Terms of Service

APPSTRACT LABS LTD, registered in Ghana under company registration number CS072030426. Registered office: No. 2 Peach Street, Accra, Ga East, Greater Accra, Ghana. Digital address: GE-310-1533.

These terms are an agreement between you and APPSTRACT LABS LTD (“AppStract”, “we”, “us”). They apply to AppStract SMS, including the website, dashboard, API, documentation and any related service (the “Services”).

The agreement is made up of these Terms of Service, our Acceptable Use and Messaging Policy and our Privacy Policy. You accept all three when you tick the box to create an account or when you start using the Services, whichever comes first. Please keep a copy for your records.

If you register for a business or other organisation, you promise that you have the authority to bind it, and “you” means that organisation. If we have signed a separate written agreement with you, that agreement takes priority over these terms where they differ.

• Message means an SMS, one-time-password (OTP) message or other mobile message sent through the Services.
• Segment means one billable unit of a Message. A Message written only in the GSM-7 character set fits 160 characters in one segment (153 per segment when it is split into several). A Message that contains emoji or other special characters uses Unicode and fits 70 characters in one segment (67 per segment when split).
• Recipient means the person who receives a Message, and MSISDN means that person’s mobile phone number.
• Network Operators means the mobile networks over which Messages are delivered. Messaging Partners means the carriers, aggregators and other providers we use to reach those networks.
• Sender ID means the name or number a Recipient sees as the sender of a Message.
• Wallet means the prepaid balance on your account, in Ghana cedis (GH₵).
• API Key means any key, token, password or other credential that lets someone use your account.

You must be at least 18 years old and able to enter a binding contract. No one under 18 may use the Services. If we have reason to believe you are under 18, or that you intend to abuse the Services, we may remove your content and end your access without notice.

You must give us accurate, current information when you register and keep it up to date. We may ask for proof of your identity or your business at any time, for example a national ID, business registration documents, or, for regulated activities such as betting and lotteries, a valid licence from the relevant authority (the Gaming Commission or the National Lottery Authority, for instance). We may refuse, suspend or close an account when we cannot verify it.

You must verify your email address and mobile number before you can send live messages. Test API keys never send or charge. You may not transfer or assign your account to anyone else.

You may not use the Services to resell or pass on messaging capacity to others unless we have agreed this in writing.

You are responsible for everything that happens under your account and with your API Keys, logins and passwords. Keep them confidential, use a separate key for each system, restrict keys to known IP addresses where you can, and turn on two-factor authentication.

Messages sent with your credentials are accepted and billed to you. We are not responsible for misuse of your credentials, and we do not give credit for messages sent that way. Tell us immediately if you think a key or login has been exposed so that we can help you revoke it. We are not liable for access by others that results from theft or misuse of your credentials.

One-time passwords: if you use the Services to send OTPs, you must tell your own users never to share a code with anyone. We are not responsible for losses that result from your users sharing a code, or from codes that are used by someone other than the person you sent them to.

The Services let you send Messages from your software or from the dashboard to mobile numbers in Ghana. We pass each Message to a Messaging Partner, who delivers it over the Network Operator’s network. We may choose, change or switch between Messaging Partners at any time, for example when one is unavailable.

Messages may contain at most 480 characters, including spaces. Longer messages are rejected. Some Network Operators and Messaging Partners also limit the length or format of a Message. Where they do, a Message may be cut at the permitted length or rejected. You are billed for the Segments we accept.

We may add, change or remove features. We will try to give you notice of changes that would seriously affect how you use the Services.

Every Sender ID is subject to approval by us, our Messaging Partners and the Network Operators. A request may take several working days and may be rejected or later withdrawn, and we cannot promise an outcome or a timeframe.

A Sender ID must be 3 to 11 characters, using only letters and digits, with at least one letter. It cannot contain spaces or any of these characters: _ / & @ . " ' , * # + ! ?

You may only request a Sender ID that identifies you, your business or your content, and that you have the right to use. You may not use a Sender ID to pretend to be a person, a business, a bank, a government body or any other organisation you do not represent. We may reject, suspend or withdraw a Sender ID at any time if it breaks these rules or if a Network Operator, Messaging Partner or regulator asks us to.

