Terms of Service

1. The agreement

These terms are a contract between you and Hark (“we,” “us”) governing your use of hark.news and the Hark briefing service. By creating an account or using the service, you accept them. If you don't accept them, don't use the service.

2. The service, and the beta

Hark generates a private daily audio newscast synthesized from email newsletters delivered to a private Hark address that is yours alone. You choose topics or specific newsletters; we create those subscriptions for your address on your instruction, and you can add or remove newsletters anytime in Settings. You may also forward newsletters you already subscribe to, including paid ones, from your own email account to your Hark address using auto-forwarding and filtering you set up and control. Your newscast is delivered by text message in the United States, Canada and Australia, and by email in other countries.

The service is currently in beta: features may change, break, or be withdrawn, delivery may occasionally be late or missed, and the newsletter catalog may change. We'll do our best to warn you about material changes, but during beta the service is provided as-is.

3. Your account and your newsletters

You must be at least 13 and able to form a contract. Keep your account details accurate. By selecting topics or newsletters you instruct us to subscribe your private Hark address to them on your behalf; you can turn any newsletter off, or add others, anytime in Settings. If you set up auto-forwarding from your own email account, only forward mail from an account you own or are authorized to use; the forwarding filter lives in your email account, under your control, and you can end that flow at any time by deleting it. Newsletter counts are limited to your plan's allowance (10 during the trial, up to 50 as a subscriber).

By texting your number to us, you consent to receive service messages at that number: account notices everywhere, and, for numbers in the United States, Canada and Australia, your daily briefing link. Numbers in other countries receive the daily briefing by email instead. Message and data rates from your carrier may apply. Reply STOP to stop.

4. Price and billing

Your first week is free. After that, the base plan (the 5-minute newscast) costs $8 per month, billed in advance to your payment method, plus any applicable taxes. An optional premium plan (the 15-minute newscast) costs $20 per month. No usage fees.

Upgrading from the base plan to premium takes effect immediately: you're charged the prorated difference right away, and your monthly renewal date restarts from that day. Downgrading from premium to the base plan takes effect at the end of your current paid period; you keep premium access until then, and we don't offer a refund for the unused time.

Cancelling your subscription entirely takes effect at the end of the current billing period, and we don't offer refunds for partial months. We'll give you at least 30 days' notice before any price change, and it will only apply to subsequent billing periods.

5. Content, sources, and ownership

We are not a news publisher. Briefings are machine-generated syntheses of newsletters you already subscribe to, always with source attribution. The underlying newsletters remain the property of their publishers and are governed by your subscriptions with them. Your briefings are for your personal, non-commercial use.

Synthesis can err. A briefing may compress, misread, or omit; it is a convenience, not a substitute for the original reporting, and never professional (financial, medical, legal) advice. Sources are always one tap away, so check them when it matters.

Sharing a story as a playable link makes that clip available to anyone with the link; share responsibly and respect the source publisher's rights.

6. Acceptable use

Only add or forward newsletters you have the right to receive; don't use the service to violate a publisher's terms at scale, to resell or republish briefings, to probe or disrupt our systems, or to break the law. We may suspend or terminate accounts that do.

7. Privacy

Our Privacy Policy, including the architecture that means we never have access to your inbox, is part of these terms.

8. Disclaimers and liability

To the fullest extent the law allows: the service is provided “as is” and “as available,” without warranties of any kind, express or implied, including accuracy, availability, merchantability, and fitness for a particular purpose.

To the same extent, Hark will not be liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or lost profits or data; and our total liability for any claim is limited to the greater of $50 or the amounts you paid us in the twelve months before the claim. Some jurisdictions don't allow certain limitations, so some of these may not apply to you.

9. Termination

You can stop using Hark at any time. To stop billing, cancel your membership in your account settings; turning newsletters off only changes what feeds your newscast and does not cancel your subscription. You can also email us at scoop@hark.news and we can cancel your account for you. If you also want your data removed, delete your account and it is handled per the Privacy Policy. We may suspend or terminate the service or your account for breach of these terms, for legal reasons, or upon winding down the beta, with notice where practicable and a pro-rata refund of prepaid fees if we terminate without cause.

10. Governing law and disputes

These terms are governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, excluding its conflict-of-law rules. Before filing any claim, write to scoop@hark.news, since most disputes are resolvable in one email. Any claim that isn't will be brought in the state or federal courts located in Delaware, and both sides consent to their jurisdiction.

11. Changes to these terms

We may update these terms as the service evolves. For material changes we'll give you at least 14 days' notice by text or in the briefing before they take effect; continuing to use Hark after that constitutes acceptance. The effective date below always reflects the current version.