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Terms of Use

Version 1.0 · Updated on October 18, 2026

These terms of use (the "Terms") govern your use of Piou: the iPhone and Android apps, the web app app.piou.chat and the website piou.chat (together, the "Service"). By creating an account, you accept these Terms. Our Privacy Policy explains how we process your personal data.

1. Who we are

The Service is published by ALTRIX FZCO, a Free Zone Company registered with the International Free Zone Authority (IFZA) under license No. 66415, with its registered office at Building A1, Dubai Digital Park, Dubai Silicon Oasis, Dubai, United Arab Emirates ("ALTRIX FZCO", "we", "us").

For any question: support@piou.chat.

2. The Service

Piou is a messaging service: one-to-one and group chats, text and voice messages, photos, videos, documents, reactions, replies, read receipts, pinned messages, disappearing messages, location sharing, polls, stickers, status updates, audio and video calls, and notifications.

Each message is kept in its original language. With Piou Premium, it is translated automatically on the recipient's device, into that recipient's language, by the translation engine of the device or browser. The original always remains available.

Limits of machine translation. A machine translation may be inaccurate or incomplete, or may misrender tone, humor, idioms, proper names, numbers or levels of politeness. It is provided to help you understand. Do not rely on it alone for an important decision, especially a medical, legal, financial or safety decision: check the original message and, if needed, consult a professional or an interpreter. In an emergency, call your local emergency services.

Piou calls take place between Piou users, over the internet. The Service cannot call regular phone numbers and does not replace a telephone service or access to emergency services.

Some features depend on your device, its operating system, your browser and the languages available on your device (for example, the speech recognition used for transcribed voice messages, subtitles and face-to-face mode).

3. Minimum age

You must be at least 13 years old to use Piou. If you live in the European Union or the European Economic Area, you must be 16, or, between 13 and 16, have the consent of the holder of parental responsibility. If the law of your country sets a higher age, or requires the consent of a parent or guardian at your age, that rule applies.

If you accept these Terms on behalf of a minor in your care, you accept them on the minor's behalf and remain responsible for the minor's use of the Service. We delete accounts that we learn do not comply with these age rules.

4. Your account

You create your account with Apple, with Google, or with an email address and a password (a 6-digit code sent by email confirms your address and is used to reset your password).

You agree to provide accurate information, to keep your credentials confidential, and to notify us without delay at support@piou.chat if you believe someone else is using your account. You are responsible for activity on your account, unless it results from a failure on our part.

You can delete your account at any time in the app (Settings → Delete my account). Deleting your account does not automatically cancel a subscription bought on the App Store or Google Play: also cancel it in your Apple or Google account settings (see section 10).

5. Your phone number

A mobile phone number is required. It is verified only once, at sign-up. It lets your contacts find you on Piou; it is not used to sign in.

You must use a number that belongs to you or that you are authorized to use. Depending on your country and device, verification happens in this order, moving on to the next method if the previous one fails: by sending a pre-filled text message from your phone to a Piou number, by a missed call whose last digits form the code, by a code received on Telegram or WhatsApp, or by a text message you receive. Sending a text message from your phone may be charged by your carrier under your plan.

To prevent fraud and control our costs, we may limit the number of attempts, refuse premium-rate, virtual or malformed numbers, check the integrity of your device or browser, and temporarily suspend verification in some countries.

If you allow Piou to access your address book, your contacts' numbers are turned into fingerprints (hashed) on your device before anything is sent, so that we can show you which of them already use Piou. This feature is optional.

6. Rules of use

You use Piou lawfully and with respect for others. In particular, you must not use the Service to:

  • share illegal content, or content that exploits or endangers minors in any form;
  • harass, threaten, intimidate, insult or defame anyone, or incite hatred or violence;
  • promote or support terrorism or violent extremism;
  • share intimate images of a person without their consent, or publish other people's personal data to harm them;
  • defraud, phish, impersonate a person or an organization, or misrepresent your identity in order to cause harm;
  • send unsolicited bulk messages, unwanted advertising or chain messages;
  • sell or offer illegal goods or services, or facilitate human trafficking or exploitation, including forced labor;
  • infringe the rights of others, including copyright, trademarks and privacy;
  • spread malware, attempt to access accounts or our systems without authorization, disrupt the Service, or circumvent its limits and security measures, including phone number verification;
  • use bots, scripts or automated means to create accounts, send messages or collect data;
  • decompile or disassemble the apps, except to the extent expressly permitted by law.