You are responsible for the content and accuracy of every Message sent from your account, and for following the law and the Acceptable Use and Messaging Policy.

You must have a Recipient’s permission before you send them a Message that is advertising, marketing or promotional, and you must be able to show proof of that consent when we ask. Messages sent to lists must include your business name or identity. You must honour opt-out requests straight away.

If we receive a complaint about a Message from your account, we will tell you, and you may need to respond or stop sending. If you receive a complaint from a Recipient, you must tell us immediately. Failing to tell us, or abusing the sending of unsolicited messages, may lead to immediate suspension or termination.

The rules on consent, sending hours and frequency, content and Sender IDs are in the Acceptable Use and Messaging Policy, which forms part of this agreement.

The Services are prepaid. You add money to your Wallet and each Message is charged against it, per Segment, at the price shown in your dashboard. The price is shown in Ghana cedis and excludes VAT, NHIL, the Communications Service Tax and any other taxes, which you are responsible for. You are charged for every Message you submit and we accept, including Messages that a Network Operator later fails to deliver, except as described in the refund section below.

Credits remain our property until we have received payment in full. If your Wallet is empty we will not send your Messages. You may only pay with a card, mobile money or bank account that you are authorised to use, and you agree to pay any fee our payment processor charges when it is shown to you before you pay.

We may change our prices. We will give you at least 30 days’ notice by email or in the dashboard before an increase affects you. Continuing to use the Services after a change means you accept the new price.

Where a Network Operator charges us extra for delivering to ported numbers (interworking charges) or a regulator or carrier imposes a fine or charge because of your traffic, we may pass the cost on to you at cost. We will tell you before we add any such charge.

You are responsible for any bank, card or mobile-money charges on your payments.

Once credits have been added to your Wallet we do not give refunds for unused credits, and all payments are final, except as set out here.

We will refund, or credit back to your Wallet, a payment when: you were charged twice for the same payment, there was a payment processing error, we were unable to provide the Service you paid for, or a payment dispute is investigated and closed in your favour. Messages that a provider rejects, or that fail because of a network failure before they leave our systems, are returned to your Wallet automatically where the failure is ours or a partner’s.

If you are dissatisfied with the quality of delivery, open a support ticket from your dashboard and explain why. The more detail you give, the faster we can look into it. We aim to reply within 3 working days. If we find your claim is justified we will credit your Wallet or refund your payment by a method you choose. You pay any charges that relate to a money transfer.

We may stop offering refunds to anyone who misrepresents the reason for asking. If we end your account because you broke these terms, no payment is refunded. These rules do not affect any right you have to contest a payment through your bank, card network or mobile-money provider.

Delivery depends on Network Operators and Messaging Partners that we do not control. We do not guarantee that any Message will be delivered, or delivered by a particular time. A Message may be delayed or not delivered if a phone is off or out of coverage, a number is invalid, ported or blocked, a Recipient has opted out with their network, or a network is congested or down.

Delivery reports show what the network tells us. They are provided on a best-effort basis and may be late, incomplete or missing.

We work to keep the Services available, but we do not promise they will always be uninterrupted or error-free. We may carry out maintenance. Unless we have agreed a service level with you in writing, no service level applies.

You must use the Services only for lawful purposes and follow the Acceptable Use and Messaging Policy. Breaking that policy is a breach of these terms. In short: no spam, fraud, impersonation, illegal, harassing or offensive content, and no attempts to bypass our security, filters or limits.

You may not use the Services to solicit or poach customers or subscribers from any Network Operator. We may permanently suspend an account that does.

You keep all rights to your customer and subscriber lists. We use the phone numbers and Message content you submit only to provide the Services you ask for. We do not give MSISDNs or Message content to third parties except to our Messaging Partners and Network Operators so that they can deliver the Message, to our service providers who help us run the Services, and where the law requires.

