Terms of Service

Website, Mobile App, and Other Intellectual Property Terms of Use

These Terms of Use (“Terms”) apply to all users of:

The Marijuana Anonymous World Services’ (“MA World Services”) website located at marijuana-anonymous.org (the “Website”), its associated websites, subdomains, and mobile applications, including but not limited to, mawsconvention.org, anewleafpublications.org (the “ANLP Website”), and any associated services;
The MA Mobile App (the “App”);
Any copyrighted materials and literature in all forms and languages, including electronically accessible on the MA websites and mobile app, written materials, eBooks or audio recordings, including, but not limited to, all Conference-approved literature, Life with Hope, the Life with Hope Twelve Step Workbook, Living Every Day with Hope, the Twelve Steps, Twelve Traditions, Twelve Concepts for Service, Twelve Questions, service materials, including the Service Manual and any handbooks, policies, and “best practices,” and Conference-approved pamphlets, (the “Literature”); and;
Registered trademarks of MA World Services, including the phrase “Marijuana Anonymous” and the MA logo consisting of the letters “MA” inside a triangle (the “MA Logo”), and all word, abbreviation, style, and design variations used to date by MA or its Licensees (together, the “MA Trademarks”) (collectively, the “Intellectual Property” or “IP”) which constitute the intellectual property of Marijuana Anonymous World Services, Inc.

If you continue to use MA World Services’ websites, the App, Intellectual Property, and/or other services, you are agreeing to comply with and be bound by the following terms and conditions of use, which, together with our Privacy Policy and Intellectual Property Policy, govern our relationship with you as it pertains to these services.

The terms “MA World Services,” “MA”, “us”, and “we” refer to the owner of these services, Marijuana Anonymous World Services, Inc. “You” refers to any user or viewer of these services. The term “services” refers to the MA World Services’ websites, mobile apps, social media, and other online properties and content that MA World Services’ controls.

Terms of Use for MA World Services’ Website(s), Mobile App, and other Services

The use of the MA World Services’ website(s), the App and other services, copyrighted materials, Literature, Trademarks, and all other materials which constitute the intellectual property of MA World Services, is subject to the following terms of use:

Neither MA World Services nor any third parties provide any warranty or guarantee as to the accuracy, timeliness, performance, completeness or suitability of the information and materials found or offered with our services for any particular purpose. You acknowledge that such information and materials may contain inaccuracies or errors and we expressly exclude liability for any such inaccuracies or errors to the fullest extent permitted by law.
Your use of any information or materials on these services is entirely at your own risk, for which MA World Services shall not be liable. It shall solely be your responsibility to ensure that any products, services or information available through these services meet your specific requirements.
The services are provided for your general information and personal, non-commercial use only.
Unauthorized use of any of MA World Services’ Literature, Copyrighted material, Trademarks, website, mobile app, or other services may give rise to a claim for damages and/or be a criminal offense.
From time to time, MA World Services’ websites, the App, other services and/or materials may include links to third-party websites. These links are provided as a matter of convenience. MA World Services does not endorse any outside enterprise (see Tradition 6), so the presence of such links never signifies an endorsement. MA World Services has no responsibility for the content of third-party websites.
MA World Services’ website, mobile app, and other services contain material which is owned by or licensed to us. Reproduction is prohibited other than in accordance with our Copyright Policy, below, which forms part of these terms and conditions.
All trademarks reproduced in our services which are not the property of, or licensed to, MA World Services are acknowledged on our services.
The services are subject to change without notice.
Your use of MA World Services’ Intellectual Property, including its websites, the App, all copyrighted material, trademarks, Literature, any other related services and these Terms of Use, shall be governed, construed, and enforced in accordance with the laws of the State of California, United States of America, without regard to conflict of law rules.

Mobile App Privacy Policy

For the Marijuana Anonymous Mobile App:

MA World Services does not collect personal information or require a login.
Anonymous technical data may be used to improve app performance.
Location data is only used (if allowed) to help users find nearby meetings.
Any sobriety date entered is stored locally on the members’ device, and is not retained by MA World Services if the App is deleted or the device is changed.

Terms of Use for MA World Services’ Intellectual Property

MA World Services maintains ownership of the trademarks and copyrights for the benefit of the fellowship of Marijuana Anonymous. Protecting the intellectual property of MA ensures that the fellowship’s message, as presented in Conference-approved literature, including the Website, the Conference Website, the ANLP Website, the App, and the Literature, is not changed, used, or sold by outside parties, nor MA World Services’ registered trademarks, including the phrase “Marijuana Anonymous” and the MA logo consisting of the letters “MA” inside a triangle (the “MA Logo”), and all word, abbreviation, style, and design variations used to date by MA or its Licensees, are used in inappropriate ways that can harm MA’s reputation.

In order to fulfill the responsibilities of copyright and trademark protection, MA World Services requires that anyone wishing to use its trademarks or copyrighted material has express written permission, in the form of a properly executed license agreement, to do so. Use of MA’s Intellectual Property without a license is strictly prohibited, with limited, specific exceptions, noted below.

