Platform Terms and Conditions
1. Definitions
“Platform” or “CTN” means CruiseTalentNetwork.com, operated by CruiseTalentNetwork (in formation), Herengracht 999, 1017BR Amsterdam, Netherlands, Chamber of Commerce number CHofCom in formation (see the legal notice): the business established in the Netherlands operating the online booking environment and providing intermediation and related administrative services.
“Entertainer” means a professional performer or entertainment supplier, including an agency, using the Platform in a business capacity. “Cruise Company” means a business operating or arranging river cruises or other cruise services and booking entertainment for performances on board a vessel, including its holding and ship-operating companies. “User” means an Entertainer or a Cruise Company, including the persons who use the Platform on their behalf.
“Booking” means a performance engagement confirmed through the Platform. “Booking Confirmation” means the record of a Booking on the Platform. “Performance Fee” or “Gage” means the agreed fee for the performance, excluding VAT unless stated otherwise. “Platform Fee” means the fee payable separately by each User to the Platform.
2. Scope and acceptance
These terms apply to the use of the Platform, user accounts and the services provided by the Platform. By registering, accessing or using the Platform, a User accepts these terms. Each confirmed Booking is also subject to Part B (Booking and Cancellation Conditions); Part C governs invoicing, payment and Platform Fees. If provisions conflict, the specific Booking Confirmation and the relevant booking conditions prevail for the performance agreement, while these Platform Terms govern the Platform's services.
The Platform is only for businesses acting in the course of their trade or profession. Consumers may not use the Platform. Because all Users are businesses, consumer rights such as the 14-day right of withdrawal do not apply.
3. Role of the Platform
The Platform acts solely as an independent digital intermediary and administrative service provider. The performance agreement is concluded directly between the Entertainer and the Cruise Company when both accept the Booking through the Platform and the Platform issues a confirmation.
The Platform is not a party to the performance agreement and does not act as employer, principal, producer, event organiser, booking agency, artist manager or supplier of the performance. The Platform does not control the artistic content or the Entertainer's independent business operations.
The Platform may not amend a User's contractual obligations, accept a Booking or incur a financial commitment on a User's behalf unless expressly authorised in writing. The Platform does not guarantee that a User will receive, accept or perform a Booking.
4. User registration and responsibilities
Users provide accurate, complete and up-to-date business, contact, registration, tax and payment information, as applicable, and keep it up to date. Entertainers confirm that they operate as independent businesses and are responsible for their own business registrations, permits, insurance, taxes, social security and legal compliance. Cruise Companies confirm that they are authorised to place and confirm Bookings on behalf of their businesses.
Each User is responsible for the accuracy of the information it supplies and for checking the Booking Confirmation. Accounts are personal: keep your password secret; you are responsible for what happens with your account; tell us immediately at info@cruisetalentnetwork.com if you suspect misuse. A company administrator may invite operations managers and is responsible for their accounts, ships and approval limits. After five wrong passwords an account is locked for 15 minutes.
Verification and approval. We check every cruise company and every entertainer before they can book or be booked. For entertainers this includes a complete portfolio, business details with a VAT number, and acceptance of the platform agreements. CTN does not collect or check documents. By accepting the agreement Mandatory Legal Documentation for Performers, entertainers and agencies confirm that they hold valid identity documents for every performer, public liability insurance, an A1 certificate where legally required and a business registration, and that they show them to the cruise operator on request before boarding; the cruise operator may refuse boarding or a performance if they are missing, invalid or incomplete. Under the agreement Age Restrictions for Entertainers and Performers, performers under the age of 18 do not perform in engagements scheduled after 20:00; entertainers, agencies and booking parties are each responsible for compliance, and stricter national rules prevail. We may refuse an application or ask for changes; we will tell you why. Approval is not a guarantee of quality or of compliance.
5. Booking confirmation
A Booking becomes binding when both parties accept it through the Platform and the Platform sends a Booking Confirmation. The confirmation states, at a minimum: the parties' identities; the performance date, time, location and vessel where known; the performance description and duration; the Performance Fee; agreed travel, accommodation or other expenses; and the applicable cancellation terms. Changes are binding only when confirmed in writing by both parties through the Platform or another recorded written method.
