Stern Factory Tour Policy & Release of Liability

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1. Purpose and Scope

The purpose of this Stern Pinball Tour Policy and Release of Liability (“Tour Policy”) is to provide a clear framework for a safe and enjoyable tour experience for all participants. This Tour Policy applies to all individuals who book, participate in, or accompany a tour of the Stern Pinball facility, located at 1001 Busse Road, Elk Grove Village, Illinois, 60007.  By booking or attending a tour, each participant agrees to adhere to the terms and conditions of this Tour Policy, including the liability waiver below. For any questions about this Tour Policy, contact tours@sternpinball.com.

2. Age Requirements, Exclusions and Other Terms

A. Age Requirements: Tour participants must be 12 years of age or older. Participants under 18 years of age (“Minors”) must be accompanied by a parent or supervising adult. A parent or guardian must sign all required consent forms on behalf of Minor.

B. Competitor Exclusions: Persons affiliated with competing pinball or arcade game manufacture companies, including owners, employees, and agents of such companies, are prohibited from booking or participating in a tour.

3. Privacy Notice for Tours

Personal information provided during the tour booking process—including names, email addresses, and guest information—is collected and processed by Stern Pinball solely to schedule and manage tours. This information may also be used for security screening, visitor identification, and emergency response. All personal information  will be handled in accordance with the Stern Pinball’s Privacy Policy, which you can view here.

If government-issued identification or visitor badges are collected or issued for security reasons, such information will be securely stored and deleted after the tour unless retention is required by law. If CCTV or other security monitoring systems are in place, participants will be notified upon entry that video surveillance is in operation.

4. Tour Rules and Code of Conduct

A. Tour Access and Escorting: All tour participants will be met by a designated Stern Pinball employee (“Tour Guide”) at the front lobby. The Tour Guide is responsible for escorting tour participants throughout the entire tour and ensuring compliance with this Policy. Tailgating (following a person closely without proper access to gain entry) is strictly prohibited.

B. Proper Attire: For your safety, tour participants cannot wear heels or open-toed shoes.

C. Prohibited Items: The following items are strictly prohibited on the tour:

Firearms, knives, or any other weapons.

Illegal substances, alcohol, or other contraband.

Large bags bigger than 12” x 6” x 12”.

Food, Drink or Tobacco Products.

D. No Photography, Video, or Recording Devices: The use of cameras, video cameras, cell phones, or any other recording equipment is strictly prohibited inside the Stern Pinball facility unless explicit prior permission has been granted by Stern Pinball. If a tour participant is found to be using such a device, they will be asked to immediately cease and desist. Unauthorized use of any recording devices will result in immediate removal from the premises.

E. Following Tour Guide Instructions: At all times, all participants must comply with Tour Guide and Stern Pinball employee instructions, including the no-touch policy for factory equipment.

5. Cancellation and Refunds

A. Refund Policy: You may cancel your tour up to 48 hours prior to the scheduled tour start time for a full refund.  Stern will provide your refund within 10 business days of receiving your cancellation  request.  Any cancellation made within 48 hours of the scheduled tour start time is non-refundable. Failure to arrive at the designated meeting point at the scheduled tour time will be considered a no show and will not qualify for a refund.

B. Exceptions: Refunds may be granted within 48 hours of the scheduled tour start only in cases of force majeure. Qualifying events include but are not limited to: natural disasters (e.g., earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, wildfires); government actions (e.g., mandatory closures, travel bans, public health restrictions); and acts of terrorism or civil unrest that make participation unsafe. Transportation delays or cancellations are not covered under this exception and do not qualify for a refund. All force majeure events qualifying for refund consideration must occur at the destination where the scheduled service is to take place.

C. Rescheduling Policy: You may reschedule your tour at no additional charge if the request is made at least 48 hours prior to the scheduled start time. Any request to reschedule made within 48 hours of the scheduled start time will incur a fee to cover operational costs.

D. Cancellation by Stern: We recognize that unexpected external factors may occasionally affect the delivery of our tours.  If a portion of the tour cannot be delivered as originally planned due to factors beyond our control (e.g., weather restrictions), we will provide fair compensation or a partial refund. The amount of compensation will be determined on a case-by-case basis, depending on the extent of the disruption and the services already provided.

6. Safety and Liability

A. Assumption of Risk: By participating in the tour, each tour participant acknowledges and understands that a factory environment presents inherent risks, including but not limited to loud noises, uneven surfaces, moving machinery, and the presence of tools and equipment. Each tour participant assumes all risks connected with participation in the tour, and accepts personal responsibility for any liability, injury, loss, or damage to any person or property related to, caused by, or in any way connected with the tour participant’s participation in the tour including, but not limited to, any act or omission by the tour participant during participation in the tour.

