Terms of Service

These terms govern your use of jot.co.zm (“Jot,” “the service”), built and operated by Bitsmiths Solutions (“Bitsmiths,” “we,” “us”), a software studio based in Lusaka, Zambia. By creating a link, creating an account, or using the API, you agree to these terms. If you’re using Jot on behalf of an organization, you’re confirming you have the authority to bind that organization to them.

The service

Jot turns long URLs into short, trackable links, with an optional QR code and click analytics. Anyone can shorten a link from the homepage with no account; those anonymous links stay live for 7 days. Creating a free or paid account removes that expiry, adds a dashboard, and unlocks custom back-halves, team access, and the API, depending on your plan.

Your account

You’re responsible for the activity on your account and for keeping your password and API keys confidential. Tell us immediately if you suspect unauthorized access. One person or organization shouldn’t hold multiple Free accounts to get around plan limits -- we reserve the right to merge or suspend accounts used this way.

Acceptable use

You may not use Jot to create a link that points to content that:

• Is phishing, malware, or otherwise designed to compromise someone’s device or accounts.
• Is illegal under Zambian law or the law of a place you’re targeting.
• Infringes someone else’s intellectual property, or impersonates a person or organization without authorization.
• Is spam, or part of an unsolicited bulk-messaging campaign.

Every destination URL is automatically screened before a link goes live and periodically re-checked afterward, since a page can turn malicious after the fact. A link that fails this check is rejected or disabled. Anyone can report a link they believe violates this policy; a reported link is reviewed and may be disabled pending that review. Repeated or serious violations get the account suspended, not just the one link -- without a refund for the current billing period (see the Refund Policy).

Anonymous links

A link created without an account is tied to the browser session that created it, not to a person, expires automatically after 7 days, and shows only a raw click count, not a full analytics breakdown. You can save an anonymous link to a free account before it expires to keep it permanently and unlock full analytics on it.

Plans, billing, and quotas

Each plan includes a monthly link-creation quota (the number of links it can create, whether from the dashboard or the API) and a request-rate limit that protects the service itself. Exceeding your plan’s quota blocks new link creation until you upgrade or your quota resets; it doesn’t affect links you’ve already created, which keep working and keep being tracked. Paid plans bill monthly or annually, by mobile money, a Zambian-issued card, or, for Enterprise, by invoice. A monthly plan renews automatically every 30 days; an annual plan renews once a year. Where a renewal charge can’t be made automatically (typical for mobile money), we’ll send a reminder with a pay-now link before the due date and a grace period afterward -- your account only moves to the Free plan if that window passes with no payment, and nothing you’ve built is deleted when it does.

Refunds and cancellation

You can cancel or downgrade a paid plan at any time from your dashboard; it takes effect at the end of your current billing period, and you keep full access until then. Refunds for new subscriptions, billing errors, and early cancellation of annual plans are covered in full in the Refund Policy, which is part of these terms.

Intellectual property

Jot’s name, logo, and the software behind the service belong to Bitsmiths. You keep all rights to the destination URLs, custom back-halves, and content you link to -- we don’t claim any ownership over it, and we only use it to operate the service for you (see the Privacy Policy).

Service availability

We target 99.9% uptime on paid plans and work to keep the redirect path fast and available at all times, but Jot is provided “as is” without a guarantee of uninterrupted or error-free service. We’ll give reasonable notice of planned maintenance where we can, and we’re not liable for outages caused by factors outside our reasonable control.

Limitation of liability

To the extent permitted by Zambian law, Bitsmiths’ total liability to you for any claim arising from your use of Jot is limited to the amount you paid us in the 12 months before the claim. We’re not liable for indirect, incidental, or consequential damages, including lost revenue or lost data, even if we’ve been advised they’re possible. Nothing in these terms limits liability that can’t be limited under Zambian law.

Changes to these terms

If we make a material change to these terms, we’ll update the date at the top of this page and, for a change that meaningfully reduces your rights, give you reasonable notice before it takes effect. Continuing to use Jot after a change takes effect means you accept it.

Governing law

These terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of Zambia, and any dispute is subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Zambian courts.

Contact

Questions about these terms: email support@jot.co.zm, or write to us at 6th Floor, ZEP-RE Business Park, Alick Nkhata Road, Mass Media, Lusaka, Zambia.