Terms of use

Last updated on Oct 10, 2017

1. Subject and Scope of the General Terms and Conditions

1.1

Elegant Solutions, LLC operates a platform for preparation to Physics Olympiad at the internet portal http://www.physolymp.com, as well as via mobile applications - so called “Apps” - (thereafter platform). Within this scope, PhysOlymp’s authors will provide relevant content with a short theory on specific topics of physics, with examples and similar problems, which can be solved in game like manner by earning points and  access to official solution of the exercises. The Services consist of a learning platform that individuals (“Individuals”), schools and/or school districts (“Schools”) may subscribe to and provide to their teachers and students (“Teachers” and “Students”). The term Teacher also includes parents of students who sign up for the Services in order to provide their children with Student Accounts. PLEASE NOTE THAT THE TERMS ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE BY  ELEGANT SOLUTIONS, LLC IN ITS SOLE DISCRETION AT ANY TIME. PLEASE REGULARLY CHECK THE WEBSITE TO VIEW THE THEN-CURRENT TERMS. When changes are made, ELEGANT SOLUTIONS, LLC will make a new copy of the Terms available at the Website. We will also update the “Last Updated” date at the top of the Terms.

1.2

Use of the platform (including Apps) shall be exclusively subject to the following general terms and conditions. The Website, the Services, and the information and content (“Content”) made available by Elegant Solutions, LLC on the Website and in the Services are protected by copyright laws throughout the world. Subject to the Terms, Elegant Solutions, LLC grants you a limited license to reproduce portions of the PhysOlymp materials for the sole purpose of using the Services for your personal purposes or, in the event you are  Teacher User, your School’s educational purposes. For clarity, you may print or reproduce content on the Site solely for your personal use in conjunction with the Services (and, if you are a Teacher, for personal use by Students who already have an Account).

1.3

No special contractual text is intended for the contract regarding platform use. The content of the contract concluded between you and Elegant Solutions, LLC follows these general terms and conditions as well as the information provided during the process of registration (see section 3.) as well as during contracting of a fee-based subscription ( section 5) that will be saved by Elegant Solutions, LLC and available at any time in your user account.

1.4

By registering and/or using the Elegant Solutions, LLC services, you accept the use and application of these terms and conditions.

1.5

Elegant Solutions, LLC shall retain the right to change individual clauses with effect for the future. If we do not obtain your specific consent for a terms and conditions amendment, you will be timely informed of any changes to the terms and conditions (at least four weeks prior to the effective date of the amended terms). For this purpose, Elegant Solutions, LLC will send you the new version of the terms and conditions to the email address you provided during registration. In this context, Elegant Solutions, LLC will notify you explicitly regarding the opportunity and objection period against the changes as well as about the consequences of an omitted objection.

1.6

If you do not object to the changes within four weeks after the effective date of the changed user conditions, the changed user conditions shall be deemed accepted. The period shall start with the day that it is communicated to you via email as the effective date of change.

1.7

In the event that you object the changes, Elegant Solutions, LLC shall be entitled to terminate the user contract and delete your user account, under consideration of your interests if continuing of the contractual relationship under the scope of the current terms and conditions is not possible or unreasonable for Elegant Solutions, LLC, effective from the date the changed user terms come into force.

2. Services and Rights of Elegant Solutions, LLC

2.1

Elegant Solutions, LLC will provide you material for preparation to Physics Olympiads and other interesting Physics related content with opportunity to track own progress by solving challenging problems.

2.2

The rights on PhysOlymp’s services and contents that are dispersed this way shall stay and remain with Elegant Solutions, LLC or Elegant Solutions, LLC’s licensors. Elegant Solutions, LLC software applications and contents shall be licensed to you within the scope of the contractual use. We will only grant you a non-exclusive (simple) and temporary right pursuant to section 2.3 for personal use of PhysOlymp’s services and contents.

2.3

The scope of the provided contents shall depend on the free account or subscription (section 4.) which you respectively chose (the “license”). The license shall be restricted to the period of the free account or subscription.

2.4

All PhysOlymp trademarks as well as our trade names, logos, domain names and other peculiarities of the PhysOlymp trademark are under the sole ownership of Elegant Solutions, LLC. The license does not grant you the right to use PhysOlymp trademarks, our trade names, logos, domain names or other features of the PhysOlymp trademark, irrespective of whether for commercial or non-commercial use.

