Terms of use

This English version is provided for convenience. In case of any discrepancy, the German version (Nutzungsbedingungen) prevails.

These terms of use govern how you may use the Kartenscan app and the websites www.kartenscan.com and www.kartenscan.de. We have kept them as simple as possible. How we handle your data is explained in the privacy policy.

1. Who we are

Kartenscan is a service of MARCODES GmbH, Lena-Christ-Str. 2, 82031 Grünwald, Germany (more details in the legal notice). In these terms it is called "we". You can reach us at contact@kartenscan.com.

2. What Kartenscan is

With Kartenscan you identify trading cards with your camera, see market prices and offers, manage your collection, wishlist and watchlist, and trade with other collectors in the Kartenbörse (card exchange). Using it is free. We may offer additional paid features later. Separate terms will apply to them, which you will see and accept before buying. Nothing becomes paid without your explicit order.

Kartenscan is in a beta phase. Features may change, be removed or be added.

3. Use without an account, accounts and age

  • Without an account: You can use Kartenscan without signing in. The app creates an anonymous device account for this.
  • Account with sign-in: optional, by email or Google account. Your information must be correct, and you may only create one account for yourself. Keep your access secret and tell us if someone else uses it.
  • Age: An account with sign-in is available from 13. From 13 to 15 you need the consent of a parent, which we obtain by email. The Kartenbörse is only for private individuals aged 18 or over.
  • Private, not commercial: Kartenscan is meant for collectors. Dealers and other commercial sellers may not use the Kartenbörse.

4. What is not allowed

Please use Kartenscan fairly. In particular, the following is not allowed:

  • illegal, insulting, harassing, discriminatory, pornographic or violence-glorifying content,
  • fraud, deception and spam, for example fake listings, false sale reports or links to third-party payment pages,
  • offering or describing counterfeits, proxies or reprints as genuine cards,
  • infringing the rights of others, for example by using other people's photos without permission or photos in which people can be recognised,
  • reading out Kartenscan automatically (scraping, bots), using our interfaces outside the app, circumventing security measures or disrupting operation,
  • creating several accounts to get around blocks or limits.

5. Your content

Your content is everything you upload or enter in Kartenscan: scans, photos, listings, chat messages, ratings and reported sales. It remains yours. You are responsible for being allowed to use it and for it not violating the law or these terms.

So that we can operate Kartenscan, you grant us a simple, free right to store, process, technically adapt (for example resize images or remove metadata) and display your content as far as the respective feature requires. Specifically:

  • Scans are used only to identify the card and are not stored afterwards.
  • Listings and photos in the Kartenbörse are shown to other users as long as the listing exists.
  • Chat messages are seen only by the person you are talking to. We check them automatically for typical fraud patterns and read them if they are reported to us.
  • Reported sales are added to our price statistics as anonymous data points after a review and remain there even after your account is deleted.

This right ends when you delete the content or your account, except for anonymous price data and cases in which we have to keep content for legal reasons.

6. Kartenbörse

  • We only put you in touch. If you sell, swap or give away a card, the contract is concluded only between you and the other user. We are not a party to it, do not handle payments, do not ship anything and offer no buyer protection. We do not check whether a card is genuine or matches the listing.
  • Honest listings: Only offer cards that belong to you and that you really want to part with. Describe condition, language and special features accurately and show photos of the actual card offered.
  • Trade safely: Pay with buyer protection where possible and not via "friends and family". Do not open payment links from strangers. Ship insured or with tracking. Meet in a public place for a handover. Never pass on login details or codes. Our notices in the chat help, but do not replace your own caution.
  • Ratings must be based on a real swap or purchase and be factual.

7. Reporting, moderation and blocking

You can report content that violates the law or these terms in the app, even without an account, or by email to contact@kartenscan.com. Please state which content it is and why it is illegal or not allowed. We review every report in a timely, diligent and objective manner and tell you the result (Art. 16 Digital Services Act).