Requests for licensing agreements are considered and granted at the sole discretion of MA World Services. These requests should be directed to the MA World Services’ Legal Department at: [email protected]. Questions about these Terms, Intellectual Property use and reports of potential infringement should be directed to the Legal Department as well.

More information about MA’s Copyright, Trademark, and Licensing Policies and Procedures, and the proper and improper uses of MA’s Copyrighted Materials and Trademarks can be found on MA World Services’ Intellectual Property webpage, along with MA’s full IP Policy, which can be found in the Service Manual.Note that the purchase of MA World Services’ copyrighted Literature constitutes a license to use only the copies of the Literature purchased, and expressly does not permit reproduction of the Literature.

(Expand sections below for additional details)

A. Limited Permission for non-MA affiliated Individuals and Entities

The following limited uses may not require a license, as noted:

One Time Use:
Publication in print or online for the purpose of nonfiction commentary, news reporting, summarization, and similar uses require a license, except in limited instances of “fair use.” In no case should such use exceed 500 words or two paragraphs, whichever is greater.

Audio Recordings:
Permission to use audio recordings, may be presented ONE time for audiences of up to 100 persons is granted. Any use exceeding these terms requires a license.

Individual Use:
Individuals are granted permission to photocopy or print, pamphlets, periodicals (A New Leaf), or other materials from the Website or MA App for their own use. Reproduction on a scale above 5 copies for personal use by non-MA entities or any other use, including emailing documents for this purpose, requires a license.

Copyrighted materials must include the following copyright notice:

Permitted uses of audio recordings, or other materials from the Website or MA App by MA Entities (members, groups/meetings, and districts/regions) are further explained below.

B. Educational Use

A license is required for use in educational settings when:

a. The literature is used repeatedly

b. The material is used for commercial purposes.

c. The user wants to use a piece of Literature in its entirety.

However, NO license is required to reprint certain materials if the following conditions are met:

The text of the Literature shall be presented as-is, with no amendments, changes, editing, or annotations permitted.
For scholarly research, use in teaching, or in preparing to teach a class, the educator may use: one chapter from a book; one article from a periodical; one short essay; one chart/graph.
Educators may provide links to Literature that is freely available on the Website.
Multiple copies may be produced, not to exceed one copy per student in the course, and the material must be brief, as described in Section A. Each copy should include the following notice of copyright:

© Marijuana Anonymous World Services, Inc. (date). This photocopy was reproduced from (name of publication, page number), with permission of MA World Services for inclusion in a course package. Permission to photocopy this material does not mean that MA World Services has reviewed or approved the contents of this course package, or that MA necessarily agrees with the views expressed herein. All rights reserved.

C. Use and Reprint Policy for non-MA affiliated Individuals and Entities

Except in the above, limited instances, non-MA-affiliated individuals and entities must submit a written request and receive written approval prior to reprinting MA World Services copyrighted materials. Requests shall include the nature of the publication in which the literature will be published, the target date for publication and the exact text to be reprinted.

Once permission is granted, the item or article must be printed in its entirety to prevent misquoting or improper use of context, and carry the following credit line:

© Marijuana Anonymous World Services (date). Reprinted from (name of publication, page number), with permission of MA World Services. All rights reserved.

Requests for reprint shall be sent by email to: [email protected].

D. Use and Reprinting of MA World Services’ Copyrighted Material by MA Entities

The MA Service Manual and IP Policies & Procedures contained therein provide guidelines for MA members, groups, meetings, districts and regions (“MA Entities”) regarding the use and reprinting of MA’s copyrighted materials, and use of MA’s registered Trademarks.

Reprinting MA’s Copyrighted Materials by MA Entities

MA Entities may quote a phrase, sentence or brief paragraph from MA’s copyrighted Literature, such as Life with Hope, and to reprint, screenshare, or photocopy the Twelve Steps,Twelve Traditions, Twelve Concepts for Service, and Twelve Questions, without a prior written request, provided that the contents, including the Copyright notice, are not altered in any way.

More specifically, the Service Manual (“SM”), Chapter 19, states, in part:

“MA Entities “are permitted to reprint the Steps, Traditions, Twelve Questions and/or the Concepts for Service, and to quote a phrase, sentence or brief paragraph excerpted from MA literature such as Life with Hope, the Life with Hope Twelve Step Workbook, Living Every Day with Hope, the Twelve Steps, Twelve Traditions, Twelve Concepts for Service, and Twelve Questions, MA’s Service Manual, A New Leaf publication, and Conference-approved pamphlets, without a prior, written request to do so.

When this occurs, the proper credit line should be included to ensure that the copyrights of MA. literature are protected. After a quotation from a book or pamphlet, the credit line should read:

© Marijuana Anonymous (date). Reprinted from (name of publication, page number), with permission of MA World Services.

