General Terms and Conditions

Last update: 30/06/2023

  1. Article 1: SCOPE OF THE GTCS

    1. Purpose. The purpose of the General Terms and Conditions of Use and Sale (GTCS) is to govern the conditions of supply and purchase of services for Delegates, as well as the relationship between the GCC FORUM and the Delegate.
    2. Capacity. Any use of the Website and/or the Business Matching App to benefit from the GCC FORUM implies acceptance of, and compliance with, all the terms of these GTCS. The Delegate declares that he/she is of legal age and capable of entering into a contract under the law of his/her country and declares that he/she is not incapacitated or subject to any special protection provided for by the law of his/her country, in particular legal protection, guardianship or trusteeship, and declares that, where applicable, and in particular in the case of a protected adult, he/she has received all the authorization required from the legal representative and is supervised for the use of the Website and/or validly represents the person on whose behalf he/she has entered into a contract.
    3. Access to the GTCS. The GTCS are accessible at any time on the Website and shall prevail, if necessary, over any other version. The GTCS take effect from the date of their update indicated at the head of the present document.
    4. Acceptance of the GTCS. The subscription, payment and validation of an “Event” proposed by the GCC FORUM automatically entails acceptance and adherence without reservation to the GTCS.
    5. The GCC FORUM reserves the right to modify certain elements of the GTCS at any time, in accordance with the law. Changes to the GTCS are binding on the users of the Website. Any changes to the terms and conditions will be communicated to the Delegate electronically. The version applicable to the Delegate is the one in force on the Website at the time the Delegate subscribes to an Event.

  2. Article 2: ORDERING PROCESS

    1. Subscription to an Event. After having chosen the Event in which he/she is interested and having ensured that it corresponds to his/her expectations, the Delegate, in order to place an order, is invited to enter his/her personal and professional details. Next, the Delegate is invited to enter his/her billing details (exact postal address of his/her company). Finally, the Delegate must choose a payment method (payment by credit card or bank transfer) and agree to the GTCS.
    2. Verification of the order before validation. The Delegate checks the summary information on his/her order before validating it.
    3. Confirmation of the order. After placing his/her order, the Delegate will receive e-mail confirmation containing information relating to the order, a link to the GTCS, and the privacy policy applicable to his/her order, which he/she may print or save for archiving purposes. Once confirmed and accepted by the GCC FORUM, under the conditions described above, the order cannot be cancelled.

  3. Article 3: PRICING CONDITIONS

    1. Prices for Services. The prices applicable to the GCC FORUM’s Events are those in force on the Website on the day the Delegate’s order is registered or in force on the quote issued. They are indicated exclusive of tax.
    2. Special offers and discount vouchers. The GCC FORUM reserves the right to propose introductory offers of limited duration, promotional offers or price reductions on its Events and to revise its offers and prices on the Website at any time, under the conditions provided for by law. The applicable rates are those in force at the time of the Delegate’s order, and the Delegate may not take advantage of other rates prior or subsequent to his/her order. The discount vouchers may be subject to special conditions and are in any event strictly personal to their beneficiary and may be used only once.

  4. Article 4: PAYMENT

    1. Payment by the Delegate signifies acceptance of these GTCS.
    2. Method of payment. Payment can be made either by credit card or by bank transfer to the GCC FORUM’s bank account.
    3. Payment by bank card. The Delegate may pay for the Event online by bank card, i.e., by direct debit using the payment systems and services offered, which are secure services provided by third parties of the GCC FORUM. By providing his/her bank and billing details, the Delegate guarantees that he/she is of legal age and that he/she is the legal holder of the card to be debited and that he/she is legally entitled to use it. In the event of an error or the impossibility of debiting the card, the sale shall be immediately cancelled by operation of law and the order for the Event shall be cancelled. The direct debit is carried out by the payment service provider “Wio Bank x Stripe” a third party to the GCC FORUM, subject to its own contractual conditions over which the GCC FORUM has no control. Payment for the Events is made as soon as the GCC FORUM, after receiving an order confirmation, has accepted it and the direct debit has been made. Any Event not paid in full cannot be delivered. In this case, payment is made by direct debit using the credit card information provided (card number, expiry date, security number, name of the cardholder), according to the payment method offered by the payment service provider and the choice of the Delegate. Payment requires that the Delegate has a valid sending and receiving e-mail box. Each delegate’s email must be unique. To this end, the Delegate’s e-mail address will be requested before the bank debit. If the Delegate does not have a valid e-mail address, he/she will not receive written confirmation of his/her order, including a copy of these GTCS. The GCC FORUM reserves the right to use the payment service providers of its choice and to change them at any time. By confirming the order, the Delegate authorizes the debiting of the amount indicated.
    4. Payment by bank transfer. In the case of payment by bank transfer, a quote will be issued, the amount of which is fixed. In the event of non-payment within the indicated period, the quote shall automatically lapse. In order to receive a new quote, a new request must be made. Payment by bank transfer involves additional bank charges to be paid by the Delegate.
    5. If the invoice is issued to several Delegates at the same time, and/or if the order and/or payment was made by a third party, the Delegate agrees with these General Conditions and the third party is obliged to send the General Conditions to the Delegate.
    6. Once the subscription has been validated by the Delegate, no retraction is possible and all choices are final.
    7. Payment incident – Fraud. In the event of fraudulent use of a Delegate’s bank card, the Delegate is invited to contact the GCC  FORUM as soon as it is discovered that the card has been used, without prejudice to the steps to be taken by the Delegate with his/her bank.
    8. The GCC FORUM reserves the right to stop accepting applications for participation in the Forum at any time from representatives of any country or any specialty when the permitted quotas are exceeded. The decision to stop accepting applications for participation is at the sole discretion of the GCC FORUM.

