Nick.com and iCarly.com (hereinafter collectively known as "Nick.com") is the place in cyberspace where fans of Nickelodeon can come to find out more about their favorite Nick stars, play games, and have their opinions heard. Nick.com believes in the power of kids and we urge both kids and their parents to use and enjoy our website. While we encourage the interactive nature of online media, we strive to educate parents and kids about how to appropriately safeguard their privacy when traveling on the Web. Nick.com is committed to complying fully with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998. Our information collection practices are described below. We urge kids to check with their parents before entering information on any website and we urge parents to discuss with their kids restrictions regarding the online release of personal information to anyone they don't know.
What Information Is Collected?
At Nick.com, it's our policy to create website content that requires minimum collection of information from our visitors. Generally, Nick.com limits our collection of information from kids to what is known as non-personally identifiable information (e.g. screen name, birthday, gender, state, zip code and country of residence). This information is collected so kids can participate in activities (e.g. chat with celebrities, post messages, play online games) without giving unnecessary personal information. From time to time, however, we may request limited personally identifiable information (e.g. kid's email address and/or email address of parent or third party), as explained below, in order to conduct online contests or sweepstakes or offer other online activities (e.g. electronic postcards, newsletters). Nick.com does not condition a kid's participation in any of our online activities on the disclosure of more information than is reasonably necessary to participate in the activity. As explained below, we also collect from parents additional types of information (e.g., credit card and billing information) when they purchase products and offerings at our site.
Electronic Newsletter Subscription
Nick.com offers kids the opportunity to sign up to receive the Nick.com newsletter by email. When a kid asks to receive our email newsletter, the child may be asked to provide his or her first name, email address, date of birth, state and the email address of his or her parent. Within two business days of receiving this information, we send the child's parent a notification email informing him or her of the child's request to receive by email the Nick.com newsletter on an ongoing basis and give the parent the option to have his or her child's information be removed from our Nick.com newsletter database. At any time after receiving this notification email, the child's parent has the opportunity to exercise the option to request that we stop sending the child the Nick.com newsletter and have the child's information removed from our Nick.com newsletter by following the "unsubscribe" instructions found in either their initial notification email or at the end of any of the Nick.com newsletter emails. In addition, parents may at any time review any identifiable information collected about their child (see below, Parental Access).
All information collected for Nick.com newsletters is used only to send the child the electronic newsletter and may be transferred, disclosed, or shared with third parties who may be engaged by us specifically to handle the preparation and delivery of the electronic newsletter and perform other related technical and processing functions. These third parties may not use it for other purposes and have agreed to maintain the confidentiality of such information.
Older visitors to Nick.com may be given opportunities to provide us with additional personal information in order to sign-up and receive electronic newsletters, including special offers and promotions from businesses within the Nickelodeon and MTV Networks family of companies and on behalf of selected third parties offering products, programs or services that we believe may be of interest to you. Sign-up is always optional and the recipient may choose to opt-out from receiving a newsletter by following the "unsubscribe" instructions found near the end of the newsletter emails.
Contests and Sweepstakes
Nick.com occasionally offers contests and sweepstakes, which may be entered online. To participate in a contest or sweepstakes, a child is asked to provide his or her first name and email address. Sometimes, when we conduct contests or sweepstakes that may involve more than a one-time contact, we ask additionally for the email address of his or her parent. In such types of contests or sweepstakes, we send the child's parent an email within two business days informing him or her of the child's entry and give the parent the option to have the child's entry deleted. All the information collected by Nick.com is securely maintained and used only for the purpose of conducting the contest or sweepstakes. Once the contest or sweepstakes if finished, we then delete any personal information collected. The information collected in a Nick.com sweepstakes may be passed to a fulfillment house which may use the information to help run the contest or sweepstakes and may not use it for other purposes and has agreed to maintain the confidentiality of such information.
Electronic Postcards and Email Messages
Nick.com provides kids the opportunity to send approved user generated videos and electronic postcards featuring Nickelodeon characters or original artwork to family or friends. Also, Nick.com features information about products that kids are interested in and from time to time will send, on behalf of kids who request it, email messages to family and/or friends to let family and/or friends share their interest. We may ask for a first name, but we do not require kids to submit personally identifiable information about themselves in order to send an electronic postcard or for Nick.com to send email messages to family or friends. We do, however, ask kids to submit the email address of the recipient of such electronic postcards or email messages.
Nick.com may also provide the opportunity to send e-mail to us. We may ask for first names, but we request no personally identifiable information except an e-mail address, which we use solely for the purpose of responding to messages and/or requests.
All information collected for electronic postcards and email messages is used only to send the requested electronic postcard or email message and to respond to email questions and/or requests and is deleted from our system once the electronic postcard, email message or email response is sent.
