Terms of use

What sovl is

sovl collects claims of the form "X is the best Y in Z, says who". Positive only: you vote for what you think is the best, never against anyone. There are no reviews, no scores and no averages. A ranking is the number of standing votes, and nothing else.

Votes are verified by phone number or by account, with no proof of visit. Each ranking says which, so everyone can judge its weight.

Your account

• You sign up by writing to the bot on Telegram (WhatsApp will follow). Signing in on sovl.com uses the same Telegram account.
• One person, one account. A phone number belongs to one account only. Sharing your number is optional.
• You must be 16 or older.
• Use your own accounts and your own phone number only, not someone else's, and no automated accounts.

Voting

• One standing vote per person per category and area.
• Agreeing attaches your vote to the person you trust. Challenging answers a vote with another place; the challenged voter can stand or switch, and silence until the deadline counts as standing.
• Nothing moves your vote without your tap.
• The number of new claims per day, moves and received challenges is limited.
• Vote only for what you really think is the best.

Nothing for sale

• Buying or selling votes, agrees, challenges or moves is forbidden, and so is offering or accepting anything for one: money, a discount, a free product, a gift, a contest entry.
• Asking people to vote is fine. Votes that come in after a shop's own call are counted and shown as such on the ranking.
• sovl itself never sells a position, placement, boost or challenge.

Sponsorship must be disclosed

If you have a commercial tie with the place you vote for, or with a brand it sells (you are paid, sponsored or an ambassador), that tie must be disclosed on the vote. A sponsored vote counts, but the page says so. Until you can add that disclosure in sovl itself, do not vote where you have such a tie. Anyone may report an undisclosed sponsorship.

Owners do not vote for themselves

The owner of a place, and anyone voting on the owner's behalf, does not vote or agree for that place and does not challenge in a ranking where the place is ranked. An owner stays a voter for everything else, suppliers included. When a claim is approved, the owner's own votes for the place are withdrawn.

The "why" text

Coming soon: a short text with your vote. It may only say why your own pick is good. It may not name or attack a competitor, contain someone else's personal data, or be unlawful, insulting or misleading. Such a text can be reported and removed.

Names

On sovl.com your name appears only if you agreed to be named; otherwise you are "a voter". Inside the bot, the people you deal with (whoever opens your share link, whoever you challenge or who challenges you, whoever follows your vote, and anyone looking at a ranking in the bot where you found the place) see your display name. Details are in the privacy policy.

Reporting content (notice and action)

Found a vote, name or text that is unlawful or breaks these rules? Write to [email protected] with the exact page or place, what is wrong and why, and your name and e-mail address. We confirm receipt, decide carefully and without undue delay, and tell you the outcome. This address is also our single point of contact under the EU Digital Services Act, for users and authorities, in Dutch, French or English.

We may remove content, withdraw votes, or suspend or delete an account that breaks these terms. We tell the person concerned what we did and why, and they can contest it by writing to the same address.

Shop owners

• Claiming a place: sign in on sovl.com, share your phone number in the bot and press "This is my shop" on the place's page. We check every claim by hand and may refuse or revoke it, for example when someone else proves to be the owner. Claiming is free during the pilot.
• An approved owner gets an owner page with the place, its codes and their counters, and material to ask followers for votes.
• Stickers and codes: a code points at one place. An approval takes over the codes already hanging on that place. An owner may point their own codes elsewhere; a code someone else hung stays theirs until an approval. We may switch a code off.
• Votes that arrive through a sticker or campaign are counted and disclosed on the ranking. No reward may be given for a vote.
• A place can be ranked without having been claimed. Owners cannot remove votes, a ranking or its history, and cannot pay for a better position.

Deleting your account

You can delete your account at any time on sovl.com/en/account/delete. Your votes disappear and the rankings stop counting them; people who voted with you keep their vote; a place you claimed is no longer yours. It cannot be undone.

Content and use of sovl

By voting you allow us to publish your votes, free of charge, as part of the rankings, their history and the machine records, named or as "a voter" depending on your choice, for as long as your account exists. The sovl name, design and software belong to us. Place data and photos come from Google Maps and remain subject to Google's terms.

Availability and changes

sovl is free and is being built in the open: features change and the service may be interrupted. We may change these terms; we will announce changes that matter through the bot, and using sovl after a change means accepting the new terms.

Liability

Rankings reflect the opinions of voters, not ours. We do not guarantee that a ranking, a place or its details are correct or complete. To the extent the law allows, we are not liable for indirect damage or for damage caused by other users. Nothing in these terms limits our liability for intent or gross negligence, or your rights as a consumer.

Applicable law and courts

Belgian law applies. Disputes go to the courts of Brussels. If you are a consumer, you keep the protection of the mandatory rules of the country where you live and the right to go to your own court.

Contact

Memes BV, Rue Groeselenberg 180, 1180 Uccle, Belgium, [email protected].