Terms of Use

 

Japan Online School Co. Ltd. (“J-OS”) offers the service of online language study (“service”) either to individual applicants who follow the procedures indicated by J-OS or members who are authorized by J-OS to represent the applicant.

The following are the rules or Terms of Use (“Terms”) that govern use of our service. Our service should only be used by those who expressly agree to be bound by these Terms and to follow these Terms and all applicable laws and regulations.

Should there be a violation of the J-OS Terms of Use, J-OS may terminate the service of the person or persons who violate the Terms of Use and bar their use of the service, and furthermore they may be barred from future use of our website (“site”), their orders may be cancelled and/or appropriate legal action may be taken against them.

1 Definition
1) “applicant” refers to an individual who applies for J-OS services
2) “member” refers to an individual who is registered by J-OS as a recipient of the service
3) “teacher” refers to a contracted teacher
4) “purpose of the service” refers to language study courses from J-OS
5) “J-OS ID” refers to the User ID and Password which is given to the member by J-OS
6) “personal information” refers to all personal information given by the member to J-OS which would identify the member, including his/her name, telephone number, mailing address and E-mail address
7) “A Ticket” refers to a credit which a member can use for one lesson hour (50 minutes) of J-OS service. J-OS will indicate the member’s current number of credits by counting the number of unused electronic tickets. However, J-OS does not issue any printed tickets.
2 Application of the Terms
These Terms apply to all applications made for J-OS services and for the use of them.
3 Contents of J-OS service
Main contents of J-OS service are to offer :
1) online language lessons
2) general information about language learning and international culture
4 Ancillary items and conditions of use of the service
(1) It is necessary for the member to provide the following equipment and network environment.
1) A Personal computer
2) A Web browser
3) Software and communications equipment
4) A headset
5) A webcam
6) An internet connection (a broadband cable internet connection is recommended)
(2) J-OS takes no responsibility for any bad network connection due to a busy network or any problems with the Member’s modem. In these situations, J-OS will not refund the tuition fee.
5 Contract observance
The member is not allowed to disclose any information listed below, regarding the school management, marketing and technology (“secret information”) during and after the termination of the contract.
1) Information regarding financial management and personnel details
2) Business plans, marketing manuals, students, teachers and employee lists
3) Guidance from teachers’ training and the making of teaching materials
4) In addition, any information which is deemed confidential
6 Application Procedure
(1) Applicants for J-OS service (“applicants”) should apply online after having agreed with the policy written in these Terms. You may use our online application form which is on the J-OS website.
(2) Applications of students under 18 years old must be made by their parents, guardians or an appropriate adult acceptable to J-OS.
7 Formation of J-OS Service Contract
(1) The contract between the applicants and J-OS is formed at the moment of “completion of application”. “Completion of application” refers to the stage where an applicant has made the first payment and J-OS has received it.
(2) J-OS at its own discretion may choose to not accept an application should any of the following conditions occur;
1) The previous J-OS membership of the applicant or the Member was terminated for violation of these Terms.
2) J-OS finds any false, incorrect or blank information in the application form.
3) For any other reason that J-OS decides that the application is inaccurate or not appropriate.
8 Payment for the services
Fees incurred by sending money or paying into the J-OS account (“handling fees”) must be paid by the applicant or member who is making the payment.If the payment is made with the handling fees being deducted, J-OS will recalculate the issued lesson tickets at the revised amount.
9 Notice of J-OS service commencement
J-OS will send each new member an E-mail to inform him/her of the commencement of the service when his/her registration to J-OS is successfully completed.
10 Validity of the lesson tickets (“tickets”)
Tickets are valid from the moment of “completion of application” and expire upon reaching their expiration date.
*Depending on the package purchased, validity of the tickets is different. For more information, please refer to the J-OS website.
11 Contact by J-OS
The member agrees that J-OS or the teacher may contact him/her by e-mail.
12 Change of registered information
When there are any changes to the registration information including names, addresses, and E-mail addresses, the member must inform J-OS immediately. J-OS does not take responsibility for any problems with the service caused by the member’s delay of notice.
13 Cancellation of the contract, cancellation or change of reservation and absence from lessons
(1) “Cooling-off System”. A newly registered member can cancel the contract free of charge if the cancellation procedure is completed within 8 days, starting from the day after J-OS informs him/her of the completion of application (formation of the contract). This is referred to as the “first 8 days”. To cancel, the member must provide to J-OS in writing the member’s full name, User ID, address, telephone number and the reasons for cancellation.
