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View the Site Privacy Policy

Nullsoft respects the privacy of our users. This Privacy Policy outlines how Nullsoft collects and uses information when you download and use the Winamp player and other Winamp software that you may elect to install and use with your Winamp player. Winamp is brought to you by Nullsoft.

Certain features that appear on Winamp such as the Infoviewer and the personalization wizard are provided by our partners. The anonymous information that we share with our partners is not used for any purpose other than to provide the service to you.

Information about Winamp Users

When you download the Winamp player, we collect certain information about you. We may ask for your email address and for demographic information such as your zip code and your gender. We collect your email address in order to contact you about changes and improvements to the Winamp player. We may also use it to tell you about products and services that we think will be of interest to you. We collect demographic information in order to better understand our users and to localize your player based on your geographic location. If you have downloaded a premium version of Winamp, we will ask you for your billing information which may include your name, address, and credit card information in order to process your order. We do not share, rent or sell your personally identifiable information to third parties. We do contract with partner companies to perform functions such as processing check and credit card payments so your billing information will be shared with them. They are not permitted to use your information for any other purpose. We may share anonymous user information with our partners in order to provide you with certain components of the Winamp service as described below.

When you download and install the Winamp player, it will automatically assign to you a globally unique identifier ("GUID") that is associated with your player. The GUID will never be matched with any personally identifiable information about you and it is not shared with any third parties or partners. The GUID allows us to analyze unique player usage patterns on an anonymous, aggregated basis.

To enhance your playback experience, Winamp uses technology that provides you with contextual information about the particular media which you have selected within the Media Library or are currently playing. This technology, provided by one of our partner companies, allows us to provide helpful information such as album art, artist biography, discography, and purchase information. When using the Infoviewer and Now Playing features, the player retrieves this contextual information and stores a Title Unique Identifier ("TUID") on your computer. The TUID allows the player to retrieve this information more efficiently on subsequent plays. Data regarding the specific media you are playing may be retained on an anonymous basis for up to one week and may be analyzed to identify top songs and artists being requested by our users. You have the option to turn this feature off by not accessing the Now Playing view AND pressing the "Hide Info" button within the Library views.

Our player automatically gathers certain anonymous usage information from you including, but not limited to, the length of your session, the number of tracks and streams you've played in a certain session, the number of CDs you've burned, played, or ripped, the number of tracks you've transferred to a portable device, the number of playlists you've created, the number of plug-ins you've installed, and the number of skins you've installed. We use this information to better understand how people use the various parts of our service and to improve the content, features and functionality of the player. You have choices on whether to share certain anonymous usage information with us. Click on the "Options" link on your Winamp software, then click "Preferences." On the Winamp Preferences screen, you are given the option to opt-in or opt-out of reporting anonymous usage statistics.

Predixis MusicMagic

The Predixis MusicMagic feature of Winamp is designed to build customized playlists for you by analyzing the music in your library. If you elect to beta test the feature, the MusicMagic software uses proprietary algorithms to generate unique acoustic "fingerprints" for each song. The software creates customized playlists with these fingerprints by identifying tracks that are acoustically similar. The software is designed to interact online with MusicMagic's databases to help analyze and obtain fingerprints for each song. Only information related to the song is shared with MusicMagic's databases, such as song title, artist name, album name, track number, genre name, song duration and song; no information about you is sent or shared with MusicMagic servers. Within the Winamp Preferences area, you have the option to disconnect the software's access to MusicMagic databases. From the "Options" menu on your Winamp software, click "Preferences" and then click on the "Predixis MusicMagic" link located within the Media Library folder. There, you will find the option to check or uncheck the box to "Connect to server."

Winamp Remote Beta

Please review the following information if you elect to beta test the optional "Winamp Remote" feature. Winamp Remote is an application designed to give you the ability to access certain music and media files from your home computer to a remote device. You will need to download software separately if you desire to use the application. This software is designed to locate, create and store an index of media files located on your computer. You will need log-in credentials, such as a User ID and password, to set up your application and to access your media files from a remote location. When you log-on to Winamp Remote from a remote location, the application obtains the list of media files from your PC, sends the index (but not the actual media content) to a server operated by us or our authorized vendor, and creates a temporary, customized web page listing the media files available for streaming. The Winamp Remote application uses proprietary algorithms and encryption to secure your connection. The Winamp Remote application is designed to terminate and delete the web page and any information on this web page when you end your remote session. Since this application provides remote access to certain media content on your personal computer, you should keep your User ID and password confidential.

Personalization

The MyBestBets feature allows you to personalize your Winamp selections by providing us with information about the media that you are playing. Use of the MyBestBets function is completely voluntary. Our recommendation wizard may ask you about the genre of music you like, specific artists that you prefer, and the mix of music that you enjoy. It may also ask you for your email address, age range, zip code and country of residence. You may update this information at any time by accessing your profile. This data is tied to your email address and is used for several purposes. It is used to make recommendations to you about other artists that we think you may like based on the information you provide to us, to update you about performances and events in your area given by your favorite artists, to understand more about our user's musical interests, and to improve our product.

Cookies

Winamp may use cookies and web beacons to improve your experience at winamp.com. Cookies are small text files placed on your computer through your browser when you visit a web site. When you download a version of Winamp, it prompts our system to place a cookie on your computer to indicate which version of Winamp you have downloaded. When you go to www.winamp.com the cookies stored on your browser will tell us which home page to present to you. Through the use of cookies, users will be presented with a different home page designed for the version of Winamp that they are running. Cookies and web beacons may also be used by our advertising partners to collect aggregate advertising metrics and to understand which skins are downloaded and how often they are used.

Radio stations

Winamp provides our users with the tools to create their own online radio stations. Users who create their own radio stations are sent reports generated by the broadcast server about the listeners to their station. The reports include non-personally identifiable information such as the version of the Winamp player the listener is using, their IP address and how long the user has been listening to the station. This information is not sent to or retained by Winamp; it is transmitted directly to the station "owner" from the broadcast server. The purpose of this report is to provide the station "owner" with data about the capabilities of the listener's client and to prevent client spoofing.

Kids on Winamp

Winamp is not designed for children under age 18. Children under 18 should ask their parents for permission before using this service.

Legal Disclosure

Winamp was designed in such a way so that we would not maintain information about the personal listening habits of our individual users. In certain situations such as the receipt of a subpoena or court order, we may be required to share information about you as a Winamp user.

Security

Winamp uses encryption and other security procedures to help securely maintain any personal information that you provide to us. We also require our partners to establish procedures to provide for the security of information that we share with them about our users. While we make every effort to keep this information secure, we cannot guarantee that the security measures we take will prevent third parties from illegally obtaining your information.

Privacy Changes

If we decide to change the privacy policy for Winamp, we will post the changes here so that you will always know what information we collect about you, how we use it and whether it is shared with anyone.

This policy was last updated September 19, 2006.