Terms and Conditions

Welcome to the DKK Publishing (PTY) Ltd online story creation and publishing platform (“Platform”).

These Terms and Conditions (“Terms”) govern the use of the Platform, website, services, products and publishing services offered by DKK Publishing (PTY) Ltd (“DKK Publishing”, “we”, “our”, or “us”).

By registering for, accessing or using the Platform, the Parent or Legal Guardian agrees to be bound by these Terms on behalf of themselves and the child using the Platform.

If you do not agree to these Terms, you may not use the Platform.

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Registered in the Republic of South Africa

• Website:

“www.dkkpublishing.com” (https://www.dkkpublishing.com)

Email:

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Telephone:

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For purposes of these Terms:

Account means the registered Parent Account.

Author means the child whose name appears on the published book.

Child means the minor using the Platform.

Content includes stories, titles, text, illustrations, artwork, images, cover designs and any other creative work.

Guardian means the child’s parent or legal guardian.

Platform means the online story creation and publishing system.

Services means all products and services offered by DKK Publishing.

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Only a Parent or Legal Guardian who is at least 18 years of age may:

• – Register an account;
• – Purchase a package;
• – Enter into a publishing agreement;
• – Make payments;
• – Receive royalty payments;
• – Accept these Terms.

Children may only use the Platform under the supervision and consent of their Parent or Legal Guardian.

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The Parent Account holder must provide accurate information including, where applicable:

• – Full name
• – Surname
• – Residential address
• – Email address
• – Mobile telephone number
• – Country of residence
• – Payment information

The Parent agrees that all information supplied is true and accurate.

DKK Publishing reserves the right to suspend or terminate accounts containing false or misleading information.

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Following registration, the Parent will create:

• – a Username; and
• – a Password

for the Child.

The Child Login is solely intended for story creation.

The Child Login will not have access to:

• – Parent personal information;
• – Payment information;
• – Billing history;
• – Account management;
• – Royalty information;
• – Account settings.

The Parent remains responsible for all activities performed using both the Parent and Child logins.

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Parents are responsible for:

• – keeping login credentials confidential;
• – ensuring children use the Platform responsibly;
• – notifying DKK Publishing immediately if unauthorized access occurs.

DKK Publishing shall not be liable for losses arising from failure to safeguard login credentials.

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The Platform allows children to:

• – create stories;
• – interpret picture-guided storylines;
• – write their own text;
• – develop literacy skills;
• – create original books;
• – submit original stories for illustration and publication.

The Platform is designed as an educational creative writing tool.

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8A. Educational Aids

The Platform may also provide additional educational resources and learning materials (“Educational Aids”) to support literacy, numeracy and cognitive development.

Educational Aids may include, but are not limited to:

• – reading comprehension exercises;
• – problem sums and word problems;
• – mazes and logic puzzles;
• – spot-the-difference activities;
• – mathematics worksheets (including addition, subtraction, multiplication and division);
• – creative thinking and sequencing activities.

Where Educational Aids are made available, they are intended strictly for personal, non-commercial educational use by the Child under parental supervision.

Paid users (Parents or Legal Guardians with an active subscription or purchased package) are granted a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to:

• – download Educational Aids; and/or
• – print Educational Aids

for use within the home or educational environment of the Child.

Users may not:

• – resell, redistribute or share Educational Aids with third parties;
• – upload Educational Aids to public platforms;
• – modify and republish Educational Aids for commercial use;
• – remove branding or copyright notices.

All Educational Aids remain the intellectual property of DKK Publishing unless otherwise stated.

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DKK Publishing may offer various story themes including, but not limited to:

• – Fun At The Beach
• – Holiday Adventures
• – Safari Adventures
• – Christmas Stories
• – Diwali
• – Celebration of Eid
• – Zoo Adventures
• – Dragon Stories
• – Aquarium Adventures
• – My First Pet

Additional themes may be added or removed without notice.

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Children may also create entirely original story ideas.

The Parent confirms that all submitted stories:

• – are original;
• – do not infringe copyright;
• – are lawful;
• – are suitable for children;
• – do not contain offensive material.

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Upon completion of the story:

DKK Publishing will review the submission.

Where required, DKK Publishing may:

• – correct obvious spelling mistakes;
• – correct grammar;
• – improve punctuation;
• – adjust formatting;
• – improve page layout.

DKK Publishing will not intentionally alter the child’s storyline or creative intent without approval from the Parent.

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Where illustrations are created based upon the child’s written story:

DKK Publishing shall produce artwork interpreting the written storyline.