6. Platform Fees
For each confirmed Booking, the Entertainer and the Cruise Company each owe the Platform a separate fee, currently €20 excluding VAT for the Entertainer and €20 excluding VAT for the Cruise Company. The Platform invoices each party separately. The fee of the day a Booking is made applies to that Booking. The Platform may change the Platform Fee for Bookings made from a future date; changes are announced in advance on the Platform and do not apply to Bookings already made. The current fees and any announced change are shown on the page Booking, cancellation and payment conditions.
For an ordinary cancellation by either party, each Platform Fee remains payable. If a confirmed Booking is finally cancelled because of a substantiated force majeure event under Part B, the Platform refunds the full Platform Fee to both parties. If a Booking is rescheduled by mutual agreement and remains the same Booking, no additional Platform Fee is charged. If a Booking failed to become validly confirmed due to an attributable Platform error, the affected Platform Fee is refunded. The Platform Fee is separate from the Performance Fee, cancellation compensation and any expenses payable between the parties.
7. Invoicing and payment role
The Cruise Company pays the Performance Fee directly to the Entertainer. The Platform does not receive, hold, safeguard, transfer or otherwise manage the Performance Fee or cancellation compensation.
Under a separate written authorisation, the Platform prepares and sends performance invoices in the name and on behalf of the Entertainer. The Entertainer remains the supplier of the performance and remains responsible for invoice accuracy, tax treatment, accounting and tax reporting. The Platform invoices its own Platform Fees in its own name. The Platform is not responsible for a User's late payment, insolvency or other payment default.
VAT. On the Entertainer's invoices to ships, VAT is charged at the rate of the Entertainer's own country, as set on the Platform. A Cruise Company based in Switzerland that has chosen “VAT = reverse charge” receives these invoices without VAT; the invoice then states that the VAT is reverse charged. Both VAT numbers are shown on every invoice. Each party remains responsible for its own VAT registration and returns. The Platform's fee invoices include the VAT required by applicable law (currently Dutch VAT on the Platform Fee, a digital service).
8. Platform liability
The Platform uses reasonable efforts to maintain a functioning booking service; maintenance is announced where possible. It is not responsible for the quality or delivery of a performance, an Entertainer's failure to attend, a vessel's availability, route or schedule changes, the suitability of a performer, or payment and performance disputes between Users, nor for content published by Users.
The Platform is liable for direct loss to the extent caused by its own attributable breach. To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, the Platform's aggregate liability to a User is capped at the Platform Fees paid by that User to the Platform in the twelve months preceding the event giving rise to the claim. The cap and exclusions do not apply where liability cannot legally be limited, including where applicable law prohibits limitation for intent, wilful misconduct or other specified conduct. To the maximum extent permitted by law, the Platform is not liable for indirect or consequential loss, loss of profit or loss of business opportunity.
9. User indemnity
Each User is responsible for its own conduct and obligations under the performance agreement and will indemnify the Platform against third-party claims arising from that User's attributable breach, unlawful conduct or negligence, except to the extent caused by the Platform's own attributable breach.
10. Privacy and data protection
The Platform processes personal data for account administration, matchmaking, bookings, communications, invoicing and related services in accordance with applicable data protection law, including the GDPR. The Privacy Policy explains the purposes, legal bases, retention periods, recipients and data subject rights. Where required, the parties enter into appropriate data processing or data sharing arrangements. Users must not upload personal data that they are not authorised to share, and Users who receive personal data of others through the Platform (for example on agreements and invoices) are themselves responsible for handling it lawfully.
11. Suspension and termination
The Platform may restrict or suspend access where reasonably necessary to address suspected fraud, security risks, misuse or a serious breach, or materially inaccurate information. Except in urgent cases (fraud, illegal content, security) we first warn you and give you the chance to respond. The Platform may terminate an account in accordance with applicable law and any applicable notice requirements, and may end the service as a whole with at least three months' notice.
You may close your account at any time from your account page or by e-mail to info@cruisetalentnetwork.com. Closing an account does not automatically cancel confirmed Bookings or extinguish accrued payment obligations.
12. International use, governing law and jurisdiction
These Platform Terms are intended for business Users in the Netherlands and other countries. The agreement between the Platform and each User is governed by Dutch law, subject to mandatory rules that apply under relevant international or national law. To the extent legally permitted, disputes between the Platform and a User are submitted to the competent courts in the district in which the Platform has its registered office (# e.g. Amsterdam (Terms and Conditions, applicable court), the Netherlands). This clause does not override mandatory jurisdiction rules or any non-excludable rights. A choice of Dutch law and Dutch courts cannot disapply mandatory laws that apply under relevant conflict-of-law, jurisdiction, tax, employment, maritime, safety or other rules; local legal and tax advice may be required for cross-border bookings.
