Consumer Input Data Collection Policy

Last modified: August 18, 2011

This policy describes our data collection practices for users who register and download the Compete Consumer Input data collection application from this site, and for all users of the Compete Consumer Input data collection application, either branded Consumer Input or branded by one of our partners. Users may have installed this application through the Consumer Input site, a partner site, or through a partner’s technology product that utilizes the application.

The current policy below is in effect for any panelist who joined and downloaded the Compete data application since August 18, 2011. If the application was installed prior to this date, the most recent prior privacy policy version which can be accessed through the link above is applicable. If you are unsure of the date of membership and installation, please contact privacy@compete.com and we will provide you that information.

Compete, a Kantar Media/WPP company, helps the world’s top brands improve their marketing based on the online behavior of millions of consumers. Leading advertisers, agencies and publishers rely on Compete’s products and services to create engaging online experiences and highly profitable advertising campaigns. Compete’s online panel is one of the largest in the industry. Compete is located in Boston, MA, with offices throughout the U.S. For more information, please visit http://www.competeinc.com/.

Consumers are recruited to join Compete's member community or panel through this site, www.consumerinput.com or through our partners. Compete also licenses clickstream data from national ISPs and ASPs to contribute to our research about consumer behaviors online. This multi-source data collection methodology sets the industry standard for representative and actionable data to better understand consumers and to better inform Compete’s clients.

Relevant Links for this Policy:

Consumer Input Web Site Privacy

Information Collection & Use

For some of our users, we collect your email address, birth year, income information and gender as part of the site registration process and application download. We may also require you to create a password associated with your email address. We will use this information to contact you about the services on our site in which you have expressed interest. For some of our users, general demographic information such as gender, ethnicity, birth year, and income may be collected during the Compete application download process, registration, or API call. This information is integral to our research and used to ensure that we properly represent user online behavior.

Communications from the Site

Service-related Announcements: We may send you strictly service-related announcements on rare occasions when it is necessary to do so. For instance, if our service is temporarily suspended for maintenance, we might send you an email. If you do not wish to receive these announcements, you may opt-out of these communications. Directions to opt-out of email communications are detailed in Choice.

Welcome Letter and Services: For those users who directly provide an email address and download the data collection application, we may send you a welcoming email to verify your participation in the Compete research panel. We will also communicate with you in response to your inquiries, and to provide the services you request. We will communicate with you by email in accordance with your wishes. Directions to opt-out of email communications are detailed in Choice.

Data Software Updates: We will occasionally send you information on software updates related to the data collection application that you have downloaded. Out of respect for your privacy, we present the option not to receive these types of communications. Directions to opt-out of email communications are detailed in Choice.

Information Sharing and Disclosure

If we have collected your email address, we may partner with a third-party to combine email and demographic information collected at this site with other data. In this instance, we protect your privacy by having these third parties sign a written, legally binding confidentiality agreement stipulating that they will not share data we provide them with any outside party and that any individual identifying information is to be used solely for the purpose of matching records or providing the agreed upon database service.

We may use third parties, such as a survey software company, to provide services on our behalf through their web site. These third parties are prohibited from using your email address for promotional purposes.

Choice

If you no longer wish to receive communications from Compete as described above, you may opt-out by following the directions that are included in each email communication. You may also contact us at support@consumerinput.com for assistance.

Tracking Utilities

Log Files: We automatically collect information via log files to administer access to the download and survey site and to aid in technical problem solving. Log file information collected is IP address, time a page was viewed, name of pages viewed during the specific visit, browser type, URL parameters, and cookies that were set at the time of site access. Log files may also include information indicating where a visitor came from.

We use this information to administer the site and to identify and resolve any technical problems related to the site's operation.

We do not link this automatically-collected data to personally identifiable information.

Cookies: A cookie is a small text file that is stored on a user’s computer for record-keeping purposes. We use cookies on this site. We do not link the information we store in cookies to any personally identifiable information you submit while on our site.

We use both session ID cookies and persistent cookies. We use session cookies to allow you to download the data collection application. We use a persistent ID to ensure that the application installs correctly.

A session ID cookie expires when you close your browser. A persistent cookie remains on your hard drive for an extended period of time. You can remove persistent cookies by following directions provided in your Internet browser’s "help" file or by visiting aboutcookies.org: http://www.aboutcookies.org/Default.aspx? page=2.

If you reject cookies, you may still use our site, but you will be unable to download the data collection application correctly.

