Effective Date: March 8, 2026
Website Terms and Conditions of Use
1. Terms
These Terms of Use ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the Smile Nihongo Academy website and all related services, courses, and materials provided through the site (collectively, the "Site"). The Site is owned and operated by Hana Smile LLC, doing business as Smile Nihongo Academy ("Company," "we," "us," or "our").
By accessing or using the Site, creating an account, or enrolling in any course or program, you agree to be bound by these Terms and by our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree to these Terms, you must not access or use the Site.
You are responsible for ensuring that your use of the Site complies with all applicable laws and regulations. The materials and content provided on the Site are protected by applicable copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property laws.
2. Use License and Account Access
Subject to your compliance with these Terms, the Company grants you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to access and use the materials and services provided on the Site for your personal, non-commercial educational use only.
Access to the Site and its courses is granted to one individual user per account. Your account and login credentials are personal and may not be shared, transferred, or used by multiple individuals. The use of a single account by multiple users, including within schools, organizations, or groups, is strictly prohibited unless expressly authorized in writing by the Company.
All course materials, including but not limited to videos, audio recordings, lesson slides, PDFs, written content, exercises, and other instructional materials, are the intellectual property of the Company and are protected by copyright and other applicable laws.
Under this license, you may not:
- reproduce, distribute, publicly display, or publicly perform the materials;
- share, sell, sublicense, or transfer access to the materials or your account to another person;
- record, download (except where explicitly permitted), copy, or redistribute course content;
- upload course materials to other websites, platforms, or file-sharing services;
- use the materials for commercial purposes or to create competing educational content;
- attempt to reverse engineer, extract, or otherwise misuse the Site or its software systems.
The Company reserves the right to suspend or terminate your access to the Site at its sole discretion if these Terms are violated. Upon termination of access, your license to use the materials immediately ends.
3. Disclaimer
The materials, courses, and services provided on the Site are offered for educational and informational purposes only. While the Company makes reasonable efforts to provide accurate and helpful instructional content, the Company does not guarantee that the materials will be error-free, complete, or up to date.
All materials on the Site are provided "as is" and "as available." To the fullest extent permitted by law, the Company disclaims all warranties, express or implied, including but not limited to implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement.
The Company does not guarantee any particular learning outcome, language proficiency level, or personal results from the use of its courses or materials. Individual progress depends on many factors, including the learner’s effort, prior knowledge, and practice.
The Company also does not warrant that access to the Site will be uninterrupted, secure, or free from technical errors, including interruptions caused by third-party service providers, internet connectivity issues, or system maintenance.
Your use of the Site and its materials is at your own risk.
4. Limitation of Liability
To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, the Company shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, consequential, special, or punitive damages arising from or related to your use of, or inability to use, the Site or its materials. This includes, but is not limited to, damages for loss of data, loss of profits, interruption of service, or other business or personal losses.
In jurisdictions where limitations of liability are not permitted, the Company’s liability shall be limited to the maximum extent permitted by law.
5. Intellectual Property
All content available on the Site, including but not limited to course videos, audio recordings, lesson slides, written materials, exercises, graphics, logos, and downloadable resources, is the intellectual property of the Company and is protected by copyright, trademark, and other applicable intellectual property laws.
Your purchase or enrollment grants you a limited license to access and use the materials for personal educational purposes only. No ownership rights are transferred to you. Any unauthorized use, reproduction, distribution, or commercial use of the materials is strictly prohibited.
6. User Conduct
By using the Site, you agree not to engage in conduct that may harm the Site, its users, or the Company. Prohibited conduct includes, but is not limited to:
- attempting to gain unauthorized access to accounts or systems
- interfering with the operation or security of the Site
- transmitting harmful code, viruses, or malicious software
- using the Site in a manner that violates any applicable laws
The Company reserves the right to suspend or terminate accounts that engage in prohibited conduct.
7. Refund Policy
Unless otherwise stated on the applicable sales page at the time of purchase, the Company offers a 14-day refund period for eligible course purchases.
Refund requests must be submitted within 14 days of the original purchase date. After this period, purchases are considered final.
The Company reserves the right to deny refund requests in cases of abuse, excessive refund requests, or violations of these Terms.
8. Third-Party Services
The Site may rely on third-party platforms and services to deliver courses, process payments, and manage user accounts. The Company is not responsible for interruptions, errors, or technical issues caused by such third-party services.
Your use of the Site may also be subject to the terms and policies of those third-party providers.
9. External Links
The Site may contain links to external websites for informational purposes. The Company has no control over and assumes no responsibility for the content, privacy practices, or policies of such third-party websites. Accessing external sites is done at your own risk.
10. Termination of Access
The Company reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to suspend or terminate your account and access to the Site if you violate these Terms or misuse the services provided.
Termination may occur without prior notice in cases involving unauthorized account sharing, intellectual property infringement, or other violations of these Terms.
11. Modifications to the Terms
The Company may revise these Terms of Use at any time. Updated versions will be posted on this page with a revised Effective Date.
By continuing to use the Site after changes are posted, you agree to be bound by the updated Terms.
12. Governing Law
These Terms and any disputes arising from the use of the Site shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Washington, United States, without regard to conflict of law principles.
13. Correspondence
By creating an account or enrolling in a course, you agree to receive communications from the Company relating to your account, course access, curriculum updates, and other information necessary for the delivery of the services.
Such communications may be delivered via email or other reasonable means.
14. Unauthorized Recording and Distribution
All course materials provided on the Site are the intellectual property of the Company and are intended solely for the personal educational use of the registered user.
You may not record, copy, reproduce, distribute, transmit, display, publish, or otherwise share any course materials without the prior written permission of the Company. This includes, but is not limited to:
- screen recording or capturing videos or audio from lessons
- downloading or copying course materials where downloading is not explicitly permitted
- sharing lesson content, slides, or downloadable materials with others
- uploading course materials to websites, social media platforms, file-sharing services, or any other online or offline distribution channel
- using the materials to teach courses, workshops, or training programs without written authorization from the Company
Any unauthorized use, reproduction, or distribution of the Company’s materials may result in immediate termination of access to the Site and may constitute a violation of applicable copyright laws.
The Company reserves the right to pursue appropriate legal remedies in cases of intellectual property infringement or unauthorized distribution of its materials.
15. Memberships and Subscription Billing
Some services offered on the Site may be provided through membership plans or subscription-based access. By enrolling in a membership or subscription, you agree to the billing terms presented at the time of purchase.
Subscriptions are billed on a recurring basis (such as monthly or annually) and will automatically renew at the end of each billing period unless you cancel your subscription before the next billing date. It is your responsibility to manage or cancel your subscription through your account settings before the renewal date if you do not wish to continue.
The Company reserves the right to change membership pricing or subscription terms in the future. Any price changes will apply to future billing cycles and will not affect previously completed billing periods.
If a subscription is canceled, access to membership content will continue until the end of the current billing period, after which access will terminate unless the subscription is renewed.
All subscription payments are processed through third-party payment providers. The Company is not responsible for errors, delays, or issues arising from payment processing systems, banks, or payment providers.