  5. Article 5: ACCESS TO SERVICES

    1. Access to the Website. The Website is accessible free of charge to any person with Internet access. All costs relating to access to the Website, whether hardware, software or Internet access costs, are exclusively borne by the Users. The GCC FORUM cannot be held responsible for any material damage related to use of the Website. Furthermore, the user of the Website undertakes to access the Website using recently manufactured equipment, free of viruses and with a latest generation updated browser. The User is solely responsible for the proper functioning of his/her computer equipment and his/her access to the Internet.
    2. Access to the Business Matching App.
      1. If, for any reason beyond the control of the GCC FORUM, the Application cannot be used during the Event, the GCC FORUM undertakes to find an alternative way via a different technical format.
      2. The GCC FORUM shall not be held responsible for the results of matchmaking between the Delegates on the App, which are exclusively dependent on the intrinsic and respective professional and personal characteristics of each Delegate.
      3. The GCC FORUM cannot be held responsible for the accuracy of the personal and professional information of the Delegates indicated in the Application.
      4. The GCC FORUM may not disclose the Business Matching App algorithms.
      5. The App is made available to Delegates for a fixed period of time determined by the GCC FORUM. As soon as the GCC FORUM has communicated this end date of the Service, Delegates undertake to take all useful conservation measures in order to retain a copy of any data hosted on the App, and the GCC FORUM may not be held liable for any loss of data in this respect.
      6. The number of Business Matches may be limited. Delegates will be given information about other delegates with a high match percentage.
      7. It is strictly forbidden to choose a country or a business activity that does not match the real profile of the Delegate.
      8. Maintenance and updates. The Website and App may be subject to maintenance operations. To this end, the GCC FORUM reserves the right to interrupt, temporarily suspend or modify, without prior notice, access to all or part of the Website or App, in order to carry out maintenance (in particular by means of updates), or for any other reason, without the interruption giving rise to any obligation, compensation or reimbursement.

