A.P.E. PRIVACY STATEMENT
Last Updated: January 1, 2005
A.P.E. Automated Production Equipment (A.P.E.), (collectively referred to in
this Privacy Statement as "we" or "A.P.E. ") recognize
the importance of protecting the privacy of
all information provided by users of our web
sites, subscribers to our magazines, registrants
for our events, recipients of our e-mail newsletters
and all other customers of our products and
services. We created this policy with a fundamental
respect for our customers' right to privacy
and to guide our relationships with our customers.
This Privacy Statement discloses the privacy
practices for all products and services owned
by A.P.E. . A current list of our publications,
web sites, online webcasts, newsletters and
trade shows can be found at http://www.A.P.E. .com/.
INFORMATION COLLECTION AND USE
A.P.E. collects
information from our website users, subscribers
and other customers. In this section of our
Privacy Statement, we describe the type of
information we collect and how we use it
to provide better services to our customers.
Registration and Ordering
When attending our trade shows and other in-person events, participating
in our customer-sponsored webcasts, using some
of our websites and signing up for certain
selected services (such as free subscriptions),
users must first register. During registration,
users are required to give their contact
information (such as name, e-mail address,
mailing address and phone number). For internal
purposes, we use this information to communicate
with users and provide requested services,
and, for our website visitors, to provide a
more personalized experience on our sites.
We also may collect demographic information
(such as job title and purchasing responsibilities,
company information and professional certification).
We use aggregate demographic information about
our audience to improve our service, for marketing
purposes and/or industry reporting purposes.
Many of our products and services are free
to subscribers who meet certain demographic
criteria. Independent auditors may need to
certify the eligibility of these subscribers.
In order to do that, we may collect unique
identifiers (such as mother's maiden name)
that we disclose to the auditors strictly for
industry reporting and audit verification purposes.
For our services that require payment (such
as certain events, products and subscriptions),
we also collect credit card information (such
as account name, number and expiration date),
which is used for our or our agent's billing
purposes only, and is not otherwise shared.
E-mail Newsletters
If users wish to subscribe
to our e-mail newsletters, we ask for contact
information (such as name, e-mail address
and, occasionally, demographic information).
We use this information in the same manner
as we use contact information in the registration
and ordering process described above. Recipients
of our newsletters can unsubscribe using
the instructions listed at the end of the e-mail
newsletter.
Surveys and Contests
From time to time we invite web site users and other customers to provide
information via surveys or contests. Participation
in these surveys or contests is completely
voluntary and the website user or other customer
therefore has a choice whether to disclose
requested contact information (such as name
and mailing address) and demographic information
(such as zip code or job title). In addition
to the other uses set forth in this policy,
contact information collected in connection
with surveys and contests is used to notify
the winners and award prizes and to monitor
or improve the use of, and satisfaction with
the website or other A.P.E. product or service.
Subject to the given customer's preferences
(as described in the "Permission" section below), such information
also may be shared with third party sponsors
of such surveys or contests.
Interactive Features
At some of our sites, we offer interactive and community features such
as discussion boards, webcasts and user profiles.
Note that all personal information sent or
posted via such features becomes public information
for which we are not responsible.
Tell-A-Friend
If customers elect to use our referral service
for informing a friend about our sites and
services, we may ask them for the friend's
name, job title and e-mail address. A.P.E. will
store and use this information to send the
friend an invitation. This information may
also be used to provide information about
our company and related products and services.
The friend may contact us as specified in
the tell-a-friend message to request that
no further communications be sent.
Communications with Us
We have features where our customers can submit information to us (such
as our feedback forms). Where such submissions
include requests for service, support
or information, we may forward them to our
agents, as needed, to best respond to the specific
request. In addition, we may retain e-mails
and other information sent to us for our
internal administrative purposes, and to help
us to serve customers better. Please note that
letters to the editor and similar submissions
may be made public.
Communications from Us:
Service Updates, Special Offers
In order to
best serve our customers, we may send updates
that contain important information about our
products and services. For example, we send
new members a welcoming message, and verify
password and username for our password-protected
web sites. We may also communicate with a customer
to provide requested services and for account-related
issues via e-mail, phone or regular mail.
