Gozo Like A Local
← Back to Local Partners

Partner Terms

Version 1.0 · Effective 2026-05-12

This is the agreement between Gozo Like A Local(operated by Mediavilla Ltd) and a business that subscribes to the Local Partner program. It exists in plain language because the people we serve don't have time for legalese — and because the wall it describes is the moat we both live behind.

1. What you're buying

A monthly or annual subscription that gets you:

  • A place card on gozolikealocal.com kept accurate by our agentic content pipeline (hours, phone, website checked every two weeks; corrections submitted via your direct editorial channel actioned within seven days)
  • Rotation in the WhatsNew in Gozo monthly newsletter (Partners cycle through Spotlight slots; we don't promise a specific cadence beyond "regularly")
  • A subtle "Local Partner" mark on your place card
  • A direct editorial channel (WhatsApp / email) for submitting updates, new photos, news items
  • First-option access to paid newsletter Spotlight slots at the Partner rate

2. What you're not buying

The single most important paragraph in this document.

You are not buying editorial control.Being a Partner does not mean we will write whatever you want about your business. It does not give you veto power over what we publish. It does not exempt your place card from our editorial standards or honest observations. The editorial wall is what makes the publication's voice trustworthy at scale, and the wall holds regardless of payment status.

What this means concretely:

  • We write what we honestly think, in our voice
  • If we observe something worth noting in the editorial copy, we note it
  • You may commission a longer feature (story or interview); we keep the angle. If after writing it we don't feel the piece works, we won't publish it, and we'll talk to you about why
  • We do not retract or sanitise honest editorial because a Partner objects
  • We will refuse adspace, sponsorship, or commissioned content from anyone — Partner or not — whose business doesn't meet our editorial standards

The wall is not adversarial. It is what protects your investment. If we sold sanitised editorial to anyone, the entire publication would be worthless within a year — and that includes everything you're paying us to be part of.

3. Pricing and payment

  • Monthly: €20, invoiced monthly
  • Annual: €200, invoiced annually (saves €40)

Payments are by bank transfer, Revolut, or cash. We don't take cards directly during v1 of this program. Invoices come from hello@gozo-like-a-local.com and reference your business name.

VAT is included where applicable.

4. Cancellation, expiry, refunds

  • You can cancel any time by emailing hello@gozo-like-a-local.com. We'll confirm within 3 business days.
  • End-of-month expiry: the subscription continues until the end of the calendar month in which you cancel. Your place card retains Partner status, and your newsletter rotation slot remains active, through that month.
  • Annual subscribers who cancel mid-year retain Partner status through the end of the current calendar month, then revert to non-Partner status. The unused portion is not refunded.
  • No refunds for partial months under any plan.
  • Editorial-veto refund: in the unusual case that we accept your application, you pay, and we then refuse to publish something material that was the stated reason for your subscription (an explicit feature commitment we made and broke), we will refund the most recent month at our discretion. This is rare. The general rule is: no refunds.

5. Editorial fit and refusal

We reserve the right to refuse Partner applications without explanation. We may refuse for any of the following reasons (non-exhaustive):

  • The business doesn't fit the publication's editorial scope (e.g., chains, businesses outside Gozo, businesses without a place we could visit)
  • We can't verify that the business is real or legitimately operating
  • The voice register or content we'd need to produce doesn't fit our editorial standards
  • We've previously had a poor experience with the business or its principals
  • We don't, on a felt-sense level, trust the relationship

If we refuse your application, there is no payment owed and no obligation either way.

6. Pausing or terminating from our side

We may pause or terminate a Partner subscription, with prorated handling, in the following cases:

  • The business closes or stops operating
  • The contact information is no longer valid and cannot be re-established within 30 days
  • We discover the editorial we maintain about the business cannot honestly continue (e.g., the food quality has materially declined and we wouldn't recommend the place to a friend)
  • The Partner attempts to exert pressure on editorial decisions in a way that compromises the wall

Termination from our side is rare. It has happened zero times as of this writing.

7. Data and privacy

  • We store: business name, contact email, contact phone, your application content (the "why join" paragraph), and your place card content
  • Application content is delivered to the editor via Telegram and may be archived to private editorial documents
  • Place card content is public (it's the listing on the website)
  • Payment information (bank details, Revolut handles) is held in the email thread or in our internal records, not in any database we control externally
  • We do not sell or share Partner data with third parties
  • We comply with GDPR; you may request deletion of your application content, contact details, and Partner record at any time by emailing hello@gozo-like-a-local.com.

8. Liability

We provide visibility and editorial maintenance. We do not guarantee:

  • A specific number of customers or revenue increase
  • Inclusion in any particular issue of the newsletter
  • A specific number of newsletter Spotlight slots
  • That our editorial will produce a positive outcome for your business

The total liability of Mediavilla Ltd under this agreement, in any circumstance, is capped at the amount you have paid in the most recent 12 months.

9. Changes to these terms

We may update these terms with at least 30 days notice via email to the address on file. If you don't agree with the changes, you can cancel; the standard end-of-month expiry applies.

10. Governing law

Maltese law. Disputes that we can't resolve through conversation go to a court in Malta.

Plain-language summary (informational, not legally binding)

If you'd rather hold this in your head than in your inbox:

  • €20/month or €200/year for an agent-maintained listing + newsletter rotation + a direct line
  • We don't sanitise our writing about you in exchange for your money
  • Cancel any time; your subscription runs through the end of the calendar month
  • No refunds
  • We can refuse applications; we rarely do, but we can
  • The wall is the whole point

If any of this doesn't sit right, write to hello@gozo-like-a-local.com before applying. We'd rather have the conversation now.