Terms of Service

Last updated: June 22, 2026

These Terms of Service (“Terms”) form a binding legal agreement between you (“you” or “User”) and The Picker’s Guide LLC (“Picker’s Guide,” “we,” “us,” or “our”), a Colorado limited liability company, governing your access to and use of the Picker’s Guide website at pickersguide.com, our web application, any current or future mobile applications, and all related content, tools, audio, and services (collectively, the “Service”).

1. Eligibility

You must be at least 13 years old to use the Service. If you are between 13 and 18 (or the age of majority where you live), you may use the Service only with the involvement and consent of a parent or legal guardian who agrees to these Terms on your behalf. By using the Service you represent that you meet these requirements, that the information you provide is accurate, and that you are not barred from using the Service under applicable law.

2. Accounts and Security

To access certain features (including membership, playlists, uploads, and submissions) you must create an account. You agree to: (a) provide accurate and complete information; (b) keep your login credentials confidential; (c) be responsible for all activity under your account; and (d) notify us promptly at legal@pickersguide.com of any unauthorized use. You may not share, sell, or transfer your account, create an account for anyone else, or maintain more than one account without our permission. We may suspend or terminate accounts as described in Section 15.

3. The Service

Picker’s Guide is an educational and practice platform for bluegrass and related acoustic music. The Service may include, without limitation: a curated catalog of songs, tunes, and recording information; chord charts and tablature; editorial and instructional content; practice tools such as backing-track generation, metronome, looping, transposition, and playback modes; the ability to create, save, print, and share playlists and setlists; tools to upload audio and to submit songs, tunes, recordings, and corrections for curatorial review; and links to or embeds of third-party media (such as Spotify and YouTube).

We are continually developing the Service and may add, change, suspend, or remove features, content, or functionality at any time, with or without notice. We do not guarantee that any particular feature, song, recording, or piece of content will remain available.

4. Membership, Billing, and Cancellation

4.1 Free and paid access

Portions of the Service are free. Other features require a paid Picker’s Guide membership (“Membership”). Current pricing and plan details are presented at checkout and on our pricing page. Membership is offered on a monthly and an annual recurring plan.

4.2 Billing and payment processor

Payments are processed by Stripe, Inc., our third-party payment processor. We do not store your full payment card details on our servers. By subscribing, you authorize us and Stripe to charge your designated payment method for all applicable fees, and you agree to Stripe’s terms and privacy policy. You represent that you are authorized to use the payment method you provide.

4.3 Automatic renewal — please read

YOUR MEMBERSHIP AUTOMATICALLY RENEWS. Unless you cancel before the end of your then-current billing period, your Membership will automatically renew for successive periods of the same length (monthly or annual), and your payment method will be charged the then-current renewal price at the start of each new period. We will continue to charge the recurring fee on a recurring basis until you cancel. By subscribing, you expressly consent to these recurring, automatically renewing charges.

4.4 Cancellation

You may cancel your Membership at any time through your account settings or by emailing legal@pickersguide.com. Cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period; you retain paid access until then, and your Membership will not renew thereafter. It is your responsibility to cancel before the renewal date to avoid being charged for the next period.

4.5 Refunds

Memberships renew automatically and fees are generally non-refundable. However, as a courtesy, if you cancel mid-period and contact us at legal@pickersguide.com, we will provide a prorated refund for the unused remainder of your then-current billing period. Refunds for purchases made through a third-party app store are handled by that store under its rules.

4.6 Free trials and promotions

We may offer free trials, promotional codes, or discounted introductory pricing subject to additional terms disclosed at the time of the offer. Unless stated otherwise, at the end of a free trial your Membership will automatically convert to a paid, auto-renewing Membership at the then-current price unless you cancel before the trial ends. We may modify or discontinue any trial or promotion at any time.

4.7 Price changes

We may change our fees and Membership prices. We will give you advance notice of any price change affecting your Membership, effective at the start of your next billing period after notice. If you do not agree, you must cancel before the change takes effect; continued use after it takes effect constitutes acceptance.

4.8 Taxes

Stated prices may not include applicable taxes. You are responsible for any sales, use, value-added, or similar taxes arising from your Membership, other than taxes based on our net income.

4.9 Failed payments

If a charge is declined or reversed, we may suspend or terminate your Membership and access to paid features, and we may retry the charge. You remain responsible for amounts owed.