MA Entities may reprint Conference-approved pamphlets, the Service Manual, and A New Leaf publication for free distribution at MA meetings and recovery-related events, provided that the contents, including the Copyright notice, are not altered in any way.

It is suggested that instead of reproducing content available through MA World Services’ websites, the App or other services, websites maintained by MA Entities (such as Districts or Groups) instead link to the appropriate pages of marijuana-anonymous.org, or its subdomains and related websites (such as the ANLP Website).

“When reprinting or excerpting from the Twelve Steps, Twelve Traditions, Twelve Concepts for Service, Twelve Questions or from any other MA literature . . . these materials may not be altered in any way (besides excerpting) if they are being read, screen-shared . . . or otherwise used in meetings.”

“Examples of unauthorized alterations that are strictly prohibited would include changing the text of the copyrighted Twelve Step sand Twelve Traditions, or changing the wording of any content being shared or read from” any MA Literature.”
“MA does not own the copyrights to the Serenity Prayer, or other prayers not from Life with Hope (including the St. Francis/Eleventh Step prayer, the Unity prayer), so does not have any requirements or limits on their use – although other entities may. However, AA also does not own copyrights to the Serenity Prayer, the St. Francis/Eleventh Step prayer, the Unity prayer, or other prayers not from the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous. . . anything that is not expressly documented as being in the public domain is copyrighted to some individual or entity, and should not be used frivolously or without permission.” Service Manual, Ch. 19.

E. Policy Regarding the Use of MA World Services’ Trademarks and Logos

MA’s registered Trademarks, including the phrase “Marijuana Anonymous” and the MA logo consisting of the letters “MA” inside a triangle (“MA Logo”), and all word, abbreviation, style, and design variations used to date by MA or its Licensees, cannot legally be used by anyone without first obtaining express written permission from MA World Services in the form of a signed written licensing agreement.

Use of the MA Trademarks on goods or services that do not emanate from MA World Services and have not been approved by MA World Services both legally infringe upon and dilute MA World Services’ trademarks. This results in harm to the status of the trademarks and to MA itself, since MA, the Traditions, and the fellowship are what the trademarks symbolize. Misappropriated trademarks, used even with the best intent, cause MA’s name to be associated with a variety of products and services that are not part of MA and are not consistent with MA’s purpose, Traditions, or principles. This will cause the trademarks to lose their meaning and significance as symbols of Marijuana Anonymous, both in the eyes of the world and in the eyes of the US Patent and Trademark Office.

Use of the MA Name and Logo (MA Trademarks) by MA Entities

Regarding the use of the MA name and logo (MA’s registered Trademarks) by MA Entities, the Service Manual, Chapter 19, states, in part:

“any member, group/meeting, or district/region that seeks to use MA’s Trademarks… must obtain the express permission from MA World Services for the uses listed [in the Service Manual] by contacting [email protected] and signing a basic written licensing agreement granting specific permission…”

“It is legally necessary for MA World Services to obtain signed written agreements from anyone currently using the MA name or logo, or anyone who intends to do so in the future for any purpose. . .”

Note that once a District has signed a written licensing agreement, the permission granted to use the MA name and logo by that written agreement also applies to the members, meetings, and groups within the district (subject to the same terms and conditions), and they do not need to sign a separate agreement. However, independent meetings (that are not part of an existing district) do need to sign their own licensing agreements in order to use the MA name and logo (such as on websites, meeting and recovery-event flyers, etc.)

The Service Manual contains additional information regarding the use of the MA name and logo by MA entities, including policies regarding their use on flyers for events and meetings, so MA Entities should familiarize themselves with the policies contained in the Service Manual before using the MA name or logo to avoid unintentionally misusing the logo, which causes harm by diluting the marks, causing them to lose their meaning and significance as symbols of Marijuana Anonymous.

Use of the MA Name and Logo (MA Trademarks) on Milestone Chips or Tokens

Entities or Individuals wishing to use the MA Logo on milestone tokens or chips, or any other merchandise for sale, must also obtain a valid licensing agreement to use the MA Trademarks, whether or not they are members or third-party chip manufacturers. District licensing agreements do permit a District to commission the manufacture of chips solely for their own use, but should the chip manufacturer wish to continue manufacturing chips with the MA logo for sale after fulfilling the order commissioned by the district, they should also obtain their own valid licensing agreement to continue using the MA logo. More information can be found on MA World Services’ Intellectual Property webpage MA12.org/IP-FAQ and chip manufacturers with current valid written licensing agreements are available at MA12.org/Tokens.

For more information about MA World Services’ Intellectual Property Policies and Procedures, view MA World Services’ Intellectual Property Webpage, or read MA World Services’ Intellectual Property policies and procedures, from which the above policies are excerpted, found in the Service Manual.

If you have any questions about these Terms of Use and IP Policies, or to discuss obtaining permission and signing a written licensing agreement authorizing a specific intended use of MA’s copyrighted literature or registered Trademark of the MA name or logo, please contact the MA World Services’ Legal Department at: [email protected].