Terms of Service

1. About Founder's Path

Founder's Path is a community-driven platform designed to support early-stage founders, makers, and aspiring entrepreneurs. The platform provides a founder directory, community feed, founder forum, events, and resources to help founders think clearly and build with intention.

The platform is operated from Sri Lanka.

2. Eligibility

To use Founder's Path, you must:

• Be at least 16 years of age
• Provide accurate and complete information during registration
• Not have been previously banned from the platform

By creating an account, you confirm that you meet these requirements.

3. Your Account

3.1 Account Creation

You must create an account to access most features of the platform. You are responsible for:

• Providing accurate profile information (name, username, bio, startup details)
• Keeping your login credentials secure and confidential
• All activity that occurs under your account

3.2 Username

Your username must be unique and appropriate. We reserve the right to reclaim or reassign usernames that are inactive, misleading, or violate these Terms.

3.3 Account Security

You must notify us immediately if you suspect unauthorized access to your account. We are not liable for any loss resulting from unauthorized use of your account.

4. Acceptable Use

You agree to use Founder's Path in a respectful and constructive manner.

4.1 Prohibited Content

You must not:

• Post false, misleading, or deceptive information
• Share content that is hateful, discriminatory, harassing, threatening, or abusive
• Post spam, advertisements, or promotional material unrelated to the founder community
• Share content that infringes on intellectual property rights of others
• Post sexually explicit, violent, or otherwise inappropriate content
• Share personal information of others without their consent

4.2 Prohibited Behavior

You must not:

• Impersonate another person or entity
• Create multiple accounts for deceptive purposes
• Attempt to gain unauthorized access to other accounts or platform systems
• Use automated scripts, bots, or scrapers to access the platform
• Interfere with or disrupt the platform's functionality
• Use the platform for any illegal activity
• Harass, bully, or intimidate other community members

5. Content Ownership and Rights

5.1 Your Content

You retain ownership of the content you post on Founder's Path (including feed posts, forum posts, replies, comments, images, and profile information). By posting content, you grant Founder's Path a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to:

• Display your content on the platform
• Store and process your content as necessary to provide the service
• Display your public profile in the founder directory

This license ends when you delete your content or account, except where your content has been shared by others or is reasonably necessary for platform operations.

5.2 Content Removal

We reserve the right to remove any content that violates these Terms, at our sole discretion and without prior notice. Repeated violations may result in account suspension or termination.

5.3 Idea Sharing and Confidentiality Disclaimer

Founder's Path is a community platform where founders share information about their ventures publicly. By sharing your ideas, venture details, problem statements, or business concepts on the platform, you acknowledge and agree that:

• No confidentiality guarantee: Information you share on the platform (including venture descriptions, problem statements, target customers, and business ideas) is not treated as confidential. Public profile information is visible to all visitors, and community feed content is visible to all registered members.
• No idea protection: Founder's Path does not provide any form of intellectual property protection, trade secret protection, or confidentiality agreement for ideas or concepts shared on the platform. Sharing an idea on this platform does not establish ownership, priority, or any legal claim over that idea.
• Your responsibility: You are solely responsible for deciding what information to share and how much detail to disclose. We recommend that if your idea is in its early stages and you are concerned about others seeing it, you share only general information (such as your industry and problem area) rather than full details. If your business is already established with proper branding and infrastructure, sharing full details carries less risk.
• No liability for third-party use: Founder's Path is not responsible or liable if another user, visitor, or any third party views, uses, develops, or acts upon any idea, concept, or business information you share on the platform.
• Protect your own interests: If you have ideas or intellectual property that require legal protection, we encourage you to seek appropriate legal measures (such as patents, trademarks, NDAs, or other protections) independently before sharing them publicly on any platform, including Founder's Path.

5.4 Platform Content

All platform content created by Founder's Path (including design, branding, logos, text, and features) is the intellectual property of Founder's Path. You may not copy, reproduce, or distribute platform content without prior written permission.

6. Community Feed

The community feed is a space for founders to share updates, ask questions, and engage in discussions. When using the feed:

• Be respectful and constructive in all interactions
• Stay relevant to the founder community
• Do not use the feed for personal attacks or off-topic promotion
• Report content that violates these Terms

7. Founder Forum

The founder forum is a public discussion space for asking questions and sharing knowledge. When using the forum:

• Public visibility: Forum posts, replies, and your profile information (name, username, photo) are publicly visible to all visitors, including non-registered users and search engines
• A registered account with a profile is required to create posts, reply, and vote
• Be respectful and constructive in all forum interactions
• Do not post spam, off-topic content, or misleading answers
• Report content that violates these Terms

7.1 Forum Moderation

Administrators may moderate forum content by:

• Pinning important posts for visibility
• Locking posts to prevent further replies
• Removing posts or replies that violate these Terms
• Managing forum categories

7.2 Voting and Accepted Answers

Users can upvote or downvote forum posts and replies. For question-type posts, the original author can mark one reply as the accepted answer. Votes and accepted answers help the community identify valuable contributions.

8. Founder Directory

If you set your profile to public, your profile information (name, username, bio, location, and startup details) will be visible in the founder directory. You can change your profile visibility to private at any time.

