1. Introduction
This Fair Use Policy ("Policy") governs the acceptable use of Skydeca, LLC ("Skydeca," "we," "us," or "our") services and infrastructure. This Policy applies to all users of our platform, including free and paid subscribers.
Our Fair Use Policy is designed to ensure that Skydeca remains fast, reliable, and affordable for all users. It gives you the freedom to build and experiment with our platform while protecting our infrastructure from abuse or excessive resource consumption that could degrade service quality for others.
By using Skydeca, you agree to use our Services responsibly and within the usage limits associated with your subscription plan. This Policy supplements our Terms of Service and Content Policy.
2. Usage Limits
Skydeca offers two subscription tiers: Free and Creator ($15/month). Each tier includes specific usage allowances. For complete details, see our Pricing page.
2.1 Free Tier
The Free tier is designed for explorers, learners, and anyone linking external videos. Free accounts include:
- 1 public channel (no private channels)
- Unlimited linked videos from YouTube and Vimeo
- 15 segments per video with 1 tag per segment
- 10 tag maps total
- Basic AI compute for map linking
- No uploads — Free users cannot upload media files directly
2.2 Creator Tier
The Creator tier ($15/month) unlocks the full semantic engine for podcasters, pastors, educators, and creators building real libraries. Creator accounts include:
- Unlimited public and private channels
- 100 GB storage included for uploaded media
- Unlimited uploads (video and audio)
- Unlimited segments and tags per video
- Unlimited tag maps with deep semantic connections
- Full AI transcription with speaker diarization
- High AI compute level for semantic search and analysis
- Analytics, exports, API access, and more
2.3 Storage Add-Ons
Creator subscribers who need additional storage can purchase add-ons:
- +100 GB for $3/month
- +1 TB for $20/month
Storage add-ons are only available to Creator subscribers and are billed monthly alongside your subscription.
2.4 AI Processing (Fair Use)
AI-powered features including transcription, auto-tagging, and semantic analysis are provided under fair use principles for Creator subscribers. We do not impose hard hourly limits, but we reserve the right to throttle or restrict AI processing for accounts exhibiting unusual or excessive usage patterns that could impact service quality for others.
3. Monitoring & Notifications
We continuously monitor usage across all accounts to ensure platform stability and fair resource allocation.
3.1 Usage Tracking
You can view your current usage at any time through your account dashboard. Usage statistics are updated in near real-time and include breakdowns by storage, bandwidth, uploads, and AI processing.
3.2 Warning Notifications
When you reach 80% of any usage limit, you will receive an email notification and see a warning banner in your dashboard. This gives you time to manage your usage or upgrade your plan before reaching the limit.
3.3 Limit Reached Notifications
When you reach 100% of a usage limit, you will receive an additional notification informing you of your options: reduce usage, wait for the next billing cycle, or upgrade your plan.
4. Enforcement
We take a progressive approach to enforcement, providing multiple opportunities to address usage concerns before applying restrictions.
4.1 Grace Period
When you first exceed a usage limit, you will receive a 7-day grace period. During this time, all services remain fully functional, giving you time to reduce usage or upgrade your plan. The grace period is provided once per account lifetime.
4.2 Service Restrictions
After the grace period expires (or immediately if you've previously used your grace period), the following restrictions apply:
- Storage exceeded (Creator): New uploads are blocked; existing content remains accessible
- Segment/tag limits exceeded (Free): Cannot add more segments or tags until you upgrade
- Tag map limit exceeded (Free): Cannot create new tag maps until you upgrade or delete existing maps
- AI processing throttled: AI features may be rate-limited; manual tagging remains available
4.3 Restriction Duration
Restrictions remain in place until one of the following occurs: (a) your usage drops below the applicable limit, (b) you upgrade to Creator, or (c) you purchase additional storage add-ons (Creator only).
4.4 Abuse & Immediate Action
In cases of suspected abuse, including but not limited to automated scraping, distributed denial-of-service attempts, circumvention of rate limits, or use of the platform for purposes other than its intended use, we reserve the right to apply restrictions immediately without prior notice. Abuse may result in permanent account termination.
5. Removing Restrictions
You have several options to remove restrictions and restore full functionality to your account:
5.1 Reduce Usage
Delete unused media files, remove old segments, consolidate tag maps, or archive old projects to reduce usage. Restrictions are lifted automatically when usage drops below the applicable limit.
5.2 Upgrade to Creator
Upgrading from Free to Creator ($15/month) immediately removes all Free tier limits. You gain unlimited segments, tags, tag maps, upload capability, 100 GB storage, and full AI features. Upgrades take effect instantly.
5.3 Purchase Storage Add-Ons
Creator subscribers who have exceeded their storage allocation can purchase additional storage: +100 GB for $3/month or +1 TB for $20/month. Storage add-ons are billed monthly and take effect immediately upon purchase.
5.4 Downgrade Gracefully
If you choose to downgrade from Creator to Free, all your videos, maps, and tags stay online. You simply lose access to Creator-tier features (uploads, unlimited segments/tags, AI transcription, etc.) until you upgrade again. Existing uploaded content remains accessible but you cannot upload new media.
6. Prohibited Activities
The following activities are prohibited and may result in immediate restriction or termination without notice:
- Using automated tools, bots, or scripts to upload, download, or process content at scale without written authorization
- Circumventing or attempting to circumvent rate limits, upload restrictions, or access controls
- Sharing account credentials to exceed per-account limits
- Creating multiple free accounts to circumvent usage limits
- Using Skydeca as a general-purpose file storage or CDN service unrelated to media organization
- Reselling or redistributing Skydeca services without authorization
- Any activity that degrades service quality for other users
7. Enterprise & Custom Limits
Organizations with needs that exceed our standard plan limits may contact us for custom enterprise arrangements. Enterprise agreements may include:
- Custom storage and bandwidth allocations
- Dedicated infrastructure and guaranteed resources
- Custom SLA with uptime guarantees
- Priority support and dedicated account management
- Custom data retention and compliance requirements
Contact enterprise@skydeca.com to discuss your requirements.
8. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Fair Use Policy from time to time. If we make material changes that adversely affect your usage, we will provide at least 30 days' notice via email or dashboard notification before the changes take effect.
Changes to usage limits that increase your allocations or improve your experience may be implemented immediately without prior notice.
9. Contact Us
If you have questions about this Fair Use Policy or need assistance with your account, please contact us:
Skydeca, LLC
billing@skydeca.com — Billing and usage questions
support@skydeca.com — General support
enterprise@skydeca.com — Enterprise inquiries
abuse@skydeca.com — Report abuse
10. Related Policies
This Fair Use Policy should be read in conjunction with our other policies:
- Terms of Service — General terms governing use of Skydeca
- Content Policy — Guidelines for acceptable content
- Privacy Policy — How we collect and use your data
- Data Retention Policy — How long we keep your data
- Pricing — Current plan limits and pricing