Kotomo Terms of Service

Service and Operator Information

Official Website: https://kotomo.app/en
Support Page: https://kotomo.app/en/support
Terms of Service: https://kotomo.app/en/terms
Privacy Policy: https://kotomo.app/en/privacy
General Contact: support@kotomo.app
Operator: SPI Co., Ltd.
Address: Yoshino Daiichi Building 7F, 1-6-3 Nihonbashi Bakurocho, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 103-0002, Japan
Personal Information Contact: SPI Co., Ltd. Personal Information Inquiry Desk / privacy@spi-jp.com

These Terms of Use (the “Terms”) set forth the conditions for using the Japanese language learning support application “Kotomo” and related websites, APIs, and other services (collectively, the “Service”) provided by SPI Co., Ltd. (the “Company,” “we,” “us,” or “our”).

By using the Service, Users are deemed to have agreed to these Terms and the Privacy Policy separately established by the Company.

Article 1 (Application)

These Terms apply to all relationships between Users and the Company concerning the use of the Service.

Guidelines, help pages, notices, and other rules separately established by the Company in relation to the Service form part of these Terms.

When the Service is used through an app store or similar platform, the terms of use, payment terms, and other rules established by the applicable app store operator may also apply.

Article 2 (Registration and Accounts)

Use of all or part of the Service may require registration, login, or guest use by the method designated by the Company.

Users must keep their registration information accurate and up to date.

Users are responsible for managing their login information, authentication information, social login information, and other credentials, and must not transfer, lend, disclose, or share such information with any third party.

Except in cases of willful misconduct or gross negligence by the Company, the Company will not be liable for any damage arising from insufficient management of login information, third-party use, unauthorized use, or similar circumstances.

Article 3 (Service Description)

The Service provides functions for Japanese language learning, pronunciation practice, audio recording and playback, learning material management, learning history display, AI-based learning support, and related purposes.

The Service may include functions such as pronunciation evaluation, audio analysis, speech recognition, AI chat, learning material generation, text generation, and conversation support.

The Company may change, add, suspend, or discontinue all or part of the Service due to development status, operational needs, laws and regulations, app store requirements, or other circumstances.

Article 4 (Fees)

As of the initial release, the Service is provided free of charge.

If the Company provides paid features, subscriptions, in-app purchases, or other paid services in the future, the Company will display the fees, payment methods, renewal conditions, cancellation methods, and other relevant information in the app or on the Company website.

Payments, refunds, cancellations, and related matters processed through an app store may be subject to the terms and conditions established by the applicable app store operator.

Article 5 (User Content)

With respect to audio, text, images, learning materials, notes, and other information that Users input, transmit, record, store, or register through the Service (collectively, “User Content”), Users represent and warrant that they have the necessary rights and that such User Content does not infringe the rights of any third party.

Users must not input or register third-party copyrighted works, personal information, confidential information, or information that may infringe rights without permission from the relevant rights holder.

The Company handles User Content only to the extent necessary for providing, operating, improving, troubleshooting, preventing unauthorized use of, responding to inquiries regarding, and processing account deletion requests for the Service. The handling of personal information and other data is governed by the Company’s Privacy Policy.

Article 6 (Notes on Audio and AI Features)

The Service may process audio and text input or recorded by Users for pronunciation evaluation, audio analysis, AI chat, learning material generation, text generation, conversation support, and related functions.

AI-generated evaluations, advice, generated results, chat responses, and other outputs may contain errors, inaccuracies, incomplete information, or content that differs from the User’s intent.

The Service is intended to support learning and does not guarantee examination results, residence status, employment, qualifications, medical, legal, investment, or other professional decisions or outcomes.

Users must exercise sufficient care and use their own responsibility when entering personal information, confidential information, or information concerning third-party rights into AI features.

Article 7 (Prohibited Conduct)

Users must not engage in any of the following acts when using the Service:

• Acts that violate laws or regulations, public order or morals, or acts related to criminal activity
• Acts that infringe the copyrights, trademarks, privacy, portrait rights, honor, reputation, or other rights or interests of the Company, other Users, or third parties
• Impersonating a third party or registering or transmitting false information
• Unauthorized access, reverse engineering, excessive load, scraping, automated mass access, or any other act that interferes with the operation of the Service
• Posting, inputting, or transmitting discriminatory, harassing, violent, sexual, dangerous, illegal, rights-infringing, or other content that the Company reasonably determines to be inappropriate
• Commercial use, redistribution, sale, lending, or reproduction of the Service or outputs from the Service without the Company’s prior consent
• Use of the Service for voice cloning, impersonation, fraud, rights infringement, nuisance to third parties, or other unauthorized or inappropriate purposes
• Providing benefits directly or indirectly to anti-social forces
• Any other act that the Company reasonably determines to be inappropriate

Article 8 (Suspension or Interruption of the Service)

The Company may suspend or interrupt all or part of the Service if the Company determines that such suspension or interruption is necessary for maintenance, inspection, updates, troubleshooting, security measures, legal or regulatory compliance, suspension of external services, natural disasters, power outages, communication failures, or other reasons.

