Terms of Service

These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the OpenAbstracts website, journal search API, MCP server and related services (together, the "Service"), operated by OpenAbstracts ("we", "us"). By creating an account, generating an API key, connecting an application, or otherwise using the Service, you agree to these Terms and to our Privacy Policy.

If you use the Service on behalf of an organisation, you confirm you have authority to bind it. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.

OpenAbstracts provides programmatic search over an index of scholarly articles from registered journals. Results contain bibliographic metadata (such as title, authors, year, journal, DOI, quartile and abstract), highlighted snippets for full-text searches, and links to the publisher page or original PDF where available.

The Service is available through a REST API, through our MCP server (for AI clients such as Claude or Cursor), through marketplaces such as RapidAPI, and through our dashboard and API playground. The index is compiled from third-party sources and may be incomplete, out of date or contain errors. We may add, change or remove features, endpoints and journals at any time.

You must provide accurate registration information and keep your password and API keys confidential. You are responsible for all activity under your account and keys, including calls made by applications, AI clients or team members you authorise. Tell us immediately at support@openabstracts.com if you suspect unauthorised use.

API keys are shown once at creation and stored only in hashed form. When you authorise an application through the "Connect" (OAuth) flow you choose which key it may use; that application can then make requests, and incur charges, against that key until you revoke the key. You must be old enough to form a binding contract in your country, and in any case at least 16 years old.

You agree not to:

• use the Service unlawfully, or to infringe anyone's rights;
• attempt to bypass authentication, billing, quotas or rate limits, or share keys in a way that defeats them;
• probe, scan or test the vulnerability of the Service, or interfere with its operation or other users' access;
• bulk-download or systematically copy the index or the papers it links to, or use the Service to build a competing index or database;
• resell or sublicense raw access to the Service except through an arrangement we have agreed in writing or an official marketplace listing;
• send traffic that is abusive, deceptive or intended to degrade performance.

We may throttle, suspend or revoke access to protect the Service, other users or third parties.

Every account includes 100 free searches per calendar month (the allowance resets monthly and does not roll over). Beyond that, searches are billed at US$1.50 per 1,000 requests (US$0.0015 per request) against your prepaid credit balance. A search that returns no results is not billed. We may change pricing or the free allowance on reasonable notice; changes do not affect requests already made.

Credit is bought in advance by top-up (currently US$10 to US$1,000 per top-up), processed by Stripe. Credit does not expire while your account remains open. Where applicable, Malaysian service tax is added to top-ups at the rate shown at checkout. If your balance is insufficient, requests beyond the free allowance are declined until you top up.

Top-ups and unused credit are generally non-refundable, except where required by law or where we have billed you in error — contact support@openabstracts.com within 30 days and we will make it right. If you access the Service through a marketplace such as RapidAPI, that marketplace's plans, prices and payment terms apply to that access instead.

Scholarly articles, abstracts and metadata belong to their respective authors and publishers. OpenAbstracts does not own them and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by any publisher or journal. Publisher names and logos are used only to indicate sources and belong to their owners.

You receive a non-exclusive, non-transferable right to use the Service and the results it returns for your own applications and research, subject to these Terms and to the licence terms of the underlying content — following a link to a PDF or publisher page is subject to that publisher's terms. You are responsible for complying with copyright and licence terms when you store, display or redistribute content. The OpenAbstracts name, site design and software remain ours.

If you are a rights holder and believe a result infringes your rights or should be removed, email support@openabstracts.com with the article identifier (DOI or URL) and your claim; we will review it promptly and remove or correct entries where appropriate.

If you connect the Service to an AI assistant or another application, that application acts on your behalf and its provider's own terms and privacy practices apply to how it handles the results it receives. We are not responsible for the output an AI assistant generates from our results. Always verify citations and facts against the original source before relying on them.

We aim to keep the Service running but do not guarantee uninterrupted or error-free operation, and we offer no service-level agreement unless we agree one with you in writing. We may perform maintenance, change or discontinue features, and update these Terms. If we make a material change we will post the new version here and update the date above; continuing to use the Service after the change means you accept it.

You may stop using the Service and close your account at any time by contacting support@openabstracts.com. We may suspend or terminate access immediately if you breach these Terms, create risk or legal exposure for us or others, or where required by law. On termination your right to use the Service ends; sections that by their nature should survive (including fees owed, intellectual property, disclaimers, liability and governing law) continue to apply.

The Service and all results are provided "as is" and "as available" without warranties of any kind, express or implied, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, accuracy, completeness and non-infringement. We do not warrant that metadata, abstracts, quartiles or links are correct or current, or that the Service will meet your requirements.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, OpenAbstracts will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages, or for loss of profits, revenue, data or goodwill, arising from your use of the Service. Our total liability for any claim relating to the Service is limited to the greater of the amount you paid us in the 12 months before the claim arose and US$100. Nothing in these Terms excludes liability that cannot be excluded by law.

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless OpenAbstracts from claims, losses and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising from your breach of these Terms, your misuse of the Service, or your infringement of any third party's rights.

These Terms are governed by the laws of Malaysia, and the courts of Malaysia have exclusive jurisdiction over disputes, without prejudice to any mandatory consumer rights you have in your country of residence. Please contact us first at support@openabstracts.com so we can try to resolve any issue informally.

Questions about these Terms: contact@openabstracts.com. Support and billing: support@openabstracts.com. Privacy requests: privacy@openabstracts.com.