Monetization and Earnings Policy

1. Program overview

GATHWAY INC. (“GATHWAY”, “we”, “us”), a Canadian corporation, operates The Insight Docket (“Platform”) at theinsightdocket.com. Contact: legal@gathway.app; privacy@gathway.app for privacy requests. Registered office: 230-7737 Lundy’s Lane, Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada.

Only a contributor with a current eligible paid membership, completed verification, an approved publication and ongoing policy compliance may participate in the earnings program. Participants must have the legal capacity to enter into the Contributor Publishing Agreement and the subscription agreement and must meet applicable verification, tax and payment requirements. Monthly membership is CAD $10; annual membership is CAD $120 paid upfront, subject to applicable taxes and mandatory consumer rights. These fees do not purchase or guarantee any earnings.

2. Publication-level eligibility threshold

Each article, novel or other designated eligible publication must individually reach at least 500,000 qualified unique readers. Counts do not aggregate across works, contributors, chapters or repeat visits. For serialized novels, eligible unique readership must be calculated at the work level, without double-counting readers who visit multiple chapters. A qualified unique reader is a deduplicated, genuine reader meeting the Platform’s clearly published engagement criteria; bots, purchased impressions, invalid or manipulated traffic are excluded.

Qualified-Reader Engagement Criteria

A reader is counted once for a publication, cumulatively from its first publication, when all of the following are met:

• the reader is a registered reader signed in to an account in good standing, or an unregistered visitor who has consented to the readership measurement described in the Privacy Policy and Cookie Notice;
• the visit is not made by a bot or other automated agent and passes screening for invalid traffic and manipulation;
• the publication is open in an active, visible browser tab for at least 30 seconds of reading time in a single visit, or at least 10 seconds for a publication of fewer than 300 words; time while the tab is hidden, minimized or inactive is not counted; and
• the visit is not made by the contributor or a co-author, and is not an editorial or verification visit by anyone reviewing the publication or verifying a contributor for GATHWAY.

For a novel, unique readers are counted across the whole novel, not separately for each chapter: a reader who meets these criteria on any chapter is counted once. Repeat visits, additional chapters and visits from several devices by a signed-in reader do not increase the count. Visitors who decline optional measurement while signed out cannot be counted. These criteria are provisional: they are technically validated before the earnings program launches, and GATHWAY may refine them to counter fraud, with any change applying prospectively and published before it takes effect.

3. Milestone notifications

After validated readership crosses 100,000, 200,000, 300,000 and 400,000, the contributor receives one in-account achievement message per publication/milestone indicating 400,000, 300,000, 200,000 or 100,000 remaining respectively, with a lawful share link. Messages appear in the contributor inbox, notification centre and, once per milestone, a dismissible profile pop-up. They are not promises of payment. At 500,000, status initially reads “Eligibility Review” until checks pass, then a congratulatory earnings-unlock notice and secure activation action are provided.

4. Revenue sharing and start date

After successful validation and monetization activation, the contributor earns forty percent (40%) of Eligible Net Advertising Revenue attributable to that particular publication, calculated prospectively from the recorded activation timestamp only. No retroactive earnings accrue on advertising generated before activation. GATHWAY retains sixty percent (60%). A 500,000-reader milestone does not itself establish a payable balance or guarantee ads will generate revenue.

5. Eligible net advertising revenue

“Eligible Net Advertising Revenue” means advertising revenue actually received and reasonably attributable to the monetized publication, less applicable indirect taxes collected or remitted, refunds, chargebacks, advertising network/agency fees, and direct ad-serving or payment processing costs specifically disclosed in the published calculation schedule. General corporate overhead, contributor subscription receipts and non-advertising revenue are excluded unless a future agreed addendum states otherwise. Attribution method, reporting period, exchange-rate methodology and any cost deductions must be consistently documented and accessible to contributors.

