meebo privacy policy

Last Updated: December 18, 2008

Meebo, Inc. ("Meebo") owns and runs various websites, including but not limited to meebo.com, meeborooms.com, meebome.com, and gomeebo.com, (the "Websites"). A link to this privacy policy is included on the homepage of each of the Websites. Meebo respects the privacy of its users. This document explains how Meebo will use the information that you provide to us via the Websites. Meebo may amend this privacy policy from time to time. If Meebo does so, the revised privacy policy will be posted on the Websites.

1. Information Collected. You are not required to provide personally identifiable information to visit the Websites; however, in order to take advantage of certain features you may need to provide some personally identifiable information.

• Account Information. To create an account on Meebo, we require you to provide your name, email address, age and gender, and to create a user name and to provide a password.
• Third Party Message Account User Names and Passwords.Meebo allows you to access third party IM services by logging into your account through Meebo. In order to access your third party IM service account, you must enter your applicable user name(s) and password(s) on Meebo. To use the basic services of the Websites, Meebo does not store the password(s) of your third party IM service account on our server. If you wish to utilize advanced features of the Websites, such as automatic sign-in, storage of your password(s) may be necessary.
• Aggregate Usage Data and Anonymized Data. Meebo may collect usage data and other information on all users, including data about their usage of the site and its various features, but it is not personally identifiable except as described below under the IP Addresses section ("Aggregate Data"). In addition, Meebo may take your personal information and create anonymized information by excluding information (such as your user name) that makes it personally identifiable to you ("Anonymized Data").
• Personal Information for Social Features. From time to time, Meebo introduces features that allow friends to share more information about themselves with other friends, including information about what they are doing on Meebo. Meebo may store the personally identifiable information that you provide us in order to provide these services, including your friends list. Whenever a social feature involves the disclosure of personally identifiable information about you to other people, Meebo will either provide you with an opportunity to opt out of the disclosure or will seek your consent prior to making the disclosure.
• File Transfer. When you use the file transfer feature of Meebo, the file that you transfer is copied and retained on the servers of our third party service provider for a period of time following the transfer. Neither Meebo nor the third party service provider accesses or uses these files for any purpose, but you should be aware that these files are not encrypted.
• Platform Applications. Meebo has entered into agreements with third party developers ("Developers") to make their applications available through the Meebo Platform so that you can use them through the Websites (the "Platform Applications"). In order to enable the Platform Applications, Meebo may need to provide the Developers with your Meebo user name or other personally identifiable information that is related to your use of the Platform Applications. Meebo has required that the Developers only use this information to provide the Platform Applications to you and not disclose it to any third party.
  In addition, some of the Platform Applications may collect personally identifiable information from you directly. In that case, any information that you provide through the Platform Application will be governed by the Developer's privacy policy, which you should review carefully before using the Platform Application. Each Developer will be solely responsible for complying with its own privacy policy.
• Community IM. Meebo has partnered with various community websites to enable those websites to offer IM within their community ("Community IM"). If you have an account with one of those community websites and you use the Meebo-powered IM on that site, that site may provide Meebo with your user name on the community website as well as non-personally identifiable information about you such as your gender, age and interests. Meebo may use that information when it provides services to you, whether on meebo.com or when you visit a community website that has partnered with Meebo to offer IM, and will do so in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
• Demographic and Geographic Data. Meebo may ask people to voluntarily provide additional demographic information such as age, gender, location, and interests, or we may require it for you to use certain features. We use demographic information to improve our services and to provide you with features like customized advertising. In addition, Meebo may receive geographic or demographic information from outside sources. These sources may include companies whom we have engaged in accordance with Section 5 to provide that information based on information that you have provided to us, from our Community IM partners, from the third-party messenger services that you access through Meebo, or from other partners such as in connection with a co-branded website or a promotion. Meebo may combine the information we receive from those other sources with information we collect through the Websites.

2. Storage, Disclosure and Use of Your Communications. You can use Meebo to chat in private IM sessions, to chat in public sessions through Meebo Rooms, or to post on the Meebo message boards.

If you are registered as a Meebo user and are logged onto Meebo, your preferences are automatically set to store your IM chats on Meebo's servers. You can view or delete your IM history by clicking on the IM history icon in your chat window. You can turn off the IM history feature in your Meebo account preferences. Keep in mind that even if you elect not to store your IM history, the person that you're chatting with may be storing your conversation, either on their IM network's severs or on their own computers. By using Meebo, you consent to the storage of your IM history as the default option and to the storing of your IM history by other users with whom you are chatting. For more information about IM history features and settings, please see Meebo's support documentation.

Your posting to Meebo message boards and chats in Meebo Rooms are public and are also saved on our servers as chat or message histories, which are also accessible to the public, who may include law officers and other authorities. To the extent that your postings on message boards or in Meebo Rooms include personally identifiable information, such information may be saved on our server(s) and may be disclosed to the public in perpetuity.

Meebo may disclose saved IM history in legal proceedings in the same manner as other personally identifiable information as described in Section 5.

Meebo may customize the advertising shown to users based on software analysis of chat or Meebo Room conversations.

3. Cookies. Meebo may use cookies on the Websites. Cookies are small text files that are placed on your computer's hard drive by our servers to identify your computer to our servers. Except as provided in Section 5, below, no personally identifiable information stored in the Meebo cookies will be shared with outside companies for any purpose without your permission. You can also disable cookies or otherwise manage them through tools provided with your browser software and with third-party software packages, or not use the features that require cookies.

We and our advertisers may use third-party companies to serve ads when you visit the Websites. These third-party ad-serving companies may also place cookies on your computer. Sometimes these cookies may be used to provide targeted advertising to you. These advertising companies may also use Web beacons to help manage and optimize our online advertising.