  6. Article 6: ORGANIZATION OF EVENTS

    1. The costs of accommodation, flights, meals, transfers, medical insurance and/or any other expenses of the Delegate are not covered by the GCC FORUM and are not included in any of the prices. Consequently, the Delegate must pay them directly and on his/her own behalf.
    2. Cases of force majeure or fortuitous events which may lead to changes in the program or cancellation by the GCC FORUM. The following are considered to be cases of force majeure or fortuitous events, in addition to those usually recognized by the jurisprudence of the courts and tribunals, without this list being restrictive: health crises, epidemics, pandemics, strikes or social conflicts internal or external to the GCC FORUM, natural disasters, fires, interruption of telecommunications, interruption of energy supply, interruption of communications or transport of any kind, civil or military wars, or any other circumstance beyond the GCC FORUM’s reasonable control.
    3. Administrative formalities. The Delegate is personally responsible for all documents that he/she may need to obtain in advance according to his/her country of origin, provenance and destination, as well as for all tests and medical certificates that may be required by the public authorities.
    4. Modification or cancellation of the Event. In the event of a change of dates or cancellation of the Event, the Delegate will bear all financial risks associated with the Event.
    5. Communications between the Delegate and the GCC FORUM.
      1. Exchanges of information between the parties in relation to the Event will in principle take place by means of e-mail exchanges according to the e-mail address that will have been provided when the profile was created and the Event was paid for, or by messages via a messaging service determined between them.
      2. All exchanges between the Delegate and the GCC FORUM prior to the start of the course will be in English.
      3. Delegates are forbidden to use defamatory, threatening, hateful, intolerant, obscene, etc. speech and any disparaging speech or publication that may infringe the rights of the GCC FORUM, another Delegate or third parties and is contrary to the law. The GCC FORUM reserves the right to take any legal action he/she deems appropriate.
      4. If a Delegate breaks, shatters or damages an object on the premises where the Event takes place, the costs of material damage caused to third parties will be borne by the Delegate.
    6. The Gala Dinner.
      1. Imposed menu. Consequently, the menu and drinks are imposed by the GCC FORUM, and with the exception of possible allergens or food prohibitions which must be indicated to the GCC FORUM no later than 14 days before the Event, the Delegates cannot refuse the imposed meal and demand another menu.
      2. The GCC FORUM respects the cultural sensitivities of the host country during the black tie gala dinner.
      3. The Gala Dinner ticket cannot be exchanged or reimbursed.
      4. Mandatory dress code. At the Gala Dinner there is a compulsory dress code called Black Tie. This code can be defined as an evening dress (less formal than white tie) consisting of a tuxedo jacket, matching trousers, a white shirt and a black bow tie, or a national costume or military dress. If this is not respected, entry will not be allowed.
      5. Accompanying Persons. Accompanying Persons may not be present at the Event or receptions organized as part of the Event or Gala dinners.
    7. Map of the geographical location of the Event. The Event is held in a geographical area which will be divided into two zones, respectively named “Business Zone” and “Premium Zone”. The plan of the zones may be modified at any time by the GCC FORUM.
    8. GCC Forum Organizing Committee membership is an honorary status which involves no responsibilities, financial contribution or obligations. GCC Forum Organizing Committee membership may be terminated at the end of an event at the discretion of the organizers. Any member of the GCC Forum Organizing Committee may resign at any time by giving prior notice to the Organizers.

  7. Article 7: LIABILITY

    1. The GCC FORUM is not responsible for:
      1. any unsatisfied subjective expectations of the Delegate relating to the organization and running of the Event which have not been expressly provided for in these general conditions;
      2. the life, health and personal effects of the Delegate during the Event, nor accidents or thefts of goods committed against the Delegate or third parties;
      3. the Delegate’s personal expenses related to transport, catering, hotel reservations, tickets, accommodation in the city where the event takes place, health insurance and other expenses of the Delegate either during the Event or in the event of modification or cancellation due to force majeure;
      4. the behaviour, statements or personal opinion of any of the Delegates at the Event;
      5. any technical malfunction of the network or servers or any other event beyond reasonable control which results in the cancellation or modification of any part of the program;
      6. information that the Delegate personally provides;
      7. actions, omissions, by any third party directly or indirectly or in any capacity whatsoever involved in the organization of the Event and which lead to malfunctions in the work, the running of the Event, or a change to program, and in general to any modification in the organization or running of the Event, or otherwise in relation to the description of the program and/or the running of the Event;
      8. future collaboration with the specialists involved or the learnings received from them during the Event;
      9. the plan/structure of the presentations, the sources of information and possible supporting actions (distribution, form, volume or other) determined by the Speakers;
      10. images, photos and/or videos made by the Delegates to the Event and their subsequent use and/or summary/quotation on social networks or another App;
      11. the quality of the Delegate’s image in photos and videos made during the Event, and/or which will be transmitted to the Delegates after the Event;
      12. In any event, the GCC FORUM’s liability towards the Delegate, a professional, is limited to the amount of the price paid by him/her, exclusive of tax, in return for the provision of the service in the context of which the dispute arises. This amount is understood to be the maximum amount that the GCC FORUM could be required to pay as compensation (damages and interest) and as a penalty, whatever the damage alleged and the legal grounds adopted.