5. App-Store Purchases

If you purchase or subscribe through a third-party app store (such as the Apple App Store or Google Play), the additional terms in Section 22 apply, and billing, renewal, and refunds for those purchases are governed by that store’s rules and your account with that store rather than this Section 4.

6. Your Content

6.1 What “Your Content” means

“Your Content” means anything you upload, submit, post, or otherwise provide through the Service, including audio recordings and files, song and tune data, chord charts, lyrics, metadata, corrections, suggestions, playlists, comments, and other materials.

6.2 You keep ownership

We do not claim ownership of Your Content. As between you and us, you retain whatever rights you hold in Your Content.

6.3 License you grant to us

You grant Picker’s Guide a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sublicensable, and transferable license to host, store, copy, reproduce, process, analyze, transcode, adapt, create derivative works of (such as stems, waveforms, loops, transpositions, and other practice renditions), publicly perform and display, and otherwise use Your Content solely to operate, provide, secure, improve, and promote the Service and to perform the functions you request (for example, generating practice audio from a file you upload, or publishing a song you submit after curatorial review). This license continues for as long as Your Content is on the Service and for a reasonable period afterward for backup, legal, and operational purposes; where Your Content is incorporated into public catalog entries you submitted for publication, it continues for as long as that content remains part of the Service.

6.4 No use of your uploads to train AI models

We will not use the audio or other files you privately upload for processing to train or fine-tune machine-learning or artificial-intelligence models, except with your express permission or as part of delivering the specific processing feature you requested.

6.5 Your representations and warranties about Your Content

You represent and warrant that, for all of Your Content, you have all rights, licenses, consents, and permissions necessary to provide it to us and to grant the license in Section 6.3, and that Your Content does not infringe or violate any third party’s copyright, trademark, publicity, privacy, contract, or other rights. In particular, you understand and agree that:

• Owning or authoring a song is not enough. Authoring a musical composition does not by itself give you the right to upload a particular recording of it, and owning one right (e.g., the composition) does not grant the others (e.g., a master recording or a performer’s rights).
• You may not upload commercial master recordings (for example, a track ripped from a streaming service, CD, or download store) that you do not own or are not licensed to use. You may upload your own recordings or performances, recordings you own, or recordings you are otherwise authorized to provide.
• Cover songs and arrangements: if you upload or submit a recording of a musical work you did not write, you are responsible for securing any rights necessary in the underlying composition before submitting it.
• You are solely responsible for clearing and paying any royalties, licenses, or fees associated with Your Content.

We may, but are not obligated to, review, screen, refuse, remove, or limit any of Your Content at any time, including content submitted for curatorial publication. Curatorial review does not transfer responsibility for rights clearance to us.

6.6 Submissions for publication

When you submit content for inclusion in our catalog, you understand it may be reviewed, edited, combined with other content, published, displayed publicly, or rejected at our discretion, and that we are not obligated to publish or retain it. You are not entitled to compensation for submissions.

6.7 Backups

You are responsible for maintaining your own copies of Your Content. We are not a backup or storage service and may delete Your Content consistent with these Terms and our ordinary operations.

7. Audio Processing and Automated Features; Educational Nature

Some features process uploaded or catalog audio using automated and machine-learning techniques (for example, stem separation, beat and tempo detection, waveform generation, and backing-track synthesis), and other features generate chord charts, tablature, transpositions, or instructional material. These outputs are provided for personal practice and educational purposes and may contain errors, inaccuracies, or artifacts. They are not guaranteed to be accurate, complete, or suitable for any particular purpose, including professional performance or publication. You use them at your own risk and remain responsible for ensuring you have the rights to any output you use outside the Service.

8. Catalog, Third-Party Media, and Links

The Service references and organizes information about commercially released music and may embed or link to third-party platforms such as Spotify and YouTube. Picker’s Guide does not own, host, or control that third-party media, and your use of it is subject to the terms and privacy policies of those platforms. Catalog text, chord charts, tablature, and editorial content are provided for educational and reference purposes. We do not warrant the accuracy of catalog data, lyrics, chords, attributions, dates, or personnel information, and we welcome corrections.