The Parent understands that:

• – illustrations are artistic interpretations;
• – minor creative differences may occur;
• – illustration style remains at the discretion of DKK Publishing unless otherwise agreed.

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Prior to publication:

The Parent will receive digital proofs.

The Parent shall review:

• – text;
• – spelling;
• – layout;
• – illustrations;
• – cover;
• – author details.

Publication shall only proceed once final approval has been received.

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Where applicable:

DKK Publishing shall apply for an ISBN in accordance with South African publishing requirements.

The ISBN shall remain linked to the published edition.

NB: The application for the ISBN Number can take up to 3 weeks – depending on the workload at the ISBN office.

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Following approval:

DKK Publishing will publish the book.

Publication will include a hardcopy only, and will be marketed on the DKK Publishing website, under books for sale. Other options and marketing mediums may be available, but will be at an additional cost (this can be discussed with DKK Publishing directly):

• – Printed books
• – Digital books
• – eBooks
• – Website listings
• – Marketplace listings
• – Online bookstores
• – Promotional catalogues

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The Child shall be credited as the Author.

Where applicable, the child’s first name and surname may appear on:

• – the cover;
• – title page;
• – ISBN records;
• – sales listings.

Parents may request the use of:

• – initials;
• – first name only;
• – a pen name,

subject to DKK Publishing’s approval.

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Subject to the selected publishing package and separate Royalty Agreement:

The Child Author may earn royalties from qualifying sales.

Royalty payments shall:

• – be made only to the Parent or Legal Guardian;
• – never be paid directly to a minor;
• – be paid according to DKK Publishing’s royalty schedule.

DKK Publishing reserves the right to deduct:

• – taxes;
• – refunds;
• – transaction fees;
• – distributor fees;
• – printing costs where applicable.

Royalties shall only become payable once any applicable minimum payment threshold has been reached.

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The Parent authorizes DKK Publishing to market published books through:

• – DKK Publishing website only

Should the Parent/ Guardian want to promote/ market their child’s book through other paid mediums, then this must be treated as a separate agreement and further discussions will have to take place to discuss additional costs involved:

• – online marketplaces;
• – bookstores;
• – educational channels;
• – social media;
• – promotional campaigns;
• – catalogues.

Marketing does not guarantee sales.

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The Child retains copyright in the original written story.

DKK Publishing retains copyright in:

• – illustrations;
• – cover artwork;
• – platform software;
• – website;
• – templates;
• – educational content;
• – publishing systems.

The Parent grants DKK Publishing a non-exclusive, worldwide licence to should the Parent/ user decide/ be inclined to publish and market their book in bulk for sale locally or internationally across other mediums and partners:

• – publish;
• – distribute;
• – market;
• – reproduce;
• – display;
• – promote

the submitted work.

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Users may not submit material that:

• – infringes copyright;
• – promotes violence;
• – contains hate speech;
• – contains pornography;
• – contains illegal material;
• – infringes another person’s rights;
• – contains malware;
• – is defamatory.

DKK Publishing may refuse publication of inappropriate content.

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DKK Publishing may use AI-assisted technologies during:

• – illustration;
• – editing;
• – layout;
• – publishing;
• – production,

provided human review forms part of the publishing process.

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All purchases shall be made by the Parent. The payment portal used is Yoco (a secure payment system).

Payment methods may include:

• – Credit Cards
• – Debit Cards
• – EFT
• – Online Payment Gateways

Prices are displayed in South African Rand unless otherwise stated.

All payments are subject to successful authorization.

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Due to the personalised nature of publishing services:

Fees paid for:

• – custom illustrations;
• – editing;
• – publishing;
• – ISBN applications;
• – production,

may be non-refundable once work has commenced.

Refunds may be considered at DKK Publishing’s discretion where required by the Consumer Protection Act.

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Where subscription packages are offered:

The Parent authorizes recurring billing until cancelled.

Cancellation shall not affect work already commenced.

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DKK Publishing collects personal information in accordance with:

• – the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (POPIA);
• – applicable South African legislation.

Personal information shall only be collected for:

• – account administration;
• – publishing;
• – royalty payments;
• – customer support;
• – legal compliance.

Children’s information shall be processed only with parental consent.

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DKK Publishing is committed to protecting children’s privacy.

The Child Login has limited functionality.

Children cannot:

• – change account details;
• – access billing;
• – view payment information;
• – modify Parent information.

Parents remain responsible for supervising use of the Platform.

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DKK Publishing uses reasonable administrative, technical and physical safeguards to protect personal information.

