayed, uploaded, or distributed through the Sites by any user, information provider or any other person or entity. You acknowledge that any reliance upon any such opinion, advice, statement, memorandum, or information shall be at your sole risk. THE SITES ARE PROVIDED TO YOU ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS, WITH ALL FAULTS.  TECA EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, WARRANTIES OF TITLE OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. TECA MAKES NO WARRANTY, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY OBLIGATION, THAT: (A) THE SITE WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS OR WILL BE AVAILABLE ON AN UNINTERRUPTED, TIMELY, SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE BASIS; (B) THE CONTENT WILL BE UP-TO-DATE, COMPLETE, COMPREHENSIVE OR ACCURATE; (C) THE RESULTS THAT MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE USE OF THE SITES OR ANY SERVICES OFFERED THROUGH THE SITES WILL BE ACCURATE OR RELIABLE;  (D) THE QUALITY OF ANY PRODUCTS, SERVICES, INFORMATION OR OTHER MATERIAL OBTAINED BY YOU THROUGH THE SITES WILL MEET YOUR EXPECTATIONS; OR (E) THAT DEFECTS, IF ANY, WILL BE CORRECTED. YOU HEREBY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT USE OF THE SITES IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK.  No advice or information, whether oral or written, obtained from TECA or through the Sites, will create any warranty not expressly made herein.

11.  Limitation of Liability

IN NO EVENT SHALL TECA, ITS DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, SHAREHOLDERS, EMPLOYEES, REPRESENTATIVES, CONSULTANTS, AGENTS, SUPPLIERS, AND/OR DISTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, PUNITIVE, INCREASED OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, LOSS OF PROFITS, REVENUE, DATA, GOODWILL, USE, PR OTHER INTANGIBLE LOSSES INCURRED BY YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION IN CONTRACT, TORT OR ANY OTHER LEGAL THEORY (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION NEGLIGENCE AND STRICT LIABILITY), ARISING FROM YOUR ACCESS TO OR INABILITY TO ACCESS, OR USE OF, THE SITES OR ANY SERVICES PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE SITES, EVEN IF TECA HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES, AND FURTHER WHERE A REMEDY SET FORTH HEREIN IS FOUND TO HAVE FAILED ITS ESSENTIAL PURPOSE. THIS LIMITATION ON LIABILITY APPLIES TO, BUT IS NOT LIMITED TO, THE TRANSMISSION OF ANY DISABLING DEVICE OR VIRUSES WHICH MAY INFECT YOUR EQUIPMENT OR SYSTEM, FAILURE OF MECHANICAL OR ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT OR COMMUNICATION LINES, TELEPHONE OR OTHER INTERCONNECT PROBLEMS, UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS, THEFT, BODILY INJURY, PROPERTY DAMAGE, OPERATOR ERRORS, STRIKES OR OTHER LABOR PROBLEMS OR ANY FORCE MAJEURE.

Some jurisdictions may not allow the exclusion of certain warranties or the exclusion/limitation of liability as set forth in this Section 11 so the limitations above may not apply to you.

12.  Limitation on Actions Brought Against TECA

You agree that any claim or cause of action arising out of these Terms of Use or your use of the Sites must be filed within one (1) year after such claim or cause of action arose or it shall forever be barred, notwithstanding any statute of limitations or other law to the contrary. Within this period, any failure by TECA to enforce or exercise any provision of these Terms of Use or related right shall not constitute a waiver of that right or provision.

13. Dispute Resolution

You agree that any dispute arising out of or relating in any way to your use of the Sites requires that such claim be resolved exclusively by confidential binding arbitration except that, to the extent you have in any manner violated or threatened to violate Intellectual Property Rights, TECA may seek injunctive or other appropriate relief.  The arbitration shall be conducted before three neutral arbitrators in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.A., in accordance with the rules of the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”), as then in effect.  No claims of any other parties may be joined or otherwise combined in the arbitration proceeding.  Unless otherwise expressly required by applicable law, each party shall bear its own attorneys’ fees without regard to which party is deemed the prevailing party in the arbitration proceeding.  Except for punitive and consequential damages (which may not be awarded), and subject to these Terms, the arbitrators shall be authorized to award either party any provisional or equitable remedy permitted by applicable law.  The parties shall equally share all AAA charges and fees associated with the arbitration.