  8. Article 8: CONDITIONS OF CANCELLATION AND/OR CHANGE OF DATES

    1. Regardless of the nature or seriousness of the reason for cancellation of the registration, the cancellation procedure is the same.
    2. Force majeure. In the event of force majeure, the GCC FORUM has the right to make any necessary changes to the program, to postpone the Event to new dates or to cancel the program.
    3. Partial or total modification of the terms and conditions of the Event (change of venue, date) does not entitle the Delegate to any compensation.
    4. In the event of cancellation of the Event by the GCC FORUM. If the GCC FORUM cancels the Event, it will refund the Delegate the full amount of the price paid regardless of category within 180 days of receipt of the Refund Form completed by the Delegate.
    5. If the Event is modified by the GCC FORUM.
      1. If the GCC FORUM makes changes to the program dates, the period between the GCC FORUM’s announcement of the postponement and the announcement of the new program dates may be up to 2 years, depending on the seriousness of the situation constituting the force majeure which necessitated the postponement.
      2. Only after the announcement of new dates, if they are not convenient for the Delegate, shall the Delegate be entitled to request a refund, which will be made within 180 days following the receipt of the Refund Form completed by the Delegate.
      3. In the event of a refund, it will be made to the Delegate’s bank card, if the payment was made by bank card (if the time limit for refunding by bank card has not been exceeded) or by transfer to the Delegate’s current account, according to the details indicated by the Delegate in the completed form.
      4. The amount of the refund may be unilaterally reduced by the GCC FORUM by the amount of the bank commission due to the international transfer.
    6. The GCC FORUM is not responsible for the financial risk incurred by the Delegate in the event of a change of program dates or cancellation of the program.
    7. If the Delegate can no longer attend the Event, the ticket is not refundable, regardless of the reason.

  9. Article 9: RIGHT TO IMAGE

    1. During the Event, the Delegate expressly authorizes the GCC FORUM to take photographs or make films of the Delegate and to re-use these images for advertising or commercial purposes. The Delegate waives any remuneration for the use by the GCC FORUM of these media for advertising or commercial purposes.

  10. Article 10: INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

    1. The GCC FORUM is the owner of all intellectual property rights relating to the Website and the App, content, texts, images, graphics, logos, icons, sounds, software constituting tools and working materials for the Events, and the App which it owns or holds the usage rights for, except for materials created by a Delegate, the latter retaining all intellectual property rights to his/her creations.
    2. Access to the Website and/or the App does not confer any right on the User to the intellectual property rights relating to the Website and the App, which remain the exclusive property of the GCC FORUM.
    3. The User may not, under any circumstances, reproduce, represent, modify, transmit, publish, adapt, on any medium whatsoever, by any means whatsoever, or exploit in any way whatsoever, all or part of the Website or App without the prior written authorization of the GCC FORUM. Any exploitation not previously authorized by the GCC FORUM or third parties, in any capacity whatsoever, of all or part of the Website and App may be the subject of any appropriate action, including an action for infringement.
    4. All distinctive signs by the GCC FORUM are protected by law and any unauthorized use by the Company may result in prosecution.
    5. Failure to comply with this clause will be considered as a serious fault on the part of the Delegate, which will be detrimental to the GCC FORUM.

  11. Article 11: INVALIDITY OR MODIFICATION OF ONE OR MORE CLAUSES OF THE CONTRACT

    1. If any provision of the GTCS is invalidated, such invalidity shall not invalidate the remaining provisions of these GTCS, which shall remain in force between the parties. Any amendment, termination or waiver of any of the provisions of this contract shall only be valid after written and signed agreement between the parties.

  12. Article 12: PARTNER WEBSITES – HYPERTEXT LINKS

    1. The User may access, via the hypertext links present on the Website or the App, the websites of Partners or third parties which are not governed by these GTCS. The User is therefore invited to examine the general conditions of use or sale, as well as the privacy policies or any other legal information, applicable to these websites. The Delegate is informed that the Service may require access to other websites or apps designed and managed under the responsibility of third parties. The Company has no control over the content of these websites and declines all responsibility for their content and the use made by any third party of the information contained therein. This clause applies to all content of the Partners or Sponsors.

  13. Article 13: COMPLIANCE WITH LAW

    1. These GTCS are subject to all applicable federal, state, and local laws, including health and safety codes, alcoholic beverage control laws, disability laws, federal anti-terrorism laws and other regulations in the host country of the Event. The GCC Forum and the delegate agree to cooperate with each other to ensure compliance with such laws.

  14. Article 14: DISPUTE RESOLUTION

    1. In the event of a dispute between the parties in respect of this Agreement, the parties shall first attempt to resolve such dispute as soon as practicable through good-faith negotiation. Where a dispute cannot be resolved mutually through good-faith negotiation, each party irrevocably agrees that the European Centre of Arbitration and Mediation (France) shall have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with these GTCS. All legal and judicial costs relating to the amicable settlement (negotiations by lawyers) or judicial proceedings (legal action taken by the GCC FORUM or the Delegate) shall be borne exclusively by the Delegate.