Spark Business Connections - Terms of Service

Effective date: March 2026

Last updated: 1st March 2026

These Terms of Service govern your access to and use of Spark Business Connections, including our website, member platform, events, communications, introductions, content, and related services.

Please read these Terms carefully before applying for membership, creating an account, attending an event, or using the Spark Business Connections platform. By accessing or using Spark Business Connections, you agree to be bound by these Terms.

1. About Spark Business Connections

Spark Business Connections is an invitation-only and/or application-based business membership platform focused on structured, high-quality member interactions, business introductions, curated events, and professional relationship building.

Spark Business Connections is not an open networking platform. Access to membership, events, introductions, and platform features may be subject to approval, eligibility, availability, and ongoing compliance with these Terms.

For the purposes of these Terms, "Spark Business Connections", "SBC", "we", "us" and "our" refer to [Insert legal company name], registered in Ireland under company number [Insert company number], with its registered office at [Insert registered address].

"You" and "your" refer to any person or organisation applying for membership, using the website or platform, attending an event, or otherwise interacting with Spark Business Connections.

2. Nature of the service

Spark Business Connections may provide some or all of the following:

• access to a private or curated business membership community;
• member profiles and member directories;
• business introductions and facilitated connections;
• structured member interaction formats;
• events, briefings, roundtables, networking sessions, launches, and other gatherings;
• business content, insights, articles, videos, newsletters, and updates;
• opportunities for members to promote their businesses within approved formats;
• access to selected third-party speakers, partners, sponsors, or service providers; and
• other related services that we may make available from time to time.

We may update, change, suspend, or withdraw parts of the service at any time, including specific features, events, member benefits, formats, or access arrangements.

3. Eligibility and membership approval

Spark Business Connections is intended for business owners, founders, directors, senior professionals, investors, advisors, and other approved business participants.

Membership is not automatic. We reserve the right to accept, reject, suspend, or terminate any application or membership at our discretion, including where we believe that:

• the applicant is not suitable for the platform;
• the applicant has provided inaccurate, incomplete, or misleading information;
• the applicant's participation may negatively affect the quality, reputation, safety, or integrity of the community;
• the applicant or member has breached these Terms or any applicable code of conduct; or
• continued membership is otherwise not in the interests of Spark Business Connections or its members.

You must ensure that all information provided during registration, onboarding, profile creation, event booking, and ongoing membership is accurate, complete, and up to date.

4. Member accounts and security

Where account access is provided, you are responsible for keeping your login credentials secure and confidential.

You must not:

• share your login details with another person;
• allow another person to access the platform through your account;
• impersonate another person or organisation;
• use false, misleading, or unauthorised business details;
• attempt to bypass security controls or access restrictions; or
• use another member's account without permission.

You are responsible for all activity carried out through your account unless you can show that the activity resulted from a security failure caused by us.

You must notify us promptly if you become aware of any unauthorised access, suspected compromise, or misuse of your account.

5. Membership fees, event fees, and payment

Membership fees, event fees, sponsorship fees, or other charges may apply to certain services.

Where fees apply, the relevant price, payment terms, renewal terms, and applicable taxes will be communicated before purchase or confirmation.

Unless otherwise stated:

• fees are payable in euro;
• fees are exclusive of VAT unless expressly stated otherwise;
• payments must be made using the payment method we make available;
• membership or event access may be withheld until payment is received; and
• overdue payments may result in suspension or cancellation of access.

We may change our fees from time to time. Where a change affects an existing paid membership, we will provide reasonable notice before the change takes effect, unless the change is required by law or relates to a new or optional service.

6. Renewals, cancellations, and refunds

Membership renewal, cancellation, and refund rights will depend on the specific membership package, contract type, and payment arrangement agreed with you.

Unless otherwise stated in writing:

• membership fees are non-refundable once the membership period has started;
• event fees are non-refundable after the booking deadline or where catering, venue, capacity, or event commitments have already been made;
• missed events do not automatically entitle members to a refund or credit;
• membership cannot be transferred to another person or organisation without our written approval; and
• cancellation of membership may result in loss of access to member benefits, events, introductions, and platform features.

