Privacy Policy

Last Updated: September 20, 2006

INTRODUCTION               [Special Note to California Customers]

VIZ Media, LLC (“VIZ Media”) is committed to providing a fun, safe and secure website for people of all ages. We are dedicated to safeguarding all personally identifiable information collected online in accordance with this Policy and to helping our visitors learn how to exercise control over personally identifiable information while exploring the Internet. Because many visitors to this site are children, we take care that children access only the content that is appropriate for them. In addition, we employ special measures to help children protect their privacy while online. Our practices with respect to the personally identifiable information of children are explained in Section VI below. 

To help ensure a rewarding online experience for all visitors, we provide this summary of the information practices of VIZ Media. This privacy notice governs the collection and use of information at all web sites owned and controlled by VIZ Media including, without limitation:

www.viz.com
store.viz.com
naruto.viz.com
narutostore.viz.com
inuyasha.viz.com
inuyashastore.viz.com
www.zatch-bell.com
zatch-bellstore.viz.com
bleach.viz.com
bleachstore.viz.com
www.dekobokofriends.com
dekobokofriendsstore.viz.com
www.animerica.com
www.fma-manga.com
www.hamtaro.com
www.kamikazegirls.net
www.megaman-ntwarrior.com
www.mirmo-zibang.com
www.saikano-usa.com
www.shojobeat.com
www.shonenjump.com

(collectively the “Sites”).  As we continue to offer our visitors new and different types of content and services, we may modify our practices from time to time.

I. The Information We Collect

At Our Sites, we do not collect personally identifiable information unless our visitors voluntarily provide it to us. For some activities, such as completing online polls or surveys, we may ask visitors to provide information such as first and/or last name, city or state of residence, age, gender, or a favorite title or character.  For some other activities, such as entering sweepstakes or contests, participating in forums, sign-ups, chats or bulletin boards or subscribing to our magazines, web sites or e-mail newsletters or requesting us to make products, services or information available to you, we may ask visitors to provide a first and/or last name and e-mail address. For other activities, such as sending an electronic postcard, e-mail to a friend, or refer a friend, we may also ask for personally identifiable information about other people. This is usually limited to a first name and e-mail address. E-mail addresses collected to send an electronic postcard or e-mail to a friend are used only for the purpose of transmitting the requested postcard or e-mail.  For some limited activities, campaigns, or offers, intended for parents and adults, we may ask a parent or adult to provide their name, address, e-mail address, telephone number, fax number, credit card information, cable or satellite provider, and/or information about their interests in and use of various products, programs, and services.

Visitors who order merchandise or other materials from one of our store websites (e.g., store.viz.com, narutostore.viz.com) will be directed prior to purchase to the web site of our outside e-commerce partner, where they will be required to provide their full name, billing and mailing addresses, e-mail address, telephone number and a credit card number. If the order is being shipped to a third party, we will also need the recipient's name and mailing address may be collected by us and/or our third party e-commerce partner.  On occasion, we might solicit additional voluntary information regarding shoppers' personal shopping preferences.  (Please see discussion below about Third party sites).

For specific one-time requests we receive from visitors, e-mail addresses are collected and used only in connection with the specific one-time request.  For example, for sweepstakes and contests, e-mail addresses are collected for the purpose of entering online sweepstakes or contests and are used to notify winners of the sweepstakes or contest by e-mail. In addition, a contest or sweepstakes participant or visitor to Our Sites may be asked to provide personally identifiable information in connection with any subscriptions, sign-ups or items purchased through Our Sites.  Sweepstakes or contest winners may be required to return completed prize Affidavit of Eligibility,  Liability Release and/or similar forms by facsimile or U.S. mail within a designated time period (along with the signature of a parent or legal guardian for all minors).

When visitors come to our Sites, we automatically collect some non-personally identifiable information such as the type of computer operating system (e.g., Windows 2000 or Mac OS) and browser (e.g., Netscape, Internet Explorer) being used, and the domain name of the Internet service provider (e.g., America Online, Earthlink).

II. How We Use the Information

We generally use visitors' personally identifiable information for the purposes for which it was provided, such as enabling visitors to enter our online contests or sweepstakes or to subscribe to an online newsletter or to order from our e-commerce sites. VIZ Media may also use personally identifiable information provided by vistors at our sites or by shoppers at or through related e-commerce sites to send them, by e-mail or direct mail, notification of special offers, sale events, or birthday reminders. We may disclose personally identifiable information of parents or adults to selected third-party companies that want to contact you in connection with other initiatives or marketing products or services that we believe may be of interest to you. This policy does not cover the privacy practices of these companies or other third parties.