9. Acceptable Use

You agree not to, and not to permit or encourage anyone else to:

• upload, submit, or distribute any content you do not have the rights to, or that infringes intellectual property, publicity, or privacy rights;
• use the Service to reproduce, distribute, publicly perform, or make available copyrighted recordings or works in violation of applicable law;
• upload unlawful, defamatory, harassing, hateful, obscene, deceptive, or harmful content, or malware;
• impersonate any person or entity, or misrepresent your affiliation or the source of any content;
• scrape, crawl, harvest, data-mine, or bulk-download content; circumvent rate limits, paywalls, access controls, or audio-protection measures; or access the Service through unauthorized automated means;
• reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble, or attempt to derive source code or underlying models, except to the extent this restriction is prohibited by law;
• use the Service, its content, or any output to train or develop a competing product or any machine-learning or AI model;
• resell, sublicense, rent, or commercially redistribute the Service or its content without our written permission;
• interfere with, disrupt, overload, or compromise the security or integrity of the Service; or
• use the Service in violation of any applicable law, including U.S. export-control and sanctions laws.

We may investigate and take appropriate action, including removing content, suspending or terminating accounts, and reporting to authorities.

10. Our Intellectual Property

The Service and all of its content other than Your Content and third-party media — including software, code, design, text, editorial content, chord charts and tablature we create, curated arrangements, databases and their selection and arrangement, audio renditions we generate, logos, and the “Picker’s Guide” name and brand — are owned by Picker’s Guide or our licensors and are protected by copyright, trademark, and other laws. Subject to these Terms, we grant you a limited, personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to access and use the Service and its content for your own personal, non-commercial practice and educational use. All rights not expressly granted are reserved. You may not use our names, logos, or trademarks without our prior written permission.

11. Feedback

If you send us ideas, suggestions, or feedback about the Service, you grant us a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free license to use them for any purpose without obligation or compensation to you.

12. Copyright Policy and DMCA Notice-and-Takedown

We respect intellectual property rights and respond to notices of alleged infringement under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”).

12.1 Reporting infringement

If you believe content on the Service infringes your copyright, send a written notice to our Designated Agent (below) including: (1) your physical or electronic signature; (2) identification of the copyrighted work claimed to be infringed; (3) identification of the allegedly infringing material and information reasonably sufficient to locate it (such as the URL); (4) your contact information; (5) a statement that you have a good-faith belief that the use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and (6) a statement, under penalty of perjury, that the information in your notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on its behalf.

12.2 Designated Copyright Agent

12.3 Counter-notification

If your content was removed and you believe it was removed in error or misidentification, you may submit a counter-notification to the Designated Agent containing the information required by 17 U.S.C. § 512(g).

12.4 Repeat infringers

We will, in appropriate circumstances, terminate the accounts of users who are repeat infringers. Knowingly submitting a false notice or counter-notice may result in liability under 17 U.S.C. § 512(f).

13. Privacy

Your use of the Service is subject to our Privacy Policy, which describes how we collect, use, and share information. By using the Service, you consent to those practices.

14. Third-Party Services

The Service relies on and integrates with third-party services (including Stripe for payments, Cloudflare for storage and delivery, WordPress.com / Automattic for hosting and analytics, and Spotify/YouTube for media). We are not responsible for the availability, content, or practices of third-party services, and your use of them may be governed by their own terms.

15. Termination

You may stop using the Service and delete your account at any time. We may suspend, restrict, or terminate your access to all or part of the Service, with or without notice, if we reasonably believe you have violated these Terms, to comply with law, to protect the Service or other users, or for any other reason. Upon termination: your right to use the Service ends; we may delete Your Content; and any fees already incurred remain payable. Sections that by their nature should survive termination — including Sections 6.3, 6.5, 10, 11, 16, 17, 18, 19, and 20 — survive.

16. Disclaimers

THE SERVICE AND ALL CONTENT AND OUTPUTS ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE,” WITH ALL FAULTS AND WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, WE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. WE DO NOT WARRANT THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, SECURE, ERROR-FREE, OR FREE OF HARMFUL COMPONENTS, OR THAT ANY CONTENT, CATALOG DATA, CHORDS, AUDIO, OR OUTPUT WILL BE ACCURATE OR RELIABLE. YOU ASSUME ALL RISK ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE SERVICE AND ANY OUTPUT.

Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion of certain warranties, so some of the above may not apply to you.

