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Terms and Conditions of Use
In other words...You are agreeing to the Terms and Conditions, not these "In Other Words" notes, which are provided here only to help simplify the Terms and Conditions and make them easier to search. All disputes and decisions are based only on the full Cam4 Terms and Conditions, so make sure you read both!
By using Cam4 you are agreeing to all of these Terms and Conditions. We may update them once in a while, so please review them frequently!
Your Agreement
- These Terms and Conditions of Use (Terms of Use) apply to the web sites, web pages, interactive features, applications, widgets, blogs, social networks, social network "tabs," or other online or wireless offerings that post a link to these Terms of Use, whether accessed via computer, mobile device or other technology, manner or means (the "Site", or "Cam4.com" or "Cam4").
- The Site is brought to you by Granity Entertainment, DAC ("Granity"), operating as 'Cam4.com' and under the trade and service mark 'Cam4', and in conjunction with Granity Media Inc., an Ontario, Canada corporation and TLE Opportunities, LLC, a Delaware company, which are third-party service providers authorized by Granity to provide payment processing of transactions. References to "Cam4" and "Cam4.com" or any other "Cam4" URL or domain name owned by Granity are synonymous with Granity Entertainment, DAC.
These Terms of Use govern your rights and responsibilities in connection with the Site. The term "Site" includes the content on that Site, all of our services provided on or through the Site and any software that we make available on or through the Site (the "Software"). You "use" the Site anytime you access (via computer, mobile device or other technology), view, link to or from, or otherwise interact or communicate with or connect to, the Site (or any parts thereof) or interact or communicate with other users through the Site (including, without limitation, on message boards, chat rooms and/or other communities established on the Site), and doing so makes you a "User", or "Viewer". You become a "Registered User" when you provide certain information and personal data to Cam4, which allows you to "chat" and "tip" Broadcasters. A "Broadcaster" is someone who contributes User Generated Content as that term is defined below, "User-Generated Content".
- To access the Site, you agreed to be bound by these Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy found at http://succesful.pro/privacy/. You were asked if you agree to the Terms of Use and you indicated by clicking "YES" or "ENTER" that you do, and we collected your IP address and time that you made this decision to be bound by our Terms of Use.
- Cam4 reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to modify these Terms of Use at any time by posting revised Terms of Use through the Site. You are responsible for reviewing and becoming familiar with any modifications to this Agreement. Modifications are effective when posted, and your use of the services following any such posted modification and notice of same constitutes your acceptance of the Terms of Use as modified.
- These Terms of Use contain disclaimers and exclusive remedy provisions.
- Please note that you may be subject to additional rules and regulations that may apply when you use specific features provided by Cam4. It is these Terms of Use, any subsequent version of these Terms of Use and any additional rules and regulations applicable to special features that comprise the entire agreement between you and Cam4 and supersede any prior agreements.
If you do not agree to any of the following Terms of Use, the rules and regulations of the Site, or the Cam4 Privacy Policy please do not use the Cam4 Internet services.
In other words...You must be 18 or older to use Cam4!
Also, if you want to use Cam4, you have to be willing and legally able to view nudity and sexual activity in your community…because you probably will.
And, of course, you can't use Cam4 for anything illegal!
Eligibility for Access to Cam4
- You must be 18 years of age or older to access and use this Site. If the age of majority in your location is greater than 18, you must be at least that age to access the material available on this Site or to receive online services from Cam4.
- Use of Cam4 services is void where prohibited by law.
- By using and/or viewing services provided by Cam4, you represent and warrant that you are not prohibited by law from using the offered online services and that you have the right, authority and capacity to enter into this Agreement and to abide by all of its Terms of Use as posted here and as amended from time to time.
- By using the services, you are making the following Statement:
- "UNDER PENALTY OF PERJURY I swear/affirm that as of this moment:
- I am an adult, at least 18 years of age (or older in any other location in which 18 is not the minimum age of majority);
- I am familiar with the laws in my area affecting my legal right to access erotica or adult-oriented material, and I have the legal right to access such material and Cam4 has the legal right to transmit such material to me in my location;
- I promise that I will not permit any person(s) under 18 years of age (or older in any other location in which 18 is not the minimum age of majority) to have access to any of the materials (including any products or features) contained within these communication services;
- I understand that when I gain access to these communication services, I will be exposed to visual images, verbal descriptions audio sounds and other features and/or products of a sexually oriented, frankly erotic nature, which may include graphic visual depictions and descriptions of nudity and sexual activity and I am voluntarily choosing to do so, because I want to view, read and/or hear the various materials and/or order and enjoy the use of such products or features, which are available for my own personal enjoyment, information and/or education;
- My choice is a manifestation of my interest in sexual matters which, I believe, is both healthy and normal and which, in my experience, is generally shared by average adults in my community;
- I am familiar with the standards in my community regarding the acceptance of such sexually oriented materials, and the materials I expect to encounter are within those standards;
- In my judgment, the average adult in my community accepts the consumption of such materials by willing adults in circumstances such as this which offer reasonable insulation from the materials for minors and unwilling adults, and will not find such materials to appeal to a prurient interest or to be patently offensive;
- It is my desire to share and/or to invite others to share my own private and personal behaviors and to comment, rate, criticize, organize and recommend based on what I am exposed to by utilizing the online services provided by Cam4, while inviting others to do the same; and
- I further represent and warrant that I have not notified any governmental agency, including the U.S. Postal Service, that I do not wish to receive sexually oriented material."
- Under no circumstances is this Site to be utilized for any illegal activity. The site may not be accessed, viewed, downloaded or otherwise received in any country or location in which doing so would or could be deemed a violation of any law.
In other words...You don't need to make an account to view live cam broadcasts on Cam4. However, you will have to register for a free account if you want to broadcast, chat, or post anything on the site.
We will delete your account if you lie about the details when you're registering it.
Member's Information
- Cam4 is a free website and if you are age-qualified, you may view live cams and videos without creating an account.
- If you want to become a Broadcaster and post content through Cam4, you must first join the community of content contributors at Cam4 and agree to provide true and correct personal information.
- If the information you provide is not true and correct, you face the immediate termination of your account and you may be subject to legal sanctions.
- You will be asked to provide a valid email address for verification purposes and quality assurance, and you agree that Cam4 may send you emails, both of a transactional nature and also for commercial and promotional purposes.
- You will be provided with an auto-generated password which you can change later, and you will choose your own screen name unique to you, not offensive to others, and not in violation of another's copyright or trademark. You agree that Cam4 is the owner of all screen names you enter and provide to it.
- To the extent you voluntarily create a user profile to participate in certain select services offered by Cam4, your profile (and its contents) may be searchable by other users registered through Cam4 and others partnered or networked with Cam4. Likewise, your profile (and its contents) may be searchable by publicly available search engines.
In other words...Everything you see on Cam4 is made by third parties, not by us. Cam4 isn't responsible for any of the stuff you might see on the site!
Descriptions of Services
- Among other features, Cam4's online Internet services may allow for the uploading, sharing and viewing of adult content, including sexually explicit images. The services may allow you to view live video content, information and other material that has been posted by other users. You are allowed to view this material subject to these Terms of Use.
- You understand and agree that the content displayed on Cam4 is primarily posted by third parties and Cam4 does not pre-screen or preemptively monitor such content.
- You understand that Cam4 is not liable or responsible for content posted by third parties, and you agree to hold Cam4 harmless for any and all content you encounter via the Site and you covenant not to sue Cam4 in connection with any claim regarding content you encounter while on the Site.
- The Cam4 online services may also feature links to websites which are not owned, controlled, censored or edited by Granity Entertainment, and which may contain information or material that some people may find inappropriate or offensive. Granity Entertainment nor Cam4 cannot and do not assume any liability or responsibility whatsoever for the content, decency, accuracy, copyright compliance, legality, privacy policies or practices or any other aspect of the content of such websites, and the inclusion of such a link does not imply endorsement of the website by Cam4 or any association with its operators.
- You acknowledge that you will not claim Cam4 is liable for any liability arising out of your viewing or sharing of information posted by other users, or your use of any third-party website.