Use and Disclosure of Information
Nick.com uses or may use personally identifiable information that kids provide for such purposes as sending requested electronic postcards and email messages on their behalf, and conducting contests or sweepstakes, and responding to their questions regarding our products and services. Nick.com currently does not disclose to third parties personally identifiable information that kids provide, except from time to time, we may transfer, disclose or share such information with third parties who may be engaged by us specifically to handle and deliver certain online activities (e.g. conducting contests and sweepstakes). Such third parties have access to personal information needed to perform their functions, but may not use it for other purposes. Additionally, in the event that all or substantially all of the assets relating to Nick.com are transferred or sold to another entity, personally identifiable information submitted to us may be transferred to the acquiring entity. Finally, we may also disclose personally identifiable information to third parties in order to comply with law or requests by law enforcement agencies, to enforce our Terms of Use or to protect the rights, property or safety of our website, users of our website and others.
Information Received from the Nick Shop
The website for the Nick Shop, http://shop.nick.com/, which utilizes third party service providers, may collect personal information about its registered users or customers and share such information with us. For additional information on the privacy practices of the Nick Shop service providers, please visit the Nick Shop Account page.
We use the personal information we receive internally within Nickelodeon but we do not sell, transfer or share this personally identifiable information with third parties except from time to time, we may transfer, disclose or share such information with third parties who may be engaged by us specifically to handle and manage certain analysis of the data or other functions (e.g., fulfilling contests and sweepstakes conducted on the Shop to which we are sponsors). Such third parties have access to personal information needed to perform their functions, but may not use such personally identifiable information for other purposes and have agreed to maintain the confidentiality of any information they receive from us.
We are always looking for ways to improve your shopping experience with Nickelodeon. In order to accomplish this goal, we may at times solicit additional personally identifiable information from third party marketing organizations. This information, in addition to the information you have already provided, will help us to offer new Nickelodeon products and services we believe may be of interest to you.
Additionally, in the event that all or substantially all of the assets relating to Nick.com are transferred or sold to another entity, personal information we received from the Shop may be transferred to the acquiring entity. Finally, we may also disclose personal information about Shop users to third parties in order to comply with law or requests by law enforcement agencies, to enforce the Shop's terms and conditions or to protect the rights, property or safety of the Shop's users and others.
In addition, we may use the personal information received from the Shop to provide you with our marketing materials, and to contact those Shop users who have asked that Nickelodeon contact them directly about such things as sales and special offers.
Cookies and Log Data
Unique identifiers such as cookies (which may be html files, Flash files, or other technology), web beacons, or similar technologies (collectively referred to as “Tracking Technologies”) are used to help tailor our content, allow users to move between associated websites without logging into each site, and other purposes related to our management of Nick.com. Cookies are small text files stored locally on your machine that help store user preferences. "Web beacons" or "clear gifs" are small pieces of code placed on websites used to collect advertising metrics, such as counting page views, promotion views, or advertising responses.
We may use Tracking Technologies to understand site and Internet usage and to improve or customize the content, offerings or advertisements on Nick.com. For example, we may use cookies to personalize your experience on the Nick.com (e.g., to recognize you by name when you return to a site), save your password in password-protected areas, save your online game or video player settings, and enable you to use shopping carts on the site. We also may use cookies to help us offer you products, programs, or services that may be of interest to you and to deliver relevant advertising. By agreeing to this Privacy Policy, you are consenting to the use of Tracking Technologies as set forth in this Policy. This Site adheres to the Self-Regulatory Principles for Online Behavioral Advertising. Click here for more information about this Site and online behavioral advertising.
In many internet browsers, you can choose to delete, disable, turn off or reject most Tracking Technologies through the “Internet Options” sub-option of the “Tools” menu option of your browser or otherwise as directed by your browser’s support feature. Additional information on deleting, disabling, rejecting or turning off Tracking Technologies may be available through your browser’s support feature. Please consult the "Help" section of your browser for more information.
For more information about Flash cookies and how to remove them from your computer, please visit http://www.adobe.com/products/flashplayer/articles/lso/.
Please know that certain areas and features of Nick.com only can be accessed in conjunction with cookies or similar devices and you should be aware that disabling cookies or similar devices might prevent you from accessing some of our content.
Nick.com may additionally use a variety of third party advertising networks, data exchanges, traffic measurement service providers, marketing analytics service providers and other third parties (collectively, “Third Party Advertising Service Providers”) to, for example, serve advertisements on Nick.com, facilitate targeting of advertisements and/or measure and analyze advertising effectiveness and/or traffic on Nick.com (“Targeting Services”). These Third Party Advertising Service Providers may enable us to display advertisements based on your visits to Nick.com and other websites you have visited. Targeting Services enable us to, among other things, help deliver advertisements or other content to you for products and services that you might be interested in, to prevent you from seeing the same advertisements too many times and to conduct research regarding the usefulness of certain advertisements to you.