BECAUSE THE USE OF THE SITES REQUIRES THE ARBITRATION OF ANY CLAIMS OR DISPUTES EXISTING BETWEEN THE PARTIES, NEITHER PARTY WILL HAVE THE RIGHT TO PURSUE THAT CLAIM IN COURT OR BEFORE A JUDGE OR JURY OR TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS ACTION OR ANY OTHER COLLECTIVE OR REPRESENTATIVE PROCEEDING.  THE ARBITRATORS’ DECISION WILL BE FINAL AND BINDING. OTHER RIGHTS THAT EITHER PARTY WOULD HAVE IF SUCH PARTY WENT TO COURT, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION THE RIGHT TO CONDUCT DISCOVERY OR TO APPEAL, MAY BE LIMITED OR UNAVAILABLE IN ARBITRATION.

The award of the arbitrators may be enforced in any court having jurisdiction thereof.  Each party hereby consents (a) to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the State of Tennessee or to any federal court located within the State of Tennessee for any action (i) to compel arbitration, (ii) to enforce any award of the arbitrators, or (iii) at any time prior to the qualification and appointment of the arbitrators, for temporary, interim or provisional equitable remedies, and (b) to service of process in any such action by registered mail or any other means provided by law.  Should this Section 13 be deemed invalid or otherwise unenforceable for any reason, it shall be severed and the parties agree that exclusive jurisdiction and venue for any claims will be in the state or federal courts in Nashville, Tennessee.

14.  Acknowledgement

You hereby acknowledge (a) that you have read and understood these Terms of Use, and (b) that these Terms of Use have the same force and effect as a signed agreement.

15.  Miscellaneous

If any provision in these Terms of Use is found by a court or arbitrator to be invalid, the parties agree that the court or arbitrator should give effect to the parties’ intentions as reflected in the provision, and the other provisions of these Terms of Use will remain in full force and effect.  TECA’s failure to act with respect to a breach by any visitor using the Sites does not constitute a waiver of its right to act with respect to subsequent or similar breaches.  These Terms of Use will be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Tennessee without regard to its choice of law provisions. In the event of any conflict between foreign laws, rules and regulations and those of the United States, the laws, rules and regulations of the United States will govern.  These Terms of Use and the Privacy Policy as posted from time to time by TECA on the Sites, and any modifications to the foregoing, constitute the entire agreement between the parties with regard to the subject matter in these Terms of Use and supersede all prior understandings and agreements, whether written or oral, as to such subject matter.

16.  Contact Information

If you have any questions about these Terms of Use, the practices of TECA, or your dealings with the Sites, please contact us through the address below.  You may also contact us to update your personal information by notifying us when you change your name or email address.

Address: Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association, 2964 Sidco Drive, Nashville, TN 37204

10729550.4

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Privacy Policy

Last updated and effective as of August 6, 2012.

Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association (“TECA”, “us” or “we”) is committed to protecting the privacy of visitors and users of its websites and services.  This Privacy Policy (“Privacy Policy”) discloses the security and privacy practices for www.tnmagazine.org and www.tnelectric.org, our mobile Web sites and other applications (collectively referred to as the “Sites”), and to any services that display this notice.  This Privacy Policy describes how TECA, the operator of the Sites, collects, protects, secures and uses information we receive from visitors and users of the Sites. This Privacy Policy is part of our [Terms of Use Agreement], which together with this Privacy Policy govern TECA’s relationship with you in relation to the Sites.