Only contact people who want to hear from you. You are responsible for the content you send.

7. Reporting, blocking and moderation

Block. You can block a contact (Block): they can no longer send you messages in a one-to-one chat.

Report in the app. You can report a message, a contact or a group (Report) and give a reason (spam, abuse, illegal content, other).

Report illegal content by email. Anyone, even without an account, can report content they consider illegal by writing to support@piou.chat, with: an explanation of why the content is illegal, information that allows us to locate it (for example a screenshot, the date, the name of the group or account), their name and email address (except for certain serious offenses, such as child sexual abuse, which may be reported anonymously), and a statement confirming that the report is made in good faith and that the information is accurate and complete.

What we do. We do not read your conversations as a general practice. We review content when it is reported to us, when the law requires us to, or when it is necessary to protect the safety of a person or of the Service. After review, we may remove the content, restrict its visibility, warn, suspend or delete the account concerned and, where the law provides, inform the competent authorities. We handle reports diligently and objectively, and we tell the person who reported the content what action we took. When we take action against your account or your content, we tell you why, unless the law prohibits it or doing so would endanger someone's safety. You may challenge our decision within six months by writing to support@piou.chat; a member of our team will then review the decision.

8. Your content

You keep all your rights to the content you send (messages, photos, videos, voice messages, documents, status updates…). You grant us, worldwide and only for as long as necessary, the non-exclusive, royalty-free right to store it, technically reproduce it, compress it and transmit it to the recipients you choose, solely to operate the Service.

We do not use your content for advertising and we do not sell it. You warrant that you hold the rights needed for the content you share.

Disappearing messages and status updates are deleted when they expire. Keep in mind that your recipients can always copy, save or forward what you send them.

9. Piou Premium

What is included. Messaging is free, with no time limit. Piou Premium adds: automatic translation of messages, polls and status text; transcribed and translated voice messages; translated subtitles during calls; and face-to-face mode. Translation is personal: it applies to what the subscriber reads.

Price. The price, currency and billing period (monthly or annual) are shown before you subscribe, including taxes where the law requires. They are adapted to your country; for example, in the euro area: €4.90 per month or €39 per year.

7-day free trial. When offered, Piou Premium starts with a 7-day free trial. A payment method is required to start the trial, including for a gifted subscription. Nothing is charged during the trial. If you do not cancel before the end of the 7 days, the subscription starts automatically and the first payment is charged at the displayed price. The trial is subject to the offer terms shown when you subscribe (the app stores, for example, limit it to once per account). Where the law of your country or state requires it, we send you a reminder before the end of the trial or before a renewal.

Automatic renewal. The subscription renews automatically for the same period (one month or one year), at the price then in effect, until you cancel. If the price changes, you are informed in advance, in accordance with the rules of the purchase platform and applicable law; you can then cancel before the new price applies.

One subscription, all your platforms. A subscription taken on one platform (App Store, Google Play or the website) unlocks Piou Premium on every device signed in to your account. Without an active subscription, you return to the free version: messaging remains complete and messages are shown in their original language.

Countries. Piou Premium is not offered in some countries, in particular where payment methods are not available or because of international sanctions.

10. Purchases through the App Store or Google Play

When you buy Piou Premium in the iPhone or Android app, payment, billing, renewal and cancellation are handled by Apple or Google under their own terms (Apple Media Services Terms and Conditions, Google Play Terms of Service), which apply in addition to these Terms.