California Customers:
Individual California residents may specifically request information about our disclosures, if any, of certain categories of personally identifiable information to third parties for their direct marketing purposes.  Such requests must be submitted to us either by email at the email address or mailing address set forth above.  Within thirty (30) days of receiving such a request, we will provide a list of the categories of personally identifiable information disclosed to third parties for their direct marketing purposes during the immediately preceding calendar year, along with the names and addresses of these third parties.  This request may be made no more than once per calendar year.  We reserve our right not to respond to requests submitted other than to the email or mailing addresses specified above.

When visitors submit personally-identifiable information about other individuals through our Site, we use that information [only] for the purpose for which it was provided, such as sending them electronic postcards or e-mail or shipping gifts purchased on or through our e-commerce sites.

Other than such information relating to the Winners, we do not keep any personally identifiable information we obtain through a contest or sweepstakes after we have successfully selected a winner(s), awarded the prize(s), and administered the contest or sweepstakes. We only use the e-mail addresses of subscribers to e-mail newsletters to send them the requested newsletter(s). Each newsletter also includes instructions for subscription removal via return e-mail.

Sometimes, we use agents, licensees or contractors to provide services to our visitors, such as helping us conduct a sweepstakes, sending prizes to winners, shipping or handling customer orders made on or through our e-commerce sites. In these cases, we require the agent, licensee or contractor to keep the information confidential and to use it only for the specific services they are performing. We sometimes use non-personally identifiable information that we collect to improve the design and content of Our Sites, and to improve our visitors' experience on Our Sites. We also may aggregate this information for marketing analysis, surveys, service evaluation, planning and/or to analyze site usage, as well as to offer products, programs, or services.  Notwithstanding the foregoing, in cases where surveys allow users to submit written comments, and where we advise users or the possibility of such disclosure at the time they take the survey, we reserve the right to disclose text information provided by any user through such survey, provided that no personally identifiable information for that user is disclosed.

We may also disclose personally identifiable information in response to legal process, for example, in response to a court order or a subpoena. We also may disclose such information in response to a law enforcement agency's request, or where we believe it is necessary to investigate, prevent, or take action regarding illegal or unauthorized activities, suspected fraud, situations involving potential threats to the physical safety of any person, violations of our terms of use, to verify or enforce compliance with the policies governing Our Sites and applicable laws, or as otherwise required or permitted by law. In addition, we may transfer personally identifiable information about you if we or one of our business units acquire, or are acquired by, sold to, or merged with another company.  For example, we may use your information to complete transactions requested by you (such as your purchase of a product or service offered on Our Sites), or to enforce our Terms of Use, to send you administrative communications either about your purchases, subscriptions and/or account(s) with us or about features of Our Sites, including, without limitation, any future changes to this Privacy Policy.

We will not use or transfer personally identifiable information about children under 13 in ways that are materially different from the ones described above without also providing parental notification of such practices and obtaining consent for any materially different uses.

III. Cookies, Web Beacons and Opt-Outs

Our Sites use a software technology called cookies. Cookies are small text files that we place in visitors' computer browsers to store their preferences. Cookies themselves do not contain any personally identifiable information. Although cookies could enable us to relate a visitor's use of this web site to personally identifiable information that the visitor has provided, such as an e-mail address, we do not use cookies for this purpose with one exception: for some activities, we use session cookies to ensure that visitors under the age of 13 provide a parental email address to assist with our compliance with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). We do use cookies to determine how many visitors we have and how often they visit various sections of Our Sites.

Web beacons are small pieces of code placed on a web page to track or monitor the behavior and collect data about the visitors viewing a web page. For example, web beacons can be used to count the users who visit a web page or to deliver a cookie to the browser of a visitor viewing that page. We may use web beacons on this site from time to time for this and other purposes.

Users may receive site notifications, newsletters or other information via email.  Users may remove themselves from such services at their discretion.  Any email sent to an opt-out list will include directions for how a user may remove him or herself from the list or a URL where the user may find such directions.

In some cases, users may have the opportunity to use Our Sites to send electronic mail to another user or email list.  In such cases, a user’s valid email address and real name will be included with such messages.  In order to prevent abuse, users may opt-out of such a display, but may choose to refrain from using said Service to transmit an email message.

In cases where users voluntarily and publicly disclose personally identifiable information on Our Sites, such personally identifiable information will be available to other visitors to Our Sites.  An example of such a disclosure includes, but is not limited to, a user’s disclosure of personally identifiable information as part of a message posted to a public message forum.  We cannot be responsible for personally-identifiable information that you choose to post or disclose on Our Sites, and encourage you to use discretion in sharing any information on Our Sites.

