Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Copyright Notice

BY ACCESSING OR OTHERWISE USING THE COGNELLA SITE, COGNELLA STUDENT STORE, COGNELLA TITLE CATALOG, COGNELLA ACTIVE LEARNING SITE, COGNELLA PROFESSIONAL LEARNING SITE OR ANY OTHER SITE THAT COGNELLA OPERATES OR MAY OPERATE IN THE FUTURE (REFERRED TO HEREIN AS THE “SITE”), YOU AGREE TO THE TERMS BELOW.

Terms of Use

1. Our Agreement. These Terms of Use (“Agreement”) relate to (1) registration with Cognella, Inc., including Cognella Active Learning and Cognella Professional Learning (“Cognella”), and (2) use of the Site.  We may alter this Agreement at any time. Cognella will post these updates on the Site, at which time the changes will be effective immediately. Any continued use of the Site and any of its related resources will constitute acceptance of this Agreement.  It is the responsibility of the user to appropriately review the effective Terms of Use, as they are legally binding.
2. The Site and its entire contents, including any and all design, text, graphics, images, the selection and arrangement thereof, any and all software provided to facilitate the use of the Site, and any and all trademarks, service marks, trade names, or other proprietary materials appearing on the Site (“Content”) are the sole and exclusive property of Cognella, Inc., unless otherwise noted.  No title, ownership, or other interest in or to the Content shall pass to you or any other user except as expressly provided under these Terms of Use.
3. Grant of License. In consideration of your acceptance of this Agreement and the payment by you in full for any applicable Cognella product access, Cognella grants to you a non-exclusive, non-transferable and limited license to use the Site as permitted herein.
4. You will acquire, at your own sole cost, all the required equipment, software, and software licenses needed to access the Site.
5. Use Restrictions. Any use of materials on this Site, including reproduction, modification, distribution, republication, or sale without the prior written permission of Cognella, Inc. is strictly prohibited.  Unauthorized use of the Content may violate copyright, trademark, and other laws. You may not sublicense, transfer, or otherwise make available the Site or the accompanying Content to any third party for commercial purposes.  You may not transfer the Site or its Content into any other media or in any other location. You will keep your account and access information (including, but not limited to, access codes, username, and password) secure from unauthorized usage and will notify Cognella in writing of any loss or theft of your password or any unauthorized use of your account.
6. Cookie Usage. Cognella utilizes standard cookie technology to recognize the computer of users who have visited the Site previously in order to gather information about usage patterns and enable certain website functionalities.  This allows Cognella to store your login information and tailor your visit to the Site, along with aggregating information used to improve the Site and provide traffic data. The compiled information from cookies is for internal use only, and the only personal information a cookie can contain is information you supply voluntarily.  Cookies cannot read data off your hard disk or read cookie files created by other sites. Please note that blocking the placement of cookies may disable or hinder certain Site functionalities.
7. Links to Third-Party Websites. All links are provided as a convenience and reference tool only. The Site may contain links to third-party websites, either provided as a convenience to the user or as part of a third-party advertisement. Cognella does not endorse the content of linked third-party websites nor any products or services that may be offered thereon and does not make any representations regarding the content or accuracy of materials on such third-party websites.  If you decide to access linked third-party websites, you do so at your own risk. Cognella cannot guarantee that such third-party websites will be available for your usage. Your use of third-party websites is subject to any terms and conditions of use for such websites.
8. Right to Shut Down, Deny or Limit Access. Cognella reserves the right to limit or revoke your access to this Site at its sole discretion, at any time and for any reason, including, but not limited to, any violation of these Terms of Use or in the event of website corruption or other technical difficulties.  If you violate any of these Terms of Use, your permission to use the Content automatically terminates and you must immediately destroy any copies you have made of any portion of the Content.
9. You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold Cognella, its officers, directors, employees, agents, licensors, and suppliers harmless from and against any claims, actions, or demands, liabilities, and settlements, including, without limitation, reasonable legal and accounting fees, resulting from, or alleged to result from, your use of the Site or any other portion or aspect of the Site in a manner that violates or is alleged to violate this Terms of Use.  Cognella shall provide notice to you promptly of any such claim, suit, or proceeding and shall reasonably cooperate with you, at your expense, in your defense of any such claim, suit, or proceeding.
10. Disclaimer/Limitation of Liability. This Site is provided “as is,” and you agree that your use of the Site is at your sole risk.  Cognella reserves the right to change or discontinue at any time any aspect or feature of this Site and makes no warranty regarding the accuracy or suitability of the Content on the Site.  Except as specifically stated on this site, neither Cognella nor any of its directors, employees, or other representatives will be liable for damages arising out of or in connection with the use of this Site.  This is a comprehensive limitation of liability that applies to all damages of any kind, including (without limitation) compensatory, direct, indirect, or consequential damages. Cognella assumes no responsibility or liability for any losses, damages, or other consequences of any kind resulting from any inability to access or use any of the resources or tools offered on the Site, including any services provided by a third party.
11. Cognella utilizes industry-standard encryption in correlation with the Privacy Policy noted below.
12. Choice of Law and Forum. This Agreement will be governed by the laws of the State of California, USA, as if entered into and to be fully performed in California.  The parties agree that any legal action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement will be instituted only in the City or County of San Diego, and the parties irrevocably submit to the jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located therein.  Each party hereby waives any claim or defense that San Diego is an inconvenient forum.
13. Reservation of Rights. All rights not expressly granted herein are reserved by Cognella.