(2) To change or cancel a reserved lesson, you must follow the procedures indicated by J-OS. If the change/cancellation is made before the deadline, the tickets will not be counted.
*Each type of package of tickets has a different condition. You should refer to the J-OS website for further details.
(3) J-OS will not accept any changes/ cancellations of lessons after the deadline. If the member fails to cancel or misses a lesson for any reason, J-OS will count the lesson as if it had been completed and will charge the equivalent number of tickets as if the member had taken the lesson as scheduled.If the member is late for the lesson, the teacher will log off after waiting for 10 minutes. In this situation, the equivalent number of tickets will be counted as if the lesson was completed as scheduled. In any case, for cancellation or change of the lesson schedule, J-OS would appreciate as early notice as possible.
(4) If J-OS receives the member’s cancellation of the service after the first 8 days, J-OS shall refund purchased tickets as indicated below;
Unit price of tickets purchased X the number of remaining tickets – 10,000 yen
＊J-OS will deduct 10,000 yen as a cancellation fee.
＊J-OS will not refund the registration fee or the fee for the tickets used.
＊Bank fees for any refunds are the sole responsibility of the member who is terminating the service.
＊Bank fees charged by recipient banks vary according to the institution. J-OS uses Mitsui-Sumitomo Bank, Yokohama Branch to send refunds.
14 Interruption of a lesson by the member
In the situation where there is an interruption of a lesson due to the member’s change of schedule or a bad internet connection, J-OS will charge for the lesson.
15 Cancellation/change of Reserved lessons by J-OS or a Teacher
If J-OS or the teacher cancels/changes a reserved lesson, J-OS will return the equivalent amount of the lesson tickets to the member.
16 Interruption of a lesson by J-OS or a teacher
In the situation where there is an interruption of a lesson caused by J-OS or a teacher, J-OS will reissue equivalent tickets for the lesson time which has not been taught.
17 Copyright and Intellectual Property Rights
(1) All documents, teaching materials and information provided by the J-OS service and its homepage are subject to copyrights and all the intellectual property rights of J-OS and/or relevant third parties.
(2) Members must not violate copyrights (Japan Copyright Act, Article 21 to Article 28) and any intellectual property rights which belong to J-OS or any other third party.
(3) Members can not use any documents, teaching materials or information provided by the J-OS service except for his/her personal use unless he/she holds special permission by J-OS.
(4) Members or any unauthorized third party may not copy, publish or translate any of information, teaching materials, movies, exams and service contents provided by, and belonging to, J-OS.
(5) The member agrees that J-OS will treat all Q&A contents between the member and the teacher, submitted messages, opinions, answers and academic work as non-confidential and non-proprietary to the member. By receiving the J-OS service, the member accepts that J-OS may use them or allow others to distribute, reproduce or otherwise use them in accordance with J-OS’s privacy policy. Students’ work and comments submitted to J-OS become the intellectual property of J-OS and become the copyright of J-OS.
18 Management of the J-OS ID
(1) The member shall be responsible for managing his/her own J-OS ID.
(2) The J-OS ID is for the member’s use only. Transferring the J-OS ID to a third person in any way is prohibited.
(3) The J-OS ID is for the member’s use only. Transferring the J-OS ID to a third person in any way is prohibited.
(4) The member must contact J-OS immediately in case of loss or misuse by a third party of the J-OS ID. Members must follow the instructions given by J-OS.
19 Suspension of or changes to the service
(1) J-OS retains the right to change, add to, or suspend all or part of its service contents without notice.
(2) In case of difficulties with any relevant device or internet connection, J-OS may cease its service without notice in order to identify the cause and suggest an immediate solution.
(3) In case of any change, addition to, suspension or termination of part or the whole of the J-OS service, J-OS may distribute at its own discretion an advance notice to the members by E-mail or via the J-OS website where possible.
(4) J-OS is not responsible for any losses or damages caused by changes to, suspension or termination of part or all of the J-OS service.
(5) The member agrees that there may be some cases of late delivery or failure of E-mails due to network or device problems. Neither the member nor J-OS will be responsible for any losses or damages caused by problems of E-mail delivery.
20 J-OS Privacy Policy
As an education service institute, J-OS and all staff will treat information about our students and clients appropriately and securely.
(1) Basic Policy
1) Collection and use of personal information
J-OS respects its member’s personal rights and privacy. J-OS has its own purpose for collecting information and will limit its use.
2) Protection and management of personal information
J-OS will never sell, rent or exchange personal information about its members to any third party.
J-OS protects personal information by maintaining its secure system against any illegal access to, loss or change of, a member’s personal information.
The member’s personal information may be disclosed only with the agreement of the member or if J-OS is obligated by law. J-OS may distribute members’ personal information to a third party (“the consignee”) if J-OS has to consign a part of its business. In such a case, J-OS will strictly impose our privacy policy on the consignee.