In addition to such service and product-essential
messages, we offer our customers the option
to receive information about our company,
related products, services and special deals.
Users, however, can choose not to receive these
communications from us, as set forth in the "Permission" section below.
Automatic Data Collection
Our web sites, newsletters and, from time to time, certain other
products and services have features that automatically
collect information from customers, to deliver
content specific to customers' interests and
to honor their preferences. This information
assists us in creating products and services
that will serve the needs of our customers.
For example, we use "cookies," a piece of data stored on the user's hard drive
containing information about the user. Cookies benefit the user by requiring
login only once, thereby saving time while on our web site. If users reject the
cookies, they may be limited in the use of some areas of our web site. For example,
the user may not be able to participate in sweepstakes, contests or drawings.
Additionally, we may note some of the pages the user visits on our web sites
and via our email newsletters through the use of pixel tags (also called clear
gifs) and web beacons. The use of cookies, pixels and web beacons enable us to
track and target the interests of our users to enhance the experience on our
sites and via our email newsletters.
In addition, some of our business affiliates
use cookies on our web sites and in our email
newsletters, in ads or promotions. However,
we have no access to or control over these
business affiliates' cookies; we urge users
to read their privacy policies for information.
In particular, we use a third-party advertising
company to serve ads when you visit certain A.P.E. web sites. Such
company may use information (not including
your name, address, email address or telephone
number) about your visit to these web sites
in order to provide advertisements about goods
and services that may be of interest to you.
In the course of serving advertisements to
these web sites, our third party advertiser
may place or recognize a unique cookie on your
browser. If you would like more information
about this practice and to know your choices
about not having this information used by this
third party advertising company, please {click here}.
We also use an email delivery and marketing
company to send emails (including newsletters)
for which you have registered (or otherwise
agreed to receive). Web beacons and cookies
may be used in such email messages to help
us measure the effectiveness of our advertising
and how customers use our web sites and other
products and services.
For our internal purposes,
we gather date, time, browser type, navigation
history and IP address of all visitors to our
web sites. This information does not contain
anything that can identify users personally. We use this information
for our internal security audit log, trend
analysis and system administration, and to
gather broad demographic information about
our user base for aggregate use.
We may combine
demographic information supplied by a customer
at registration with web site usage data to
provide general profiles, in aggregate non-personally
identifiable form, about our customers and their preferences in
the content of the site and advertising. We
may share this composite information with our
advertisers and business affiliates to help
them better understand our services.
WITH WHOM
YOUR INFORMATION IS SHARED
When we have co-branded, customized, private label, "powered by" or
sponsored products and services, or when we join with other parties to
provide specific services (however, we do not share credit card
information with such third parties), then, subject to the given
customer's preferences (as described in the "Permission" section
below), we may share (provide and receive) personal information with
such third party. In particular, please note that, subject to the given
customer's preferences (as described in the "Permission" section
below), information collected in connection with online webcasts, such
as at www.netseminar.com, will be shared with the sponsor of the
particular webcast(s)/seminar(s). These sponsors will use the
information according to their own privacy policies, and we urge
participants to read those policies and be aware of their privacy
practices before registering.
In addition, at EEProductCenter.com and related
sites, information may be shared with selected
advertisers if a user affirmatively clicks
through on a link/ad to such advertiser at
those sites or in e-mails.
Finally, on occasion,
we may provide targeted lists of names and
offline and online contact information for
marketing purposes to third parties, subject
to our Permission policies, as described below, pursuant to
which we give customers the option of not having
their name or contact information disclosed
to third parties.
Other than as set forth above, we do not share
personally identifiable information with other
companies, apart from those acting as our agents
in providing our product(s)/service(s), and
which agree to use it only for that purpose
and to keep the information secure and confidential.
Also, our parent, subsidiary and affiliate
companies, entities into which our company
may be merged, or entities to which any of
our assets, products, sites or operations may
be transferred, will be able to use personal
information. We will also disclose information
we maintain when required to do so by law,
for example, in response to a court order or
a subpoena or other legal obligation, in response
to a law enforcement agency's request, or in
special cases when we have reason to believe
that disclosing this information is necessary
to identify, contact or bring legal action
against someone who may be causing injury to
or interference with (either intentionally
or unintentionally) our rights or property.
Users should also be aware that courts of equity,
such as U.S. Bankruptcy Courts, might have
the authority under certain circumstances to
permit personal information to be shared or
transferred to third parties without permission.
We may share aggregate information, which
is not personally identifiable, with others.
This information may include usage and demographic
data, but it will not include personal information.
CORRECTION/UPDATING PERSONAL
INFORMATION
If
your personally identifiable information changes
(such as zip code), or if you no longer desire
our product(s)/service(s), we provide a way
to correct or update your personal data: you
may either contact Customer Support for the
applicable product or service or, to change
your preferences, complete the "Feedback" page as described in the "Permission" section below.
PERMISSION
Our customers are given the opportunity to
choose whether to receive information from
our affiliates and us not directly related
to the product or service for which they registered
(or which they otherwise agreed to receive).
Customers also have the opportunity to choose
whether to have personal information shared
with third parties for marketing purposes.
Instructions for how to exercise these choices
are contained in e-mails sent by us, on our
product websites and in each of our publications.
Customers also can go to our "Feedback" page at any time, at http://www.A.P.E. .com/feedback/permission.jhtml
to change their preferences. In addition, for those customers that are
California residents, you may have additional rights, as described in
the "Your California Privacy Rights" section below.
Please note that we will endeavor to implement
your permission requests within a reasonable
time, although for a time you may continue
to receive mailings, etc., transmitted based
on information released prior to the implementation
of your request. In addition, please note that
even after such request is implemented, you
will continue to receive information directly
related to the product or service for which
you registered (or which you otherwise agreed
to receive), so you always are kept informed.
YOUR CALIFORNIA PRIVACY
RIGHTS
Beginning on
January 1, 2005, California Civil Code Section
1798.83 permits those customers that are California
residents to request that A.P.E. not share your
personal information with third parties for
their direct marketing use. To make such a
request, [click here] or write us at: Legal
Department - Privacy Officer
A.P.E. Automated Production Equipment (A.P.E.)
600 Community Drive
Manhasset NY 11030
privacyrequests@A.P.E. .com
SECURITY We use reasonable precautions to protect our customers' personal
information and to store it securely. Sensitive
information that is transmitted to us online
(such as credit card number) is encrypted and is transmitted
to us securely. In addition, access to all
of our customers' information, not just the
sensitive information mentioned above, is
restricted. Only employees who need the information
to perform a specific job (for example, a billing
clerk or a customer service representative)
are granted access to personally identifiable
information. Finally, the servers on which
we store personally identifiable information
are kept in a secure environment.
LINKS
Our web sites contain links to other sites. A.P.E. is not responsible
for the privacy practices or content of such
other sites. We encourage our users to be
aware when they leave our site and to read
the privacy statements of each web site to
which we may link that may collect personally
identifiable information.
NOTIFICATION and
CHANGES
If we change our Privacy Statement,
we will post those changes on this page so our users are
aware of what information we collect, how we
use it and under which circumstances, if any,
we disclose it. Users should check this policy
frequently to keep abreast of any changes.
For questions about this Privacy Statement,
contact:
Legal Department - Privacy Officer
A.P.E. Automated Production Equipment (A.P.E.)
600 Community Drive
Manhasset NY 11030
516-562-5000 Ext. 5703
privacyrequests@A.P.E. .com
For all other questions concerning the practices
of this site or any dealings with A.P.E. Media
LLC, CME LLC, A.P.E. Automated Production Equipment (A.P.E.) or A.P.E.
Healthcare Media Group LLC, contact us at:
Corporate Communications
A.P.E. Automated Production Equipment (A.P.E.)
600 Community Drive
Manhasset NY 11030
516-562-5000
A.P.E. @A.P.E. .com |