Student Store and Title Catalog Terms and Conditions

• Returns & Exchanges. By accepting these terms and conditions, you acknowledge that there are NO returns or exchanges on any materials that you purchase from Cognella. All sales are final.
• Problematic or Damaged Orders. By accepting these terms and conditions, you acknowledge that you must notify Cognella within 30 days of your order date if you experience any problem with your order, including any problems related to missing products or shipments. If notification is received within this period, we will take the necessary steps to resolve your issue as soon as possible.
• Returned Check & Returned eCheck policy. By accepting these terms and conditions, you acknowledge that there is a $25 fee assessed to all returned checks & returned eChecks (electronic checks).

1. By accepting these terms and conditions, you are granted a non-exclusive, non-transferable license to have access to the Service that you purchase and/or download using any and all of Cognella Services, including but not limited to our online ordering and digital file distribution Services. You do not acquire any ownership interest or any rights in the Services and associated materials or in any portion of the Services or materials. This license is granted to you by Cognella. All ownership interests and rights in the Service and its contents belong to Cognella and its licensors.
2. This license is granted to you solely for your personal use. By accepting these terms and conditions, you affirm that you are a student enrolled in the course for which you are purchasing the Service. All other use of the Service is strictly prohibited. You may not publish, broadcast, pirate, copy, or sell any materials retrieved through the Service or use the materials in any manner that will infringe the copyright or other proprietary right of Cognella or its licensors. You may not use the Service in the course of providing research services to others.
3. You may print copies of digital materials retrieved through the Service only for your personal use and only if you have paid for the material in print format. You may not distribute, forward, copy, email or otherwise provide copies of materials retrieved from the Service to others. All reproduction and distribution of any printouts and all downloading of any digital files (including but not limited to digital files with a .PDF or .pdf file name extension) and/or electronic storage of materials retrieved through our Service is subject to the Copyright Act of 1976, Title 17 U.S.C. and all other applicable intellectual property laws as it applies for an additional copy for your personal use.
4. Additional restrictions on your use of the materials retrieved through the Services may be included on any other web pages or web links related to the Services, our online ordering system, upon completion of checkout, or at any other time during the use of the Services.
5. Collection of Payments. By using our online ordering system, you authorize Cognella to charge your credit card or accept payment from the designated check processing service in the amount of fees corresponding to the pricing involved in the Services. The time period and corresponding fees for access to the Services shall be governed by the specific Services you have purchased. No pro-rata refunds will be provided to customers who cancel their access to the Services before the period of the access requested is completed. Cognella may adjust the fees it charges for access to the Services at any time, provided that Cognella may not charge you an increased access fee to the Services for any period for which you have already paid.
6. Rentals. Not all of our textbooks are available to rent. If the option to rent is not listed, then your book is not part of the Cognella textbook rental program. Paperback rentals are for the duration of your class, usually up to four months for a quarter class and up to six months (180 days) for a semester class. Year-long classes, summer sessions, and other special exceptions will have a personalized schedule for the rental period. You may highlight and write notes in your book as you see fit. We will accept rentals in used condition at the end of the rental period. You will be provided with a printable, pre-paid shipping label through your Cognella account to use to ship your rental back to Cognella. You will have 30 days from the end of the rental period to send the rental back to us. If you lose your rental or decide to keep it, then you’ll be charged exactly 0.6667 times your original rental price to upgrade it to a purchase. For example, if your rental price is $60, then the additional purchase upgrade charge would be: ($60 x 0.6667) = $40. By accepting this agreement, you authorize Cognella to charge a rental purchase upgrade on your original purchasing card if the rental is not sent back within 30 days of the end of the rental period.