6. Example (non-binding)

If a qualifying publication generates CAD $1,000 in eligible net advertising revenue after activation, the contributor’s share is CAD $400 and GATHWAY’s share is CAD $600, before any contributor-specific withholding or lawful adjustments. This is an illustration, not an earnings promise.

7. Secure activation and payout

After qualification, the Platform displays a congratulatory in-account message and opens an Earnings dashboard with an “Activate My Earnings” control. Bank/payment and tax information is collected using an approved secure payout provider where available; sensitive banking information must not be solicited in normal messages. Payouts also depend on identity and tax checks and payment-provider coverage, and follow the payout schedule below.

Payout Schedule

• Payouts are made monthly.
• Revenue is reconciled after GATHWAY receives the corresponding advertising payment. Subject to adjustments, eligible revenue received by GATHWAY in a calendar month (month M) is payable during the following calendar month (month M+1).
• The minimum ordinary payout is CAD $50. Balances below CAD $50 carry forward to later payout cycles and are not forfeited.
• Contributors must complete secure payout verification with a supported payout provider before receiving payouts. Supported payout providers must meet applicable financial and regulatory requirements.
• If a contributor closes their account, valid accrued earnings remain payable even if the balance is below CAD $50, subject to lawful deductions and a supported payment method.
• If payouts are unavailable in a contributor’s country, valid balances are preserved and GATHWAY provides a compliant claims or payment-resolution process. Valid earned balances are not forfeited because of unsupported payment geography.

8. Bonuses and fraud controls

Additional performance bonuses are discretionary until their specific eligibility, amounts and funding are published and expressly adopted. GATHWAY may investigate suspicious traffic, suspend eligibility during reasonable review and reverse invalid counts or improperly credited amounts using documented procedures and a fair review channel. Legitimate sharing is encouraged; purchased or fabricated traffic is prohibited.

9. Membership lapse and program changes

Suspension of Earnings upon Membership Inactivity

Where a contributor’s paid membership expires, is cancelled or is suspended, the contributor’s entitlement to accrue new revenue-sharing earnings shall be suspended prospectively from the effective date of membership inactivity.

Any qualifying revenue-sharing earnings accrued before suspension shall remain credited to the contributor, subject to applicable verification, adjustments, lawful deductions and payout conditions.

Existing published works shall remain available under the Contributor Publishing Agreement.

Readership statistics and applicable readership milestones may continue to accumulate during the suspension period.

Upon restoration of an eligible paid membership, monetization may resume prospectively for publications that otherwise satisfy the monetization requirements.

No revenue-sharing earnings shall accrue for advertising revenue attributable to the publication during the period of membership inactivity, and no retroactive payment shall be due for that period.

Failed Renewal Payments and Cancellation

If a renewal payment fails, GATHWAY notifies the contributor and allows a seven-day payment-recovery grace period. During the grace period, eligible membership benefits continue, including the accrual of earnings. If payment is recovered within the grace period, the membership continues without interruption.

Earnings validly accrued during the grace period are preserved even if payment is not recovered. If payment remains unsuccessful at the end of the grace period, the membership becomes inactive from that date and the accrual of new earnings is suspended under this section. Monetization resumes prospectively once an eligible membership is restored. No revenue sharing is paid retroactively for any period of inactivity.

Previously accrued earnings are not forfeited solely because a membership expires, is cancelled or is suspended.

Where a contributor cancels future renewals, the membership remains active until the end of the paid billing period; membership inactivity begins when that period ends.

Any change to the 40% share, threshold or attribution method should apply prospectively only, with legally required advance notice and appropriate consent. No unilateral retroactive reduction of already accrued earnings.

10. Statements, disputes and tax

Contributors can access understandable periodic earnings statements and request correction of reasonably disputed calculations. Each contributor is responsible for their own tax reporting subject to mandatory withholding and reporting obligations of GATHWAY or payout providers. All amounts are in CAD unless a clearly disclosed conversion applies.