API Terms of Use

1. Scope

These API Terms of Use (“API Terms”) govern any use of the LocalSelections public v1 API (the “API”), documented at /api/v1/openapi.json, including access via an MCP server or any other integration built on it. They apply to anyone who creates or uses a LocalSelections API key, in addition to (not instead of) our general Terms of Service, which still govern your account and use of the Service generally. If the two conflict on a point specific to API use, these API Terms control.

2. Free vs. commercial use

The API is free to use, under the rate limits described below, for non-commercial and light commercial-adjacent use that follows the attribution requirement in §3 — the same split TMDB itself uses for its own API, which we sit on top of. “Commercial use” means the primary purpose of your use is to generate revenue for you or your organization (e.g. a paid product or service built on our data, or reselling access to it) — mirroring TMDB’s own definition, since our own right to use their data is bound by the same standard we’re now applying outward. Commercial use requires contacting us directly at support@localselections.com for a paid license before your key is upgraded out of the free tier — we don’t grant commercial status automatically or self-service, and a key stays on free-tier limits (including the daily ceiling in §4) until we do.

Places, events, and movie/TV search/recommendation endpoints specifically (search_places/POST /places, search_events/POST /events, get_movie_tv_recommendations/POST /movies) return results drawn directly from our own underlying database, not a narrowed game-mechanic pick — so on top of the account-wide per-minute rate limit, a free-tier key is separately capped at a real number of calls per day to each of these endpoints specifically (see GET /introspect for your key’s current limits and usage, and each endpoint’s own documentation in /api/v1/openapi.json for the exact number). We monitor for usage patterns consistent with systematically reconstructing our database (e.g. sustained high-volume calls to these endpoints) independent of whether a key stays under its rate limit, and may reach out or restrict a key that shows this pattern.

3. Attribution

Any product, page, or feature that displays data obtained from the API to end users must clearly credit LocalSelections as the source: the name “LocalSelections” (or our logo, where practical) displayed near the data, plus a working link back to localselections.com. This mirrors the attribution terms our own third-party data providers (TMDB, TVmaze, and others — see Terms of Service §5) require of us, now facing outward to anyone building on top of our API.

4. No caching, storing, redistributing, or reselling

You may use API responses only for a single, real-time request-response cycle — render the result to the end user who made the request, and discard it. You may not: cache, store, or otherwise retain API responses beyond what’s reasonably necessary to serve that one request (no building your own persistent copy of our data, in whole or in part); redistribute, republish, or bulk-export data obtained from the API for use outside your own application; or resell, sublicense, or otherwise provide API access or its underlying data to a third party as a standalone product or data feed. The API is for building applications that call it live, not for harvesting a dataset. This is the same restriction our own upstream data providers (TMDB, Overture, Geoapify, and others) place on our use of their data — we’re applying that same standard outward, now that our own aggregated, curated data is what’s being exposed.

5. Acceptable use

You agree not to: exceed or attempt to circumvent your key’s rate limits or scopes; share your API key with anyone else or use it for a purpose other than your own application; use the API to build a product that competes directly with LocalSelections by republishing our recommendation data as a substitute for using LocalSelections; or use the API in any way that violates applicable law or the acceptable-use terms in our general Terms of Service.

6. Enforcement & revocation

We may revoke any API key, without notice, for a violation of these API Terms. A revoked key stops authenticating immediately — every request against it is refused from that point forward. You can revoke your own keys at any time from Account → API keys; we may do the same on our end if we determine, in our reasonable judgment, that a key is being used in violation of these API Terms. Revocation doesn’t affect your underlying LocalSelections account unless the violation is severe enough to also violate our general Terms of Service.

7. No warranty on API data

Data returned by the API — including restaurant, event, and movie/TV information — comes from third-party providers and this app’s own aggregated usage data, and is provided “as is,” without warranty of accuracy, completeness, or availability. See Terms of Service §8–9 for the disclaimers and limitation of liability that also apply to API use.

8. Changes

We may update these API Terms from time to time; we’ll update the “Last updated” date above when we do. Continued use of the API after a change means you accept the updated API Terms.

9. Contact

Questions about these API Terms, or to report a violation? Email support@localselections.com.