You cancel in your Apple or Google account settings (subscription management). Refund requests are made to Apple (reportaproblem.apple.com) or to Google under their rules; for Google Play, you can also write to us. Apple and Google may also offer you their own win-back offers, under their rules.

11. Purchases on the website

When you buy Piou Premium on the website or in the web app, payment is processed by our payment provider, Stripe. We never have access to your full card number. You manage your subscription, payment method and invoices from Settings → Premium or from the customer portal available from your account.

12. Cancellation and win-back offer

You can cancel your subscription at any time. Cancellation takes effect at the end of the period already paid for (or at the end of the trial if you cancel during the trial): you keep Piou Premium until that date. Unless the law provides otherwise (see section 13), periods that have started are not refunded.

When you cancel from the app or the website, we may offer you, once per subscription, a 50% discount for 3 months. You are free to decline it and confirm your cancellation immediately. If you accept it, the usual price applies again after the 3 months.

13. Right of withdrawal (consumers in the European Union)

If you are a consumer living in the European Union or the European Economic Area, you generally have 14 days from subscribing to withdraw, without giving any reason.

Piou Premium is digital content supplied immediately, from the start of the trial. When you subscribe on the website, we therefore ask for your express consent for performance to begin immediately and your acknowledgment that you thereby lose your right of withdrawal (Article 16(m) of Directive 2011/83/EU), and we confirm this consent to you by email. In any case, you can cancel free of charge during the free trial.

If you have not given this consent, you can withdraw within the 14-day period by sending us a clear statement at support@piou.chat, for example using the model form in the appendix. We will then refund the amounts paid no later than 14 days after receiving your request, using the payment method you used.

For purchases made through the App Store or Google Play, withdrawal and refunds are handled by Apple or Google, under their terms.

14. Gifting Piou Premium to someone

You can pay for Piou Premium for another person (the "beneficiary"), chosen from your contacts, by their email address or with a link. To benefit from it, the beneficiary must have, or create, a Piou account and accept the gift; they receive a notification.

You are the customer: sections 9 to 13 apply to you (trial with payment method, renewal, cancellation, withdrawal). Each beneficiary corresponds to a separate subscription, at the price of one subscription. You manage and cancel your gifted subscriptions from Settings → Premium → "Gifted subscriptions"; the beneficiary keeps Piou Premium until the end of the paid period.

Only gift Piou to someone likely to accept it, and only share a gift link with that person: anyone who has the link can use it.

15. Availability and changes to the Service

We do our best to keep the Service available and working properly, but it may be interrupted, in particular for maintenance or updates, if a provider fails, or in the event of force majeure.

The Service evolves: we may add, change or remove features. If a change significantly reduces a Piou Premium feature during a paid period, we will inform you and you may cancel; if you are a consumer, you also have the rights granted to you by law.

The languages and features available depend on the translation and speech recognition engines of your device or browser and on the languages you have downloaded.

16. Intellectual property

The Piou brand, logo, apps, Piou stickers and website content belong to ALTRIX FZCO or its licensors. We grant you a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable and revocable license to use the apps in accordance with these Terms.

The Service includes open-source components distributed under their own licenses, including the Bergamot translation engine and the Firefox Translations models (Mozilla Public License 2.0) used in the web app.

17. Apps downloaded from the App Store

If you downloaded the app from Apple's App Store:

