Cookie Policy

Cookies, Mobile IDs and Similar Technologies

We use cookies, web beacons, mobile analytics and advertising IDs, and similar technologies to operate our websites and online services and to help collect data, including usage data, identifiers and device information.

What are cookies and similar technologies?

Cookies are small text files placed by a website and stored by your browser on your device.  A cookie can later be read when your browser connects to a web server in the same domain that placed the cookie. The text in a cookie contains a string of numbers and letters that may uniquely identify your device and can contain other information as well. This allows the web server to recognize your browser over time, each time it connects to that web server. Cookies allow us to collect information such as browser type, time spent on the Services, pages visited, language preferences, and other traffic data.

Pixel tags (also known as web beacons and clear GIFs) may be used to, among other things, track the actions of users of the Services (including email recipients), measure the success of our marketing campaigns, compile statistics about usage of the Services and response rates, and identify similar audiences to whom we can market our Services.

How do we and our partners use cookies and similar technologies?

We, and our analytics and advertising partners, use these technologies in our websites, apps, and online services to collect Personal Information (such as the pages you visit, the links you click on and similar usage information, as well as identifiers and device information) when you use our Services, including Personal information about your online activities over time and across different websites or online services.

This information is used to store your preferences and settings, enable you to sign-in, analyze how our websites and apps perform, track your interaction with the site or app, develop inferences, deliver and tailor interest-based advertising, combat fraud, and fulfill other legitimate purposes. Additionally, the information is used for security purposes, to facilitate navigation, to display information more effectively, and to personalize your experience.  We also gather statistical information about use of the Services to continually improve their design and functionality, understand how they are used, and assist us with resolving questions regarding them.  Cookies further allow us to select which of our advertisements or offers are most likely to appeal to you and display them while you are on the Services.  We may also use cookies or other technologies in online advertising to track responses to our ads.  If you do not want information collected through the use of cookies, most browsers allow you to automatically decline cookies or be given the choice of declining or accepting a particular cookie (or cookies) from a particular website (including using the options described below in the section titled “What Controls are Available”).  You may also wish to refer to http://www.allaboutcookies.org/manage-cookies/index.html. If, however, you do not accept cookies, you may experience some inconvenience in your use of the Services.

We and/or our analytics and advertising partners also share the information we collect or infer with other companies for these purposes.

Analytics

We use analytics providers including but not limited to Google Analytics, Lytics and Adobe Analytics, which use cookies and similar technologies to collect and analyze information about use of the Services and report on activities and trends.  We also use Localytics to track analytics on our mobile apps. These analytics services may also collect information regarding the use of other websites, apps and online resources.  You can learn about Google’s practices by going to www.google.com/policies/privacy/‌partners/, and exercise the opt-out provided by Google by downloading the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on, available at https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout. To opt out of Adobe Analytics, you can implement the opt-out cookies at https://scode.randomhouse.com/optout.html.

Physical Location

We may collect the physical location of your device by, for example, using satellite, cell phone tower or WiFi signals.  We may use your device’s physical location to provide you with personalized location-based services and content.

We may also share your device’s physical location, combined with information about what advertisements you viewed and other information we collect, with our marketing partners to enable them to provide you with more personalized content and to study the effectiveness of advertising campaigns.  In some instances, you may be permitted to allow or deny such uses and/or sharing of your device’s location, but if you do, we and/or our marketing partners may not be able to provide you with the applicable personalized services and content.

What controls are available?

  • Advertising controls. Our advertising partners may participate in associations that provide simple ways to opt out of ad targeting, which you can access at:
  • These choices are specific to the browser you are using. If you access our online services from other devices or browsers, take these actions from those systems to ensure your choices apply to the data collected when you use those systems.
  • Browser cookie controls. Most web browsers are set to accept cookies by default. If you prefer, you can go to your browser settings to learn how to delete or reject cookies. If you choose to delete or reject cookies, this could affect certain features or services of our website. If you choose to delete cookies, settings and preferences controlled by those cookies — including advertising preferences — may be deleted and may need to be recreated.
  • Mobile advertising ID controls. iOS and Android operating systems provide options to limit tracking and/or reset the advertising IDs.
  • Email web beacons. Most email clients have settings which allow you to prevent the automatic downloading of images — including web beacons — which prevents the automatic connection to the web servers that host those images.
  • Do Not Track.  Some browsers have incorporated “Do Not Track” (DNT) features that can send a signal to the websites you visit indicating you do not wish to be tracked. Because there is not a common understanding of how to interpret the DNT signal our websites do not currently respond to browser DNT signals. Instead, you can use the range of other tools to control data collection and use, including the cookie controls and advertising controls described above.
  • Global Privacy Control. Global Privacy Control (GPC) is a browser setting that notifies websites of a user’s privacy preferences — such as not to share or sell Personal Information without their consent — by sending a signal to each website a user visits. When we detect such a signal, we will make reasonable efforts to respect your choices indicated by a GPC setting or similar control that is recognized by regulation or otherwise widely acknowledged as a valid opt-out preference signal.

Third Party Advertising

We may use third-party advertising companies to serve advertisements regarding goods and services that may be of interest to you when you access and use the Services and other websites or online services.

You may receive advertisements based on information relating to your access to and use of the Services and other websites or online services on any of your devices, as well as on information received from third parties.  These companies place or recognize a unique cookie on your browser (including through the use of pixel tags).  They also use these technologies, along with information they collect about your online use, to recognize you across the devices you use, such as a mobile phone and a laptop.  If you would like more information about this practice, and to learn how to opt out of it in desktop and mobile browsers on the particular device on which you are accessing this Privacy Policy, please visit http://optout.aboutads.info/#/ and http://optout.networkadvertising.org/#/.