For the personal data of your Recipients, you decide why and how it is used and we process it on your behalf. You must have a lawful basis to send them Messages and to give us their numbers, including under the Data Protection Act, 2012 (Act 843). How we handle personal data is explained in our Privacy Policy.

Our Messaging Partners and the Network Operators set rules for the traffic they carry, including rules on content, consent, sender names, sending hours and volumes. Industry bodies and regulators may also set rules. You agree to follow those rules, as we pass them on to you in these terms and the Acceptable Use and Messaging Policy.

We may block, delay or reject traffic, or suspend an account, when a Messaging Partner, Network Operator or regulator requires it, or when we reasonably think your traffic puts our service or our relationships at risk. We may follow lawful requests from the government, courts and law enforcement about your use of the Services or your information.

You can stop using the Services and close your account at any time. Unused credits are not refunded except as set out in the refund section.

We may suspend or end your account, remove content, or refuse service at any time and, where we think it necessary, without notice, for example if you break these terms or the Acceptable Use and Messaging Policy, send unsolicited or illegal messages, receive repeated complaints, give false information, commit or are suspected of fraud, owe us money, or when a partner, Network Operator or regulator asks us to.

When an account ends, your right to use the Services stops. The sections on fees, refunds, liability, indemnity, confidentiality, intellectual property and governing law continue to apply, as does any payment you owe.

We and our suppliers own the Services, including the software, API, documentation and the AppStract name and logos. We give you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable right to use them while your account is active and in line with these terms.

You may not copy, modify, reverse engineer, resell or create derivative works from the Services, or test them to find weaknesses or ways around filters, without our written permission. You keep the rights to the content you send. You give us permission to process it as needed to provide the Services.

The Services are provided “as is” and “as available”. To the fullest extent the law allows, we do not make promises about delivery, speed, uptime or that the Services will meet your needs.

To the fullest extent the law allows, we are not liable for indirect, incidental, special, punitive or consequential loss, or for loss of profit, revenue, data or goodwill, however it arises, including loss caused by a Message not being sent or delivered, delay, a network or partner failure, or misuse of your credentials.

Our total liability to you for all claims relating to the Services in any 12-month period is limited to the amount you paid us in the 3 months before the event that gave rise to the claim. Nothing in these terms limits liability that cannot be limited by law.

You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless APPSTRACT LABS LTD, its owners, officers, employees and agents, and our Messaging Partners, against all claims, losses, costs and expenses, including reasonable legal fees, that arise from your use of the Services, the Messages and content you send, your breach of these terms or the Acceptable Use and Messaging Policy, your breach of someone else’s rights, or your breach of the law, including complaints from Recipients and fines or charges imposed by a regulator or Network Operator because of your traffic.

We may take over the defence of any matter you are covering, at our cost, and you agree to co-operate fully.

Neither of us is responsible for a failure or delay caused by something outside our reasonable control, including network or power failures, failures of Network Operators or Messaging Partners, strikes, natural disasters, acts of government, or an act of war or terrorism. This does not excuse a payment you owe.

We may update these terms from time to time. We will post the new version on this page and, for changes that matter, email you or tell you in the dashboard. The most recent version replaces earlier ones. If you keep using the Services after a change takes effect, you accept it. If you do not agree, stop using the Services and close your account.

You agree that we can contact you electronically, by email, in the dashboard or by SMS, and that this satisfies any legal requirement for the communication to be in writing. We send notices to the email address on your account, so keep it current. You can contact us at the address in section 22.

• These terms are the whole agreement between us about the Services and replace earlier discussions, unless a signed written agreement says otherwise.
• If a part of these terms is found invalid or unenforceable, it is replaced by the valid provision closest to its meaning and the rest stays in force.
• If we do not enforce a right straight away, we have not given it up.
• You may not assign these terms. We may assign them to a company in our group or to a successor to our business.
• Nothing here makes us partners, joint venturers, employer and employee, or principal and agent.
• These terms are written in English, and the English version controls.

These terms are governed by the laws of Ghana. Before bringing a claim, please raise it with us through a support ticket or by email so that we can try to resolve it. If we cannot, you and we submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Ghana.

Questions about these terms: [email protected].