Data Collection Technology and Data Usage Privacy

Compete’s research panel consists of data collected directly through the Consumer Input panel, recruiting partnerships with trusted entities or technology integration with partner applications. Panelists who choose to or opt-in to participate in the research panel are made up of people like you who wish to participate in market research – consumers who want to express their opinions about the products and services they use or that matter to them.

By agreeing to participate, panelists allow their online activities, behaviors and exposures -- including the content of specific web pages, online purchasing activities and other activities undertaken during secure sessions -- and third party application usage -- types and frequency of applications used -- to be collected by Compete.

You must affirmatively agree to download or trigger the data collection by Compete. If you opt-in for data collection, we collect from your computer what is known as click stream data. Click stream data includes information such as your IP address, the URLs (generally the online address information seen at top of a webpage) of websites you have viewed (and any information the webpage you're viewing places in those URLs, sometimes to pass along to the next page you view), the date and time you viewed the web pages, the duration of each visit and the search terms you entered on any webpage that enables online search.

Through a combination of a proprietary privacy rules engine (technical rules), encrypted data and secure transmission, we strive to protect the identity of our panelists, and removing personally identifiable and sensitive information before this data is stored. If any personal or sensitive information is inadvertently collected (because it passes through or is not caught by the filter or technical privacy rules) by the application, we make commercially reasonable efforts to purge our database of the inadvertently collected personal or sensitive information.

Our Services

We provide market research in the form of consumer opinions about products and services and consumer online behaviors by collecting related information from our panel members.

Typically, the collected information is shared with our clients in aggregate or grouped form so that no individually identifiable information is released. The only exception to this practice is stated below under Information Collection. We do not use panel information as part of a targeted marketing program. We respect and honor the privacy of our panelists.

Information Collection – Direct or Via Partnerships

Basic Demographic Information: For some of our users, general demographic information may be collected during the Compete application download process, registration, or API call. This information is integral to our research and used to ensure that we have the right representations of people in our panel.

Survey Response: For some of our users, we may obtain your email address as part of the site registration process and application download. We may use your email address to directly contact you or we may work through our partners to contact panel members to ask about their attitudes and opinions about a variety of products, services, trends and events. The questions we ask are presented through surveys received by email or on a survey questionnaire website.

Typically, we combine panel members' survey responses and report on the aggregated (or grouped) results. On some occasions, individually identifiable information and responses may be disclosed to retail partners or clients so they can gain better insight into their existing and prospective customers. In such cases, we obligate partners and clients to commit that panel members are not directly targeted with marketing communications or offers for products and services based on the information we share.

When we occasionally ask for additional personally identifying information as part of a specific survey or project, we will provide an explanation in the text of the questionnaire to allow members to make an informed decision about whether they want to provide it or not. The explanation will include a description of any new identifying information that will be collected via the survey and with whom it will be shared.

As with any survey, members can decline to take the survey or stop at any time during the survey process. Like all other information we collect, any additional information collected for a specific survey will be used for research purposes only.

Online Activities: As outlined above, we collect information about your online activities, including the content of the specific webpages you visit, your purchasing behavior and the applications you use. Using the small technology application you download when you agree to join the panel, we collect from your computer what is known as clickstream data.

Clickstream data includes information such as your IP address, the URLs (generally the address information) of websites you have viewed (and any information the webpage you're viewing places in those URLs), the date and time you viewed the web pages, the duration of each visit and the search terms you entered on any webpage that enables online search.

Through a combination of a proprietary privacy rules engine, encrypted data and secure transmission, we strive to protect our panelists. We make efforts to remove personally identifiable information before the collected data is stored in our systems. If any personal information is inadvertently collected by the application, we make commercial efforts to purge our database of that information promptly.

We may also collect information about the cookies that are on your computer which could include cookies placed by third parties. We have no access or control of third party tracking technologies.

If personally identifiable information is inadvertently collected by the software, we take commercially viable efforts to promptly purge our database of that inadvertently collected sensitive information.

Computer Diagnostic Information: We may collect general computer software, hardware, networked devices, and configuration information from the computer where you have installed our application. This information is typically used to address technical and performance related issues if they arise.

Cookies, Beacons and Site Logging: We use temporary session cookies during the download and registration process to correctly identify the research panel that the user has joined, enable the creation of a unique, anonymous identifier and to trigger the download process.

We may use cookies for advertising research purposes. By using cookies, we are able to track of the types of online advertisements that you see on the websites that you visit, as well as the number of times that you see those ads.

In some cases, we may create an event that allows us to anonymously connect your activity from the data collection application with a Compete owned third party site cookie.