- Cam4 claims immunity from liability to the fullest extent under the law and as provided under the Communications Decency Act for content posted by third parties and nothing in this Agreement is intended to waive, remove, or usurp such immunity.
In other words...A) You can be a broadcaster and distribute your own content through Cam4, but be aware that anyone who comes to the site may see it.
You're the owner of everything you post on Cam4, but you are allowing us to make copies and show it for promotion and redistribution under the Cam4 brand.
B) Read this list of examples of what is not allowed on Cam4
User-Generated Content
- As a Cam4 user you may join the community of content contributors as a Broadcaster and submit live Audio and Video content and photographs ("User Videos") and textual content ("Chat"). User Video and Chat is collectively referred to as "User-Generated Content." You understand Cam4 does not guarantee any confidentiality with respect to any User-Generated Content, and that any User-Generated Content is specifically intended to be viewed by any age-qualified person viewing the Cam4 Site.
- You shall be solely responsible for your own User-Generated Content and the consequences of posting or publishing content. In connection with User-Generated Content, you affirm, represent, and/or warrant that:
- You own or have the necessary licenses, rights, consents, and permissions to use and authorize Cam4 to use all patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright, right to privacy, right to publicity, or other proprietary commercial or personal rights in and to any and all User-Generated Content to enable inclusion and use of the User-Generated Content in the manner contemplated by the Cam4 Site and these Terms of Use, and
- You will keep all documents required by Title 18 United States Code §2257 and §2257A, and 28 C.F.R. Part 75 as required by law, and
- You have and will maintain all §2257 et. seq. identification relating to any and all individuals who appear on your cam while broadcasting over the Cam4 platform and will provide same to Cam4 upon request, and
- You agree that if you do not have sufficient identification on any individual(s) broadcasting on your cam, you will be and will remain ineligible to cash out any tokens or tips received by you in association with your account.
- For clarity, you retain all of your legitimate ownership rights in your User-Generated Content, and viewers are granted nothing more than the right to view your submissions. However, by distributing User-Generated Content through the Cam4 platform, you hereby grant Cam4 a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, and transferable license to use, reproduce, prepare derivative works of, display, and broadcast the User-Generated Content in connection with the Cam4 service and Cam4's (and its successors' and affiliates') business, including, without limitation, to promote and redistribute part or all of the Cam4 Site (and derivative works thereof) in any media formats and through any media channels. You also hereby grant each viewer of the Cam4 Site (or any such alternate or additional media formats or channels) a non-exclusive license to access your User-Generated Content through the Site, and to use, display and perform such User-Generated Content as permitted through the functionality of the Site and under these Terms of Use. The above licenses granted by you are perpetual and irrevocable.
- You acknowledge that Cam4 is acting as a mere conduit of User-Generated Content and that Cam4 is not undertaking any obligation or liability relating to any content or activity on the Site. As such, Cam4 acts merely as a host provider lacking any editorial role and is merely a forum for the expression of ideas, thoughts, and information. Cam4 is not responsible for any inaccurate, wrong, offensive, inappropriate, or defamatory content that is contained herein.
- Cam4 is not responsible for any User-Generated Content that violates a community's norms or mores. Cam4 expects and demands that you comply with all federal, state, provincial and local laws when using the Site and when submitting or posting Content to the Site. If you are unsure whether or not Content will violate a law, you are urged to contact an attorney prior to posting the Content. Cam4 cannot enforce every jurisdiction's laws for all Content that is posted to this site. As such, Cam4 is not responsible for the User-Generated Content of the Site.
- Cam4 and its administrators reserve the right (but not the obligation) in their sole discretion to refuse, delete, move or edit any and all Content that it deems is in violation of the law (including trademark and copyright law), or is abusive, defamatory, obscene or otherwise unacceptable, and you expressly agree that removal of any content by Cam4 is not to be construed as endorsement of any remaining content, and you expressly agree that you will never assert that Cam4 edits or amends any content for the purpose of establishing that Cam4 is a producer or author of any User-Generated Content viewed via the Cam4 services.
- You must evaluate, and bear all risks associated with, the use of any Content, including any reliance on the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness, or lawfulness of such Content. In this regard, you acknowledge that you may not rely on any Content created by Cam4 or User-Generated Content transmitted to the Site. You are responsible for all your Content that is uploaded, posted, emailed, transmitted or otherwise made available via the Service.
- A partial list of content that is illegal or prohibited includes content that:
- Provides material that constitutes child pornography or which involves depictions of nudity or sexuality by an age-inappropriate-looking Broadcaster (i.e., someone who looks younger than 18, regardless of their actual age) or by a Broadcaster who is portrayed or otherwise made to appear as a person under the age of 18 by virtue of the script, make-up, demeanor, costuming, setting or props;
- Depicts animated or cartoon images of underage or child sex;
- Exploits or solicits personal information from anyone under 18;
- Violates any national, federal, state, provincial or local laws, rules, regulations, or ordinances concerning obscenity;
- Depicts "scat", human feces, human defecation, vomit, or the consumption of matter intended to look like feces or vomitus;
- Provides content involving the impersonation of another, the threat of suicide or harm to oneself or others, bestiality (sex, actual or pretend, with animals) or necrophilia (sex, actual or pretend, with a corpse);
- Harasses, bullies or invades the privacy of another person;
- Is patently offensive to the online community, including content that promotes racism, bigotry, hatred or physical harm against any individual or group;
- Provides instructional information about illegal activities such as making or buying illegal weapons, violating someone's privacy, or providing or creating computer viruses;
- Depicts the illegal use of a gun, or drugs, or rape, real or simulated. If you cannot do it without committing a crime, do not pretend to do it.
- Depicts violence, or incest, racial slurs or hate speech, (either aurally or via the written word);
- Shows any person on cam who appears to be unconscious, under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or who appears to be unaware of the presence of a spy cam;
- Promotes an illegal or unauthorized copy of another's copyrighted work, such as pirated computer programs or links to them, or providing information to circumvent manufacturer-installed copy-protect devices, or providing pirated music or links to pirated music files;
- Involves transmission of "junk" mail, "chain letters" or unsolicited commercial email or "spam";
- Promotes information you know is false, misleading or promotes illegal activity or conduct that is abusive, threatening, obscene, defamatory or libelous;
- Contains restricted or password only access pages, or hidden pages or images (those not linked to or from another accessible page);
- Includes any material not fully in compliance with United States Code, Title 18, Section 2257 et seq. or any other applicable statutes, or laws of any other jurisdiction concerning depictions of sexually explicit conduct, real or simulated;
- Solicits passwords or personal identifying information for commercial or unlawful purposes from other Users;
- Involves sending advertisements in chat or instant messaging messages;
- Engages in commercial activities and/or sales without our prior written consent such as contests, sweepstakes, barter, advertising, and pyramid schemes;
- Includes any file or data stream that contains viruses, worms, "Trojan horses" or any other destructive features.
- Promotes or solicits business for another site;
- You agree that Cam4 may review complaints about User-Generated Content and take action upon such complaints at its sole discretion.
- You agree that you may be asked to participate in the recording and preservation of your broadcast for the purpose of allowing Cam4 to create and distribute a "best of Cam4" or other such designated selection of consenting Broadcaster's User-Generated Content. It will be your choice whether or not to participate. If you "opt-in" and allow Cam4.com to record any one of your broadcasts, you will be advised of said recording and you will be responsible, as the "producer" of the content, for providing current records required by 18 U.S.C. 2257, et. seq. and you will remain in control of this User-Generated Content in the area provided to you by Cam4.com. In regard to this "best of" or otherwise designated select recording of your broadcasts, Cam4.com is not involved in the production of the material (User-Generated Content) included in this additional service, and is involved merely in the distribution of links to this material, and is consequently exempt from 2257 record keeping requirements based on limitations described in 28 C.F.R. 75.1©(4)(ii).
- You are solely responsible for any content you post and Cam4 will investigate and take legal action, in its sole discretion, against anyone who violates these Terms of Use, including removal of the offending post from the service and termination of your account. Please note that you may not permit any other person to use your account and that you must immediately inform us of any apparent breach of security, such as loss, theft or unauthorized disclosure or use of a username or password.
In other words...You can't use anyone else's account for Cam4, and no one other than you can use yours.
Cam4 Registration
- You must create your own Cam4 account in order to join the community of content contributors or access some features or offered services, and it is imperative that you do not let anyone else use your account (you must keep your password secret and secure) and you may never use anyone else's account, just as no one can ever use yours. When setting up your account you must provide accurate and complete information. You acknowledge that you are solely responsible for the activity that occurs on your account, and you must immediately notify Cam4 if you believe there has been the slightest breach of security or unauthorized use of your account.
- You will be liable for any losses incurred by Cam4 due to the unauthorized use of your account. Cam4 is not liable for your losses caused by any unauthorized use of your account and you specifically waive any such claim and agree to defend and indemnify Cam4 against any such claims made against it by third parties.
In other words...You don't own Cam4, so you can't sell access to it or distribute any part of it. Just enjoy it!
General Use of the Site—Permissions and Restrictions
- You agree not to distribute in any way, shape, manner or form any part of the Cam4 Site, including but not limited to User-Generated Content (defined below), without Cam4's prior written authorization.
- You agree not to alter or modify any part of the Site or access Cam4 content through any technology or means other than through explicitly authorized means that Cam4 allows. You cannot use any robot, spider, other automatic device, or manual process or software to monitor or copy our web pages or content or to bypass or interfere with the proper working of the Cam4 online services.
- You agree that you will not take any action that imposes an unreasonable or disproportionately large load on our infrastructure.
- You agree not to use the Site, without Cam4's prior written authorization, for any commercial use. Prohibited commercial uses include any of the following actions taken without Cam4's express approval:
- sale of access to the Site or its related services on another website;
- use of the Site or its related services for the primary purpose of gaining advertising or subscription revenue;
- the sale of advertising, on the Cam4 Site or any third-party website; or
- any use of the Site or its related services that Cam4 finds, in its sole discretion, to use Cam4's resources with the effect of competing with or subverting market share for Cam4, or the content on Cam4.
- In your use of the Cam4 services, you will otherwise comply with these Terms of Use, and all applicable local, national, and international laws and regulations.
- Cam4 reserves the right to discontinue any aspect of the Cam4 Site at any time.
In other words...You can't download or copy any of the content on Cam4 – including the live broadcasts. Just watch it live like it's meant to be watched!
Also, if you use Cam4 on a computer that isn't yours, make sure you log out of your account after.
Your Use of Content on the Site
- The Content accessed via the Cam4 Site is owned by or licensed to Granity Entertainment DAC d/b/a Cam4, subject to copyright and other intellectual property rights under the law. Material contained on the Site must be presumed to be proprietary and copyrighted. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only and may not be downloaded, copied, reproduced, distributed, transmitted, broadcast, displayed, sold, licensed, or otherwise exploited for any other purposes whatsoever. Visitors have no rights whatsoever in the Site content. Use of Site content for any reason is unlawful unless it is done with express contract or permission of the Site.
- You may access Cam4 Content, User-Generated Content and other content only as permitted under this Agreement.
- You are strictly prohibited from sharing other users' or broadcasters' personally identifying information, personal contact information or geographic location.
- You agree to use only your own account to login to this Site, establish a secure password, and to not make your login credentials available to anyone else.
- You ARE ABSOLUTELY PROHIBITED from soliciting broadcasters or other users of the site for any unlawful purpose or act, OR for any sexual act, even if prostitution is legal in that jurisdiction. Any such solicitation is grounds for immediate account termination. CAM4 WILL NOT FACILITATE PROSTITUTION.
- You agree that you are responsible and liable for any actions on your account even if they are performed by a third party.
- If you are on a computer terminal that may be accessed by persons other than yourself, you agree to log out of the Site by clicking the Logout button, and not to allow the browser to save or otherwise store your personal username and password.
- If you access the Site and find it is already logged in under another account, you must immediately log out of the Site by clicking the Logout button.
- You may access User-Generated Content for your information and personal use solely as intended through the provided functionality of the Cam4 Site. You shall not copy or download any User-Generated Content by any means or for any purpose.
- You agree to not engage in the use, copying, or distribution of any of the Content, including any use, copying, or distribution of User-Generated Content of third parties obtained through the Site for any commercial purposes.
- You agree not to circumvent, disable or otherwise interfere with security-related features of the Cam4 Site.
- Unless expressly authorized by Cam4, no one may hyperlink this Site, or portions thereof, (including, but not limited to, logotypes, trademarks, branding or copyrighted material) to their website for any reason. Further, you are not allowed to reference the url (website address) of this Site in any commercial or non-commercial media without express permission, nor are you allowed to 'frame' the Site. You specifically agree to cooperate with Cam4 to remove or de-activate any such activities and be liable for all damages. You hereby agree to liquidated damages of US$100,000.00 plus costs and actual damages for violating this provision.
In other words...You have the option of buying tokens from Cam4 to tip broadcasters.
Your token balance might change due to purchases, refunds, chargebacks, fraud and many more reasons.
You may only use tokens to tip on Cam4. Broadcasters are not able to accept other payment methods.
Viewer Tokens And Broadcaster Tipping
- Registered Users can purchase Tokens in various pre-determined quantities, for pre-determined amounts, at the sole discretion of Cam4. Tokens may be used to purchase gifts, buy memberships and tip Broadcasters.
- Tokens are not money, they have NO redemption value and are for entertainment purposes only. Cam4 does not segregate Tokens or hold them in trust for you, and all Tokens may be commingled, which is to say we are not holding Tokens in trust or segregating them by individual User accounts. Your Token balance is updated in your account and may be viewed at any time by logging into Cam4.
- Unused Tokens are not eligible for any refunds except as expressly set forth herein.
- Tokens you purchase are spent from your account in the order received, so the Tokens you bought first are spent first.
- Any Tokens not used within 6 months of purchase will expire and be cancelled from your account.
- If you do not log into Cam4 for 6 or more months, your Tokens will expire and your account may be closed.
- Cam4 may modify the number of Tokens held in your account for any reason(s), including but not limited to: purchases, refunds, chargebacks, fraud, customer support issues, account inactivity, credit card association or bank penalties or fines, or mere technical errors.
- If Company terminates your membership because you have breached this Agreement you will not be entitled to any refund of any unused subscription fees or tokens and you thereby agree to waive any claim to such a refund. Tipping is 100% optional. You are not required to tip Broadcasters.
Tipping is 100% optional. You are not required to tip Broadcasters.
- Please remember that tips do not change the rules for what Broadcasters are allowed to do on the Site. Tips are gifts and not bribes so please do not send tips and then demand something in return, that's not fair to the Broadcasters.
- Please review the partial list of content that is illegal or prohibited (5. User-Generated Content), as it is forbidden to ask a Broadcaster to engage in any of these activities. If you do so, your account is subject to immediate termination which will result in the forfeiture of your tokens.
- As in real life tipping of a gratuity, once Tokens are tipped to a Broadcaster, it is a gift and the tipped Tokens cannot be retrieved or returned.
- EXPIRED OR CANCELLED TOKENS. If your account is terminated by you voluntarily or by Cam4 as a result of inactivity or for any other reason, or if your Tokens are otherwise expired or cancelled by Cam4, and you had a positive Token balance, the Tokens will be forfeited. There are no refunds of purchased Tokens.
- Tokens that are tipped to Broadcasters may be redeemed by that Broadcaster in accordance with Cam4.com's rules and regulations concerning the redemption of Tipped Tokens. Tokens have NO value in and of themselves, they are and remain the property of Cam4 and they can be redeemed only at Cam4's discretion and only AFTER the Broadcaster requests redemption and provides Cam4 with all necessary information, at Cam4's sole discretion.
- A Performer's Account Management Tool may, at Cam4's discretion, present a visual representation of the then current potential redemption value of Tokens tipped to you. Cam4 is not holding these amounts in trust for you, is not segregating these amounts and in fact does comingle Token values and will redeem Tokens only at its sole discretion.
- If you are a Broadcaster who has received tips, you agree that you have received no consideration and that no value has been transferred to you until you have requested that your tipped Tokens be redeemed, you have provided all the information asked of you by Cam4 and Cam4 has agreed to redeem your tipped Tokens.
- If you are a Broadcaster, registering to cash out your tipped tokens is easy. The identification must be in color, with all information visible and readable. An identification is required for each person on cam, no exceptions, or the account will not be approved to cash out.
- You will then need to fill out a performer release form for each person on cam. Make sure you download a copy of the performer release form for your own records.
- Cam4 will send to its payment service providers your government-issued photo identification, or passport, or national ID card, in order to remain compliant with PSD 2 (Payment Services Directive or Directive (EU) 2015/2366) - and Dutch Wwft (Prevention) Act (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (Prevention) Act (Wwft).
- Approval of your documents normally takes 24/48 hours. If you have any questions, please contact [email protected]
In other words...Playing a recorded video instead of being on camera live is strictly prohibited.
No illegal activity can be broadcasted on Cam4, this includes showing minors on cam, illegal drugs, incest, bestiality, violence. Scat and vomit is also not allowed.
Of course, you may not discuss or arrange any escort or prostitution services on the site.
Also, you can't be working for more than one site at a time. Stick to the community here!
- In addition to any illegal and prohibited content listed above, there can be no minors, children, babies or unauthorized persons (persons for whom we do not have proper name and ID on file) on camera or in the same room.
- Bestiality, or animals/pets on camera in a sexual or provocative context, illegal drugs (or drugs that may be perceived as illegal in other locations, e.g. medicinal marijuana), is strictly prohibited.
- Incest (sexual relations involving family members) is not allowed.
- "Scat", human feces, human defecation, vomit, or the consumption of matter intended to look like feces or vomitus is not allowed.
- Illegal or unsafe activity of any kind, violence, blood, torture, pain, erotic asphyxiation, or any actions associated with bringing harm to yourself in any way is prohibited.
- A Broadcaster may not discuss or arrange prostitution or escort services.
- Any action that may be deemed obscene in your community is prohibited.
- Broadcasters shall not stream their Cam4 performance on any other site, under any circumstances.
- Broadcasters are allowed to freely interact with other Broadcasters on the site, or they may choose to block other Broadcasters from communicating with them, and it is completely up to the Broadcaster to choose who they talk to on the site and they may ignore anyone and may ban anyone from communicating with them.
- Broadcasters may exchange information with members of Cam4, including contact information, but Broadcasters MAY NOT use members' information to provide webcam shows or receive payments outside of the website. If a Broadcaster sells something to a member, e.g., underwear, or performs any other miscellaneous transaction, the sale must be arranged to be exchanged for Tokens.
- Broadcasters are not allowed to advertise commercial websites that offer live webcam streams, under any circumstances, but Broadcasters MAY mention their own profiles, homepages and wish-lists.
- Broadcasters are not allowed to ask for members' account information or to log in using accounts that do not belong to them.
- Broadcasters trying to deceive members by playing recorded video instead of actually performing live on webcam will be immediately banned, and any tipped Tokens will be forfeited.
- As with registered Users, any Broadcaster who has not logged into Cam4 in the past 12 or more consecutive months, may find their account terminated and Tokens forfeited. Likewise, any Tokens tipped to or purchased by a Broadcaster will be expired if not redeemed or used within 12 months of receipt or purchase, and your Token balance will be forfeited if you are terminated for violating these Terms of Use.
In other words...Don't commit fraud!
- Any attempt at fraud will result in a permanent ban, without payment. (e.g. working together with a customer or "hacker" to accept private shows paid for with stolen credit cards, or tipping for the purpose of subverting the non-refundability preclusion). Cam4 will not tolerate the use of Tokens to perpetuate a fraud upon Cam4, its Users or Broadcasters, and will vigorously prosecute in the criminal courts any such attempts.
- Broadcasters are required to report all such suspicious activity, or the broadcaster may be considered complicit, and subject to termination, Token and Tip forfeiture, damages and criminal prosecution.
In other words...All sales and transactions are final – Cam4 does not guarantee that refunds will be available for account credits, tokens or money for any reason. We may provide refunds in certain circumstance, but we are never obligated to.
If you are trying to get a refund, contact Cam4 Support first!
Make sure the payment methods you use are yours to use!
Transactions and Fees
- All sales and transactions are final.
- Cam4 does not guarantee the availability of a refund, whether in Site account credits, Tokens, or money, for any reason. Cam4 may provide refunds at its own sole discretion; however, it is under no obligation to do so.
- Any purchase you make at this Site must be paid for using a payment method of which you are the owner or authorized signer.
- The fees for using this website are set forth and provided to you in other places throughout the Site. Cam4 may change the fees or introduce new fees at any time.
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In other words...Cam4 will terminate your access to the site if you don't follow the Terms and Conditions. Only we can make the decision on whether or not your content complies with the Terms.
Your account may also be terminated if you are involved in racism, violence, bullying, or defamation of other members. Treat the community with respect!
Account Termination Policy
- Cam4 will terminate your access to its Site if you violate these Terms and Conditions.
- Cam4 reserves the right to decide whether Content, chat or any User-Generated Content complies with these Terms and it will be the Site Administrator's decision whether to remove content or terminate an account, in his or her irrefutable and sole discretion.
- Cam4 may look for violations in addition to copyright infringement, such as, but not limited to, obscenity, violence, racism, bullying or harassment, or defamation and may remove such User-Generated Content and/or terminate a User's account and access for uploading such material or behaving in violation of these Terms at any time, without prior notice and at its sole and irrefutable discretion.
- Cam4 may terminate your account if you do not log into Cam4 for 12 consecutive months.
- In the event of Account termination, any positive Token balance will be forfeited.
In other words...We (will) never give your email address out and never spam you.
Information Retention
- Cam4 asks for your email address when you create an account. We will retain your email address until your account is terminated. We do not sell email addresses to 3rd parties and we do not spam email addresses. Please see our privacy policy at http://succesful.pro/privacy.
In other words...We may send you emails about new site features and other cool announcements from time to time.
If you don't want to get these messages from us you can easily unsubscribe in the 'My Account' section.
CAN-SPAM ACT 15 USC §7703 et. seq.; Newsletters, Correspondence, and Opt-out Policy
- Cam4 may send e-mails or other notices regarding new services, promotions, or other information that may be of general interest. These communications may include transactional information, but they may also be of a commercial nature. We will ask your consent to send you commercial communications, and users who no longer wish to receive materials from us may opt-out of receiving these communications by unsubscribing in their account. We will comply with all requests for removal. Please be advised that we may need to send you information directly related to your account, and usually at your request. For example – request to set a new password. In order to ensure you receive these important communications related to your account, please add cam4.com to your safe senders list. Our email policies and practices are certified by Return Path.
In other words...It isn't guaranteed that you will be able to access all parts of the site.
If you aren't able to access the site, you cannot take action against Cam4.
(Specifically, you may not have access to archived areas of the site)
No Guarantee of Access and Benefits
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In other words...This section is only important if you believe that Cam4 has infringed on a copyright that you own.
Digital Millennium Copyright Act
- If you are a copyright owner or an agent thereof and believe that any content on Cam4 infringes upon your copyrights, you may submit a notification pursuant to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act ("DMCA") by providing our Copyright Agent with the following information in writing (see 17 U.S.C 512(c)(3) for further detail):
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- A statement that you have a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and
- A statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that you are authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.
- Counter-Notice. If you believe that your User Submission that was removed (or to which access was disabled) is not infringing, or that you have the authorization from the copyright owner, the copyright owner's agent, or pursuant to the law, to post and use the content in your User Submission, you may send a counter-notice containing the following information to the Copyright Agent:
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- Identification of the content that has been removed or to which access has been disabled and the location at which the content appeared before it was removed or disabled;
- A statement that you have a good faith belief that the content was removed or disabled as a result of mistake or a misidentification of the content; and
- Your name, address, telephone number, and e-mail address, a statement that you consent to the jurisdiction of the federal courts, and a statement that you will accept service of process from the person who provided notification of the alleged infringement.
- If a counter-notice is received by the Copyright Agent, Cam4 may send a copy of the counter-notice to the original complaining party informing that person that it may replace the removed content or cease disabling it in 10 business days. Unless the copyright owner files an action seeking a court order against the content provider, member or User, the removed content may be replaced, or access to it restored, in 10 to 14 business days or more after receipt of the counter-notice, at Cam4's sole discretion.
- It is the policy of Cam4 to terminate the account of repeat copyright infringers. To that end, anytime a user is found to have multiple notifications of claimed infringements. Cam4 management will notify the user and provide a meaningful opportunity to counter-notice.
In other words...Cam4 isn't liable for any harm or property damage that may come from using the site – including any content errors and inaccuracies, hackers, viruses or site interruptions. Be careful!
Also, Cam4 does not endorse any third party services advertised on Cam4. When you choose these services, use the same judgment that you would with any other purchase.
Warranty DisclaimerYou agree that your use of the Cam4 Site shall be at your sole risk. To the fullest extent permitted by law, Cam4, its parent corporation, its officers, directors, employees, and agents disclaim all warranties, express or implied, in connection with the Site and your use thereof. Cam4 makes no warranties or representations about the accuracy or completeness of the Site's content or the content of any sites linked to this Site and assumes no liability or responsibility for any (i) errors, mistakes, or inaccuracies of content, (ii) personal injury or property damage, of any nature whatsoever, resulting from your access to and use of the Site, (iii) any unauthorized access to or use of our secure servers and/or any and all personal information and/or financial information stored therein, (iv) any interruption or cessation of transmission to or from the Site, (v) any bugs, viruses, Trojan horses, or the like which may be transmitted to or through the Site by any third party, and/or (vi) any errors or omissions in any content or for any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of the use of any content posted, emailed, transmitted, or otherwise made available via the Cam4 Site. Cam4 does not warrant, endorse, guarantee, or assume responsibility for any product or service advertised or offered by a third party through the Cam4 website or any hyperlinked website or featured in any banner or other advertising, and Cam4 will not be a party to or in any way be responsible for monitoring any transaction between you and third-party providers of products or services. as with the purchase of a product or service through any medium or in any environment, you should use your best judgment and exercise caution where appropriate.
In other words...By using Cam4, you agree that you can't take action against the site or anyone involved in the site for any harm or property damage that may come from use – including content errors and inaccuracies, hackers, viruses or site interruptions.
Limitation of LiabilityBy agreeing to use the Internet services offered by Cam4, you agree that Cam4, its parent corporation, its officers, directors, employees, and agents are immune from liability under the fullest extent of the law, and/or as provided by the Communications Decency Act, as to any content and nothing in these Terms and Conditions are intended to waive or diminish such immunity. You understand and expressly agree that Cam4 reserves the right to monitor some, all, or no areas of the Site for adherence to these Terms and Conditions or other rules that may be published from time to time and may delete any content, User-Generated Content or profiles that in its sole judgment violates these Terms. In no event shall Cam4, its parent company, its officers, directors, employees, or agents, be liable to you for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, punitive, or consequential damages whatsoever resulting from any (i) errors, mistakes, or inaccuracies of content, (ii) personal injury or property damage, of any nature whatsoever, resulting from your access to and use of the service, (iii) any unauthorized access to or use of our secure servers and/or any and all personal information and/or financial information stored therein, (iv) any interruption or cessation of transmission to or from the Site, (iv) any bugs, viruses, trojan horses, or the like, which may be transmitted to or through the Site by any third party, and/or (v) any errors or omissions in any content or for any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of your use of any content posted, emailed, transmitted, or otherwise made available via the Cam4 Site, whether based on warranty, contract, tort, or any other legal theory, and whether or not the company is advised of the possibility of such damages. Cam4's liability in any case shall not exceed the sum of $500.00USD. The foregoing limitation of liability shall apply to the fullest extent permitted by law in the applicable jurisdiction. You specifically acknowledge that Cam4, its parent corporation, its officers, directors, employees, or agents shall not be liable for User-Generated Content or the defamatory, offensive, or illegal conduct of any third party and that the risk of harm or damage from the foregoing rests entirely with you. Granity retains the right at any time and from time to time to discontinue or modify, or temporarily or permanently terminate, the Cam4 site, succesful.pro (or any part thereof) with or without notifying you. If Granity discontinues the site, Granity will not be liable to you or any third party for such discontinuance, modification or termination.
In other words...No one involved in Cam4 (including the site itself) is responsible for any expenses that may arise from how you use the site, including breaking these Terms and Conditions.
IndemnityYou agree to defend, indemnify and hold Cam4, its parent corporation, officers, directors, shareholders, employees and agents, server maintenance and contributors harmless from and against any and all claims, damages, obligations, losses, liabilities, costs or debt, and expenses (including but not limited to attorney's fees) arising from: (i) your use of and access to the Cam4 Site; (ii) your violation of any term of these Terms and Conditions; (iii) your violation of any third party right, including without limitation any copyright, property, or privacy right; or (iv) any claim that one of your User-Generated Content caused damage to a third party. If you have a dispute with another user of the site or anyone who has posted, viewed or used content or information on the site, you release Cam4, its parent corporation, officers, directors, shareholders, employees and agents, server maintenance and contributors from claims , demands and damages (actual and consequential) of every kind and nature, known and unknown, suspected and unsuspected, disclosed and undisclosed, arising out of or in any way connected with such disputes. If you are a California resident, you waive California Civil Code Section 1542, which says: "A general release does not extend to claims which the creditor does not know or suspect to exist in his favor at the time of executing the release, which if known by him must have materially affected his settlement with the debtor." This defense and indemnification obligation will survive these Terms and Conditions and your use of the Cam4 Site or services.
In other words...Cam4 doesn't produce or create any of the content you find on the site!
All of the content on Cam4 is made by the Broadcaster "producers" who are responsible for ensuring that their content meets all laws, including age verification.
Section 2257 Exemption Statement
- Content Produced by Third Parties: The operators of Cam4 are not the "producers" of any depictions of any actual or simulated sexually explicit conduct. To the extent that any such content appears on this Site, the operators' involvement with respect thereto is limited to the transmission, storage, retrieval, hosting and/or formatting of depictions posted by third party users, on areas of the Site under the users' control. As such, Cam4 is exempt from the record keeping requirements of 18 U.S.C. 2257.
- Those individuals broadcasting over the Cam4.com platform are the third party "producers" of actual or simulated sexually explicit conduct,and are responsible for maintaining the age verification documentation required by Title 18 U.S.C. 2257 and 2257(A). A 2257 Form can be found here.
- Pursuant to Title 18 U.S.C. 2257(h)(2)(B)(v) and 47 U.S.C. 230(c), the operators of this Site reserve the right to delete content posted by users which operators deem to be indecent, obscene, defamatory or inconsistent with their policies and terms of service. Questions or comments regarding this Exemption Statement should be addressed to our staff. http://succesful.pro/contact/
In other words...The Terms and Conditions are based on the laws the Country of Curacao.
Cam4 is global, but you agree that the jurisdiction for any claim or action arising from these Terms lie only in the courts of Curacao.
Jurisdiction and Choice of Law AgreementThese Terms and Conditions shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Country of Ireland, excluding its conflicts of law rules. You expressly agree that the exclusive jurisdiction for any claim or action arising out of or relating to these Terms and Conditions or your use of this Site shall lie only in the courts of Dublin, Ireland, and you further agree to and submit to the exercise of personal jurisdiction of such courts for the purpose of litigating any such claim or action.
In other words...You may not transfer the rights and licenses granted by these Terms and Conditions to anyone else! This is an agreement between you and Cam4.
Cam4 may assign them without restriction.
AssignmentThese Terms and Conditions, and any rights and licenses granted hereunder, may not be transferred or assigned by you, but may be assigned by Cam4 without restriction.
In other words...These Terms and Conditions, the Cam4 Privacy Notice, and any other legal notices published on the Cam4 site make up the entire agreement between you and Cam4.
If a court or law makes any of these Terms invalid, the rest will still be in effect.
Also, you agree that any action you make related to Cam4 online services must be made within one year of the cause. Otherwise, it is permanently barred.
GeneralYou agree that: These Terms and Conditions, together with the Privacy Notice at http://succesful.pro/privacy and any other legal notices published by Cam4 on its Site, shall constitute the entire agreement between you and Cam4 concerning the Cam4 online services. If any provision of these Terms and Conditions is deemed invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, the invalidity of such provision shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions of these Terms, which shall remain in full force and effect. No waiver of any term of this these Terms and Conditions shall be deemed a further or continuing waiver of such term or any other term, and Cam4's failure to assert any right or provision under these Terms and Conditions shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. YOU AND GRANITY ENTERTAINMENT DAC AGREE THAT ANY CAUSE OF ACTION ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO THE CAM4 ONLINE SERVICES MUST COMMENCE WITHIN ONE (1) YEAR AFTER THE CAUSE OF ACTION ACCRUES. OTHERWISE, SUCH CAUSE OF ACTION IS PERMANENTLY BARRED.
In other words...This agreement lasts for one-year, and is renewed any time you visit the Site.
Unless the agreement is terminated, it will automatically renew for another year when it expires.
We may terminate this agreement with you at any time by deactivating your account.
If the agreement is terminated, the terms are still in effect for the remainder of the term.
Term and Cancellation Policy
- This Agreement shall have an initial term of one (1) year and shall be extended for additional one (1) year term(s) (the "Renewal Term") anytime that you enter the Site. Unless terminated, this Agreement shall be automatically extended for additional one (1) Year term(s) upon expiration of the previous term.
- Cam4 reserves the right to terminate this Agreement for cause at any time. This agreement may be terminated by an e-mail from you to Cam4, or by an e-mail from Cam4 to you, or by the deactivation of your account or username at the Site by Cam4.
- All rights granted by you to Cam4 during the term of this Agreement shall survive the termination of this Agreement by either party. You acknowledge that Cam4 shall not be liable to you or any third party for any termination of your access to this Site.
- Cam4 reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to terminate your access to all or part of this Site, with or without notice, for any reason, including, without limitation, if Cam4 believes that you have violated or acted inconsistently with the letter or spirit of these Terms and Conditions.
- Even after this Agreement is terminated, its provisions will remain in effect.
- Upon termination you will not be entitled to any refund of any unused subscription fees, Tokens or Tips.
- You can cancel your account, at anytime, for any reason, directly with our billing companies, or by contacting Customer Support at: http://www.cam4support.com.
Uploading Videos for Sale on Cam4
- Cam4 has developed a means to allow you to sell videos of yourself online! This ability is found on Cam4 under the offering called, "My Shop". Of course, there are rules you must agree to in order to do this. Here are the Rules. Please read them carefully as you will be asked to acknowledge you understand them, prior to submitting your video.
- ONLY broadcasters who have provided Cam4 with their personal information and have agreed to maintain all the information required by the law of any jurisdiction in which they sell their videos, for example the so-called "2257" record keeping requirements of United States law codified at 18 U.S.C. 2257, et. seq., are allowed to use the Cam4 platform for their video sales. Please note that it is imperative that the video you submit to Cam4 was created AFTER you provided Cam4 with your 2257 information.
- Your videos and your effort to sell them online at Cam4 MUST comply with all the rules and regulations found on the Cam4 site. For example, YOU are responsible for the content of your videos. YOU affirm and represent and warrant that YOU own or have the right, license and consent or permission to use all trademarks and copyrights, that you are not violating anyone's right to privacy, right to publicity, or other proprietary commercial or personal rights in and to any and all Content found on your video.
- Cam4 has the right, but not the obligation, to pre-screen any video you desire to sell on the site. Likewise, Cam4 reserves the absolute right to remove any video you upload for sale on the site, for any or no reason at all.
- Please refer specifically to the "User-Generated Content" section of Cam4's Terms and Conditions for a list of images or activities that CANNOT be part of your videos sold on the Cam4 platform.
- ONLY tokens can be used for purchase of your videos, and you may sell your videos ONLY on Cam4.com.
- If you are a PURCHASER of a video that has been uploaded by a Cam4 member, or you have otherwise accessed a video sold on the Cam4 platform, please understand that by viewing the video you are acknowledging and agreeing that Cam4 is NOT the source of the video and that the user who posted the video is solely responsible for any claims or liabilities arising from or in any way related to the video. Further, you agree that Cam4 has no responsibility to pre-view or screen any of the video and you agree to release Cam4, its affiliates, successors and assigns, its officers, shareholders, directors, employees, and counselors from any and all claims and liabilities associated with, arising from or in any other way related to the video.
Refund Policy/QuestionsCam4 is dedicated to customer satisfaction; whenever possible we want to solve any problem or questions you have with any of our services. If at all possible, we'd like to help resolve any problem you have. Please email us for assistance! http://www.cam4support.com
Privacy PolicyUse of Cam4 Internet services is governed by a Privacy Policy, located at http://succesful.pro/privacy
Copyright and LicenseThis "Terms and Conditions" is copyrighted by Granity Entertainment DAC, and is fully licensed for use by this Site. If you wish to lawfully use this Terms and Conditions on your website, contact [email protected] for licensing information.


text: Nikki is from Baltimore, MD. She is the Director of Marketing for her company. We like a woman in charge! She knows what she wants and what she likes, and is very open. When asked to tell us something about herself that most people wouldn't know, she says there really isn't anything, because she is confidant and puts it all out there. She loves to take care of her body, and eats right and works out most nights. Well, Nikki, it shows!

subset: commoncrawl


text:
It is 9 a.m. on a Monday in August at East Bank Club in Chicago. The weekend sun-worshippers have come and gone, having enjoyed their time on the club's 60,000-square-foot sun deck. The members from the morning rush have completed their workouts and are settled in their downtown offices.
Yet the buzz still remains in the club. Patrons from the neighborhood are enjoying their morning. Children not yet back to school are taking swim lessons, dribbling basketballs or creating arts and crafts at the club. A pregnant woman dressed in her workout clothes enters the club. Just before she checks in, a friend spots her.
"How are you feeling?" she asks her.
Other members hustle through the front doors. As they check in, they can pick up copies of the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times that are stacked up for them. In 2013, people still read copies of newspapers at East Bank Club, which offers just about everything for everybody.
More than 33 years ago, none of this was around, and the surrounding River North neighborhood in downtown Chicago was all but dead. As one longtime Chicagoan described it, you wouldn't want to drive through the area back then, not even during the day.
That all changed in 1980 when 50-year-old real estate developer Daniel Levin opened East Bank Club. Some people were skeptical that this health club idea would fly, especially in this area, which was once a railroad turnaround, complete with barns and sheds. The health club industry as a whole was still young, and not many big city, large multi-purpose clubs existed at the time.
At the pre-opening party that December, however, eager members rushed to get to their lockers.
"Oh," Levin thought. "This may work."
And it has. Today, East Bank Club has 11,400 members and 650 employees. This year, the 450,000-square-foot club was No. 18 on Club Industry's Top 100 Clubs list with a reported $55 million in 2012 revenue. For the past several years, East Bank Club has been the highest-ranking single club facility on the Top 100 Clubs list.
"The whole club, I had no idea it was going to be as successful as it is," Levin said earlier this year. "When we opened, we thought if we had 4,000 members, that would be great."
Some of those members have included famous celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey, the Rev. Jesse Jackson, Billie Jean King, Rahm Emanuel and a then-little-known University of Chicago School of Law professor named Barack Obama. They have all blended in among the not-so-famous members, who are treated with the same respect as anyone else, many club staff members say.
As the Club Industry Conference and Trade Show returns to Chicago next month, Club Industry will honor Levin for his work at what has become a Chicago institution with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Levin joins the likes of Joe Gold, Jack LaLanne and last year's recipient, Joe Cirulli. Many of the 10 previous recipients worked their way through the health club industry as bodybuilders or fitness trainers. Levin took a different route, and although not as well-known throughout the fitness industry, he shares the same qualities as all the other recipients: a vision and a keen business sense.East Bank Club, seen here in 2008 against the Chicago skyline, totals 450,000 square feet. (Photo courtesy of East Bank Club.)
Law, Politics and Real Estate
Theodore and Rhoda Levin were each born in Chicago to Jewish immigrants from Lithuania, but they raised their family of four children in Detroit. Daniel Levin was third in line among his two brothers and sister, born on July 24, 1930.
The Levin family is steeped in law. Theodore Levin, the oldest of eight children, ran a family law practice in Detroit for 26 years with his brother, Saul. He opposed the Michigan Alien Registration and Fingerprinting Act with other immigration lawyers and succeeded in having the act declared unconstitutional.
In 1946, President Harry S. Truman nominated Theodore Levin to become a federal judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. After U.S. Senate confirmation, Levin served as a federal judge until his death in 1970. (He was chief judge of the court from 1959 to 1967.) The Theodore Levin U.S. Courthouse in Detroit was named in his memory in 1995.
Daniel Levin's older brother, Charles, served as a justice on the Michigan Supreme Court from 1973 to 1996. Their first cousins include two members of Congress: Carl Levin, the U.S. senator from Michigan, and Sander Levin, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan's 9th district.
All signs pointed Daniel Levin toward following in the family business. He graduated from the University of Chicago in 1950 and later earned his law degree from there in 1953. He went on to serve as a law clerk in Washington, DC, before joining the family law firm.
"That's what we did. We became lawyers," Levin says.
Yet something was missing in his life.
"I wasn't enjoying the law that much," Levin says. "I wasn't that good at it."
In 1957, after creating work connections in Chicago, Levin was hired to a low-level house counsel position for Chicago real estate developer Herbert Greenwald, who worked closely with famed German-American architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. In 1959, Greenwald was among more than 60 people who died in a plane crash at New York's LaGuardia Airport.
The tragedy opened a new chapter for Levin, who became more involved in the real estate business. He later formed a partnership with James P. McHugh of James McHugh Construction Co. called McHugh Levin Associates.
The first major development for Levin and McHugh was South Commons, a 28-acre urban renewal project on Chicago's south side. The success of that project led Levin to found The Habitat Co. in 1971.
Since then, Levin has directed the financing and structuring of more than 20,000 rental and condominium units in 80 locations and six states and has more than $2 billion in assets under management.
The company attributes its philosophy to a quote from Levin: "No project is only an investment in real estate. It is an investment in the future of the community and in the lives of the people who live and work there."
One could apply the same philosophy to the opening of East Bank Club. But this particular project was not easy to get off the ground.East Bank Club opened in 1980 with only a few bikes, some rowing machines and not a single treadmill, but that slowly changed. Today, East Bank Club's cardio room is 20,000 square feet. (Photo by Stuart Goldman.)
The Origins of the Club
In 1973, Levin and McHugh obtained an option to buy a 142,000-square-foot parcel on the east bank of the north branch of the Chicago River for an apartment complex. They applied for financing with the Illinois Housing Development Authority, noting that 20 percent of the apartment complex units would be affordable housing. But the Authority turned them down. Levin and McHugh were told people would not want to live in the neighborhood.
A few years later, Levin and McHugh thought a health club would better suit the space. The cost estimate was $15.5 million, with one-third coming from investors. Construction began in 1978, and Levin and McHugh needed to put up more capital.
"It was difficult to raise the money because people didn't have confidence in a club this size or in another health club or a racquet club," Levin says. "At that time, the industry wasn't nearly as popular as it today."
Many insurance companies turned down Levin and McHugh on the health club idea, but they finally received a small loan from Continental Bank, which no longer exists.
"I wasn't pessimistic about the area," Levin says. "I couldn't understand why we couldn't get financing for the apartment buildings. I was so involved in it for so long, I almost wasn't worried about the risk anymore. I just wanted to see it happen. The money that I put in, I knew I could go on living without it. It wasn't going to break me."
Rick Caro, president of consulting firm Management Vision, New York, says Levin was ahead of his time.
"The good news is he went into a market where others had not been," Caro says. "The bad news is it was a completely untested, unproven market and one that clearly would not have been an obvious choice to support the size and scope of the facility that was created."
The East Bank Club of 1980 certainly is not the East Bank Club of today. The club has evolved to keep up with the times and the trends. In the beginning, it did not include even a single treadmill, Levin says. Today, it has a 20,000-square-foot cardio room. The number of indoor tennis courts has been reduced over the years from 12 to seven. One tennis court was recently converted into a training center similar to the studios that have populated the industry in recent years.
In addition to the massive cardio room and the tennis courts, East Bank Club offers a quarter-mile indoor running track, three racquetball courts, a squash court, a free weight room, five aerobics studios, a Pilates and Gyrotonic studio, physical therapy, a 60-bike cycle studio, four swimming pools (two indoor and two outdoor), two regulation-size basketball courts, a day care center, a juice bar and a pro shop.
Any club with those amenities would be the envy of competitors. But East Bank Club also has an indoor golf driving range, a dry cleaner, a full-service salon and spa, a car wash, a casual grill, a gourmet deli, a restaurant, catering facilities and the aforementioned 60,000-square-foot sun deck.
"There's not another place in the city that has a deck like this," Levin says. "We can have 800 to 900 people on the deck on a good weekend day."
And let's not forget underground parking, a premium in downtown Chicago, or the club's building facilities department where union workers construct specific projects for the club, which spends between $1.5 million and $2 million a year in capital improvements. The club also has an annual budget of $96,000 solely for flowers and landscaping in and around the club.
"I don't think [Levin has] ever seen it as a money venture," says Club Manager Simon Meredith, who has worked at the club since its inception in 1980. "He just wants it to be a great place, well run, and people will have great things to say about it."
Attention to detail is in everything at the club, from the nameplates outside office doors (there are meetings about how those are designed) to the mannequins in the window of the pro shop. The club also commissions art murals. The latest piece on the right-hand side of the entryway is entitled "Our Kind of Town," a skyline of Chicago that prominently features East Bank Club.
"What we all in the industry admire is not only did [Levin] take a risk and have a concept and then knew how to find people to execute it, but he has continually reinvested his creativity and financial resources to continue to always reconfigure the space, to find ways to meet changing interest and demand of types of facilities that support new programs," Caro says. "He is really a genius in some ways because he did something that almost all of the pundits at the time would have said made no sense. He then did it and has continued to do it over all of these years."
Caro, who received Club Industry's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006, says Levin continues to inspire him whenever he visits East Bank Club.
"His commitment is no less than the 21-year-old who is fervently committed to helping an individual get healthier and live a better life," Caro says. "His commitment to his staff is immeasurable. His commitment to the member is beyond standard norms. He is just so passionate to make East Bank Club more significant and more successful tomorrow than it was yesterday. I consider myself very passionate about the industry already, and he makes me more passionate."The 60,000-square-foot sun deck atop East Bank Club is quiet weekday mornings, but come summer weekends, the place is packed. (Photo by Stuart Goldman.)
Still Hard at Work
Both of Levin's companies, East Bank Club and The Habitat Co., continue to fuel his fire. He does play golf (he didn't take up the sport until he was 65), and he does travel. He and his wife, Fay Hartog-Levin, who served as the U.S. Ambassador to The Netherlands from 2009 to 2011, recently went to France for a vacation and to see one of his daughters who lives there. (Levin also has another daughter who lives in the Chicago area and a son who is a senior attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, DC.)
While in France, though, Levin responded to an email from Meredith about a minor question regarding the club. Work is never far behind, and Levin is in on all the major decisions at the club.
"I work every day because I enjoy it," Levin says. "I don't feel the stress of starting from scratch and building a business. No one can fire me, and I need two jobs in order to feel safe."
Levin and his wife drive together to work every morning. He parks the car in the garage at East Bank Club in what is no doubt one of the best parking spots in all of Chicago. While she heads to work at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, Levin might eat breakfast at the club or chat with club executives for a quick rundown before heading across the street to his office at The Habitat Co.
Levin turned 83 in July, and the thought of handing over the reins of the club has popped up a time or two. But for right now, he is still in charge.
"It's going to happen," Levin says about retirement. "I enjoy what I'm doing, and everyone seems to get along with me. But I'm not going to live forever, and I have to think about an arrangement of how I'll be replaced, as you think about in any job."
Meredith does not see Levin retiring anytime soon.
"He's fascinated by every aspect of business," Meredith says. "He has boundless energy, an interest in every detail. He can just keep going as long as his health holds out."