To the extent that Meebo allows advertisers or other third parties to use cookies or Web beacons on the Websites, Meebo will require that they agree to adopt a substantially similar privacy policy with respect to your information. Some third-party ad serving companies have agreed to allow users to opt-out of receiving targeted advertising. To opt-out of receiving customized advertising from ad networks who are members of the Network Advertising Initiative, please visit its website.

4. IP Addresses. Meebo compiles logs of IP addresses of visitors to the Websites for administrative and analytical purposes. Meebo does not routinely collect any personally identifiable information through its compilation of IP address or the location of computers on the Internet. However, in cases of suspected abuse or service problems, Meebo may use an IP address in conjunction with other personally identifiable information to enforce our Terms of Use and/or to protect or troubleshoot the Websites, its users or others who may be affected. Except as provided in Section 5 below, Meebo will not share personally identifiable information associated with IP addresses with third parties.

Meebo may share data about aggregate IP addresses, but such data does not include personally identifiable information.

5. Usage and Sharing of Information.

Usage of Information. Meebo may use the information it collects, including your personal information, aggregated data, and Anonymized Data, for the following purposes:

• To provide you with access to your account.
• To provide you with services you have requested.
• To enhance and improve our services.
• To provide customized advertising to you.
• To conduct research.
• To determine your geographic location or other demographic information about you.
• To create reports and to analyze usage patterns.

Sharing of Information. Meebo may share personally identifiable information with third parties in the following cases:

• To enable the normal course of functionality of the Websites (for example, your user name(s) and password(s) and IP address will be shared with your message services in order to permit you to log onto and utilize that message service through Meebo).
• With partner websites who offer Meebo-powered features, such as Community IM and Meebo Rooms, when you use those features on our partner websites.
• With trusted third party service providers who help us in the operation of the Meebo service and who have agreed to maintain the confidentiality of the data.
• To the Developers who provide Platform Applications that you have elected to use, as described above.
• As part of Meebo's social features, as described above.
• In cases of abusive behavior or suspected violations of the terms of use of either Meebo or of the messaging service you have logged onto through Meebo, we may share personal information, including IP address, with that messaging service or with our Community IM partners in order to investigate the violation and to take appropriate action.
• To respond to subpoenas, court orders, or legal process, to prevent fraud or imminent harm, or to establish or exercise our legal rights or defend against legal claims.
• In the event that Meebo is acquired by or merged with another company, Meebo will transfer information about you to that other company.

6. Notification of Changes and Other Events. Any changes to this policy will be posted on the Websites in this location.

Meebo reserves the right to send you certain communications relating to the Websites and the services offered thereby, such as service announcements and administrative messages, but we plan on doing so sparingly, if ever. You cannot opt out of these messages.

You consent to receiving all notifications from Meebo through display on the Websites or through email, including any notifications that Meebo is required by law to send to you.

7. Links to Other Sites. The Websites contain links to, and media and other content from, other sites. In addition, such third-party media and content may also contain external links. Because of the dynamic media capabilities of the Websites, it may not be clear to you which links are embedded in the Websites and which are embedded in third-party media and/or content. Although Meebo requires our business partners and advertisers to adopt privacy policies similar to this privacy policy with respect to any information collected on the Websites, Meebo cannot and does not guarantee the privacy policies and practices of any third party, including the Developers who provide the Platform Applications. Meebo does not control, operate or endorse any information, products or services of any third-party Websites that may be reached through links from the Websites or of any Platform Application. The use of any personal information provided to such a third party will be governed by that party's privacy policy.

8. Non-U.S. Users. Meebo is hosted and operated entirely in the United States and is subject to United States law. Any personal information that you provide to Meebo is being provided to Meebo solely in the United States and will be hosted on United States servers. If you are accessing Meebo from outside the United States, please be advised that United States law may not offer the same privacy protections as the law of your jurisdiction.

9. Acceptance. This privacy policy is incorporated into and subject to the terms and conditions of Meebo's Terms of Use, available on the Websites. Use of the Websites and the services offered thereby is subject to your compliance with the Terms of Use, which constitutes a legal agreement between you and Meebo. Each time you use the Websites and the services offered thereby you signify that you have read, understood and agree to be bound by the Terms of Use, which incorporates the privacy policy, and the applicable posted guidelines. USE OF THE WEBSITES AND THE SERVICES OFFERED THEREBY SIGNIFIES THE ACCEPTANCE OF THE TERMS OF USE AND THE PRIVACY POLICY. If you do not agree with the terms of either of these documents, please do not provide Meebo with any information and do not use the Websites and the services offered thereby. Your continued use of the Websites and the services offered thereby in light of changes to this privacy policy, the Terms of Use, or to the relevant principles thereof will signify your acceptance of the changes.

10. Editing and Deleting Your Account Information and Preferences. You can edit certain personal information that you have provided or request that your account be deleted by logging into your Meebo account. Deleting your Meebo account does not currently remove your personal information from the Meebo site. However, if you delete your account, we will only use your personal information to comply with subpoena requests as required by law or to investigate suspected violations of law or terms of use involving your account.

11. Children. Meebo does not permit children under 13 to create a Meebo account. In addition, Meebo does not store any data or information of users who access their third party message accounts who indicate to us that they are under 13. If you are a parent of a child under 13 and you believe that you child has created a Meebo account in violation of our policy, please contact us at comments@meebo.com

12. Comments and Questions. If you have any comments or questions you may address them to our customer service department at comments@meebo.com, or via mail addressed to Customer Service, Meebo, Inc., at 215 Castro Street, Third Floor, Mountain View, CA 94041.