Terms of Use
By using this website, you agree to the following End User Licence Agreement.

End User Licence Agreement

Open Systems Lab (OSL) provides access to www.wikihouse.cc and any linked repositories managed by OSL (the Platform) to you on the terms of this End User Licence Agreement (the EULA or Terms of Use). You should read this agreement carefully before using the Platform. This EULA constitutes a legal and enforceable contract between you and OSL (each a “party” and together the “parties”). By using the Platform you agree to this EULA. If you do not agree to this EULA, you should immediately make no further use of the Platform.

1. Definitions

1.1 The following definitions apply to this EULA:

“Contributor” means any individual, company or organisation who contributes information or content of any sort to WikiHouse Information.

End users” or “you” means anyone who uses the information published via the Platform whether accessed through wikihouse.cc. This may include homeowners, professional developers or professionals such as architects, engineers, manufacturers, construction companies or any other user.

“Intellectual Property Rights” means all copyright and related rights, patents, rights to inventions, utility models, trade marks, service marks, trade, business and domain names, rights in trade dress or get-up, rights in goodwill or to sue for passing off, unfair competition rights, rights in designs, rights in computer software, database right, topography rights, moral rights, rights in confidential information (including know-how and trade secrets) and any other intellectual property rights, in each case whether registered or unregistered and including all applications for and renewals or extensions of such rights, and all similar or equivalent rights or forms of protection.

“Licence” means the licence granted under clause 3.1.

“Platform” means the online service owned (or licensed to) and operated by OSL, known as ‘WikiHouse’, including any linked repositories, whether maintained by OSL or by Contributors, and used by third parties and their customers, as well as any updates to it and any new versions which are made generally available by OSL from time to time.

“Third Party Content” shall mean any content of a third party which is made accessible on the Platform, this includes content by Contributors.

“Your Content” means any content or data which you submit through your use of the Platform or linked platforms.

“WikiHouse information” includes any information made available through the Platform, including but not limited to advice, text, media, 3D models, manufacturing files, specifications, bills of materials, assembly manuals and guides.

1.2 A “person” includes a natural person, corporate or unincorporated body.

1.3 Unless the context otherwise requires, words in the singular include the plural and in the plural include the singular and references to one gender are references to the other genders.

1.4 The words “include” and “including” (or similar) shall be deemed to have the words “without limitation” after them.

1.5 A reference to “writing” or “written” excludes email unless you receive a response from OSL confirming that any email communication has been successfully received.

2. Licence to use the platform

2.1 OSL hereby grants you a licence to use the Platform in accordance with the terms of this EULA.

2.2 The Licence is revocable, non-exclusive, non-transferable and non-sublicensable.

2.3 All content on the Platform that is created by OSL shall be considered to be the intellectual property of OSL.

2.4 All content should be considered to be protected by copyright, with all rights reserved other than those materials that explicitly carry another licence, for example an Open Source or Creative Commons licence. In these cases, that licence shall be clearly marked on or by the relevant media, file or repository.

2.5 The trademark ‘WikiHouse’ and any associated service marks or logos are protected. Even if using WikiHouse Information, you may not use the name WikiHouse or any associated logos to describe any business, organisation, product or service without a specific written licence from OSL to do so. The only exception to this is for the purposes of such notices as may be required as part of an Open Source licence, a Creative Commons licence or by section 3.7.  

2.6 OSL may modify, suspend or discontinue any part of the Platform or otherwise make any changes it considers desirable to the Platform

2.7 Any WikiHouse Information that you distribute or cause to be distributed within or outside the platform must be shared along with all licences and notices (including copyright notices, patent notices, disclaimers of warranty, or limitations of liability). You may not remove or alter the substance of any such notices, except to add or correct them in the event that they have been omitted.

2.8 If linking to the Platform you must not charge your website's users for access to information that is available for free on this Platform.

2.9 You must not introduce viruses, trojans, worms, logic bombs or any other material that is malicious or harmful to the Platform, its operators or users. You must not attack the Platform in any way, including denial-of-service attacks.

3. User content

3.1 Parts of the Platform enable the display of Your Content and Third Party Content (“User Content”) without review or moderation. OSL is therefore a host of User Content which is accessed or processed by your use of the Platform and OSL is in no way involved with, or liable for, the information contained in any User Content. OSL does not:

3.1.1 initiate the transmission of User Content;

3.1.2 select the receiver of any transmitted User Content; or

3.1.3 select, review or modify the information contained in any User Content (other than technical manipulations which take place in the course of the transmission of the User Content and which do not alter the integrity of the information contained in the User Content).

3.2 Any Intellectual Property Rights in the User Content shall remain with its owners or licensors.

3.3 By uploading Your Content to the platform you represent that those works are Your original creation(s) or that You have sufficient rights to distribute that work and to licence that work to others; that they do no infringe any third party copyrights or patents; and that no part of those works is illegal, for example by including material that is libelous, contains hate speech or infringes the privacy of others.

3.4 By uploading Your Content to the platform you grant to OSL and to other users of the Platform the right to use and distribute that content under the terms of the licence under which that content is shared.  

3.5 OSL may conduct analysis for its own benefit on any User Content not designated as ‘Confidential’ on the Platform. Where any User Content may contain personal data, OSL shall only undertake such further processing in accordance with applicable data protection laws. OSL shall own all Intellectual Property Rights in the product of such analysis. 5.5 You will indemnify, defend and hold harmless OSL, from and against any claims, costs, damages, losses, liabilities and expenses (including legal fees) relating to any claims, actions, suits or proceedings by third parties against OSL arising out of or related in any way to either Party's use of User Content in accordance with this EULA.