If content violates the law or these terms, we may hide or remove it, restrict features and block accounts temporarily or permanently. After several reports, content may be hidden automatically for the time being, the final decision is made by a person. We take the circumstances into account, such as how serious and how frequent the violations were. Anyone who frequently posts manifestly illegal content or submits manifestly unfounded reports may be blocked after a warning. Those affected are informed about a restriction and its reason (Art. 17 Digital Services Act) and can object by email to contact@kartenscan.com. We will then review the decision again.

Single point of contact for authorities and users under Art. 11 and 12 Digital Services Act: contact@kartenscan.com, in German or English.

8. Prices, offers and advertising

Market prices, price histories and offers in Kartenscan are information based on past sales and third-party offers, for example from Cardmarket, our partners and sales reported by users. They may be incomplete, delayed or wrong. They are provided without warranty and are not a valuation, an offer or investment advice. In the end, what a card is worth depends on buyer and seller.

Some links to offers from dealers and marketplaces are affiliate links and are labelled as "Ad". If you buy there, your contract is with that provider, not with us. More in the affiliate disclosure.

9. Card identification

Identification is an automatic estimate. It can be wrong, for example because of lighting, reflections, rare variants or counterfeits. It is not a check of authenticity and not a grading of condition. Check the result before relying on it, for example when buying or selling.

10. Availability

We do our best to keep Kartenscan running reliably, but cannot guarantee this at all times. Maintenance, faults or outages of partners may limit its use. We may change or discontinue features or end Kartenscan altogether. If we discontinue it, we will inform you in advance and you can download your data in the app.

11. Liability

We are liable without limitation for intent and gross negligence, for injury to life, body or health, under the German Product Liability Act and where we have given a guarantee.

In case of slight negligence, we are only liable if we breach an essential obligation, that is an obligation whose fulfilment makes the use of Kartenscan possible in the first place and on which you may regularly rely. In that case, liability is limited to the damage typically foreseeable for such services. Otherwise we are not liable for slight negligence.

For contracts between users in the Kartenbörse, for third-party offers and for the accuracy of prices and identification results, we are liable only under these rules. We are only responsible for content of other users once we know of a violation of the law and do not act. Please back up important data, for example with the data export in the app.

12. Termination and deletion

You can stop using Kartenscan at any time and delete your account at any time, in the app or on the delete data page. This also ends the contract of use. What is deleted is described on that page.

We can terminate the contract with four weeks' notice. In case of serious or repeated violations of these terms, we can also block or terminate your account immediately (section 7).

13. Changes to these terms

If Kartenscan or the law changes, we will update these terms. We announce changes at least four weeks in advance in the app or by email. If you do not agree, you can delete your account before then. Changes affecting essential rights and obligations, such as prices, only apply if you explicitly agree. The current version is always available at www.kartenscan.com/terms/.

14. Governing law and place of jurisdiction

German law applies, excluding the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods. If you are a consumer habitually resident in another EU country, you keep the protection of the mandatory provisions of that country. If you are a merchant, a legal entity under public law or a special fund under public law, the place of jurisdiction is the registered office of MARCODES GmbH.

15. Consumer dispute resolution

We are neither willing nor obliged to participate in dispute resolution proceedings before a consumer arbitration board (§ 36 German Consumer Dispute Resolution Act, VSBG). If there is a problem, just write to us at contact@kartenscan.com.

16. Trademarks

Pokémon and the names of other trading card games are trademarks of their respective owners. Kartenscan is an independent service of MARCODES GmbH and is not affiliated with these companies. We use card images and names only to describe cards. The name Kartenscan, the logo and the design of the app belong to us.

17. Language and other provisions

These terms are available in German and as an English translation. The German version (www.kartenscan.com/de/nutzungsbedingungen/) prevails. If a provision is invalid, the remaining provisions stay valid, and the statutory provision takes the place of the invalid one.