Cognella Active Learning and Cognella Professional Learning End User License Agreement

BY ACCESSING OR OTHERWISE USING THE COGNELLA ACTIVE LEARNING OR COGNELLA PROFESSIONAL LEARNING SITES, OR ANY OTHER SITE THAT COGNELLA OPERATES OR MAY OPERATE IN THE FUTURE (REFERRED TO HEREIN AS THE “SITE”), YOU AGREE TO THE TERMS OF USE BELOW.

1. I agree not to post, reproduce, publish or distribute any Cognella content, in whole and in part, in any print or digital mediums, including any learning management systems or internet forums. I acknowledge that dissemination of any assessment questions or answers will not constitute “fair use” and is specifically prohibited under these terms of service. 
2. I agree that I will not upload or embed any content into the Active Learning or Professional Learning platforms for which I do not have the proper permission. I agree that I will not add any content to the Active Learning or Professional Learning platform that is pirated, illegal, or offensive. I understand that Cognella assumes no responsibility for content that is added to the Active Learning or Professional Learning platform by users, including myself, and that Cognella reserves the right to remove any content at its discretion. I understand that Cognella assumes no responsibility for the accuracy, accessibility, availability, compatibility, or ADA compliance of any content within the Active Learning or Professional Learning platform that I add, modify, or customize.
3. Cognella Active Learning and Cognella Professional Learning courses may provide links to websites controlled by third parties. I understand that Cognella does not control these websites nor is Cognella responsible for the accessibility or content provided by the websites. 
4. I understand that Cognella may apply limits to my access to the Active Learning and Professional Learning platforms, including the maximum storage space allotted to my account and the duration during which any content will be retained. After termination of my use of the Cognella Active Learning and Cognella Professional Learning platform, I understand that Cognella does not have any obligation to destroy, return, or retain any content. It is my sole responsibility to back up and export my user content prior to termination. 
5. I agree that I will not will not engage in any conduct that threatens the security, integrity, or availability of the Cognella Active Learning and Cognella Professional Learning platforms. I will not attempt to circumvent the system’s security measures or use any means to attempt to access, copy, or monitor any content or functionality within the system that has not intentionally been made available to me. Cognella reserves the right at any time and in its sole discretion to block users from certain IP addresses. 
6. In consideration of your acceptance of this Agreement, Cognella grants to you a non-exclusive, non-transferable, and limited license to access course content, strictly for the academic purposes of the course(s) and term(s) specified and agreed-to with Cognella. Your account is for your personal use only and sharing your credentials with any third party is strictly prohibited and constitutes grounds for terminating your account access. 
7. I understand that Cognella may suspend or terminate my use of the Cognella Active Learning and Cognella Professional Learning platforms, without liability or refund, if in Cognella’s sole determination I have breached these terms.

Privacy Policy

Cognella, Inc., and its imprints and divisions, are committed to protecting the privacy and security of personal information entrusted to us. We follow the best practices as outlined by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). This privacy policy sets out how this Site and any other Cognella Site uses and protects any information you provide while using this Site. Cognella may change this policy at any time by updating this page. You should check this page from time to time to ensure you are happy with any changes.