IV. Collection of Information by Third-Party Sites, Sponsors and Ad Servers

Our site contains links to other sites, including those of sponsors, licensees, partners, vendors and advertisers (collectively Third Party Sites), whose information practices may be different from ours. Sometimes these sites might conduct contests or sweepstakes that are promoted by us or on Our Sites. VISITORS SHOULD CONSULT THESE THIRD PARTY SITES' PRIVACY NOTICES AND POLICIES, SINCE THESE SITES ARE NOT COVERED BY OUR PRIVACY POLICY AND MAY FOLLOW DIFFERENT PROCEDURES.

Additionally, we and Third Party Sites may use third parties to serve or to present the ads that appear on our site and to conduct research about the advertisements. These third party ad servers may use cookies, web beacons, clear .gifs or similar technologies to help present such advertisements, and to help measure and research the effectiveness of advertisements or other material. The use of these technologies by these third party ad servers is subject to their own privacy policies and is not covered by our privacy policy.

V. Security

We have put in place reasonably appropriate physical, electronic, and managerial procedures in an effort to safeguard and help prevent unauthorized access, maintain data security, and correctly use the information we collect online.

We are particularly sensitive to visitors' security concerns regarding the use of credit cards to purchase products over the Internet. For orders placed on or through our e-commerce sites, a technology is used that automatically encrypts credit card data while information is being transmitted over the Internet, provided that the visitor's browser supports the Secure Socket Layer protocol (SSL).

To verify the security of your connection, check the outside corners of your browser window or the page where personally identifiable information is provided for e-commerce (such as the check-out or shopping cart pages). If you see an unbroken or a closed lock, then SSL is active and the server is secured by SSL. You may also check by looking at the URL line of your browser.

VI. Privacy Practices Concerning Information About Children

If a child under thirteen seeks to participate in an activity on Our Sites that requires the collection, retention, and/or use of personally identifiable information, the terms of Sections I-V of the Privacy Policy regarding the categories of personally identifiable information, how personally identifiable information may be used, the types of third parties may receive data and the purposes of that sharing, apply to this Section VI, however, we will ask for a parent's e-mail address prior to collecting such personally identifiable information from the child.  We will use the parent’s e-mail address to request consent for the child’s participation in that activity.  The parent may consent to the collection and use of the child’s personally identifiable information without also consenting the disclosure of that personal information to third parties.  We do not ask children to disclose more personally identifiable information than is necessary for them to participate in a particular activity, and we take steps to prevent children from posting contact information on Our Sites.

The information described in this Section VI is collected by VIZ Media, LLC, 295 Bay Street, San Francisco, CA 94133; (415) 546-7073 or privacypolicy@viz.com.

As a parent, you have the right to access, modify, or request the deletion of any of the personally-identifiable information that any of Our Sites has collected from your child.  Please send a letter or postcard to our VIZ Media Privacy Manager at the mailing address provided below if you would like to do any of the following: access personally identifiable information that any of Our Sites has collected online from your child, correct factual errors in such information, request to have this information deleted, request that we cease to share your child’s personal information with third parties, or request that we no longer collect or maintain such information.  Please be sure to include your e-mail address and a telephone number where we can reach you. To protect your child's privacy and security, we will take reasonable steps to verify your identity before granting you access to the personally identifiable information that we collect and maintain about your child.

The Internet offers a world of opportunity for children. As a parent, your guidance and involvement are essential to help ensure that children have a safe and rewarding online experience. Your efforts to instill responsible information practices will help steer your children to age-appropriate sites, and will go a long way toward ensuring that your children have enriching online experiences.

VII. Contact Us

If you have any questions, comments or concerns regarding our privacy policy and/or practices, please contact us at the following e-mail address, mailing address and telephone number:

If email: privacypolicy@viz.com

Mailing Address (Postcards only, please):
Online Manager (Privacy Issue) VIZ Media
295 Bay Street
San Francisco, CA 94133
(415) 546-7073

VIII. Updates

From time to time, we may update this privacy notice, you can always tell the last date this privacy policy was updated by checking the data at the top of the privacy policy. We will notify you about material changes in the way we treat personally identifiable information by posting a revised policy on our Site. We encourage you to periodically check back and review this policy so that you always will know what information we collect, how we use it, and to whom we disclose it.

Our sites ©2006 VIZ Media, LLC: All Rights Reserved.

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