13. General
If any provision is invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions remain effective. The invalid provision shall, where legally possible, be replaced by a valid provision that most closely reflects its commercial purpose.
The Platform may amend these terms by giving Users reasonable notice, by e-mail and on the Platform. Amendments do not apply retrospectively to confirmed Bookings unless required by law or expressly agreed. If you do not agree, you may close your account before the changes take effect. Electronic acceptance and records (such as the acceptance of agreements, the Booking Confirmation, the time of a cancellation, the cancellation reason and the applied percentage) may be used as evidence to the extent permitted by law.
14. Content you publish
Entertainers publish portfolio content (texts, photos, video links, show types and fees). Users exchange messages. You are responsible for your content. You confirm that you have the necessary rights to it, including copyright and image rights of the people shown, and that it is lawful and accurate.
You give CTN a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to store, show and adapt (for example resize) your content for the purpose of running the platform, for as long as it is on the platform. Your content is shown only to approved cruise companies and their users, never to other entertainers.
Not allowed: illegal content; content that infringes rights of others; false or misleading information; discriminatory, hateful or sexual content; and contact details or links intended to arrange bookings outside the platform.
15. Rules of use
You may not: use the platform for unlawful purposes; create fake or duplicate accounts; impersonate others; send spam or unrequested advertising; try to access data or accounts that are not yours; disrupt or overload the platform; copy (“scrape”) content or data automatically; or circumvent the platform to avoid fees after having met through it.
16. Content moderation: how we act
- Automated: contact details (phone numbers and e-mail addresses) are removed automatically from texts and messages before they are stored. File uploads are checked for their real file type. No other automated decisions are taken about you.
- Human review: our team reviews applications and portfolios, and every report we receive.
- Measures: depending on the seriousness we may ask you to change content, remove or hide content, refuse or withdraw approval, suspend an account, or terminate it. We act in a careful, objective and proportionate way and take the rights and interests of all parties into account.
- Reasons: when we restrict your content or account we tell you which measure we took, on which facts and which rule it is based, and how you can object.
- Reporting: anyone can report content they believe is illegal or breaches these terms through the reporting form. We confirm receipt and inform the reporter of our decision.
17. Complaints and objections
You can object to any of our decisions — for example a refused application, removed content or a suspended account — within 6 months through the complaint form. Where possible, someone who was not involved in the original decision reviews your complaint. Complaints are free of charge, handled without undue delay, and we explain the outcome. You may also turn to a certified out-of-court dispute settlement body or to the courts.
18. How results are ordered
Search results and act lists show only acts that perform on the chosen river, filtered by what you choose (place, date, category, genre, price). They are ordered by name, or by lowest price if you choose so. We do not use paid placement, profiling or personalised ranking. See the transparency page.
19. Communication through the Platform and the cruise manager on board
All contact about a booking goes through the platform. Phone numbers and e-mail addresses in messages and texts are hidden automatically.
Cruise manager on board. A cruise company may enter the name, function and e-mail address of the cruise manager or cruise director on duty during a cruise. The cruise manager then receives a personal link to an on-board page on the platform, without an account: the confirmed shows of that cruise, the set lists, a conversation with each entertainer, quick status messages and check-in. The link works from 7 days before the cruise until 2 days after it; whoever has the link can use the page, so the cruise company and the cruise manager keep it to themselves. Entertainers see only the name and function, never the e-mail address; no phone numbers are exchanged. Changes to a booking itself (date, fee, cancellation) are valid only when made on the platform by the cruise company. The cruise company makes sure that it may enter these details and informs the person concerned; the details are removed 30 days after the cruise.
20. The assistant uses artificial intelligence
The platform offers cruise companies an assistant (the “Ask” button) that answers questions about the platform. The assistant uses artificial intelligence and automated search in our handbook. Its answers are generated automatically and may contain mistakes or be incomplete. They are general information only: they are not advice, not a decision by CTN and not binding on CTN or on any user. What applies is always what these terms, the booking, cancellation and payment conditions, your agreements and the booking pages themselves state, including the amounts the platform shows before you confirm an action. Check important matters there, or ask us through a message. We are not liable for damage resulting from reliance on an answer of the assistant, except in the case of intent or gross negligence.