Bet You Didn’t Read These: Substack’s Terms of Service
THE FINE PRINT YOU AGREE TO WHEN SIGNING UP FOR SUBSTACK
It’s the same time of year that it was when, fifteen (gulp) years ago, I chopped my very long curls into a short pixie cut.
And here I am again, post-chop, L-O-V-I-N-G the freedom of having short hair again.
As I was sitting here twirling my fingers through my new ‘do, I started thinking about Substack because, well, everyone’s starting a Substack these days. If you’re dreaming of starting a paid newsletter, a la Substack, it might feel like the pinnacle of creative freedom.
But even freedom comes with fine print, my friend.
I’m about to break down the fine print you didn’t read (but totally mean to read) in Substack’s Legal Terms.
And wouldn't you know, I found out that Substack will cancel you if you’re using it as part of your sales funnel. (Yes, that's in their legal terms.)
I’m Maria Spear Ollis, aka The Lunar Lawyer, and I’m going to shine some light on ownership, disclaimers, content risks, platform fees—aka what's hiding in Substack’s legal terms.
Surprising Thing 1: Substack can remove your content…for any reason.
Pretty much every social media platform can remove users or content that’s unlawful, threatening, infringing, or obscene. Substack takes it a li’l further.
And I quote:
We reserve the right to remove any content from Substack at any time, for any reason (including, but not limited to, if someone alleges you contributed that content in violation of these Terms), in our sole discretion, and without notice.
Oh…kay. Any content, in Substack’s discretion. Without notice.
Who makes this call? Is this person going to make that call based on concrete, objective things, or based on feels and bad vibes?
Answer: We don’t know. But given some of Substack’s other stances, they’re probably removing content for violations of Substack’s Content Guidelines.
🔥 Hot Tip: If you're sharing edgy spiritual content, controversial health claims, or wellness/medical-adjacent outcomes or guarantees, you’ll want very clear disclaimers and boundaries to avoid giving Substack a reason to remove your content.
Surprising Thing 2: Substack is very pro-free speech and aware of sneaky games.
In its legal terms, Substack has a Repeat Infringer Policy.
At first glance, you might think “Why are we giving repeat copyright infringers a chance?”
But it looks like Substack really pays attention to how its platform is being used.
And I quote:
Copyright claims are complex, and can often be used to silence or censor the kind of reporting and commentary we hope to support. Accordingly, we are committed to handling repeat infringers on a case-by-case basis as long as our total caseload allows. Our aim is to take remedial action seriously, not mechanically.
In fact, part of its inquiry when Substack gets a copyright complaint is “is there free-speech significance?”
Just know, though, that if you are caught plagiarizing, Substack can de-monetize you like that. 💥
Surprising Thing 3: You still own your content!
Substack’s Terms of Use and Publisher Agreement are very clear on this. Here’s a snippet:
First and foremost, you own what you create. Any original content you post, upload, share, store, or otherwise provide to Substack remains yours and is protected by copyright and any other applicable intellectual property laws.
This is great news!
…And, if I’m honest, not that surprising.
Imagine if you lost rights to your content when signing up for a newsletter platform. Authors would freak. (And then they would sign up somewhere else.)
Surprising Thing 4: Substack can kick you out you if you’re selling
If you’re thinking of using Substack to send traffic to your sales page, think again.
This one is from Substack’s Content Guidelines:
Substack is intended for high quality editorial content, not conventional email marketing. We don’t permit publications whose primary purpose is to advertise external products or services, drive traffic to third party sites, distribute offers and promotions, enhance search engine optimization, or similar activities. Brands and commercial organizations publishing on Substack may be subject to additional verification.
Translation: Using Substack to drive traffic elsewhere is not the vibe. And they’ll boot you for it.
Conclusion
All in all, I don’t see anything incredibly objectionable in Substack’s legal terms. I’m impressed that they’re aware of copyright infringement claims being used to silence voices.
Loved this deep dive? Tap into my review of Circle.so’s Membership Legal Terms next!