Where you are legally entitled to a cancellation right, refund, repair, replacement, price reduction, or other remedy, nothing in these Terms limits those rights.

If you are contracting as a consumer, you may have additional statutory cancellation rights for certain online or distance purchases. These rights may not apply to all services, including certain event, leisure, or dated services. Where applicable, we will provide the required cancellation information at the point of purchase.

7. Events

Spark Business Connections may host, promote, or facilitate events including member meetings, launches, briefings, networking sessions, presentations, lunches, dinners, receptions, and other gatherings.

Event attendance may be subject to capacity limits, eligibility, guest approval, payment, security requirements, venue rules, and any additional event-specific terms.

We reserve the right to:

• refuse admission to an event;
• remove any attendee whose behaviour is inappropriate, unsafe, disruptive, or inconsistent with the values of Spark Business Connections;
• change event speakers, venue, agenda, timing, format, or content;
• cancel or reschedule an event where necessary; and
• use reasonable event photography, video, or promotional material, subject to applicable law and any specific opt-out arrangements communicated by us.

Members and guests attend events at their own risk and are responsible for their own travel, accommodation, personal property, and business decisions arising from event attendance.

8. Member conduct

Spark Business Connections depends on trust, professionalism, confidentiality, and constructive business interaction.

You agree that you will:

• behave professionally and respectfully towards other members, guests, speakers, staff, and partners;
• use the platform and events for legitimate business and professional purposes only;
• respect the privacy, time, reputation, and commercial interests of other members;
• comply with applicable laws and regulations;
• avoid aggressive, misleading, discriminatory, harassing, defamatory, or unlawful behaviour;
• not misuse member contact details;
• not spam, scrape, harvest, or mass-contact members without permission;
• not make false claims about your business, role, credentials, funding status, investment opportunity, or commercial position;
• not use Spark Business Connections to promote unlawful, fraudulent, offensive, or high-risk activities; and
• not act in a way that damages or may damage the reputation, trust, quality, or operation of Spark Business Connections.

We may suspend or terminate access where we believe member conduct falls below the standard expected of the community.

9. Introductions and business opportunities

Spark Business Connections may facilitate introductions between members, guests, speakers, investors, advisors, sponsors, or other participants.

Any introduction is provided as a facilitation service only. We do not guarantee that any introduction will result in:

• a meeting;
• a business relationship;
• an investment;
• a sale;
• a partnership;
• funding;
• employment;
• advice; or
• any specific commercial outcome.

You are solely responsible for carrying out your own due diligence before entering into any discussion, agreement, investment, transaction, partnership, engagement, or commercial arrangement with another member or third party.

Unless expressly agreed in writing, we are not a party to any agreement or transaction between members and we are not responsible for any loss, dispute, claim, failure, misrepresentation, or liability arising from those dealings.

10. No financial, legal, tax, or investment advice

Spark Business Connections may include discussions, events, content, introductions, or materials relating to business growth, investment, funding, entrepreneurship, finance, markets, strategy, or professional services.

Unless expressly stated otherwise in a separate written agreement, all such information is provided for general business information and networking purposes only.

Nothing provided through Spark Business Connections constitutes:

• financial advice;
• investment advice;
• legal advice;
• tax advice;
• accounting advice;
• regulated investment services;
• an offer to sell securities;
• a solicitation to invest; or
• a recommendation to enter into any transaction.

You should obtain independent professional advice before making any business, investment, financial, legal, tax, or commercial decision.

11. Member content and profiles

You may be able to submit or upload content including profile information, business descriptions, biographies, images, logos, documents, posts, comments, updates, messages, or other materials.

You are responsible for all content you submit and you confirm that:

• the content is accurate and not misleading;
• you have the right to submit and share the content;
• the content does not infringe any third-party rights;
• the content does not contain confidential information unless you are authorised to share it;
• the content is not defamatory, unlawful, discriminatory, offensive, or harmful; and
• the content complies with these Terms and any platform rules we publish.

By submitting content, you grant us a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to use, host, store, display, reproduce, format, adapt, and distribute that content as reasonably necessary to operate, promote, and provide Spark Business Connections.

