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ORBITEL COMMUNICATIONS
Subscriber Privacy Notice
ORBITEL COMMUNICATIONS, your local cable operator (“Operator”) is
providing this Notice to inform you of its practices regarding
personally identifiable information that may be collected in the
course of providing services to you over its cable system, including
video programming services, high speed data, Internet Service
Provider (ISP) Services, and Digital Phone services (“cable-based
services”). This notice is also being provided on behalf of ORBITEL
COMMUNICATIONS’ Affiliated Providers, (“Affiliated Providers”) whose
services may now or in the future be provided over Operator’s cable
systems. This Notice is being provided in accordance with the Cable
Act of 1934, as amended (the "Cable Act"). In addition to the Cable
Act, this Notice also makes reference to the Electronic
Communications Policy Act of 1986, as amended (“ECPA”), and the
Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act of 1998
(“Copyright Act”), which are also applicable if you are a subscriber
to an ISP service provided by Operator over its cable system (an
“ISP Service”). This notice is posted on-line at
www.OrbitelCom.com.
This Notice pertains to personally identifiable
information about you that you have furnished to Operator, or that
Operator has collected, in connection with the provision of
cable-based services to you. The provisions of this Notice also
apply as indicated herein to personally identifiable information
that you have furnished to Affiliated Providers or that they have
collected in connection with their provision of cable-based
services. Personally identifiable information does not include
aggregate data that does not identify you.
The Cable Act’s subscriber privacy provisions
apply to cable operators, as defined in the privacy provisions of
the Cable Act, providing cable and other services over their
systems. Operator’s Affiliated Providers intend to conduct their
privacy practices as set forth in this Notice, which provides
subscribers to their cable-based services with information required
by the privacy provisions of the Cable Act, whether or not these
Affiliated Providers qualify as Cable Operators. Operator’s
Affiliated Providers may provide subscribers with other information
concerning their general privacy practices through additional
policies and notices, which will continue to apply unless
inconsistent with this Notice. When using Operator’s Affiliated
Providers, you may wish to review these additional policies and
notices.
The provisions of this Notice do not apply to non-affiliated, third
party Providers (e.g., EarthLink) whose ISP Services are provided on
Operator’s cable systems. These non-affiliated Providers may have
their own privacy policies, which you may want to review. You should
also be aware that most of the content and applications provided
through your ISP Services are provided by third parties, and that by
accessing the online content of these third parties you may cause or
enable the transmission by the system to them of personally
identifiable information. The policies described in this Notice do
not apply to such third parties. These third parties may have their
own privacy policies, which you may also want to review.
Seven areas are covered by this Notice:
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The nature of personally identifiable
information collected about you and the way such information is
used;
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The nature, frequency, and purpose of any
disclosure that may be made of such information;
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Disclosure of information to governmental
entities and through legal process;
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The period of time such information will be
maintained;
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Your online communications on your ISP
Service;
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The times and place you may have access to
the information collected; and
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Your rights under the Cable Act.
1. Collection and Use of Personally
Identifiable Information
(a) In order that Operator can provide service to
you and operate efficiently, Operator collects the following types
of information about you that may constitute personally identifiable
information: your name, home, email and work address, telephone
numbers, social security number, and credit and credit card
information. Depending on the services Operator provides to you, its
records also may include information on billing, payment, damage and
security deposits, maintenance and repairs, how many television sets
you have connected to cable or that are cable ready, the location of
these television sets in your home, the number and location of PCs
in your home and your PC configuration, the service options you have
chosen, and the number of converters, cable modems or other cable
equipment installed in your home. Operator may remotely check your
PC to the extent necessary to determine whether it is susceptible to
unauthorized access or the dissemination of computer viruses.
Operator may also keep records of research concerning subscriber
satisfaction with its services, which are obtained from subscriber
interviews and questionnaires. Additionally, Operator may have a
record of whether you rent or own your home in the event that
landlord permission is required prior to installing its cable-based
services. Operator may also maintain subscriber correspondence (via
e-mail or otherwise). Operator may keep records of violations and
alleged violations arising from your subscription to cable-based
services under your ORBITEL COMMUNICATIONS Subscription Agreement as
well as other rules or terms of use governing your use of Operator’s
cable-based services. Finally, Operator may sometimes obtain from
third parties publicly available information about its subscribers.