1. Information We Collect: When you visit our Sites, you may provide personally identifiable information such as your name, email address, and course details. If you choose not to provide the requested information, you may not be able to access all of our company’s content or services. Payment information will only be used to process transactions.
2. How We Use Personal Information: In general, we use collected information in order to:
   • provide access to our textbooks and online course materials;
   • respond to requests for information;
   • determine eligibility for access to our products or services; and
   • provide customer service.
3. When We Disclose Personal Information: We make every reasonable effort to protect the personal information you provide, including your email address, personal address, and credit card information. We will not sell, rent, or trade your information with any outside parties unless we are required to do so by law, although we may, from time to time, share relevant information with your respective instructor, a university administrator, or any of our corporate affiliates as needed to verify user purchases.
   This policy does not protect information you post to your profile, chat rooms, or other public forums within our site. You should be aware that when you voluntarily disclose personal information (email address, medical conditions, etc.) in public forums, that information can be collected and used by others and may result in unsolicited messages from other participants or parties.
   Cognella may, from time to time, contain links to other sites on the internet. We cannot control and are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of any other website. We caution you to review the privacy policies of any such sites prior to submitting personally identifiable information.
4. Information Collected on Behalf of Educational Institutions: Cognella provides course materials and services for educational institutions. Information collected is only used by Cognella to support the educational institution and provide the services requested by course instructors. We do not use this information for our own purposes. Most student course records are also protected by the Family and Educational Rights Privacy Act (FERPA). For information on your school’s privacy statement and FERPA, please contact your school’s administration.
5. Transaction Information: Purchases made through the Cognella Student Store are processed through a PCI DSS compliant platform. Our servers use Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption, and no credit card information is retained or stored on Cognella’s servers. Any personally identifying information provided by the customer, such as name, address, or phone number, are used for the processing, redemption, and shipment of the order. Contact information is not used for any other purpose and is only available to authorized persons for the purpose of technical support.
6. Integrated Cognella Active Learning: Integrated Active Learning courses feature content that is hosted on the Cognella site but is integrated into an institution’s learning management system via a learning tools interoperability (LTI) connection. The Integrated Cognella Active Learning content is placed within a course in the institution’s learning management system. Any student wishing to access the content must be enrolled in the institution’s course. Cognella has no control over or visibility into the enrollments in the institution’s learning management system. When a student attempts to access Integrated Cognella Active Learning content from within the institution’s learning management system, the Cognella system checks to see whether the student has a paid and verified account. A student account is paid and verified if the student has purchased access to the Cognella Active Learning platform via the Cognella Student Store, or if the student has purchased an access card from the institution’s bookstore and successfully completed the verification process. The personal information collected from a student as part of the enrollment or access card verification process includes the student name, institution email, course, and section. The student name, course, and section information is used to confirm that the student is enrolled in the proper Cognella Active Learning course. The institution email is required to link the student’s Cognella Active Learning account to the account in the institution learning management system. This directory-level contact information is not used for any other purpose and is only available to authorized persons, including the Cognella Customer Support representatives, for the purpose of technical support.
   When a student opens Cognella Active Learning content from the home learning management system and the LTI connection is established, the LTI authentication process provides some data about the student to Cognella as part of the LTI profile. This includes the institution name, course name, course section, user name, user email, user ID, and user role (student). If the student has an avatar or profile picture in the home learning management system, it may also be included in the LTI profile. This directory-level contact information is not used for any other purpose and is only available to authorized persons, including the Cognella Customer Support representatives, for the purpose of technical support. When a student submits an assignment or completes an assessment, the student’s submission is saved on Cognella’s servers and the grade is passed back to the institution learning management system. The grade is the only material that Cognella passes back to the institution learning management system. The course instructor and teacher’s assistants may have access to the student grades, but this information will not be disclosed to any third parties unless required by subpoena or other legal proceeding.
7. Data Archiving for Cognella Active Learning and Cognella Professional Learning: Upon completion of the course, all course material and all student information is archived within the Cognella system. Per the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) guidelines, this data will be retained for a minimum of five years. If a grade dispute arises, the student or instructor may contact Cognella to retrieve the necessary data.
8. Security: We are committed to ensuring your information is secure. Cognella user data is stored in highly stable, secure, and geographically diverse Amazon Web Services (AWS) data centers. Cognella employs industry standard best practices to ensure the security of all records.
9. Data Analytics: Cognella may utilize a third-party platform to collect data on our website and learning applications. A third-party service, such as Google Analytics, may be used to collect anonymous visitor information, such as IP address, browser, and referring pages. No personally identifying information will be collected.
10. How We Use Cookies: A cookie is a small file that asks permission to be placed on your computer’s hard drive. Once you agree, the file is added, and the cookie helps analyze web traffic or lets you know when you visit a particular site. Cookies allow web applications to respond to you as an individual.
    We use traffic log cookies to identify which pages are being used. This helps us analyze data about webpage traffic to improve our website and tailor it to suit customer needs. We only use this information for statistical analysis purposes, after which the data is removed from the system.
    Overall, cookies help us provide you a better website by allowing us to monitor which pages you find useful and which you do not. A cookie in no way gives us access to your computer or any information about you, other than the data you choose to share with us. You can choose to accept or decline cookies. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser settings to decline cookies if you prefer. This may prevent you from taking full advantage of the website.
    Cookies we Collect:

