1. This agreement
These terms are an agreement between you and TraceSound (“TraceSound”, “we”, “us”). By creating a glyph, making an account or buying credits, you agree to them. If you do not agree, please do not use the service.
2. What TraceSound is
TraceSound turns a sound recording into a glyph — soundwave artwork whose shape carries a private key. When a camera reads the glyph on our scan page, the key is used to fetch and play the recording it was made from.
3. Your account
- You must be at least 16 years old to create an account or buy credits.
- Keep your password to yourself. You are responsible for what happens under your account.
- Give us an email address you can receive mail at. It is how we reach you about your glyphs — including every notice promised in the Forever Promise.
4. Your recordings
You own your recordings. By uploading one, you give us permission to store it, convert it to the audio format we use, and play it to anyone who scans one of its glyphs — for as long as you keep it with us, and only for the purpose of running TraceSound. We do not sell your recordings, use them to train AI models, or use them in advertising.
When you upload a recording, you confirm that:
- you have the right to use it, and the people who can be heard in it have agreed — or, for someone who has passed away, that you are someone entitled to keep their memory;
- it does not break any law or anyone else's rights, and is not hateful, harassing, sexually explicit involving minors, or intended to deceive.
We may remove a recording that breaks these terms, and will tell the account holder when we do.
5. Glyphs and who can hear them
A glyph works like a key: anyone who can scan it can hear its recording. That is what lets a framed print play for every visitor — and it is why you should only put a glyph where you are happy for its recording to be heard. Deleting the recording stops every glyph made from it.
You may reproduce your own glyphs for personal use in any medium — print, engraving, clothing, tattoo — as many times as you like. The TraceSound software, site design and brand remain ours.
6. Credits and payments
- Prices are shown in credits. One credit always costs 1 USD; there are no packs or bulk rates.
- A glyph is priced by the length of its recording, as shown in our pricing at the moment you keep it. Membership discounts apply automatically.
- Payments are processed by PayPal. We never see or store your full card number.
- Credits do not expire, cannot be transferred to another account and are not exchangeable for cash, except as our Refund Policy allows.
- Keeping a glyph is a one-time purchase. There is no subscription and no renewal fee.
7. The Forever Promise
A glyph you have paid for keeps playing for as long as its recording remains in your account. Our Forever Promise forms part of these terms, and commits us in particular to:
- set aside a share of our profits in the Forever Fund, a bank reserve used only to keep recordings available;
- keep your audio and artwork downloadable from your account;
- should the service ever end, give every glyph owner at least 3 months' notice by email, send each owner their recordings, and transfer the recordings and the fund to a successor service or archive.
The promise does not cover a recording you delete, an account you close, an unpaid preview (which is removed after 24 hours), or a physical object that has become too damaged or distorted for a camera to read.
8. Physical products and tattoos
- Physical products are made to order with your glyph and your words. Before you order, check the preview carefully — we produce what you approve.
- Tattoos are done by an artist of your choosing, not by us. Before you get one, print your glyph at the exact size you plan and make sure it scans. We are not responsible for the tattoo itself, its healing, or changes in how it reads over time.
- Lead times shown on a product are estimates. What happens if something arrives damaged is in our Refund Policy.
9. Deleting recordings and closing your account
You can delete a recording or close your account at any time from your account settings. Deletion is permanent: we erase the audio rather than hide it, so every glyph made from it stops playing and cannot be restored — not even by us. Download a copy first if you may want it again. Unspent credits are lost when an account is closed, unless you ask us to refund them first under the Refund Policy.
We may suspend an account that seriously or repeatedly breaks these terms. Where we can, we will warn you first and give you time to download your recordings.
10. Our responsibility
We work hard to keep TraceSound available and your recordings safe, and we stand behind the Forever Promise. Beyond that, the service is provided “as is”. We cannot guarantee that every camera will read every glyph in every condition, or that the service will never be briefly unavailable.
To the extent the law allows, our total liability to you for any claim is limited to the amount you paid us in the twelve months before it. Nothing in these terms limits rights you have under consumer protection law that cannot be waived.
11. Changes to these terms
We may update these terms as the service grows. If a change materially affects you, we will email you at least 30 days before it takes effect. No change will ever take away the Forever Promise for a glyph you have already paid for.
12. Contact
Questions about these terms: [email protected].