Terms of Service.

These Terms of Service ("Terms") are a contract between you and CGHM Associates LLC, an Illinois limited liability company doing business as Methodica ("Methodica", "we", "us"). They apply to the Methodica apps, website, API and related services (the "Service"). By creating a studio, accepting an invitation to one, or using the Service, you agree to these Terms and to our Privacy Policy.

1. The Service

Methodica is software for running a lessons business: scheduling, attendance, billing and payments, messaging, sign-up forms, and an optional practice-motivation layer (streaks, quests, arcade games) for students. We provide the software; we are not a music school, a teacher, or a party to the lessons your studio sells.

2. Accounts and roles

• Studio owners create a studio, are responsible for it, and invite teachers, staff, parents and students. The owner accepts these Terms on behalf of the studio and warrants they have authority to do so.
• Teachers and staff use the Service under their studio's account and must follow these Terms and the studio's instructions.
• Parents and adult students must be 18 or older to hold an account. Students under 18 use accounts created for them by a parent, guardian or the studio; a parent or guardian consents to the child's use and remains responsible for it.
• Keep your password private and tell us immediately at hello@methodica.app if you suspect unauthorized access. You are responsible for activity under your account.

3. Your studio's data

Everything a studio and its users enter — student records, schedules, notes, messages, uploads — is the studio's data. The studio is the data controller for the families it enrolls: it decides what to collect, must have a lawful basis and any required parental consent to do so, and must respond to its families' privacy requests. Methodica processes that data only to provide the Service, as described in the Privacy Policy, and will assist studios with their obligations.

You grant Methodica the limited license needed to host, back up, display and transmit your data to operate the Service. We claim no ownership of it. On request we will export a studio's data in a standard format, and on termination we will delete it after a reasonable wind-down period, subject to backups rolling off and records we must keep by law.

4. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• use the Service to harass, threaten, exploit or endanger anyone — especially a minor — or send messages a reasonable person would find abusive or unwanted;
• upload content that is unlawful, infringing, sexually explicit, or that you have no right to share, including recordings of others without consent;
• access another studio's data, probe or circumvent security, scrape the Service, or exceed API rate limits;
• resell or white-label the Service without a written agreement, or use it to build a competing product;
• use the Service in violation of applicable law, including payment-network rules and privacy laws.

Users can report or block a conversation from inside the app. We may remove content, suspend accounts or terminate studios that violate these Terms, and we may cooperate with law enforcement where safety is at stake.

5. Plans, trials and cancellation

• Free trial. New studios get a 30-day free trial with no card required. When it ends, the studio chooses a paid plan to keep going; until it does, the studio's data is retained and access is limited.
• Billing. Plans are billed monthly or annually in advance, in US dollars, by card through Stripe. Prices are shown at methodica.app/pricing and may change with at least 30 days' notice; changes never apply mid-term to a prepaid period.
• Cancel any time from Settings → Subscription. Your plan stays active until the end of the period you already paid for and then stops. We do not refund partial periods, except where the law requires it or we have failed to provide the Service.
• Non-payment. If a renewal fails we retry and notify you; after a grace period the studio moves to read-only until payment succeeds.

6. Collecting payments from your families

Studios can collect tuition through Stripe Connect. When you enable it, you enter into Stripe's Connected Account Agreement directly, Stripe holds and pays out your funds, and Stripe's processing fees apply. In addition, Methodica charges a platform fee of 0.75% of each payment processed through the Service, which a studio may absorb or pass on to families as its settings allow. Methodica is not a bank or money transmitter, does not hold your funds, and is not responsible for chargebacks, refunds you owe your families, or taxes on your revenue. You are responsible for the accuracy of the invoices you send and for complying with card-network rules.

7. Our intellectual property

The Service, its software, design, games, artwork and documentation belong to Methodica and its licensors. We grant you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable right to use them as part of the Service while these Terms are in force. Feedback you send us may be used without obligation to you.

8. Third-party services

The Service relies on third parties (Stripe, Google sign-in, email/SMS/push providers, hosting) and may link to third-party content such as song catalogs and videos. Those services have their own terms; we are not responsible for them or for their availability.

9. Disclaimers

THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE." TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, METHODICA DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. We do not warrant that the Service will be uninterrupted or error-free, that data will never be lost (keep your own exports), or that it will meet the requirements of any particular law that applies to your business. Nothing in the Service is legal, tax or accounting advice.

10. Limitation of liability

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, METHODICA AND ITS MEMBERS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES AND SUPPLIERS WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR LOST PROFITS, REVENUE, DATA OR GOODWILL, ARISING FROM OR RELATED TO THE SERVICE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY. OUR TOTAL LIABILITY FOR ALL CLAIMS IN ANY 12-MONTH PERIOD WILL NOT EXCEED THE SUBSCRIPTION FEES YOUR STUDIO PAID METHODICA IN THE 12 MONTHS BEFORE THE CLAIM (OR US$100 IF YOU PAID NONE). Some jurisdictions do not allow certain limitations, so some of these may not apply to you.

11. Indemnity

Studios agree to defend and indemnify Methodica against claims arising from the studio's data, its use of the Service, its dealings with its families, or its violation of these Terms or the law — including claims that it lacked the consent needed to enroll a student.

12. Termination

You may close your account or studio at any time (in-app account deletion, or by cancelling your subscription and emailing us to delete the studio). We may suspend or terminate access for a material breach of these Terms, for non-payment after notice, or if required by law. Sections 3, 7 and 9–14 survive termination.

13. Governing law and disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Illinois, USA, without regard to conflict-of-laws rules. Any dispute will be brought in the state or federal courts located in DuPage County, Illinois, and you consent to their jurisdiction. Before filing, both sides agree to try to resolve the matter informally by emailing hello@methodica.app and allowing 30 days for a response.

14. Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms as the Service evolves. For material changes we will update the effective date and notify studio owners by email or in the app at least 30 days before they take effect. Continued use after the effective date means you accept the new Terms; if you do not, cancel before then.

15. General

These Terms plus the Privacy Policy are the entire agreement between us regarding the Service. If a provision is unenforceable, the rest remains in effect. You may not assign these Terms without our consent; we may assign them to a successor of the business. Failure to enforce a term is not a waiver. Notices to you go to your account email; notices to us go to hello@methodica.app.

Contact

CGHM Associates LLC (Methodica), Illinois, USA · hello@methodica.app.

SMS program terms

Program name: Methodica studio notifications. Description: optional, operational text messages sent on behalf of your music studio: lesson reminders, schedule changes, billing receipts and reminders, and new-message notices. Full program details, including screenshots of the opt-in: methodica.app/sms.

• Texts are optional and never a condition of enrollment, lessons, booking or purchase. You opt in yourself, either with the Text messages toggle in the Methodica app (Profile → Notifications, off by default) or by ticking the unchecked, optional checkbox on your studio’s signup or booking form. By opting in you agree to receive recurring automated text messages from your studio via Methodica at the number provided.
• Message frequency varies based on your lessons and account activity.
• Message and data rates may apply. Check with your carrier.
• Reply STOP at any time to cancel. You will receive one final confirmation message. Reply HELP for help, or contact hello@methodica.app.
• Carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages.
• Your mobile information will not be shared with third parties or affiliates for marketing or promotional purposes. See our Privacy Policy.