4. Liability

4.1 OSL are not responsible or liable for the accuracy, relevance and completeness of the information, advice or Third Party Content published via the Platform.

4.2 WikiHouse information and files are shared as is’, without warranties, guarantees or certifications of any kind, express or implied. This includes, without limitation, warranties that the content is accurate, complete, free of defects, fit for a particular purpose or non-infringing in relation to the use of WikiHouse information or the results of such use. You are wholly responsible for checking WikiHouse information and for using WikiHouse information in a safe way, and for satisfying yourself that you meet all relevant regulations, including planning regulations, building codes and health & safety legislation; as well as for working with appropriate equipment and materials and appropriately competent persons. Every project should always be checked by a structural engineer. For more specific advice, the End User should engage relevant qualified professionals or competent persons.

4.3 Except as expressly and specifically provided in this EULA you assume sole responsibility for your use of the Platform, for the results of, or conclusions drawn from, such use and for any Third Party Content.


4.5 Under no circumstances and under no legal theory, whether tort (including negligence), contract, or otherwise, shall OSL or any Contributor of WikiHouse information be liable to You for any direct, indirect, special, incidental, or consequential damages of any character including, without limitation, damages for lost profits, loss of goodwill, work stoppage, technological failure or malfunction, or any and all other commercial damages or losses, even if such party shall have been informed of the possibility of such damages. This limitation of liability shall not apply to liability for death or personal injury resulting from such party’s negligence to the extent applicable law prohibits such limitation.

4.6 All warranties, representations, conditions and all other terms of any kind whatsoever implied by statute or common law are excluded from this EULA to the fullest extent permitted by law.

5. Confidentiality

5.1 In this clause, “Confidential Information” means any information that is clearly labelled or identified as confidential or ought reasonably be treated as being confidential. Confidential Information includes the OSL and any Third Party Content (other than anonymised or aggregated derivatives of Third Party Content). Confidential Information excludes any information which:

5.1.1 is or becomes publicly known other than through a breach of this EULA or other obligation of confidentiality;

5.1.2 was in the receiving Party’s lawful possession before the disclosure;

5.1.3 is lawfully disclosed to the receiving Party by a third party without restriction on disclosure;

5.1.4 is independently developed by the receiving Party and that independent development can be shown by written evidence; or

5.1.5 is required to be disclosed by law, by any court of competent jurisdiction or by any regulatory or administrative body.

5.2 Each Party shall hold the other’s Confidential Information in confidence and not make the other’s Confidential Information available to any third party unless that third party is subject to an equivalent duty of confidentiality. Neither Party shall use the other’s Confidential Information for any purpose other than the implementation of this EULA.

5.3 Each party shall take all reasonable steps to ensure that the other’s Confidential Information to which it has access is not disclosed or distributed by its employees, agents or independent contractors in breach of the terms of this EULA.

5.4 This clause (5) shall survive termination of this EULA for a period of 5 years.

6. Data protection

OSL shall process your personal data in accordance with its privacy policy.

7. Termination

7.1 OSL may terminate this EULA at any time if we reasonably suspect that you have breached any term of this EULA, or in the event of you initiating legal proceedings against OSL or against any Contributor of WikiHouse Information. You may terminate this EULA on reasonable written notice to OSL.

7.2 Where WikiHouse Information or User Content that has already been licensed under other terms (for example an open source licence including Creative Commons), those other licences shall not be affected by the termination of this EULA.

8. Waiver

A waiver of any right under this EULA is only effective if it is in writing.

9. Severance

If any provision (or part of a provision) of this EULA is found to be invalid, unenforceable or illegal, the other provisions (or parts of any provisions) shall remain in force.

10. Entire agreement

This EULA constitutes the whole agreement between the parties and supersedes any previous agreement between them.

11. Assignment

You shall not assign, transfer, charge, sub-contract or deal in any other manner with all or any of its rights or obligations under this EULA, without the prior written consent of OSL

12. Third Party Rights

This EULA does not confer any rights on any person or party (other than the parties to this EULA and (where applicable) their successors and permitted assigns) pursuant to the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999.

13. Governing Law and Jurisdiction

This EULA shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of England and Wales and the parties irrevocably submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts.

Please do

A tick mark. Means yes, you can do this.

Use it

Most WikiHouse files and information are licensed under a Creative Commons–Sharealike licence, so you are free to use, distribute or modify them, including commercially.

A tick mark. Means yes, you can do this.

Check it

All WikiHouse information is shared 'as is', without warranties or guarantees of any kind. You are responsible for checking it and using it in a safe and responsible way, for example, getting it checked by a structural engineer.

A tick mark. Means yes, you can do this.

Comply with regulations

You are responsible for making sure your project complies with all relevant local regulations, including planning, building codes and health & safety legislation. If in doubt, seek professional advice.

A tick mark. Means yes, you can do this.

Re-share your improvements

If you make any improvements to the system, you must publish your files under the same type of open licence. However, you do not need to publish the plans and specifications for individual projects unless you wish to.

Please do not

A cross. Means no, you can't do this.

Call yourself WikiHouse

Do not call your company, organisation or any marketed product or service 'WikiHouse'. However, you may use the term WikiHouse to talk about the system, and you may describe your project, product, service or organisation as, for example, "using WikiHouse", "based on WikiHouse", "contributing to WikiHouse", or similar.

A cross. Means no, you can't do this.

Remove notices

Do not remove any licence notices from files if you are re-sharing them.

A cross. Means no, you can't do this.

Claim to be endorsed

Do not give the impression that you are endorsed by, or affiliated with WikiHouse or Open Systems Lab (unless you are, by written agreement), and do not claim to represent the WikiHouse project or community as a whole.