Our Clients and Data Sharing Practices

Marketers from leading companies, agencies and publishers turn to Compete to improve their marketing effectiveness. Compete helps them by providing market research, media planning and media measurement tools to drive their marketing.

Compete uses data gathered from our panel to create a wide array of products for marketers. Compete also offers clients the ability to survey the panel to provide attitudinal data in addition to behavioral measures. With Compete’s products and services, companies can measure their effectiveness across all of their marketing programs.

Typically, we combine panel members' responses and report on the aggregated (or grouped) results. On some occasions, individually identifiable information and responses may be disclosed to retail partners or clients so they can gain better insight into their existing and prospective customers. In such cases, we make commercially reasonable efforts to filter sensitive information such as credit card numbers and account numbers from the data being provided to partners or clients and we obligate partners and clients to commit that panel members are not directly targeted with marketing communications or offers for products and services based on the information we share.

Other Third Party Disclosure Practices

We may directly, or with our partners, use a 3rd party for database or software application services (such as customer support, email or survey) and for purposes of data quality, data cleansing.

In addition, we may occasionally supplement information panel members provide us with information from consumer profile companies (including public record databases and credit reporting agencies) or use a third party service to combine client data with panel member behavioral information to be used for market research and segment modeling. In this instance, we protect your privacy by having these third parties sign a written, legally binding confidentiality agreement stipulating that they will not share data we provide them with any outside party and that any individual identifying information is to be used solely for the purpose of matching records or providing the agreed upon database service.

We may also use third party service providers to obtain additional online data, TV or video viewing data, application or mobile usage information and may integrate such information with the data that you provide us or that we collect from you. In all instances, any data we collect is used for research purposes only and is not used for targeting of marketing communications or to make commercial or economic decisions on an individual level.

We will never rent or sell your email address, contact information or other personally identifiable information to a third party except as described in this privacy policy under Business Transitions and Legal Disclaimer.

How to Opt-Out from the Panel

For users who have downloaded the application directly from Compete, you can opt-out of the Compete research panel by removal of the software application. In cases when the collection is integrated into a partner’s application, you have the ability to opt-out of clickstream collection directly through the partner application. If you have any questions regarding removal or opting-out, we can assist you by contacting privacy@compete.com .

To remove the software:

Microsoft Internet Explorer:

Windows XP and earlier:

From the Windows control panel, select "Add / Remove Programs"
Select the "Consumer Input Software" entry.
Select the "Remove" button.
Select the "Uninstall" button from the dialog that appears.

Windows Vista/Windows7:

From the Windows control panel, select "Programs and Features"
Select the "Consumer Input Software" entry.
Double click the entry.
Select the "Uninstall" button from the dialog that appears.

Mozilla Firefox:

Version 3.6 and earlier:

From the Firefox "Tools" menu, select "Add-ons".
From the Add-ons menu, select the "Consumer Input Software" entry.
Select the "Uninstall" button.
Select the "Uninstall" button again to verify.
The Consumer Input Software will be completely removed the next time Firefox is restarted.

Version 4.X or later:

From the Firefox menu, select "Add-ons".
From the Add-ons menu, select the "Consumer Input Software" entry.
Select the "Remove" button.
Select the "Uninstall" button again to verify.
The Consumer Input Software will be completely removed the next time Firefox is restarted.

General Information

Business Transitions

In the event Compete goes through a business transition, such as a merger, acquisition by another company, or sale of all or a portion of its assets, your personally identifiable information will likely be among the assets transferred. For those users for whom we have a valid email address, you will be notified via email of any such change in ownership or control of your personal information. We will also put prominent notice on our site for 30 days.

Data Access

For those users for whom we have email and other personally identifiable information, you may correct, update or delete your contact information by contacting us at support@consumerinput.com. We will respond to all requests for access within 30 days. If you no longer desire to participate in our data collection and research services, you may remove the data collection software as described above in How to Opt-out. If you have further questions regarding the data that has been collected by the data collection application, please contact us at privacy@compete.com.

Legal Disclaimer

We reserve the right to disclose your personally identifiable information as required by law and when we believe that disclosure is necessary to protect our rights and/or to comply with a judicial proceeding, court order, or legal process served on our Web site.

Data Retention

For users for whom we have email addresses, we will retain your contact information for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide you services. If you wish to cancel your account or request that we no longer use your information to provide you services, please follow the directions to remove the data application software as described above in How to Opt-out.