You retain ownership of your own content. We may remove, edit, restrict, or decline to publish content where we reasonably believe it breaches these Terms, is inaccurate, is unsuitable, or may expose us or others to risk.

12. Confidentiality and Chatham House-style discussions

Certain events, discussions, groups, or introductions may involve commercially sensitive or confidential information.

Unless information is clearly public or the relevant person has given permission for it to be shared, you must treat information received through private member interactions with care and discretion.

Where an event or meeting is stated to operate under Chatham House-style rules or a similar confidentiality format, participants may use the information received but must not reveal the identity or affiliation of the speaker or any participant unless permission is given.

You must not use information obtained through Spark Business Connections to unfairly damage, exploit, misrepresent, or undermine another member, business, speaker, or participant.

13. Intellectual property

All intellectual property rights in the Spark Business Connections name, brand, logo, website, platform, software, design, materials, content, event formats, processes, documents, and related assets belong to us or our licensors.

You may access and use our materials only for your own legitimate business and membership purposes.

You must not, without our written permission:

• copy, reproduce, modify, or distribute our materials;
• use our name, logo, branding, or marks in a misleading or unauthorised way;
• reverse engineer or attempt to extract source code from the platform;
• create a competing service using our content, formats, member data, or materials;
• scrape, harvest, or extract platform data; or
• remove copyright, trademark, or proprietary notices.

14. Third-party services and links

Spark Business Connections may contain links to third-party websites, services, tools, payment providers, event platforms, CRM systems, email platforms, video services, or partner resources.

Third-party services are operated by independent providers and may be subject to their own terms, privacy policies, fees, and conditions.

We are not responsible for third-party websites or services and do not guarantee their availability, accuracy, security, performance, or suitability.

15. Availability and platform changes

We aim to provide a professional, reliable service, but we do not guarantee that the website, platform, events, communications, or member services will always be available, uninterrupted, secure, or error-free.

Access may be affected by maintenance, upgrades, technical issues, third-party services, security events, hosting providers, payment providers, internet disruption, or circumstances outside our control.

We may change, suspend, withdraw, or discontinue any part of the service where reasonably necessary.

16. Acceptable use

You must not use Spark Business Connections in any way that:

• breaches any law or regulation;
• infringes another person's rights;
• involves fraud, misrepresentation, deception, or unlawful conduct;
• damages, disables, overloads, or impairs the platform;
• attempts to gain unauthorised access to systems, data, accounts, or networks;
• introduces malware, viruses, harmful code, or security threats;
• scrapes, mines, copies, harvests, or extracts member data;
• sends spam, unsolicited bulk messages, or automated communications;
• promotes hate, harassment, discrimination, violence, exploitation, or illegal activity;
• impersonates another person or organisation; or
• damages the reputation or integrity of Spark Business Connections.

17. Data protection and privacy

We process personal data in accordance with applicable data protection law, including the General Data Protection Regulation and Irish data protection law.

Our Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, share, and protect personal data, and how individuals can exercise their data protection rights.

These Terms should be read together with our Privacy Policy, Cookie Policy, and any other privacy notices or consent statements provided when you use the website, platform, events, or services.

You must not upload, share, or disclose personal data about another person unless you have a lawful basis and authority to do so.

Where you provide personal data relating to another person, you are responsible for ensuring that such disclosure is lawful, fair, transparent, and accurate.

18. Marketing communications

Where permitted by law, we may send service communications, membership updates, event notices, platform updates, and relevant business information.

We will obtain any required consent for direct marketing communications and provide appropriate unsubscribe or preference management options where required.

Service-related communications may still be sent where necessary to administer your membership, account, bookings, payments, security, or legal obligations.

19. Suspension and termination

We may suspend, restrict, or terminate your account, membership, event access, or platform access where we reasonably believe that:

• you have breached these Terms;
• you have failed to pay applicable fees;
• you have provided false, misleading, or incomplete information;
• your conduct may harm members, guests, staff, partners, or the reputation of Spark Business Connections;
• your account has been compromised or misused;
• continued access may expose us or others to legal, regulatory, commercial, reputational, or security risk; or
• we are required to do so by law or by a competent authority.