B. Release, Waiver of Liability, and Agreement to Indemnify: FOR MYSELF, MY HEIRS, SUCCESSORS OR ASSIGNS, AND LEGAL REPRESENTATIVES, TOUR PARTICIPANT HEREBY WAIVES, RELEASES, ABSOLVES, FOREVER AND FULLY DISCHARGES, AND AGREES TO INDEMNIFY AND HOLD STERN PINBALL AND ITS RESPECTIVE OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, AND ASSIGNEES (COLLECTIVELY, THE “COVERED PERSONS”), FROM AND AGAINST ANY AND ALL LIABILITY, LOSS, CLAIMS, DAMAGES, FINES, PENALTIES, COSTS, AND EXPENSES (INCLUDING REASONABLE ATTORNEY’S FEES), JUDGMENTS, AND AWARDS (COLLECTIVELY, “DAMAGES”) SUSTAINED, INCURRED, SUFFERED, OR IMPOSED UPON ANY COVERED PERSON ARISING OUT OF, RESULTING FROM, OR RELATED TO VISITOR’S PARTICIPATION IN THE TOUR AND ANY FIRST AID, MEDICAL TREATMENT, TRANSPORTATION, OR MEDICAL CARE THAT MAY BE UNDERTAKEN BY STERN PINBALL OR ANY THIRD PARTY DURING OR CONNECTION WITH THE TOUR, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, DAMAGES IN CONNECTION WITH BODILY INJURY, PERMANENT DISABILITY, OR DEATH.

7. Intellectual Property & Media

Non-public information or assets seen or discussed during the tour are considered the proprietary and confidential information (“Confidential Information”) of Stern Pinball. All tour participants are required to maintain strict confidentiality regarding such Confidential Information.

8. Data Retention and Security

Personal information collected in connection with tour registration will be retained only as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes described above or as required by applicable law. After that period, the data will be securely deleted or de-identified. Stern Pinball implements reasonable physical, technical, and administrative safeguards to protect personal information against unauthorized access, disclosure, or misuse. For more information, please see the Stern Pinball Privacy Policy.

9. Severability

Each provision of this Tour Policy shall be treated as a separate and independent clause and any decision from a court of competent jurisdiction to the effect that any clause or provision of this Tour Policy is null or unenforceable shall in no way impair the validity, power, or enforceability of any other clause or provision of this Agreement.

END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT (EULA)

