Terms of Service & Payment Policy

Last updated: July 7, 2026.

Welcome to Gruvvy. These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the Gruvvy platform, including our music streaming service, our music distribution and monetization tools for independent musicians, and our related websites and applications (collectively, the "Service"). These Terms include the Payment Policy set out in Sections 5 through 9.

By creating an account, subscribing, uploading content, or otherwise using the Service, you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.

1. Who we are

The Service is operated by Gruvvy ("Gruvvy," "we," "us," or "our"), a music streaming and distribution platform built for independent musicians and the listeners who support them.

2. Definitions

• "Artist" — a user who uploads, distributes, or monetizes music through the Service and is eligible to receive payouts.
• "Subscriber" — a user who pays a recurring subscription fee to access music on the Service.
• "User," "you" — any person who accesses or uses the Service, including Artists and Subscribers.
• "Content" — audio recordings, artwork, lyrics, tablature, metadata, credits, and any other material uploaded to or made available through the Service.
• "Connected Account" — an Artist's Stripe account, enrolled with Gruvvy through Stripe Connect, used to receive payouts.
• "Stripe Services Agreement" — the Stripe Connected Account Agreement, which includes the Stripe Terms of Service, as modified by Stripe from time to time.

3. Eligibility and accounts

You must be at least 13 years old to use the Service. If you are under 18, you may use the Service only with the involvement and consent of a parent or legal guardian. You must be at least 18 years old to register as an Artist, enroll a Connected Account, or receive payouts.

You are responsible for the accuracy of the information you provide, for maintaining the security of your account credentials, and for all activity that occurs under your account. Notify us promptly at rufus+legal@gruvvy.com if you believe your account has been compromised.

4. The Service

Gruvvy allows Subscribers to stream music and allows Artists to distribute their music, present song details, credits, lyrics, and tablature, and earn revenue based on how much their music is listened to. We may add, change, or discontinue features of the Service at any time. Music is delivered through our content-delivery infrastructure, and playback is streamed rather than downloaded unless a feature expressly offers otherwise.

5. Subscriptions and billing

Gruvvy offers the following recurring monthly subscription plans:

The following terms apply to all subscriptions:

• Recurring billing. Subscriptions are billed in advance each month and automatically renew until cancelled. By subscribing, you authorize Gruvvy and its payment processor to charge your payment method on each renewal date.
• Cancellation. You may cancel at any time through your account settings. Cancellation takes effect at the end of your current billing period, and you retain access until that date.
• Refunds. Payments are non-refundable, and Gruvvy does not provide refunds or credits for partial billing periods, except where required by law.
• Failed payments. If a charge fails, we may retry the charge and may suspend or limit your access until payment succeeds.
• Price changes. We may change subscription prices on at least 30 days' notice. Changes take effect at your next renewal, and continued use after that date constitutes acceptance.

6. Artist revenue share and payouts

Revenue share. Artists earn a share of each Subscriber's subscription fee based on the Subscriber's plan, calculated on subscription revenue net of payment processing fees:

How revenue is allocated. Gruvvy uses a listener-centric model. For each Subscriber, the Artist share of that Subscriber's fee is distributed among the Artists that Subscriber actually listened to during the billing period, in proportion to the minutes the Subscriber listened to each Artist. A subscription therefore supports the specific Artists a Subscriber chooses to play, rather than a general pool.

How listening is measured. Minutes listened are measured by Gruvvy's playback tracking. A stream qualifies for revenue allocation once a track has been played for at least 30 seconds, and listening time accrues in ongoing intervals thereafter. Gruvvy's records of minutes listened are the basis for revenue allocation, absent manifest error.

Payouts. Artist earnings are calculated monthly for the preceding period and paid through Stripe to the Artist's Connected Account, typically within 15 days after the close of each monthly period. A minimum balance of $10 is required for a payout; balances below the minimum roll over to the following period. Payouts may be adjusted for refunds, chargebacks, reversals, or corrections attributable to the relevant period.

Connected Account. Artist Connected Accounts are enrolled through Stripe Express under a recipient service agreement. Under a recipient service agreement, the account relates to Gruvvy rather than directly to Stripe, cannot process card payments, and payouts may take up to an additional 24 hours to become available. Once a service agreement type is accepted, it cannot be changed on that account.

7. Payment processing by Stripe

Payment processing services for artists and creators on GRUVVY are provided by Stripe and are subject to the Stripe Connected Account Agreement, which includes the Stripe Terms of Service (collectively, the "Stripe Services Agreement"). By agreeing to these terms or continuing to operate as a creator on GRUVVY, you agree to be bound by the Stripe Services Agreement, as the same may be modified by Stripe from time to time.

As a condition of Gruvvy enabling payout services through Stripe, you agree to provide Gruvvy accurate and complete information about you and your business, and you authorize Gruvvy to share it and transaction information related to your use of the services provided by Stripe.

8. Gruvvy is not the payment processor

Gruvvy facilitates billing and instructs Stripe on the movement of funds, but Gruvvy does not itself hold or take possession or control of user funds. Subscription payments are collected, safeguarded, and settled by Stripe under the Stripe Services Agreement. Questions about the status of collected or settled funds should be directed to rufus+billing@gruvvy.com, and may be referred to Stripe where appropriate.