9. Admin Rights and Moderation

9.1 Platform Administration

Founder's Path administrators have the right to:

• Remove or edit content that violates these Terms
• Suspend or terminate accounts that violate these Terms
• Send platform-wide announcements and communications
• Review reported content and take appropriate action
• Modify platform features and functionality

9.2 Reporting

Users can report content or behavior that violates these Terms. We will review all reports and take appropriate action, which may include content removal, warnings, or account suspension.

10. Events and Resources

Founder's Path may list community events and resources. While we aim to provide accurate information:

• Event details may change without notice
• External resources and links are provided for convenience and do not imply endorsement
• We are not responsible for the content or practices of third-party resources

11. Membership Tiers & Subscriptions

11.1 Membership Plans

Founder's Path offers the following membership tiers:

• Free: Basic access to the platform, community feed, forum, founder directory, and free Knowledge Hub resources
• Founder Pro (Rs.300/month): All Free features plus eligibility for Verified Founder badge, access to Pro-tier Knowledge Hub resources, early access to new features, and academy/event discounts
• Founder Elite (Rs.2,499/month): All Pro features plus highlighted profile in the directory, access to all Knowledge Hub resources (including Elite-tier), priority community support, and free event access (with minimum subscription period)

Feature availability, pricing, and tier benefits may change with reasonable notice. All prices are in LKR (Sri Lankan Rupees).

11.2 Billing & Payment

Paid subscriptions are billed monthly on a recurring basis via PayHere, our payment processor.

• Your card will be charged automatically each month on the anniversary of your subscription start date
• All payments are processed securely by PayHere. We do not store your full card details
• You are responsible for keeping your payment information up to date

11.3 Cancellation

You may cancel your subscription at any time from your dashboard.

• Upon cancellation, you retain access to paid features until the end of your current billing cycle
• No partial refunds are provided for the remaining days in a billing cycle
• After the billing cycle ends, your account reverts to the Free tier

11.4 Upgrades & Downgrades

• Upgrades (e.g., Free to Pro, or Pro to Elite) take effect immediately. A prorated charge is applied for the remainder of the current billing cycle
• Downgrades (e.g., Elite to Pro) take effect at the end of the current billing cycle. You retain your current tier until then

11.5 Payment Failure & Grace Period

If a recurring payment fails:

• You will receive a 7-day grace period during which you retain access to your current tier
• If the payment is not recovered within the grace period, your account is downgraded to Free

11.6 Verified Founder Badge

The Verified Founder badge is available to Pro and Elite members with complete, detailed profiles. Verification is reviewed by the Founder's Path team and is not automatically granted upon subscription. Founder's Path reserves the right to grant or revoke verification at its discretion.

11.7 Discount Codes

• Discount codes apply to the first billing cycle only, unless otherwise stated
• Codes cannot be combined with other offers
• Founder's Path reserves the right to revoke or modify discount codes at any time

11.8 Admin Override & Gifted Access

Founder's Path reserves the right to grant or revoke tier access at its discretion (e.g., for founding members, contest winners, or special partnerships). Gifted access may have an expiry date.

11.9 Modification of Plans

Founder's Path reserves the right to modify pricing, features, or tier structure with at least 14 days' notice. Existing subscribers will be notified of any changes that affect their current plan.

12. Refund Policy

Subscriptions are generally non-refundable. You can cancel at any time and retain access until the end of your billing cycle.

Refunds may be considered on a case-by-case basis for:

• Technical issues that prevented you from accessing paid features
• Duplicate or unauthorized charges

To request a refund, contact us at info@founderspath.lk within 14 days of the charge. Refunds, if approved, will be processed via PayHere within 5–10 business days.

Filing a chargeback without first contacting us may result in account suspension. For full details, see our Refund Policy.

13. Disclaimer of Warranties

Founder's Path is provided "as is" and "as available" without warranties of any kind, either express or implied. We do not guarantee that:

• The platform will be available at all times without interruption
• The platform will be free of errors or bugs
• Content posted by users is accurate, complete, or reliable
• The platform will meet your specific requirements or expectations

The information and resources on this platform are for educational and community purposes only. They do not constitute professional business, legal, or financial advice.

14. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, Founder's Path and its operators shall not be liable for:

• Any indirect, incidental, special, or consequential damages
• Loss of data, profits, or business opportunities
• Damages resulting from your use of or inability to use the platform
• Actions or content of other users on the platform
• Any third-party services linked from the platform

15. Account Suspension and Termination

15.1 By You

You may delete your account at any time by contacting us. Upon deletion:

• Your profile will be removed from the founder directory
• Your personal data will be deleted in accordance with our Privacy Policy
• Some content (feed posts, comments, forum posts, replies) may remain if part of community discussions

15.2 By Us

We may suspend or terminate your account if you:

• Violate these Terms of Service
• Engage in behavior that harms the community
• Fail to comply with applicable laws

We will make reasonable efforts to notify you before taking action, except where immediate action is necessary to protect the community or platform.

16. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we make significant changes, we will notify you through the platform or via email. Your continued use of the platform after changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of the updated Terms.

If you disagree with any changes, you may delete your account.

17. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of Sri Lanka. Any disputes arising from these Terms or your use of the platform shall be resolved in the courts of Sri Lanka.

18. Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found to be unenforceable or invalid, that provision will be limited or eliminated to the minimum extent necessary, and the remaining provisions will remain in full force and effect.

19. Contact Us

If you have questions about these Terms, please contact us at:

• Email: info@founderspath.lk
• Website: https://founderspath.lk