Except in cases of willful misconduct or gross negligence by the Company, the Company will not be liable for any damage incurred by Users due to the preceding paragraph.

Article 9 (Usage Restrictions and Account Termination)

If a User violates these Terms, provides false registration information, is suspected of unauthorized use, has not used the Service for a long period of time, or if the Company determines that the User’s use of the Service is inappropriate, the Company may, without prior notice, restrict use, suspend the account, delete the registration, hide or delete User Content, or take other necessary measures.

Except in cases of willful misconduct or gross negligence by the Company, the Company will not be liable for any damage incurred by Users due to the measures described in the preceding paragraph.

Article 10 (Withdrawal and Account Deletion)

Users may request withdrawal from the Service or deletion of their account by the method designated by the Company.

As of the initial release, the Company accepts withdrawal and account deletion requests through in-app links such as “Feedback” or “Inquiry,” or by contacting support@kotomo.app.

After confirming the request and verifying the identity of the requester, the Company will process deletion of account information and related data within a reasonable period, except for information that must be retained under laws and regulations or for operational reasons.

After withdrawal or account deletion, learning history, registered materials, recorded audio, scores, and other information stored in the Service may no longer be available.

In the case of guest use, there may be no registered account; however, the Company will respond according to the User’s usage status regarding deletion of information stored in the app or related data managed by the Company.

Article 11 (Intellectual Property Rights)

Intellectual property rights in and to the Service, software, designs, logos, characters, text, images, audio, learning materials, programs, and other items related to the Service belong to the Company or the legitimate rights holders.

The license to use the Service under these Terms grants Users a non-exclusive, non-transferable, non-sublicensable right to use the Service in the ordinary manner and does not constitute a transfer of any intellectual property rights.

Rights in User Content remain with the User or the legitimate rights holder. However, the Company may use User Content to the extent necessary for providing, operating, improving, troubleshooting, preventing unauthorized use of, and responding to inquiries regarding the Service.

Article 12 (Handling of Personal Information)

The Company appropriately handles personal information and other information obtained through the use of the Service in accordance with the Company’s Privacy Policy.

Users must review the Company’s Privacy Policy before using the Service.

Article 13 (Minors)

If a minor uses the Service, the minor must use the Service with the consent of a legal representative or parent/guardian.

The Company may, when necessary, request confirmation of consent from the legal representative or parent/guardian.

Article 14 (Disclaimer of Warranties and Limitation of Liability)

The Company does not warrant that the Service is safe, accurate, complete, useful, suitable for a particular purpose, continuously available, free from errors or defects, effective for any learning outcome, or non-infringing of third-party rights.

Except in cases of willful misconduct or gross negligence by the Company, the Company will not be liable for any damage incurred by Users arising from the use of or inability to use the Service.

If the Consumer Contract Act of Japan or other laws or regulations prohibit the exclusion of all or part of the Company’s liability, the disclaimer in this Article applies only to the extent permitted by such laws and regulations.

The Company is not responsible for disputes, communications, transactions, or other matters arising between Users and other Users or third parties.

Article 15 (Notices and Communications)

Notices or communications from the Company to Users will be made by in-app display, posting on the website, sending to the registered email address, push notification, or any other method that the Company considers appropriate.

Communications from Users to the Company must be made through the inquiry desk or method designated by the Company.

Article 16 (Prohibition of Assignment)

Users may not assign, transfer, pledge, or otherwise dispose of their status under these Terms or their rights or obligations under these Terms to any third party without the prior written consent of the Company.

Article 17 (Changes to These Terms)

The Company may change these Terms due to changes in laws or regulations, changes to the Service, operational needs, or other circumstances.

When changing these Terms, the Company will notify Users of the amended Terms and the effective date by posting them on the Terms URL, notifying Users in the app, or by another appropriate method.

If a User uses the Service after the amended Terms take effect, the User will be deemed to have agreed to the amended Terms. However, if consent is required by law, the Company will obtain consent by the method designated by the Company.

Article 18 (Governing Law and Jurisdiction)

These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Japan.

If any dispute arises in connection with the Service or these Terms, the Tokyo District Court will have exclusive jurisdiction as the court of first instance.

Article 19 (Contact)

Inquiries regarding the Service, withdrawal, account deletion, or these Terms: support@kotomo.app
Inquiries regarding the handling of personal information: SPI Co., Ltd. Personal Information Inquiry Desk, privacy@spi-jp.com
Support page: https://kotomo.app/en/support