STERN PINBALL

END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT

This limited software license Agreement (“Agreement”) applies to your use of Stern Pinball Software pre-installed on a Stern Pinball Machine and any Authorized Updates made available to you. BY USING YOUR STERN PINBALL MACHINE, YOU AGREE TO THE TERMS OF THIS AGREEMENT. If you do not agree to the terms of this Agreement, do not use your Stern Pinball Machine or any Authorized Updates. Please read this entire Agreement, which governs your use of the Stern Pinball Machine, Stern Pinball Software and all Authorized Updates. ADULT CONSENT TO ENTER INTO THIS AGREEMENT, YOU MUST BE AN ADULT OF THE LEGAL AGE OF MAJORITY IN YOUR COUNTRY OF RESIDENCE. YOU ARE LEGALLY AND FINANCIALLY RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL ACTIONS USING YOUR STERN PINBALL MACHINE AND SOFTWARE AND ACCESSING OR USING ANY ONLINE GAMING PLATFORM, INCLUDING THE ACTIONS OF ANYONE YOU ALLOW TO USE AND ACCESS TO YOUR MACHINE AND ANY ASSOCIATED ACCOUNT. YOU AFFIRM THAT YOU HAVE REACHED THE LEGAL AGE OF MAJORITY, UNDERSTAND AND ACCEPT THIS AGREEMENT. IF YOU ARE UNDER THE LEGAL AGE OF MAJORITY, YOUR PARENT OR LEGAL GUARDIAN MUST CONSENT TO THIS AGREEMENT. DEFINITIONS.
  1. “Stern Pinball Machine” means a Stern Pinball arcade game machine.
  2. “Stern Pinball Software” means software (including but not limited to firmware) pre-installed in the Stern Pinball Machine, including all Authorized Content and any Authorized Updates that Stern Pinball may make available to You from time to time.
  3. “Authorized Content” means all Stern Pinball and third-party owned software and content incorporated into or used with the Stern Pinball Software or otherwise embedded in or utilized by a Stern Pinball Machine, including but not limited to graphics, images, music, vocals and voices.
  4. “Authorized Update” means an update to the Stern Pinball Software distributed by Stern Pinball or otherwise made available by Stern Pinball, including for download on its web site.
  5. “Unauthorized Content” means all content, including but not limited to limited to graphics, images, music, vocals and voices, that does not comprise Authorized Content or an Authorized Update.
  6. “Unauthorized Software” means any software (including but not limited to firmware) not pre-installed by Stern Pinball on a Stern Pinball Machine or that does not comprise Authorized Content or Authorized Update.
  7. “You” means the purchaser or current owner of a Stern Pinball Machine.
LICENSE. Stern Pinball hereby grants You a nonexclusive, non-transferable, limited, and revocable right and license to use one copy of the Stern Pinball Software and Authorized Content and any Authorized Update solely for your personal use, or that of your patrons and customers if you are a commercial entity, for playing a single Stern Pinball Machine. The Stern Pinball Software, Authorized Content and Authorized Updates are licensed, not sold, to You, and no ownership rights are transferred by this Agreement. The Stern Pinball Software Authorized Content and Authorized Updates are protected by U.S. and international copyright. All rights not explicitly granted to you in this Agreement are reserved by Stern Pinball.
  1. As a condition to this Stern Pinball Software license, You agree that:
    1. You will not copy, reproduce, alter, replace, distribute, reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble, display, perform, create derivative works based on, or otherwise modify the Stern Pinball hardware or Stern Pinball Software or any Authorized Update, in whole or in part; and will not commercially exploit any of the foregoing.
    2. You will not use or install any Unauthorized Content or Unauthorized Software. Use of Unauthorized Content or Unauthorized Software may result in your Stern Pinball Machine ceasing to work permanently and/or losing access to Stern Pinball’s online game network, either immediately or after a later installed Authorized Update.
    3. You will not create, develop, distribute or assist anyone else in creating, developing or distributing any Unauthorized Content or Unauthorized Software intended for use with a Stern Pinball Machine, whether to add to or modify the gameplay, any audio content (whether music, sound or voice), or any video content of any Stern Pinball Machine, or to gain advantage in any online or other game modes, or otherwise.
    4. You will not share any Stern Pinball Software, Authorized Content or Authorized Update with any other person or company and will not permit anyone else to access or copy any Stern Pinball Software or Authorized Content or Authorized Update installed on your Machine for any purpose.
    5. In view of the rights held by third-party owners of Authorized Content (e.g., music and video clips), Stern does not have the legal authority to give permission to stream the gameplay of Stern Pinball Machines.
    6. You will not attempt to defeat or circumvent any anti-piracy, security, and/or technical measures to control access to the Stern Pinball Software, features, functions or content, prevent unauthorized use, or otherwise prevent anyone from exceeding the limited license rights granted under this Agreement, “Security Measures”. Attempting to defeat or circumvent any Security Measure may result in your Stern Pinball Machine ceasing to work permanently either immediately or after a later installed Authorized Update.
    7. Stern Pinball may update the Stern Pinball Software from time to time without further notice to You, for example, to update any anti-piracy, security, and technical measure.
PRIVACY POLICY Your use of the Stern Pinball Machine, Stern Pinball Software and any Authorized Updates are subject to Stern Pinball’s Privacy Policy which can be found at https://sternpinball.com/privacy-policy/   WARRANTY EXCEPT AS PROVIDED HEREIN, THE STERN PINBALL SOFTWARE, AUTHORIZED CONTENT AND AUTHORIZED UPDATES ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND, TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT ALLOWABLE UNDER LAW, STERN PINBALL DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NONINFRINGEMENT. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, STERN PINBALL DOES NOT WARRANT THAT OPERATION OF THE STERN PINBALL MACHINE OR ANY ONLINE OR CONNECTED GAME NETWORK WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR-FREE. EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN DAMAGES STERN PINBALL IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES; ANY LOSS OF DATA, PRIVACY, CONFIDENTIALITY, OR PROFITS; OR ANY INABILITY TO USE THE STERN PINBALL MACHINE, STERN PINBALL SOFTWARE OR ANY AUTHORIZED UPDATE. THESE EXCLUSIONS APPLY EVEN IF STERN PINBALL HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF THESE DAMAGES, AND EVEN IF ANY REMEDY FAILS OF ITS ESSENTIAL PURPOSE. Some countries do not allow the exclusion or limitation of incidental or consequential damages, so this limitation or exclusion may not apply to You. These terms apply to the maximum extent permitted by law and unless prohibited by law. These terms do not change your rights under the laws of your country if those laws do not permit that change. TERRITORY AND CHOICE OF LAW This License is valid only in the country in which you purchased your Stern Pinball Machine. This License will be subject to and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Illinois, U.S.A., regardless of conflict of laws principles. You agree to submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts in Cook County, Illinois, U.S.A. for the resolution of any dispute regarding this Agreement or the subject matter of this Agreement and to waive any jurisdictional, venue, or inconvenient forum objections to such courts. This Agreement may be updated by Stern Pinball from time to time with the current version posted at www.sternpinball.com/EULA. Your continued use of the Stern Pinball Software an Authorized Update after an updated Agreement has been posted constitutes your acceptance of all of its terms.
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