On termination, your right to access the platform and member services will end immediately unless we agree otherwise.

Termination does not affect any rights, obligations, liabilities, or payment obligations that arose before termination.

20. Disclaimers

Spark Business Connections is provided on a reasonable commercial basis for networking, member interaction, events, introductions, and business information.

To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not guarantee:

• any particular business outcome;
• any number or quality of introductions;
• any investment, funding, sales, partnership, or commercial result;
• the accuracy of information provided by members, speakers, sponsors, or third parties;
• the suitability, reliability, solvency, or conduct of any member or third party;
• continuous or error-free access to the platform; or
• that the service will meet your specific expectations or requirements.

You are responsible for your own decisions, due diligence, professional advice, and commercial arrangements.

21. Limitation of liability

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability where it would be unlawful to do so, including liability for fraud, fraudulent misrepresentation, death or personal injury caused by negligence, or any statutory rights that cannot be excluded.

Subject to the above, we will not be liable for:

• loss of profit;
• loss of revenue;
• loss of business;
• loss of goodwill or reputation;
• loss of opportunity;
• loss of anticipated savings;
• loss or corruption of data;
• indirect or consequential loss;
• disputes or dealings between members; or
• losses arising from third-party services, venues, speakers, sponsors, or providers.

Subject to applicable law, our total aggregate liability to you arising out of or in connection with these Terms, the platform, membership, events, or services will not exceed the total fees paid by you to us in the 12 months before the event giving rise to the claim.

If you have not paid any fees, our total liability will be limited to EUR 100.

22. Indemnity

You agree to indemnify and hold us harmless from and against any claims, losses, liabilities, damages, costs, and expenses arising from:

• your breach of these Terms;
• your misuse of the platform or services;
• content or information you provide;
• your dealings with other members or third parties;
• your breach of law or third-party rights; or
• your unauthorised disclosure or misuse of confidential or personal information.

23. Force majeure

We will not be responsible for any failure or delay caused by events outside our reasonable control, including acts of God, fire, flood, storm, pandemic, public health restrictions, war, terrorism, civil unrest, industrial action, government action, venue closure, supplier failure, internet disruption, power outage, cyber incident, or failure of third-party service providers.

Where an event is affected by circumstances outside our control, we may reschedule, relocate, change the format, provide a credit, or cancel the event, depending on the circumstances and any applicable legal obligations.

24. Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time to reflect changes in our services, membership model, legal requirements, operational practices, or business needs.

Where changes are material, we will take reasonable steps to notify members, such as by email, website notice, platform notice, or updated acceptance process.

Your continued use of Spark Business Connections after updated Terms take effect means that you accept the updated Terms.

25. Assignment

You may not transfer or assign your rights or obligations under these Terms without our prior written consent.

We may transfer or assign our rights and obligations to another organisation as part of a business transfer, restructuring, merger, acquisition, sale, or similar transaction, provided this does not materially reduce your rights under these Terms.

26. Severability

If any part of these Terms is found to be invalid, unlawful, or unenforceable, that part will be deemed modified or removed to the minimum extent necessary, and the remaining parts will continue in full force and effect.

27. No waiver

If we do not enforce any part of these Terms immediately, this does not mean that we have waived our right to enforce it later.

28. Entire agreement

These Terms, together with any membership agreement, event terms, privacy notices, policies, or written terms expressly incorporated by reference, form the agreement between you and us in relation to Spark Business Connections.

29. Governing law and jurisdiction

These Terms are governed by the laws of Ireland.

Subject to any mandatory legal rights you may have, the courts of Ireland will have exclusive jurisdiction over any dispute arising out of or in connection with these Terms, Spark Business Connections, membership, events, or services.

30. Contact us

If you have any questions about these Terms, please contact us at:

Spark Business Connections
Spark Business Connections - Business name of Slua Ventures Limited
Spark Venture Funding
13 Herbert Place
Dublin 2
D02 YD32
Email: info@sparkbusinessconnections.com
Phone: +353 1 44 33 944