9. Taxes

You are solely responsible for determining what, if any, taxes apply to your use of the Service and your earnings, and for assessing, collecting, reporting, and remitting the correct tax to the appropriate authority. Gruvvy and Stripe do not provide tax advice. Tax forms, such as a 1099-K where applicable, are issued through Stripe based on your Connected Account activity. You are responsible for keeping your tax and identity information current.

10. Artist content, rights, and licensing

You retain ownership of the Content you upload. By uploading Content, you grant Gruvvy a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to host, store, reproduce, stream, transcode, distribute, display, and promote that Content through the Service and Gruvvy's marketing of the Service, for as long as your Content remains on the Service and for a reasonable period thereafter to complete pending operations.

You represent and warrant that you own or control all rights necessary to upload and monetize your Content, that your Content does not infringe the rights of any third party, and that all credits and metadata you provide are accurate. You are responsible for securing any rights, clearances, or consents required from co-writers, performers, producers, engineers, and other rights holders before uploading.

11. Content standards and moderation

Gruvvy maintains quality and integrity standards for the Service. We may review, transcode, normalize, restrict, or remove Content, and we may apply automated tools including AI-generated-music detection and loudness (LUFS) validation. Audio that does not meet our loudness and quality standards may be normalized, held, or rejected. We may withhold or reverse payouts associated with Content that violates these Terms, is subject to a rights dispute, or reflects fraudulent or manipulated listening activity.

Copyright and takedowns. Gruvvy respects intellectual property rights and responds to valid notices of claimed infringement. If you believe Content on the Service infringes your copyright, send a notice with the required information to rufus+legal@gruvvy.com. We may remove infringing Content and terminate the accounts of repeat infringers.

12. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• upload Content you do not have the rights to, or that is unlawful, infringing, or deceptive;
• manipulate listening activity, streams, or payouts, including through bots, automated playback, or artificial streaming;
• interfere with, disrupt, reverse engineer, or attempt to gain unauthorized access to the Service or its infrastructure;
• use the Service for any activity prohibited by the Stripe Services Agreement or the Stripe Restricted Businesses List; or
• use the Service to violate any applicable law or the rights of others.

You must promptly notify us if you become aware of fraudulent, unlawful, deceptive, or abusive activity on the Service.

13. Disputes, chargebacks, and liability

As the platform, Gruvvy may be liable to Stripe for activity on Connected Accounts, including transactions, disputes, refunds, reversals, and associated fines. Where a Subscriber chargeback, refund, or reversal affects amounts already allocated or paid to an Artist, Gruvvy and Stripe may recover the affected amounts from the Artist's balance or future payouts, and you authorize such recovery. You agree to cooperate in resolving disputes and to provide requested information promptly.

14. Gruvvy intellectual property

The Service, including its software, design, branding, and all associated intellectual property, is owned by Gruvvy and its licensors and is protected by law. Except for the rights expressly granted to you in these Terms, we grant you no rights in the Service. You may not copy, modify, distribute, or create derivative works from the Service without our written permission.

15. Suspension and termination

You may stop using the Service and close your account at any time. We may suspend or terminate your access if you violate these Terms, if required for security or legal reasons, or if your activity creates risk for the Service, other users, or our payment processing. On termination, your right to use the Service ends; provisions that by their nature should survive, including those relating to content licenses, payouts owed, taxes, liability, and dispute resolution, will survive.

16. Disclaimers

The Service is provided "as is" and "as available," without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement. Gruvvy does not warrant that the Service will be uninterrupted, error-free, or secure, or that any particular level of earnings or listening will result from use of the Service.

17. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Gruvvy will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or for any loss of profits, revenue, data, or goodwill, arising from or related to your use of the Service. To the fullest extent permitted by law, Gruvvy's total liability for any claim arising from or related to the Service will not exceed the greater of the amounts you paid to Gruvvy, or that were paid to you as an Artist, in the twelve months before the event giving rise to the claim.

18. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Gruvvy and its officers, employees, and agents from any claims, damages, liabilities, and expenses, including reasonable legal fees, arising from your Content, your use of the Service, or your breach of these Terms or of any third-party rights.

19. Privacy and data

Your use of the Service is subject to our Privacy Policy. When you provide personal data in connection with payments, Stripe receives that data and processes it in accordance with the Stripe Privacy Policy. Our payment processor may obtain information from credit agencies and identity-verification sources to verify your identity, as described in Stripe's Privacy Policy.

20. Governing law and dispute resolution

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, without regard to its conflict-of-laws rules. The courts located in Delaware will have jurisdiction over any dispute arising from or relating to these Terms or the Service, except where applicable law provides otherwise.

21. Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. We will provide at least 30 days' notice of material changes, and Stripe may amend the Stripe Services Agreement on its own timeline, with those changes binding when they take effect. Your continued use of the Service after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.

22. Contact

• Legal, including notices under these Terms and copyright matters: rufus+legal@gruvvy.com
• Billing, subscriptions, and payouts: rufus+billing@gruvvy.com

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