Although these Third Party Advertising Service Providers do not have access to Tracking Technologies set by Nick.com, the Third Party Advertising Service Providers, as well as advertisers, may themselves set and access their own Tracking Technologies and/or they may otherwise have access to information about you.
You should be aware that different rules might apply to the collection, use or disclosure of your information by third parties in connection with their advertisements, promotions and other websites you encounter on the Internet. The use of such technology by these third parties is within their control and not ours. Even if we have a relationship with the third party, we do not control those sites or their policies and practices regarding your information. This Privacy Policy does not cover any use of information that a Third Party Advertising Service Providers or advertiser may collect from you. We encourage you to investigate and ask questions directly of them in this regard. Use of a third party’s Tracking Technology is subject to their own privacy policies. For more information about these third party servers and how to "opt out" of the ad-serving cookie, please click here.
With respect to the serving of ads by DoubleClick to you, please visit http://www.doubleclick.com/us/about_doubleclick/privacy for your options and for further information on renewing your opt-outs or opting-out again if you subsequently delete the Tracking Technologies.
For information on how to manage or opt-out of Tracking Technologies set by Third Party Advertising Service Providers used by Nick.com in addition to DoubleClick, please visit http://www.networkadvertising.org/managing/opt_out.asp for your options and for further information on renewing your opt-outs or opting-out again if you subsequently delete the Tracking Technologies.
Log data collected on web servers supplies us with aggregate information about the number of visits to different pages on our site. We use such aggregate information to improve access to our content based on our visitors' browsers and operating system types to make our content available to as many users as possible. We do not link the "log data" collected to personally identifiable information submitted by users when participating in our activities. Third Party Advertising Service Providers may also collect aggregate log data independently from Nick.com.
Parental Access
At Nick.com, our goal is to help parents ensure that their kids have a safe and fun online experience. That's why we've set up a system by which parents can print out and mail or fax us a signed form that allows them to review any identifiable information collected about their child, have this information deleted, and/or request that there be no further collection or use of their child's information. You can link to the form from here. Nick.com takes steps to verify the identity of anyone requesting information about a child and to ensure that the person is in fact the child's parent or legal guardian.
Security
Nick.com has taken steps to ensure that personally identifiable information collected in the future is secure, including limiting the number of people who have physical access to our database servers as well as electronic security systems and password protections which guard against unauthorized access.
Nick.com provides a "bumper page" when linking from Nick.com to an advertiser's site, which lets kids know they are going to an advertiser's site and reminds them not to give out information online without getting permission from their parents.U.S. Governing Law; Safe Harbor
The Site is designed and targeted to users who reside in the United States and is governed by and operated in accordance with the laws of the United States. We make no representation that this Site is operated in accordance with the laws or regulations of, or governed by, other nations. By participating in our Site activities, you certify that you meet the age and other eligibility requirements for this Site as set forth in our Terms of Use. If you do not meet the age and other eligibility requirements, please discontinue using the Site immediately as your continued use of the Site indicates that you are agreeing to the collection, use, disclosure, management and storage of your Information as described in this Privacy Policy.
For detailed information on our privacy policy and practices with respect to personal information transferred from the European Economic Area and Switzerland, please see our Safe Harbor Privacy Policy.Questions/Concerns?
If you have any questions, comments or concerns regarding Nick.com's privacy policy and/or practices, please email us at:
nickprivacy@nickonline.com
1515 Broadway
New York, New York 10036
Or call this number:
212-846-2543
This policy, like the online medium itself, is subject to change. We will notify you of material changes by posting them at our site. We encourage you to check back and review this policy, from time to time, so that you always will know what information we collect, how we use it, and to whom we disclose it.
To parents: Nick.com offers you and your child an online safety guide which we encourage you to use as an entrée into discussing safety and privacy concerns with your child. It can be reached by clicking on the "Online Safety" link.
YOUR CALIFORNIA PRIVACY RIGHTS
Beginning on January 1, 2005, California Civil Code Section 1798.83 permits our visitors who are California residents to request certain information regarding its disclosure of personal information to third parties for their direct marketing purposes. To make such a request, please send an e-mail to caprivacy@nickonline.com or write us:
Nick.com CA Privacy Coordinator
Nickelodeon Online
1515 Broadway
New York, New York 10036
COPYRIGHT POLICY
We take protection of copyrights, both our own and others, very seriously. We therefore employ multiple measures to prevent copyright infringement over this Site and to promptly end any infringement that might occur. If you believe that the Site contains elements that infringe your copyrights in your work, please follow the procedures set forth in our Copyright Compliance Policy
This Privacy Policy was last updated on March 18, 2011.