By using the Sites, you are agreeing to the terms of this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree with this Privacy Policy or any section of this Privacy Policy, you should not use the Sites.

1.  GENERAL

We may update or change this Privacy Policy from time to time. Please refer back to this Privacy Policy regularly.  The provisions of this Privacy Policy supersede all previous notices or statements regarding our privacy practices with respect to the Sites. This Privacy Policy applies only to information collected through the Sites, including your personal and financial information, and we are not responsible for information collected offline or through any third-party websites (even if affiliated with TECA or linked to by the Sites).

2.  THE INFORMATION WE COLLECT

There are two kinds of information that we may obtain about you through the Sites: (A) Anonymous Information and (B) Personally Identifiable Information.

(A) Anonymous Information: “Anonymous Information” is data in a form that does not permit direct association with any specific individual. Anonymous Information is aggregate data that websites use to administer their sites and the contents thereon. This Anonymous Information comprises information that cannot be used to identify or contact you, and may include such information as your browser type or your Internet Protocol (IP) address (if not deleted, clipped or anonymized). TECA may from time to time retain third parties to help collect and aggregate Anonymous Information.  The following are types of anonymous information that may be collected by us from your use of the Sites:

Device Information. We may collect non-personal information about the computer, mobile device or other device you use to access the Sites, such as IP address, geolocation information, unique device identifiers, browser type, browser language and other transactional information.

Cookie Information. As is the case with many websites and online applications, the Sites use “cookies,” which are small data files that are downloaded onto your computer. The use of cookies is standard on the Internet, and allows us to tailor your visits to our Site to your individual preferences.  We also may contract with third-party service providers who assign cookies and/or web beacons to conduct site-tracking for us. These companies use cookies solely to provide us with aggregate data about the Sites’ traffic and usage. Although most web browsers automatically accept cookies, you can change your browser to prevent cookies or notify you whenever you are sent a cookie. Even without accepting a cookie, you can still use the features on the Sites.

(B) Personally Identifiable Information:  “Personally Identifiable Information” or “PII” is any information that personally identifies you, such as your name, email address or your telephone number. Sometimes this personal information is needed when you register for the Sites, subscribe to our email communications, or when you contact us.  For example, you may be asked to provide the following information:

Registration Information.  If you choose to register or set up an account on the Sites, you must be at least 18 years of age or older.  Registration for the Sites requires that you supply certain personal information, including, in most cases, your first and last name, your age, a unique e-mail address, and your mailing address to register, and you will choose a user name and password as part of the registration process.

User-Generated Content and Public Activities (Including Comments).  We offer you opportunities to engage in Public Activities on the Sites. “Public Activities” means any actions you take on the Sites that are designed to be visible to other users, including comments or any other items that you submit. Any information you disclose in your Public Activities, along with your screen name or user name, or any image or photo, becomes public and may be used by TECA for online and offline promotional or commercial uses in any and all media. If you choose to engage in Public Activities, any personal information or PII you submit there can be read, collected, or used by other users of these areas, and could be used to send you unsolicited messages. We are not responsible for the Personally Identifiable Information you choose to submit in these areas, and TECA has no responsibility to publish, take down, remove or edit any of your Public Activities or any of your submissions that are a result of your Public Activities. For more information, see our Terms of Use.  Public Activities may be included in RSS feeds, APIs and made available to other Web sites via other formats. As a result, your Public Activities may appear on other Web sites, blogs, or feeds, including without limitation on third-party social media sites such as Facebook or Twitter.

Calendar Submissions.  When you submit an event for inclusion on the Sites and Services calendars, we request your name and contact information in order to verify information regarding the event you have submitted.

Contests, Sweepstakes and Special Offers.  TECA and its third-party service providers collect personal information from you in connection with optional sweepstakes, contests or special offers. If you do not want any of your PII shared, you may always decline to participate in the sweepstakes, contest or special offer.