2.5

If you are using a free service, Elegant Solutions, LLC shall be allowed to show you advertisement on the platform.

3. Registration with PhysOlymp

3.1

A registration with PhysOlymp is necessary for using Elegant Solutions, LLC’s services.

3.2

Registration itself is free (Free Account) and does not obligate to enter into a subscription.

3.3

You can use your email address and a self-determined password for registration.

3.4

The used password shall be kept confidential. You are solely and to the full-extent responsible for keeping it confidential. You are the only person entitled to use your PhysOlymp user account.

3.5

You may also register with our apps for iOS, Android after downloading it. You may register via email address or log-in through a so called social-connect service (e.g. Facebook-connect or Google account).

3.6

Registration and/or log-in via social-connect establishes a free contract between Elegant Solutions, LLC and you regarding the use of the PhysOlymp platform (see section 1.3.).

3.7

All information necessary for registration shall be made complete and accurate and shall be kept up-to-date at all times.

3.8

You must be at least 13 years old to use our Services (or such greater age required in your country for you to be authorized to use our Services without parental approval). As a minor you are only allowed to register with PhysOlymp if your statutory agents have given their consent. In addition to being of the minimum required age to use our Services under applicable law, if you are not old enough to have authority to agree to our Terms in your country, your parent or guardian must agree to our Terms on your behalf.

3.9

Elegant Solutions, LLC shall be entitled Privacy policy to save and process your data provided during the registration process pursuant to the data protection regulations.

4. Subscription to Subscription Access

4.1

There is a fee-based subscription available (“Subscription Access”) so that you can use the full scope of PhysOlymp’s services. The subscription can be entered into for different periods which are presented to you in the order options.

4.2

PhysOlymp’s subscription accesses are fee-based and advertisement-free subscriptions which enable you to access a set of our content and features through our mobile based applications. We offer two subscription tiers with the following service levels:

PhysOlymp Premium gives you unlimited reading access to all of our existing material and new releases, with access to our library for the subscription period.

4.3

You can subscribe to PhysOlymp Premium via In-App-Purchase via iOS- or Android-Apps. For this purpose, you will have to choose the desired option on the subscription screen of the App, whereupon a pop-up will appear in which you have to enter your Apple- / Google-Play-password. As soon as you have done this, another pop-up will appear in which you have to confirm the subscription purchase again. You may still cancel the process at this stage.

5. Remuneration and Payment Terms

5.1

The conclusion of the subscription access (section 4.) is subject to charges.

5.2

Payment shall occur via Apple’s or Google’s In-App-Purchase process.

5.3

Your payment obligation vis-a-vis PhysOlymp within a premium access shall automatically renew itself at the end of the respective subscription term, if you do not terminate your fee-based subscription at least 24 hours prior to the end of the term (section 8.3.).

6. Period and Termination

6.1

The free user contract shall start at the time of your registration pursuant to section 3. for an indefinite period.

8.2

The fee-based subscription access (see section 4.) shall run at least for your initially selected period and shall automatically renew itself if you do not terminate at least 24 hours prior expiry of this period. The subscription period shall extend respective of its currently used subscription model.

8.3

You can terminate a fee-based subscription concluded via our iOS or Android Apps in the iTunes / Google Play settings.

8.4

Termination of the subscription access shall become effective the day after the last day of your subscription period and you will be downgraded to a free user contract (Free Service). After renewing your subscription you will however be able to access your old status and your reading lists.

9. Liability

9.1

Elegant Solutions, LLC shall not be liable for user damage claims.

10. Warrant of merchantability

Elegant Solutions, LLC grants a warrant of merchantability in accordance to the law.

12. Final Provisions

12.1

If one provision of these terms and conditions shall be void, the remainder of the contract shall remain unaffected thereof. The void provision shall, if applicable, be replaced by the statutory provisions.

Privacy policy

Last updated on 1 Oct 2017

1. Introduction

platform for preparation to Physics Olympiad at the internet portal http://www.physolymp.com , as well as via mobile applications - so called “Apps” - (thereafter platform). We are happy that you are interested in PhysOlymp. For providing you with our service, we will need certain information about you. This data protection notification elaborates which data we collect from you for what purpose.
If you should not consent to this data protection notification, please do not use PhysOlymp.