3) Inquiry about J-OS’s privacy policy
If you have any questions about the handling of personal information, please contact J-OS’s customer service department at the following:
Tel: +81-(0)50-6877-6147 E-mail: info@j-os.com
(2)Purpose of use of personal information
J-OS uses personal information contained on the application form, enquiries and questionnaires for the purpose of;
1) Running an effective educational service
– to conduct efficient lessons including lesson reports to support the students with revisions
– to manage the students f lesson records and grades
– to provide appropriate academic advice — for efficient handling of fees
2) Improvements to the educational service. J-OS may refer to a member’s personal information in order to assist with improvements to the school’s management policy.
3) Providing notice about new services to all clients, including currently enrolled students and graduates of J-OS.
4) Managing information about J-OS graduates. J-OS would like to maintain a list of our graduate students and follow their career paths as well as informing them of changes to our services.
If personal information is to be used for any other purpose, J-OS will contact the member to request permission.
21 Compensation for damages
(1) J-OS is not liable to the member for his/her ability in Japanese, conformity of his/her study purposes with the J-OS service or the implicit security of his/her rights, as far as the relevant law applies.
(2) Under no circumstances will J-OS be liable for any losses or damages (whether such losses were foreseen, foreseeable, known or otherwise) including loss of profits, indirect, consequential, special or exemplary damages or losses caused by any compensation claim by third parties, even if J-OS has been aware of the possibility of such damages.
(3) J-OS takes limited responsibility declared within these Terms and will not be liable for any compensation for any losses or damages of any kind arising to the member or an applicant for the service.
22 Indemnity
(1) )J-OS will not be liable for any losses or damages (whether such losses were foreseen, foreseeable, known or otherwise) including loss of profits, indirect, consequential, special or exemplary damages or losses due to a compensation claim against a member by third parties for such reasons as;
1) Loss or damage during installation of a network cable, network troubles or bad connections
2) Loss or damage due to power cuts including scheduled power cuts
3) Loss or damage due to unforeseen and/or unavoidable incidents such as fires and/or other natural disasters
4) Loss or damage caused by the member
5) Loss, damage or unwanted changes to information stored on their computer or other devices
(2) The member agrees that J-OS or its teachers shall not be liable for technical problems including loss, damage or changes to information stored on his/her computer or other devices, due to viruses spread through contaminated emails sent by J-OS or it’s teachers.
23 Restrictions
In case of violations of these rules by the member, J-OS may terminate his/her contract without refunding any of the fees paid. The following behaviour is strictly prohibited.
1) Switching, transferring or renting the rights which a contracted J-OS member receives to third parties without prior notice to, and approval by, J-OS
2) Violation, or putting under the threat of violation, the copyright and the intellectual Property Rights which belong to J-OS and/or any other third party
3) Illegal access to the IDs of other members of J-OS
4) Violation of the privacy of J-OS and/or any other third parties
5) Illegal access to the secure information of J-OS
6) Using or providing harmful computer programs such as a computer virus to J-OS and/or any other third parties
7) Any defamatory or slanderous behaviour towards J-OS and/or any other third parties
8) Damaging or threatening to harm the business of J-OS and/or any other third parties
9) Sending or publicly distributing illegal data of any kind to J-OS and/or any other third parties
10) Violation of laws, immoral or harmful behaviour towards J-OS and/or any third parties
11) Taking lessons from J-OS teachers without using valid J-OS lesson tickets, and/or making reservations with J-OS teacher outside the J-OS reservation system
24 Jurisdiction
In case of any suits or legal actions brought against J-OS, the Yokohama Regional Court will govern them as an agreed exclusive competent court in the first instance.
25 The Governing Law
These Terms shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with the laws of Japan.
26 Disputes
If there is any dispute between the member and J-OS concerning any J-OS service, the problem should initially be solved through open discussion between J-OS and the member.
27 Applied Language for J-OS service
These terms are originally written in Japanese. It is agreed to follow the interpretation of the original Terms in Japanese when they are translated into other languages.
28 Continuous Effectiveness of the Terms
Although a part of these Terms may be invalidated by relevant authority or governing law, it is agreed that other contents of these Terms will remain effective.
A Rider
These Terms are effective as from November 1, 2005.
  • Revised on June 1, 2006
  • Revised on July 13, 2006
  • Revised on May 24, 2007 — 20. J-OS Privacy Policy -3) contact information has been changed
  • Revised on Feb 26, 2014 — 20. J-OS Privacy Policy -3) contact information has been changed
  • Revised on May 17, 2022 — 20. J-OS Privacy Policy -3) contact information has been changed