Email Correspondence. Scattered throughout the Sites are links or forms that can be used to contact the Sites so you can comment, make a complaint, make suggestions and ask questions. Your name, email address, address, and phone number are requested on these forms so we can address our answer in a mannerly way. TECA may put information from email on file, but does not currently sell or license this information with third parties without express authorization from you.

Mailing Lists.  If you choose to sign up for a mailing list(s) via the Sites or Services, you must be at least 18 years of age or older, and you must provide your first and last name, your age, and a unique e-mail address.

3.  HOW WE USE THE INFORMATION WE GATHER ABOUT YOU

(A)  Anonymous Information:  Anonymous Information is used internally for administration of the Sites, troubleshooting, and to help improve the quality of the Sites and their design. We may share such aggregated, non-personally identifiable information, such as demographics, with existing and prospective partners and advertisers.  We never connect aggregate information with Personally Identifiable Information, and none of the Anonymous Information we share will contain any information that identifies you individually. We also may use Anonymous Information to customize certain features of the Sites to provide you with an enhanced experienced based on the type of device you are using to access the Sites.

(B)  Personally Identifiable Information:  Personally Identifiable Information collected by TECA may be used for purposes including administration of the Sites, registration, communications with you, and enabling you to participate in polls, contests and message boards. In all cases, however, we will only use your information as permitted by law. In addition, we may from time to time contract with third parties to assist us in maintaining and managing our customer information, or to provide services on our behalf, including e-mail distribution, list processing and analytics or promotions management. We provide these companies only with the information they need to perform their services. In such events, we will advise these companies not to retain, share, store or use Personally Identifiable Information for any secondary purposes.  We may also disclose Personally Identifiable Information if we are required to do so by law or we in good faith believe that such action is necessary to (i) comply with the law or with legal process; (ii) protect and defend our rights and property; (iii) protect against misuse or unauthorized use of the Sites; or (iv) protect the personal safety or property of our users or the public. Please note we may not provide you with notice prior to disclosure in such cases.

4.  EMAIL COMMUNICATIONS AND OPT-OUT

(A)  General and Account-Related E-Mails:  TECA reserves the right to send you e-mail concerning your account status. This includes registration confirmations and other transactional e-mails and notifications about major changes to the Sites.

(B) Subscriptions:  TECA offers The Tennessee Magazine and may offer from time to time other publications by subscription via email and RSS feed through the Sites. If you no longer wish to receive The Tennessee Magazine or other publications via email, email us at [email protected] with “Unsubscribe [name of publication]” in the subject line of your email to be removed from our distribution list for the applicable publication.

(C) Promotional E-mails:  You will be given the right to opt-out of receiving promotional materials about TECA or its partners whenever you are asked to provide Personally Identifiable Information on the Sites.  If you do not opt-out at that time, but later decide that you do not wish to receive future communications of this nature you can contact us at [email protected] or through the address set forth at the end of this page, indicating that you no longer want to receive information relating to the Sites via e-mail.

5.  SECURITY

Security of information communicated by or to us over the Internet is of utmost concern to us; however, no data transmission over the Internet can be guaranteed to be 100% secure. The Sites incorporate reasonable safeguards to protect the security, integrity and privacy of the personal information we have collected.  We have put in place reasonable precautions to protect information from loss, misuse and alteration. Please do not use email to communicate information to us that you consider confidential. While we strive to protect your personal information, TECA cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information you transmit to us or through the Sites.

6.  UPDATES AND CORRECTIONS TO YOUR PII

To request that we remove your PII from our systems, please contact us at the address indicated below.  We will attempt to complete your request as promptly as possible.  While it is not possible for us to delete all of the information that we have collected from you, any information that remains in our systems after we delete your user name and PII will become and remain anonymous. Any changes will affect only future uses of your PII.

7.  DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION THROUGH REORGANIZATIONS

As we continue to develop, we may merge or partner with other entities, and in so doing, acquire customer information.  In such transactions, user information may be among the transferred assets. Similarly, in the event that a portion or substantially all of TECA’s assets are sold or transferred to a third party, user and visitor information (including Personally Identifiable Information) would likely be one of the transferred business assets.

8.  OUR COMMITMENT TO CHILDREN’S PRIVACY

Protecting the privacy of children is very important to us. The Children’s Online Privacy and Protection Act of 1998 (“COPPA”) defines a “Child” as anyone under the age of 13.  TECA strictly adheres to COPPA. For that reason, we do not collect or maintain information obtained through our Sites from those we actually know are under 13, no part of the Sites is structured to attract anyone under 13, and we do not knowingly collect or use the personal information of minors for marketing purposes.

9.  EXTERNAL LINKS

The Sites may provide links to various websites that we do not control, including without limitation Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. When you click on one of these links, you will be transferred out of our Sites and connected to the website of the organization or company that you selected. We are not responsible for the nature, quality or accuracy of the content or opinions expressed on such websites, or of the services provided through such websites.  Such websites are not investigated, monitored or checked for quality, accuracy or completeness by us. Inclusion of any linked website on the Sites does not imply or express an approval or endorsement of the linked website by us, or of any of the content, opinions, products or services provided on these websites. Even if an affiliation exists between our Sites and a third-party website, we exercise no control over linked sites. Each of these linked sites maintains its own independent privacy and data collection policies and procedures.  TECA cannot be responsible for the actions of third parties.  If you visit a website that is linked to from our Sites, we encourage you to consult that website’s privacy policy before providing any personal information and whenever interacting with any website.

10.  CONSENT AND MODIFICATIONS TO PRIVACY STATEMENT

The Sites are controlled, operated and administered entirely within the United States.  By using the Sites, you signify your agreement to the terms of this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree with this Privacy Policy, please do not disclose any Personally Identifiable Information through the Sites.  This Privacy Policy and the use of the Sites are governed by Tennessee law.  Any claim related to the Sites or this Privacy Policy shall be brought in a federal or state court in Davidson County, Tennessee, within one year after the claim arises. By visiting, browsing or otherwise accessing the Sites, you hereby consent to the exclusive jurisdiction and venue of such courts as the most convenient and appropriate for the resolution of disputes concerning this Privacy Policy. This Privacy Policy and the notices outlined herein are not intended to and do not create any contractual or other legal rights in or on behalf of any third party.

11.  SPECIAL NOTICE TO CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS

Under the California Civil Code, residents of the State of California that have provided any Personally Identifiable Information to TECA have the right to request a list of all third parties to which TECA has disclosed Personally Identifiable Information during the preceding year for direct marketing purposes. Alternatively, the law provides that if TECA has a privacy policy that gives either an opt-out or opt-in choice for use of Personally Identifiable Information by third parties (such as advertisers or affiliated companies) for marketing purposes, TECA may instead provide you with information on how to exercise your disclosure choice options free of charge.  TECA qualifies for the alternative option and has adopted a policy of not disclosing the personal information of customers to third parties for the third parties’ direct marketing purposes if the customer has exercised an option that prevents that information from being disclosed to third parties for those purposes.  It has established this Privacy Policy that provides you with details on how you may either opt-out of the use of your Personally Identifiable Information by third parties for direct marketing purposes.  If you are a California resident and would like to request information about how to exercise your third party disclosure choices, please send a request to [email protected] with a preference on how our response to your request should be sent. 

12.  MODIFICATIONS TO PRIVACY POLICY

TECA may modify this Privacy Policy at any time, at its discretion, and modifications are effective upon being posted on the Sites. You are responsible for reviewing this Privacy Policy periodically to ensure that you are aware of any changes to it.

13.  QUESTIONS, COMMENTS AND FEEDBACK

We welcome your questions, comments and all feedback pertaining to your privacy or any other issue with regard to the Sites.  You may contact us at through the address listed below.

Address: Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association, 2964 Sidco Drive, Nashville, TN 37204

10805731.4