17. Limitation of Liability

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, PICKER’S GUIDE AND ITS OWNERS, OPERATORS, EMPLOYEES, CONTRACTORS, AND LICENSORS WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR ANY LOSS OF PROFITS, REVENUE, DATA, GOODWILL, OR CONTENT, ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THE SERVICE, WHETHER BASED IN CONTRACT, TORT, OR ANY OTHER THEORY, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. OUR TOTAL AGGREGATE LIABILITY FOR ALL CLAIMS RELATING TO THE SERVICE WILL NOT EXCEED THE GREATER OF (A) THE AMOUNT YOU PAID US FOR THE SERVICE IN THE TWELVE (12) MONTHS BEFORE THE EVENT GIVING RISE TO THE CLAIM, OR (B) ONE HUNDRED U.S. DOLLARS ($100). THESE LIMITATIONS APPLY EVEN IF A REMEDY FAILS OF ITS ESSENTIAL PURPOSE.

Some jurisdictions do not allow certain limitations, so some of the above may not apply to you.

18. Indemnification

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Picker’s Guide and its owners, operators, employees, contractors, and licensors from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of or related to: (a) Your Content; (b) your use of the Service; (c) your violation of these Terms or any law; or (d) your violation of any third-party right, including intellectual-property, publicity, or privacy rights.

19. Dispute Resolution; Arbitration; Class-Action Waiver

Please read this section carefully — it affects your legal rights.

19.1 Informal resolution first

Before filing a claim, you agree to try to resolve the dispute informally by contacting us at legal@pickersguide.com and giving us 30 days to respond.

19.2 Binding arbitration

Except as provided below, any dispute arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service will be resolved by binding individual arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association under its Consumer Arbitration Rules, rather than in court. The arbitration will be conducted in Boulder County, Colorado or, at your election, by telephone, video, or written submissions. Judgment on the award may be entered in any court of competent jurisdiction. The Federal Arbitration Act governs the interpretation and enforcement of this section.

19.3 Exceptions

Either party may bring an individual claim in small-claims court, and either party may seek injunctive or equitable relief in court for actual or threatened infringement or misuse of intellectual property.

19.4 Class-action waiver

You and Picker’s Guide agree that each may bring claims against the other only in an individual capacity, and not as a plaintiff or class member in any purported class, collective, or representative proceeding. The arbitrator may not consolidate more than one person’s claims.

19.5 30-day opt-out

You may opt out of this arbitration agreement within 30 days of first accepting these Terms by sending written notice to legal@pickersguide.com with your name and a statement that you opt out of arbitration. Opting out does not affect any other part of these Terms.

20. Governing Law and Venue

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Colorado, without regard to its conflict-of-laws rules. Subject to Section 19, any dispute not subject to arbitration will be brought exclusively in the state or federal courts located in Boulder County, Colorado, and you consent to their personal jurisdiction and venue.

21. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. If we make material changes, we will provide reasonable notice (for example, by posting the updated Terms with a new “Last updated” date, by email, or through the Service). Changes take effect when posted unless stated otherwise. Your continued use of the Service after changes take effect constitutes acceptance. If you do not agree, you must stop using the Service.

22. Mobile Applications and App-Store Terms

If you download or use a Picker’s Guide mobile application, the following apply in addition to these Terms:

• License. We grant you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to use the application on devices you own or control, subject to these Terms and the applicable app store’s rules.
• Apple App Store. These Terms are between you and Picker’s Guide only, not Apple. Apple is not responsible for the application or its content, has no obligation to provide maintenance or support, and is not responsible for any product warranties or claims. Apple and its subsidiaries are third-party beneficiaries of these Terms and may enforce them against you. You represent that you are not located in a U.S.-embargoed country or on a U.S. prohibited-parties list, and you agree to comply with applicable third-party terms (such as your wireless carrier’s). Auto-renewable subscriptions purchased through Apple are billed to your Apple account and managed in your Apple account settings; refunds are handled by Apple.
• Google Play. Subscriptions purchased through Google Play are governed by Google Play’s terms and managed in your Google account; billing and refunds follow Google’s rules.

23. Miscellaneous

• Entire agreement. These Terms and the documents they incorporate are the entire agreement between you and us regarding the Service and supersede prior agreements.
• Severability. If any provision is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions stay in effect, and the unenforceable provision will be enforced to the maximum extent permitted.
• No waiver. Our failure to enforce any provision is not a waiver of it.
• Assignment. You may not assign these Terms without our consent; we may assign them, including in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets.
• Force majeure. We are not liable for delays or failures caused by events beyond our reasonable control.
• Electronic communications and notices. You consent to receive communications from us electronically, and electronic communications satisfy any requirement that communications be in writing. Notices to us should be sent to legal@pickersguide.com.
• Relationship. Nothing in these Terms creates a partnership, employment, agency, or joint-venture relationship.

24. Contact Us

Questions about these Terms?