Terms and conditions for use and delivery of the Virre Information Service
These terms and conditions explain the use of the Virre Information Service (‘Service’) by the Finnish Patent and Registration Office (‘PRH’), its purpose of use, and any restrictions on its use. These general terms and conditions apply to all users and all products contained in the Service. Users agree to be bound by these terms and conditions whenever using the Service. Besides these terms and conditions, further terms and conditions may be applicable to certain sections of the Service.
1. Definitions
‘User’ means a user of the Service irrespective of whether they are a one-off user or contract client.
‘Service’ means the Virre Information Service maintained by the PRH and containing public information from the Finnish Trade Register, the Finnish Register of Foundations and the Finnish Register of Enterprise Mortgages, and financial statement details.
2. Content and availability of the Service
The Service allows users to search and browse information transferred from the Finnish Trade Register, the Finnish Register of Foundations and the Finnish Register of Enterprise Mortgages, to buy documents, and to run selections. Products bought at the Service can be paid for online.
The Service is available in Finnish, Swedish and English.
The Client Support for the PRH’s service is available Monday–Friday 9.00–15.00. Except for some of its functions, the information service can be accessed around the clock.
At discretion, the PRH may make changes to the range of items, function of the Service, and other content. At discretion, the PRH may also decide to discontinue the Service or a part of it. If so, the discontinuation will be reported on the PRH website in advance.
The service may be inaccessible during maintenance and at other times. The PRH informs of scheduled downtime in advance and of unexpected interruptions as soon as possible.
The PRH is not responsible for any costs or damage incurred to the user by any changes or interruptions in the Service.
3. Right of access and use
The Service is primarily meant for searching for and checking individual details for users’ own use. The users can be authorities, businesses, organisations and private persons.
Users of the Service are granted a restricted, non-exclusive, non-transferable and revocable right to access the Service. The Service and the service information retrieved by the user may be used solely according to these terms and conditions, and to such extent as defined by the PRH for each specific service.
Users agree to use the Service for private, non-commercial purposes only, and to comply with any relevant legislation, these terms and conditions, and fair dealing.
Users have the right to store the service information they have retrieved and that can be stored.
The reception of data included in the service information may require a report on the purpose of use and a licence. Licence application forms are available at the PRH contact point.
4. Restrictions of use
Pre-programmed searches, resale or commercial forwarding of information, and publication in networks or other media is not permitted, unless written permission is given by the PRH. Both web services available to anyone and those limited by user IDs are deemed to constitute networks.
The user may not
- store information retrieved from the Service in large volumes
- sell or otherwise forward the information or the authorisation to use to a third party.
Forwarding of the information is permitted in conjunction with the user’s own internal and conventional service, provided that its disclosure is not the main purpose of the user’s operations.
The user is not granted immaterial rights to the Service, the information provided through it, and the data system implementing the Service or any of its parts.
5. Pricing and terms of payment
Users will have access to items and/or services subject to charges according to the service descriptions once these have been paid for, by using any of the payment options available.
The charges for the products and services provided in the Service are based on
- the Finnish Act on Fees Charged for the Services of the Finnish Patent and Registration Office (1032/1992)
- the Decree of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment of Finland on the Chargeable Services of the Finnish Patent and Registration Office (1090/2018)
- price list decisions made by the PRH under the Decree.
6. Data protection
In their operations, the user must particularly observe that the information retrieved from the Service also may comprise personal data. The user ensures that its operations and processing of personal data comply with the applicable data protection legislation, the regulations and instructions of the authorities, and these terms and conditions for use. The client is responsible for ensuring they are entitled under the GDPR to process personal data (including further disclosure).
For clarity, it is stated that the data may not be used for direct marketing to private persons.
The disclosure of personal data included in the information material is a disclosure as referred to in the special legislation concerning the PRH’s registers, which is described in the applicable privacy statement of the PRH. Read more in the privacy statements of the registers.
Users are responsible for obeying the legislation and authority regulations concerning data protection as regards the equipment, data connections, software, files, and the information communicated in the Service that have been entrusted to them.
Read the privacy statement for the customer register of the Virre Information Service.
7. Reporting
Users agree to inform the PRH of any defect, error or malfunction in the Service or in its parts.
8. Usernames
It is possible to access the Service without registration or usernames. The Service can also be used as a contract client by setting up an agreement with the PRH.
9. Intellectual property rights
The Service and the service information therein contain content protected by intellectual property rights.
The right of ownership and all intellectual property rights (including copyright, related rights, catalogue and database rights, trademarks, design rights, patents, domain names and trade secrets, as well as rights to modify and forward the above) of the Service and the service information therein belong to the PRH, its partners or other right holders.
For greater clarity, the Service is provided as it is and the PRH is not responsible for ensuring that the Service or service information does not infringe the protected rights of third parties.
10. Damages and limitation of liability
The PRH is not liable for any direct or indirect damage caused to the user or a third party. The Service is provided to the user with the content and technical features that it actually possesses at the given time.
The PRH is not responsible for any content-related errors and deficiencies in the service information or for any outages that may have occurred during its use. The PRH is not liable for any damage these cause to the user or a third party.
The PRH is not liable for defective, damaged, lost or altered data in the service information or any damage caused by such data to the user or third parties.
The PRH is not liable for any delay or damage caused by force majeure.
Users are responsible for the acquisition, maintenance, data security and functionality of their necessary facilities, software and online connection, and for data traffic related to the use of the Service.
Users are responsible for any damage caused to the Service by their intentional or negligent acts.
11. Amendments to the terms and conditions
The PRH may change these terms and conditions. Clients will be informed about such changes on the PRH website or in the service.
12. Applicable law
Finnish legislation applies to these terms and conditions and to this contract, excluding rules of conflict of laws which would lead to the application of a foreign law.