And why would Levin retire now? Four office and residential projects not related to The Habitat Co. within blocks of East Bank Club could produce a gold mine of future members. And, in addition to The Habitat Co.'s Kingsbury Plaza high-rise apartments that went up in 2007, the company is completing a $140 million 43-story apartment tower called Hubbard Place, due to open in October, right next door to East Bank Club.
"He's not one that's ever wanted to be involved in self-aggrandizement," Hartog-Levin says. "He didn't build the club or other buildings as monuments to himself. He built all of these things to make other people happy and comfortable."
On this August day at East Bank Club, Levin is dressed in a summer tan suit and tie with a matching handkerchief in his suit pocket. He pops into the pro shop before noon and mulls over purchasing a cashmere sweater for his wife. Soon, he joins the executive staff for lunch at the club's grill, getting up a time or two to speak to members he has spotted. After lunch, he steps into his modest office at the club for a quick video interview.
The interview is done, yet he has more work to do. A 1:30 p.m. meeting at The Habitat Co. is fast approaching. Levin says his goodbyes at East Bank Club before he steps out through a side door, crosses the street and heads to his office, anonymously.
(Click here for a photo gallery of Daniel Levin and East Bank Club, and click here for a video interview with Levin.)Commissioned artwork, along with paper mache figures (lower right) are part of what make East Bank Club so unique. (Photo by Stuart Goldman.)
Sidebar: The Famous and a Future President Work Out at East Bank Club
You do not see photos of the famous members who have come and gone at East Bank Club. But their time spent at the club and their associations with the club and CEO Daniel Levin have become the stuff of legend.
Oprah Winfrey has worked out almost unrecognizably in the club's vast cardio room. Levin's wife, Fay Hartog-Levin, remembers a time when her husband gave Winfrey a vegetable juice drink after a workout.
"You're my hunk of love," Winfrey told Levin that day, according to his wife.
One famous former member perhaps represents the vision that Levin has for the club and for others. Levin first met President Barack Obama one day after Obama played basketball at the club. At that time, Obama's career was moving forward, and a few years later in 1996, he was elected to the Illinois state senate. Still somewhat unknown in Chicago, Obama launched a campaign for the 2004 U.S. Senate.
Hartog-Levin had met Obama when she served as an executive at Chicago's Field Museum. Her husband set up a meet-and-greet wine and cheese party for Obama at East Bank Club. Around 50 members attended.
After Obama won the Democratic nomination for the Senate that March, the Levins hosted Obama and wife Michelle at their house in Winnetka, IL, for a small dinner party. A chef served Chinese food that evening for the 10 or so guests.
The rest is well-known history. Obama won the Senate seat in the fall, announced his candidacy for president in 2007, was elected president in 2008 and was re-elected in 2012.
"He was someone you knew that was going to have more public prominence somehow," Levin says. "We became very close to him and still are close to him."
However, Levin gets only so close to the president these days.
"He's still the president," Levin says. "I don't call every morning and say, 'How are you doing?'"When O magazine launched, it was not available in the East Bank Club pro shop. It is today, thanks in part to Oprah Winfrey herself. (Photo by Stuart Goldman.)
Sidebar: Longtime Employees Lead to Success of East Bank Club
East Bank Club founder and CEO Daniel Levin attributes the success of the club to his staff and executive team, many of whom have been at the club for years.East Bank Club founder and CEO Daniel Levin and staff appeared on the cover of Club Industry magazine in June 1992. (Photo courtesy of East Bank Club.)
Of the 650 employees at East Bank Club, 45 percent (292) have worked at the club 10 or more years. And of those 292 employees, 79 have worked 20 or more years, 37 have worked 25 or more years and seven have worked at the club 30 or more years.
Among the executive team, Club Manager Simon Meredith has been at East Bank Club since the beginning. Not far behind are Senior Manager Joe Rossie (28 years) and Mike Romano, director of food and beverage (27 years).
"He's our boss, but he's also our friend, and he enjoys the friendship," Rossie says of Levin. "He covets the friendship."
Romano adds: "What keeps me here is I can't imagine a better place to work. I couldn't possibly think of leaving the guy."
Kevin Brooks, director of human resources, has served 19 years at East Bank Club, and Chief Financial Officer Dale McCarrell has worked at the club 11 years.
Sidebar: Club Industry Lifetime Achievement Award Recipients
Profiles of all Club Industry honorees are available at: www.clubindustry.com/awardsrankings/lifetime-achievement-award.
2003 — Joe Weider, Weider Publishing
2004 — Joe Gold, Gold's Gym, World Gym
2005 — Judi Sheppard Missett, Jazzercise
2006 — Rick Caro, Management Vision
2007 — Alan Schwartz, Midtown Athletic Clubs
2008 — Dr. Kenneth Cooper, Cooper Aerobics Center
2009 — Jack LaLanne, TV Fitness Personality
2010 — Curt Beusman, Saw Mill Club
2011 — Red Lerille, Red Lerille's Health and Racquet Club
2012 — Joe Cirulli, Gainesville Health and Fitness Centers
2013 — Daniel Levin, East Bank Club


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IBM Scale-Out NAS Sets World Performance Record
Comment (1) Visits (22579)
My series last week on IBM Watson (which you can read [here], [here], [here], and [here]) brought attention to IBM's Scale-Out Network Attached Storage [SONAS]. IBM Watson used a customized version of SONAS technology for its internal storage, and like most of the components of IBM Watson, IBM SONAS is commercially available as a stand-alone product.
If you are not familiar with SONAS, here are a few of my previous posts that go into more detail:
This week, IBM announces that SONAS has set a world record benchmark for performance, [a whopping 403,326 IOPS for a single file system]. The results are based on comparisons of publicly available information from Standard Performance Evaluation Corporation [SPEC], a prominent performance standardization organization with more than 60 member companies. SPEC publishes hundreds of different performance results each quarter covering a wide range of system performance disciplines (CPU, memory, power, and many more). SPECsfs2008_nfs.v3 is the industry-standard benchmark for NAS systems using the NFS protocol.
(Disclaimer: Your mileage may vary. As with any performance benchmark, the SPECsfs benchmark does not replicate any single workload or particular application. Rather, it encapsulates scores of typical activities on a NAS storage system. SPECsfs is based on a compilation of workload data submitted to the SPEC organization, aggregated from tens of thousands of fileservers, using a wide variety of environments and applications. As a result, it is comprised of typical workloads and with typical proportions of data and metadata use as seen in real production environments.)
IBM wanted a realistic "no compromises" configuration to be tested, by choosing:
Congratulations to the SONAS development and test teams! Scale-Out NAS is a competitive space. SONAS can handle not only large streaming files but also small random I/O workloads extraordinarily well. Just in the last two years, to compete against IBM's leadership in this realm, [HP acquired Ibrix], [EMC acquired Isilon] and [Dell has acquired what's left of Exanet's assets], THey have a lot of catching up to do!
technorati tags: IBM, SONAS, Watson, Storage Tank, SFS, SoFS, SBSC, SSD, SAS, , IOPS, SPEC, SPECsfs, SPECsfs2008, SPECsfs2008_nfs.v3, EMC, Isilon, HP, Ibrix, Dell, Exanet, Global Name Space, scale-out,, Watson, IBM Watson, benchmark, performance, record performance, world record, filesystem, file+system, nfs, EMC, NetApp, VNX, Isilon, storage, storage+system, NAS
Am I Dreaming? EMC citing standard benchmark results?
Comment (1) Visits (21003)
Am I dreaming? On his Storagezilla blog, fellow blogger Mark Twomey (EMC) brags about EMC's standard benchmark results, in his post titled [Love Life. Love CIFS.]. Here is my take:
So, I am glad to see EMC starting to cite standard benchmarks. Hopefully, SPC-1 and SPC-2 benchmarks are forthcoming?
technorati tags: IBM, tape, EMC, Mark+Twomey, Storagezilla, CIFS, NFS, Celerra, V-Max, N7900, VMware, VMDK, Sun, Oracle, StorageTek, tape, benchmarks, SPEC, SPECsfs, SPECsfs2008, SPC, SPC-1, SPC-2, NetApp, FAS6080