2. Collection, Use and Processing of Data

“Personal data” shall be data that can identify you personally (e.g. name, e-mail address or invoice information) and other information that can be connected to this type of information and that allow a conclusion regarding your identity.
“Pseudonymised data” shall be data in which the information appropriate for identifying a certain person are replaced by a pseudonym so that the data cannot be matched to a certain person without knowledge of the correlation which is saved outside the data set.

“Anonymized data” shall be data where the respective person is unknown and cannot be determined.

2.1 Registration Data

If you register with PhysOlymp (for a subscription or a free trial) we will collect personal data that you voluntarily submit with registration. In particular, these are your e-mail address and your selected password.

We also collect upon registration, data regarding country and language that you have saved as standard setting in your smartphone.

We use this data without your explicit consent only for performing our offered services. We will only forward your personal data without your explicit consent to third parties if this is necessary for performing our services or for complying with statutory obligations (see section 3 below).

We save all your registration data so that we can use them for performing PhysOlymp’s services.

2.2 Registration via Facebook Connect or Google Connect

If you opt to connect with PhysOlymp via your Facebook Account Log-In, which is operated by Facebook Inc., 1601 S. California Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94304, USA (“Facebook”), you allow us to collect authentication information like your user name, encoded access information and other information that is available on or through your Facebook-Account, e.g. your name, your profile picture, your country, your hometown, your email-address, your birth date, your sex, the names and profile pictures of your friends and networks. Using Facebook Connect shall be subject to Facebook’s data protection policies and terms of use. With this feature, certain data from the PhysOlymp website can be transferred to your Facebook profile with your consent.


The specific information that is transferred to us will be individually listed during your first log-in with PhysOlymp via Facebook in detail. With registration on our website via Facebook Connect, you consent to profile data transfer from your Facebook profile to PhysOlymp as well as to the transfer of data to Facebook for using of PhysOlymp. Your data transferred through Facebook Connect will be saved and processed by us for registration purposes on the PhysOlymp platform.
Similar terms are applied for using registration via Google Connect service provided by Google Inc., 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View CA 94043, USA Tel: +1 650 253 0000 Fax: +1 650 253 0001

2.3 Personal Usage Data

If you are using Elegant Solutions, LLC services, we will automatically collect personal usage data that is necessary for performing the services and/or invoicing. Personal data shall only be collected if you provide us with these when opening a customer account or registration for our newsletter. In accordance with statutory provisions and for the purpose of data economy, generally only data necessary for the respective service shall be collected.


In particular, these are your e-mail address, your password, your country and your language. In the event that you connect via Facebook Connect or Google Connect (section 2.3), we will also collect your first and family name. To the extent that our forms ask for further information, such information shall always be optional and will be marked as such.


We will use your provided data without your separate consent only for fulfilling and performing of our services and for complying with statutory requirements. Forwarding of your personal data to third parties shall only occur if this is necessary for performing our services or for complying with statutory requirements.

Your accruing personal data regarding the access history will be deleted immediately after its termination or, if this is legally forbidden, suspended.

2.5 Cookies

For performing PhysOlymp services and to make your visit to our website pleasant and to ensure use of certain functions, we will also use so-called cookies for data collection and saving. Cookies are small data packages that are stored on your device. They will not cause any harm there. Two types of cookies will be used. Temporary cookies will be automatically deleted with closing of your browser (so-called session-cookies). Permanent cookies will remain on your device and enable us or our partner company to recognize your browser at your next page visit (so-called persistent-cookies).


Cookies enable us to comprehend your user behavior. They are also supposed to provide you with optimized surfing on our website. You can configure your internet browser so that you will be notified of cookie storage und decide about their acceptance in an individual case or reject cookies generally or for certain cases.


Certain features might not be able available to you if you prevent cookie storage in your browser settings.