This Privacy Policy may be modified from time to time; though Cognella will make efforts to notify users of such changes, you are responsible for periodically reviewing the Privacy Policy in order to be aware of any such changes. If you have any questions or concerns about Cognella’s Privacy Policy, please send them to: privacy@cognella.com.

Copyright Notice and Copyright Infringement Claims 

If you believe your intellectual property has been reproduced or posted to our Site in a fashion that constitutes copyright infringement, please submit your copyright infringement claim per the process noted below.  Please be aware that any infringement notification must be submitted under penalty of perjury, and false claims may result in personal liability.

In your submitted claim, please complete all of the following:

(a) identify the copyrighted work(s) that are claimed to be infringed;

(b) identify the material that is claimed to be infringing and that is to be removed (including information needed to locate the material [the URL(s) of such material is preferred]);

(c) indicate your contact information (including address, phone number, and email address);

(d) include a statement of your good faith belief that the use claimed to be infringing is not authorized by the copyright holder, the copyright holder’s agent, or the law;

(e) include a statement by you, made under penalty of perjury in a United States court of law, that all the information provided in your infringement claim is accurate and that you are either the copyright holder or an authorized party acting on behalf of the copyright holder; and

(f) include your physical or electronic signature.

Please send all copyright infringement claims to: Cognella, Inc., 320 South Cedros Ave, Suite 400, Solana Beach, 92075; E-mail: rights@cognella.com; Attn: Copyright Agent.

Accessibility Statement

Cognella’s mission is to help others achieve excellence by facilitating education and building knowledge.

We know that, in order to fulfill our mission, we need to create educational resources that are accessible for all learners. Every student should have the opportunity to engage with the content in a way that enables meaningful learning experiences and achieves desired learning outcomes.

We work with leading ebook providers such as VitalSource and RedShelf to make sure our books are compatible with screen readers (see VitalSource’s Accessibility Statement or RedShelf’s Accessibility Statement).

In addition, Cognella works directly with school disability/accessibility offices to ensure students have access to Cognella titles in a compatible format. Our Cognella Active Learning content is designed to be integrated into home Learning Management Systems (LMS), including Blackboard, Canvas, and Moodle), so that the navigation will be native to an institution’s LMS. When we host Cognella Active Learning content on our own site (rather than integrating with an institution’s LMS), we use Canvas, which is certified as substantially conformant with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA (see Canvas’ Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT)).

For content development, we use WCAG 2.1 and the Revised Section 508 Standards as our guidelines for accessibility features.

Revised 11/2023