Terms of Service

1. Who we are

Ethio Books runs the website at ethiobooks.company, a marketplace where independent authors and publishers (sellers) sell digital books to readers. In these terms, we, us and our mean Ethio Books, and you means anyone who uses the website.

You can reach us at hello@ethiobooks.company.

2. Accepting these terms

By using the website, creating an account or buying a book, you agree to these terms and to our Privacy Policy and Refund Policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the website.

You must be at least 13 years old to use Ethio Books. If you are under 18, you may use it only with the permission of a parent or guardian, who accepts these terms for you.

3. Your account

Give us accurate information and keep it up to date. Keep your password private and do not let anyone else use your account. You are responsible for what happens in your account.

If you think someone else has used your account, change your password and write to us at hello@ethiobooks.company straight away.

4. Buying books

Prices are shown in Ethiopian birr (ETB) and are the full amount you pay for the book. You pay by telebirr or bank (CBE) transfer and upload a screenshot of the receipt.

A purchase is complete when we have confirmed your payment. We may cancel an order and return your money if a payment cannot be verified, if a price was clearly wrong, or if we suspect fraud.

Each book is sold by its seller through Ethio Books. We collect the payment, deliver the book and handle support and refunds on the seller's behalf.

5. What you get when you buy a book

When you buy a book you receive a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to read it for your own non-commercial use, on your own devices. You do not buy the copyright, which stays with the author or publisher.

You must not:

• copy, share, upload, sell or give away the book or any part of it, except short quotations allowed by law;
• remove or hide the watermark that identifies your copy;
• try to get around any technical measure that protects the books.

Downloaded copies are marked with the buyer's name and email. If a copy you bought is shared, it can be traced back to your account.

6. Refunds

Digital books can be refunded only in the cases described in our Refund Policy, for example when a file is broken or not as described. The Refund Policy is part of these terms.

7. Books and sellers

Sellers are responsible for their books, including their descriptions, prices and the rights to sell them. We review books before they are published, but we cannot check every statement a seller makes.

If you sell on Ethio Books, our Seller Terms also apply to you.

8. Using the website fairly

Do not use Ethio Books to:

• break the law or infringe anyone's rights;
• upload harmful code, or try to access accounts, systems or data that are not yours;
• scrape or copy the catalogue, covers or samples in bulk;
• post false, abusive or misleading reviews or reports;
• make or ask for payments outside the website for books sold on it.

9. Copyright and takedowns

If you believe a book on Ethio Books infringes your rights, report it from the Report a book page or write to hello@ethiobooks.company with the details and proof of your rights. We review every report and may remove the book while we look into it.

When a book is removed, readers who already bought it keep access to it, unless copyright infringement has been proven. Sellers who repeatedly infringe are removed from the marketplace.

10. Availability and changes to the service

We work to keep Ethio Books available and your library safe, but the website may sometimes be unavailable for maintenance or for reasons outside our control. We may change, add or remove features over time.

11. Our responsibility to you

We provide the website with reasonable care and skill. As far as the law allows, we are not responsible for losses that are indirect or that we could not reasonably foresee, and our total responsibility for any claim is limited to the amount you paid us in the 12 months before it.

Nothing in these terms limits rights you have under Ethiopian law that cannot be limited by agreement.

12. Suspending or closing accounts

We may suspend or close an account that breaks these terms, for example for fraud, piracy or abuse. You can stop using Ethio Books and ask us to close your account at any time.

13. Changes to these terms

We may update these terms. When a change matters, we will tell you on the website or by email before it takes effect. If you keep using Ethio Books after that, the new terms apply.

14. Law and disputes

These terms are governed by the laws of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. If we cannot solve a disagreement together, it will be decided by the competent courts in Addis Ababa.