However, no online system can guarantee absolute security.

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Users may not:

• – hack the Platform;
• – interfere with security;
• – upload viruses;
• – reverse engineer software;
• – impersonate others;
• – misuse the Platform.

Accounts violating these Terms may be terminated immediately.

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DKK Publishing aims to provide continuous access but does not guarantee uninterrupted availability.

Maintenance, upgrades or unforeseen technical issues may temporarily interrupt services.

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The Platform may integrate with:

• – payment providers;
• – printing companies;
• – distributors;
• – online bookstores.

DKK Publishing is not responsible for services provided by third parties.

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To the fullest extent permitted by South African law:

DKK Publishing shall not be liable for:

• – indirect damages;
• – consequential loss;
• – loss of profits;
• – loss of data;
• – interruption of business.

Our liability shall not exceed the amount paid by the Parent for the relevant Service.

Nothing in these Terms excludes liability that cannot lawfully be excluded under South African law.

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The Parent agrees to indemnify DKK Publishing against claims arising from:

• – infringement of copyright;
• – unlawful content;
• – breach of these Terms;
• – misuse of the Platform.

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DKK Publishing may suspend accounts where:

• – fraud is suspected;
• – payments fail;
• – misuse occurs;
• – illegal content is submitted;
• – these Terms are breached.

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The Parent may close the account at any time.

Termination does not affect:

• – completed publications;
• – royalty obligations;
• – copyright licences already granted;
• – outstanding payments.

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DKK Publishing may amend these Terms from time to time.

Updated Terms will be published on the website.

Continued use of the Platform constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

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These Terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa.

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The parties shall first attempt to resolve disputes through negotiation.

If unresolved, disputes may be referred to:

• – mediation;
• – arbitration; or
• – the appropriate South African court,

subject to applicable law.

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Nothing in these Terms limits any rights afforded to consumers under:

• – the Consumer Protection Act, 68 of 2008;
• – the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act, 25 of 2002;
• – the Protection of Personal Information Act, 4 of 2013; or
• – any other applicable South African legislation.

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Timeframe – Please note that the delivery lead time to receive your book will be between 3 to 5 weeks from the date of clicking publish on the book creation program/ website.

39.1. Delivery (costs)

Delivery cost is included in the price (unless otherwise stipulated) and is not door to door. We utilize the following delivery methods:

Pudo Locker system (this is the default delivery option)

Paxi – Through PEP Stores (this is the secondary delivery method should we have issues with the default method)

School collection – if you have signed on through your child’s school, then delivery will be made to the school directly, in a bulk delivery. This means where there are multiple children that have signed on for the book creation system in the same school, then we may limit the deliveries to one (1) bulk shipment.

The above methods, means delivery to your closest Pudo locker, or PEP store to the address the parent/ user has registered on the DKK Publishing registration portal. The onus is on the Parent/ user to collect the parcel from the above locations.

• 39.2. Delivery on different book packages (Preset or Create your own story/ theme);

39.2.1.

1 Book Package:

1 book will be delivered to the closest Pudo locker.

39.2.2

2 Book Package:

All two (2) books will be delivered at the same time only.

39.2.3.

3 Book Package:

All three (3) books will be delivered at the same time only.

39.2.4.

6 Book Package:

This will allow for 2 separate deliveries

Delivery 1 – (books 1 to 3)

Delivery 2 – (books 4 to 6)

39.2.5.

12 Book Package:

This will allow for 4 separate deliveries.

Delivery 1 – (books 1 to 3)

Delivery 2 – (books 4 to 6)

Delivery 3 – (books 7 to 9)

Delivery 4 – (books 10 to 12)

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These Terms constitute the basic agreement between DKK Publishing and the Parent regarding use of the Platform. This must be read and agreed in conjunction with the legal pack.

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• Website:

“www.dkkpublishing.com” (https://www.dkkpublishing.com)

Email: “info@dkkpublishing.com” (mailto:info@dkkpublishing.com)

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Telephone:

+27 64 515 8628

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Business Hours: 8:30 to 16:30 (Monday to Friday)

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Parent Declaration

By selecting “I Agree”, the Parent or Legal Guardian confirms that:

• – they are at least 18 years old;
• – they are the Parent or Legal Guardian of the Child;
• – they consent to the Child using the Platform;
• – they have read and understood these Terms and Conditions;
• – they consent to the processing of personal information in accordance with POPIA;
• – they agree to the publication and marketing of the completed book in accordance with these Terms.

Parent/Guardian Name:

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• Signature:

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• Date: