Effective Date: 16 June 2025 (last revised 16 June 2025)
These Terms of Service (“Terms”) form a binding contract between you and Mercury Local, LLC (“Mercury Local,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) that governs every use of The Farmington Mercury websites, newsletters, feeds, mobile experiences, and any other online service that links to these Terms (collectively, the “Services”). By clicking “I agree,” creating an account, posting a comment, or otherwise accessing the Services, you affirm that you have read, understand, and accept these Terms including the Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, which are incorporated herein by reference.
If you do not accept every provision, do not use the Services.
1 | ELIGIBILITY
- Minimum age. You must be at least 13 years old (or the equivalent minimum age in your jurisdiction) to use the Services.
- Minors. If you are under 18, you represent that a parent or legal guardian has reviewed and agreed to these Terms on your behalf. We may ask for verifiable parental consent where required by law.
- Capacity. You must have the legal capacity to enter a contract in your place of residence.
2 | NON-SUBSCRIPTION, FREE-TO-READ ACCESS
All editorial content is free to read—no paywalls, subscriptions, or third-party ad trackers. Our journalism is funded by first-party advertising and community sponsorships that respect reader privacy.
3 | OUR CONTENT & LICENSES
3.1 Original Works
Except where a different license is indicated, text, photographs, graphics, audio, and video on the Services are © 2025 Mercury Local and are released under the Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-ND 4.0) license.
You may copy and redistribute the complete, unaltered work—even commercially—if you provide (i) proper attribution to The Farmington Mercury, (ii) a link to the CC license, and (iii) an indication of any changes (none permitted).
3.2 Trademarks
“The Farmington Mercury,” “Mercury Local,” and associated logos are trademarks of Mercury Local. You may not use them without express written consent.
3.3 Third-Party Materials
Some material (e.g., AP wire, embedded social posts, stock imagery) is used under separate licenses or permissions and is not covered by CC BY-ND 4.0. Such items are identified and must be respected according to their own license terms.
4 | USER-GENERATED CONTENT (“UGC”)
- License to Mercury Local. By submitting UGC (comments, emails, images, audio, etc.), you grant Mercury Local and its successors a world-wide, royalty-free, sublicensable, transferable licence to use, reproduce, distribute, publicly perform, publicly display, and archive your UGC in connection with the Services.
The licence is perpetual unless and until you delete the content or send a written removal request to hello@mercurylocal.com. - Waiver of moral rights. To the fullest extent permitted by law, you waive any “moral rights” (rights of attribution or integrity) in the UGC.
- Your warranties. You warrant that (a) you own or have the necessary rights to post the UGC; (b) publishing it will not infringe any third-party rights; and (c) the UGC complies with Section 5 (Acceptable Use).
- DMCA Safe Harbor. Mercury Local has registered a Designated Agent with the U.S. Copyright Office. Send copyright takedown notices to:
DMCA Agent
Mercury Local, LLC
155 Scott Swamp Rd.
Farmington, CT 06032
Email: hello@mercurylocal.com
Notices must satisfy the requirements of 17 U.S.C. § 512(c)(3). Counter-notifications follow § 512(g).
5 | ACCEPTABLE USE
You agree not to:
- Violate any law, regulation, court order, or third-party right.
- Post content that is defamatory, obscene, hateful, harassing, or infringing.
- Upload malware or attempt to gain unauthorised access to any system or data.
- Impersonate any person or entity.
- Harvest or scrape data beyond what the CC licence expressly permits.
We may remove content, suspend, or terminate accounts for violations.
6 | ACCESSIBILITY
Mercury Local is committed to digital accessibility and strives to conform to WCAG 2.1 Level AA. If you encounter a barrier, please email hello@mercurylocal.com; we will acknowledge within 48 hours and aim to remediate within 30 days.
7 | EXPORT & SANCTIONS COMPLIANCE
You may not use the Services if you (a) reside in a country subject to U.S. embargo, or (b) appear on any U.S. government denied-party list (OFAC SDN, BIS Entity List, etc.).
8 | DISCLAIMERS
- No Professional Advice. All content is provided for general information only and does not constitute legal, financial, medical, or other professional advice.
- “As-Is” Service. The Services are provided “as is” and “as available,” without any express or implied warranty, including but not limited to warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, non-infringement, or accuracy.
- Third-Party Links. Mercury Local is not responsible for external sites or resources linked from the Services.
9 | LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
To the fullest extent permitted by law:
- Indirect damages. Mercury Local, its affiliates, officers, employees, and contributors are not liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, punitive, or exemplary damages arising from or related to the Services.
- Direct damages cap. Mercury Local’s total liability in any 12-month period is limited to the greater of (a) US $1,000 or (b) the amount you paid Mercury Local in that period.
- Exceptions. This cap does not apply to liability for gross negligence, wilful misconduct, or personal injury caused by our negligence.
10 | INDEMNIFICATION
10.1 Your indemnity
You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Mercury Local and its affiliates from any claims, damages, losses, liabilities, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising from (a) your UGC, (b) your use of the Services, or (c) your breach of these Terms.
10.2 Our limited indemnity
Mercury Local will indemnify you for direct damages finally awarded by a court arising solely from our gross negligence or wilful misconduct in providing the Services.
11 | DISPUTE RESOLUTION
- Binding arbitration. Any dispute or claim relating to these Terms or the Services shall be resolved by final, binding arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association under its Commercial Arbitration Rules.
- Venue. The seat of arbitration is Hartford County, Connecticut, USA; hearings may be remote at either party’s request.
- Class-action waiver. Proceedings may take place only on an individual basis; class, collective, or representative actions are prohibited.
- Opt-out. You may opt out of arbitration by emailing hello@mercurylocal.com within 30 days of first accepting these Terms.
- Equitable relief. Either party may seek temporary or permanent injunctive relief in any court of competent jurisdiction to protect intellectual-property or privacy rights.
12 | MODIFICATIONS
We may amend these Terms by (a) posting a revised version to the Services and (b) emailing registered users at least 14 days before the effective date. If you do not agree to the changes, discontinue use before the effective date; otherwise, your continued use constitutes acceptance. We archive prior versions for reference.
13 | TERMINATION
Mercury Local may suspend or terminate your access upon reasonable notice (immediate if necessary to protect users or comply with law). You may discontinue use at any time. Sections 3–11 and 15–17 survive termination.
14 | FORCE MAJEURE
Neither party is liable for delay or failure to perform caused by events beyond reasonable control—such as natural disasters, war, labour disputes, government action, or widespread internet outage—including any delay in processing refunds or payments.
15 | GOVERNING LAW & VENUE
Subject to Section 11, these Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Connecticut, excluding conflict-of-law rules. Any court action permitted outside arbitration shall be filed exclusively in the state or federal courts of Hartford County, Connecticut, and the parties consent to personal jurisdiction there.
16 | MISCELLANEOUS
- Severability. If any provision is held unenforceable, it shall be modified to the minimum extent necessary, and the remainder shall stay in effect.
- Entire Agreement. These Terms (plus incorporated policies) constitute the entire agreement between you and Mercury Local regarding the Services, superseding all prior communications.
- No Waiver. A party’s failure to enforce any provision is not a waiver.
- Assignment. You may not assign your rights without our prior consent. Mercury Local may assign these Terms to an affiliate or successor.
17 | CONTACT
Email (all inquiries, DMCA, accessibility): hello@mercurylocal.com
Mail:
Mercury Local, LLC
155 Scott Swamp Road
Farmington, CT 06032
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