  • these Terms are concluded between you and ALTRIX FZCO, not with Apple; ALTRIX FZCO, not Apple, is solely responsible for the app and its content;
  • the license granted to you allows you to use the app on Apple-branded products that you own or control, as permitted by the Usage Rules of the Apple Media Services Terms and Conditions;
  • ALTRIX FZCO is solely responsible for maintenance and support of the app; Apple has no obligation in this respect;
  • if the app fails to conform to any applicable warranty, you may notify Apple, and Apple may refund the purchase price of the app, if any; to the maximum extent permitted by law, Apple has no other warranty obligation with respect to the app;
  • ALTRIX FZCO, not Apple, is responsible for addressing any claims relating to the app or its use, including product liability claims, claims that the app fails to conform to any legal or regulatory requirement, and claims arising under consumer protection or privacy laws;
  • in the event of a third-party claim that the app or your use of it infringes that third party's intellectual property rights, ALTRIX FZCO, not Apple, is responsible for the investigation, defense, settlement and discharge of that claim;
  • you represent that you are not located in a country that is subject to a U.S. Government embargo or that has been designated by the U.S. Government as a "terrorist supporting" country, and that you are not listed on any U.S. Government list of prohibited or restricted parties;
  • you must comply with applicable third-party terms when using the app (for example, your agreement with your mobile carrier);
  • Apple and its subsidiaries are third-party beneficiaries of these Terms and, upon your acceptance of them, may enforce them against you;
  • for any question or claim about the app: ALTRIX FZCO, Building A1, Dubai Digital Park, Dubai Silicon Oasis, Dubai, United Arab Emirates — support@piou.chat.

18. Suspension and account closure

We may suspend or delete an account, or restrict access to certain features, in the event of a breach of these Terms, fraudulent or dangerous use, or if the law requires us to. Our measures are proportionate to the seriousness of the breach. Except in an emergency, where the law requires otherwise, or where someone's safety is at risk, we notify you and tell you why; you may challenge the decision as described in section 7.

If we close your account because of a serious breach on your part, the current subscription period is not refunded, unless the law provides otherwise. If we close your account or discontinue the Service through no fault of yours, we refund the part of the subscription corresponding to the unused period.

19. Liability

We provide the Service with care. To the extent permitted by law, we do not guarantee that the Service will be uninterrupted or error-free, or that machine translations will be accurate, and we are not responsible for content sent by other users, or for indirect damages (loss of opportunity, of data you did not back up, or of revenue).

Except in the case of gross negligence or willful misconduct on our part, our total liability to you in connection with the Service is limited to the amount you paid us during the 12 months preceding the event giving rise to the claim.

Nothing in these Terms limits our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud, or where the law does not allow it to be limited. If you are a consumer, you keep all the rights granted to you by the mandatory law of your country of residence, including, in the European Union, the legal guarantee of conformity for digital content and digital services for the entire duration of your subscription.

20. Personal data

We process your personal data in accordance with our Privacy Policy, which forms an integral part of these Terms. It explains in particular that translations happen on your device and that your messages are not end-to-end encrypted.

21. Changes to these Terms

We may change these Terms, for example to keep up with changes to the Service or the law. In the event of a significant change, we will notify you at least 30 days in advance, in the app or by email, unless the change is required by law or necessary for security. If you do not accept the new Terms, you can cancel your subscription and delete your account before they take effect.

22. Governing law and disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the United Arab Emirates as applicable in the Emirate of Dubai.

If you are a consumer, you also benefit from the mandatory provisions of the law of your country of residence, and you may bring proceedings before the courts of your place of residence. Otherwise, the courts of Dubai have jurisdiction.

Before taking any action, please write to us at support@piou.chat: we will try to find an amicable solution within 30 days.

Consumer mediation (European Union). If you are a consumer living in the European Union and your written complaint has not been resolved, you may use a consumer mediator free of charge. The mediator designated by ALTRIX FZCO and its contact details will be indicated in this section. You may also contact the European Consumer Centre in your country to find out about your rights.

23. Language

These Terms are available in several languages. In the event of any discrepancy between versions, the French version prevails, unless the law of your country requires another version to be authoritative.

24. Contact

ALTRIX FZCO — Building A1, Dubai Digital Park, Dubai Silicon Oasis, Dubai, United Arab Emirates — support@piou.chat

Appendix — Model withdrawal form

(Complete and return this form only if you wish to withdraw from the contract.)

To ALTRIX FZCO, Building A1, Dubai Digital Park, Dubai Silicon Oasis, Dubai, United Arab Emirates — support@piou.chat:

I hereby give notice that I withdraw from my contract for the supply of the following digital content: Piou Premium subscription (monthly or annual).

Subscribed on: …

Name: …

Email address of the Piou account: …

Date: …