We will retain and use your contact information as necessary to comply with our legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements. We will retain all clickstream data as long as it is necessary to fulfill our business services, or as required by law.

If you need further assistance, please contact us via privacy@compete.com.

Security

This site has security measures in place to protect the loss, misuse, and alteration of the information under our control.

In addition, Compete seeks to maintain the privacy and anonymity of its panelists and uses a variety of mechanisms to ensure that the data that is collected is handled securely, including:

All online behavioral information is collected anonymously and is not stored along with any user identification token (like email address, IP address, name, etc.).
Compete’s data collection technology employs technical privacy rules to strip personal identifiable information and potentially sensitive information from clickstream data sent to Compete’s servers.
Compete uses industry standard practices (including physical access control, network level, operating system level, and file system level security) to protect unauthorized access to the data.
Compete uses secure transfer mechanisms to move data from public facing servers to the internal data center.

Panel member information is maintained within a secure database accessible only by certain Compete employees. Panel members may access their own personal information for the purposes of verifying and updating, but they cannot view other members' information.

As with any Internet endeavor, absolute security of information transmitted through channels (communication networks, hardware, software) not directly operated or controlled by us cannot be guaranteed.

Information is stored and processed in the United States within the Compete infrastructure. In accordance with the criteria set forth by the United States Department of Commerce, Compete participates in the U.S.-EU and U.S.-Swiss Safe Harbor Framework for data protection.

Children’s Privacy

For the majority of our recruitment, the Compete research panel consists of users who are of the legal age of majority within their geography. On occasion, we may recruit children for a non-adult panel for custom research. In these cases of non-adult recruitment, we will obtain parental consent and adhere to the appropriate data laws and regulations, including COPPA.

Privacy Changes

If we are going to use your personally identifiable information in a manner different from that stated in our privacy policy at the time of collection, you will be notified via email or via the application by Compete or by our data partner directly. You will have a choice as to whether or not we use your information in this different manner; instructions for how to make that choice will be included in the email.

If we make any non-material changes to our privacy practices that do not affect user information already stored in our database or future collection, we will post a prominent notice on our website notifying our members that there is a change and pointing them to the revised privacy page.

Contact Us

If you have any questions related to our site or our data collection via the research panel, please contact us at privacy@compete.com.

Global Dispute Resolution

We self-certify compliance with:

Compete has been awarded TRUSTe's Privacy Seal signifying that this privacy policy and practices have been reviewed by TRUSTe for compliance with TRUSTe's program requirements including transparency, accountability and choice regarding the collection and use of your personal information while on www.consumerinput.com.. The TRUSTe program does not cover information that may be collected through downloadable software. TRUSTe's mission, as an independent third party, is to accelerate online trust among consumers and organizations globally through its leading privacy trustmark and innovative trust solutions. If you have questions or complaints regarding our privacy policy or practices, please contact us at privacy@compete.com. If you are not satisfied with our response you can contact TRUSTe here or see the other contact details below.

Compete complies with the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor Framework and the U.S.-Swiss Safe Harbor Framework as set forth by the U.S. Department of Commerce regarding the collection, use, and retention of personal information from European Union member countries and Switzerland. Compete has certified that it adheres to the Safe Harbor Privacy Principles of notice, choice, onward transfer, security, data integrity, access, and enforcement. To learn more about the Safe Harbor program, and to view Compete’s certification, please visit http://www.export.gov/safeharbor/.

As part of our participation in the safe harbor, we have agreed to TRUSTe dispute resolution for disputes relating to our compliance with the Safe Harbor Privacy Framework. If you have any complaints regarding our compliance with the Safe Harbor you should first contact us (as provided above). If contacting us does not resolve your complaint, you may raise your complaint with TRUSTe by Internet or by fax at 415-520-3420, or mail at Watchdog Complaints, TRUSTe, 55 2nd Street, 2nd Floor, San Francisco, CA, USA 94105. If you are faxing or mailing TRUSTe to lodge a complaint, you must include the following information: the name of company, the alleged privacy violation, your contact information, and whether you would like the particulars of your complaint shared with the company. For information about TRUSTe or the operation of TRUSTe's dispute resolution process, see http://watchdog.truste.com/pvr.php?page=complaint or request this information from TRUSTe at any of the addresses listed above. The TRUSTe dispute resolution process shall be conducted in English.

If you have questions related to privacy, please contact us at privacy@compete.com or by writing to us at:

Privacy Officer
Compete
4 Copley Place
Suite 700
Boston, MA 02116