2.6 Tracking/ Web Analysis Tools Google Analytics

PhysOlymp uses Google Analytics, a web analysis service of Google Inc., 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View CA 94043, USA Tel: +1 650 253 0000 Fax: +1 650 253 0001 E-Mail: support@PhysOlymp.com (“Google”). Google Analytics also uses so-called “Cookies”, text files that are stored on your computer enabling analysis of your use of the internet site. The information created by the cookie regarding your website use will usually be transferred to a Google server in the USA and saved there. Elegant Solutions, LLC will anonymize the IP address (anonymizeIP() so called IP-masking), and your IP address will be shortened by Google within the member states of the European Union or other contracting states to the Agreement on the European Economic Area. The full IP address shall only be submitted to a Google server in the USA in exceptional cases only and will be shortened there. Google will use this information on behalf of Elegant Solutions, LLC to evaluate your use of the website, to compose reports regarding website activity and to perform further service relating to further services connected to website and internet use vis-a-vis PhysOlymp. The IP address submitted by your browser within the Google Analytics process shall not be connected with other Google data.

You can prevent cookie storage as stipulated above under section 2.5. by a respective browser-software setting, which however has the effect that some features of PhysOlymp websites are not fully useable. You can also prevent Google’s collection of the data created by the cookie and related to your website use (including your IP address) and processing of this data by Google through downloading and installing the following browser-plugin https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=de

The user profiles created by Google Analytics serve the purpose of visitor behavior analysis and are evaluated for improving and customizing of our offers.

The pseudonymised user profiles will not be connected with your personal data without your separate explicit consent.

You can find further general information about Google Analytics here, and data protection law information regarding Google Analytics here

3. Social Plugins

Facebook Social Plugins

PhysOlymp offers you the opportunity to recommend offers, services and/or products via Facebook. PhysOlymp uses Facebook’s social plugins for this purpose. These services are offered by Facebook Inc., 1601 S. California Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94304, USA (Facebook). The list and the look of the Facebook social plugins can be viewed here and you can find other general information about the social plugins here.

When loading the internet site in your browser, the code of the social plugin will be directly requested by a Facebook server through your browser and integrated into the appearing PhysOlymp internet site in your browser. PhysOlymp has thus no influence on the scope of retrieved data by Facebook in this relation.

According to Facebook's own information, Facebook saves date and time of your visit, the precise Internet address in which the social plugin is located and other technical data, e.g. IP address, browser type, operating system for a period of 90 days in order to optimize Facebook’s services. After expiry of the 90 days, the data will be anonymized so that they cannot be related to you any longer. You can find more information from Facebook here.

If you are logged-in on Facebook during a visit on a website of PhysOlymp, Facebook can associate the pages you visited to your Facebook account. Through the interaction with the social plugins (clicking etc.) the information evoked by the interaction will be transferred to and saved by Facebook. You can prevent this by logging-off Facebook prior to visiting our website.

It is also possible to generally block Facebook plugins. There are extensions for respective browsers for this purpose (e.g. the Facebook Blocker) which you have to install and activate on your respective browser. Facebook data protection notifications as well as further setting options for protecting your privacy are available here.

Please also inform yourself regarding Facebook under all provided links as Facebook’s data protection policies are frequently updated and amended due to the extended functionality of social plugins.

5. Security

Data protection of our users is a special concern for us. Your password protects your user account and should be thus a strong password that is not used elsewhere. You should restrict access to your computer and browser and you should log-off after using PhysOlymp services.

The PhysOlymp portal and our systems are protected through technical and organizational measures against loss, destruction, access, alteration or distribution of your data through unauthorized parties. A complete protection against all hazards is however not possible in-spite of frequent controls.

6. Links

PhysOlymp shall be entitled to display advertisement or other contents that contain hyperlinks to third-party websites. Only the provider of the website referred to shall be liable for illegal, erroneous or incomplete contents and particularly for damages that result from use or non-use of these links. We have no influence particularly on the data protection measures and contents of the sites linked to.

7. Access and Update of Profile Data, Deletion

You can access and change your profile data via your account-settings.

8. Information about Saved Data, Contact

If you have any questions or comments about this data protection notification or your personal data, please contact us via support@physolymp.com support@physolymp.com.You can certainly always request free of charge information regarding data we saved about you, e.g. via e-mail support@physolymp.com. We will answer within an appropriate period after proof of identity. You may possibly be entitled to request that your data will be corrected, suspended or deleted.

9. Change of Data Protection Notification

We will occasionally change this data protection notification in order to incorporate new functions, features, products or services and to ensure the protection of your personal data. These changes and the current data protection notification are available on this site for you anytime. If we are making material changes, particularly regarding collection, use or processing of your personal data, we will notify you of this via e-mail or inform you no later than during your next PhysOlymp login.