(b) The information described in the paragraph
1(a) is used for purposes such as the following: to make sure you
are being billed properly for the services you receive; to send you
pertinent information about Operator’s services; to maintain or
improve the quality of Operator’s services; to answer questions from
subscribers (i.e., for troubleshooting); to ensure compliance with
relevant law and contractual provisions; to market cable-based
services that you may be interested in; and for tax and accounting
purposes.
(c) Operator’s system, in delivering and routing
the ISP Services, and the systems of Operator’s Affiliated
Providers, may automatically log information concerning Internet
addresses you contact, and the duration of your visits to such
addresses. Operator does not use or disclose any personally
identifiable information that may be derived from these logs for
marketing, advertising or similar purposes. Operator, as described
above, as well as your ISP, in providing the ISP Service to you,
also has access to personally identifiable information about you or
your ISP account, including the name and address associated with a
given IP address or, possibly, one or more e-mail accounts. You have
consented, in your ORBITEL COMMUNICATIONS Subscription Agreement and
your acceptance of Operator’s services, to the collection of
personally identifiable information as described in this paragraph.
(d) Under the Cable Act, a Cable Operator may
also collect personally identifiable information over a cable system
without subscribers’ consent if it is necessary to provide services
to subscribers, or to prevent unauthorized access to services or
subscriber data.
(e) Operator’s Affiliated Providers also may
collect the following types of information that may constitute
personally identifiable information:
(ii) registration and account information,
including your name, address, telephone number, screen names and
email address(es), means of subscription, billing and payment
(including credit card) information, and complaint and service
history;
(iii) account usage information, including
information about how often and how long you use the relevant ISP
Service, areas of the ISP Service visited and features of the ISP
Service selected or used, and purchases that you have made through
the ISP Service, in addition to account usage information relating
to your voice services;
(iv) technical information, including information
about your computer system, its software and modem, and your
geographical location;
(v) other subscriber information, including
preference and other information you provide when you use or
personalize your use of your ISP Service, information provided by
Operator’s Affiliated Providers’ business partners, information you
publish on the ISP Service, and information from other sources (for
example, publicly available supplementary data).
(f) The information collected by Operator’s
Affiliated Providers in connection with your use of their
cable-based services may be used in connection with the provision
and maintenance of the relevant cable-based service(s) and to
fulfill transactions that you request, to personalize or improve
your service experience, or as otherwise necessary in the course of
their businesses (for example, in audits, billing matters, or
research). Operator’s Affiliated Providers may also use this
information to provide advertising and other offers for goods and
services to you, subject to the marketing preferences you may select
when using their cable-based services. If you are a subscriber to
one or more of Operator’s Affiliated Providers, you have consented
in your Orbitel Communication Subscription Agreement to the
collection of such information for the uses described above.
2. Disclosure of Personally Identifiable
Information
(a) Personally identifiable information that
Operator maintains related to its subscribers will be disclosed by
Operator without the prior written or electronic consent of
subscribers only if: (1) it is necessary to render, or conduct a
legitimate business related to, the services that are provided to
you; (2) such disclosure is required by law or legal process as
described below; or (3) for mailing lists as described below.
(b) The types of persons to whom information
about you may be disclosed by Operator in the course of providing
cable service to you include the employees of Operator and its
related legal entities, agents, repair and installation
subcontractors, sales representatives, accountants, billing and
collection services and credit reporting agencies, consumer and
market research firms, and authorized representatives of
governmental bodies. Also upon reasonable request, personally
identifiable information is disclosed to persons or entities with an
equity interest in legal entities related to Operator when they have
a legal right to inspect Operator’s books and records.
(c) In addition, if you are an ISP Service
subscriber, information, including personally identifiable
information, may be shared between Operator and your ISP in
providing the ISP Service. The types of persons to whom information
about you may be disclosed in the course of providing an ISP Service
to you may include, in addition to those persons listed above, your
ISP and its employees or other entities who provide content and/or
services to the ISP Service or to you via the ISP Service.
(d) Information for billing purposes is generally
provided by Operator on a monthly basis. Information for other
purposes is provided by Operator as it is needed.
(e) Unless you object, the Cable Act also permits
Cable Operators to disclose personally identifiable information to
others, such as advertisers and direct mail or telemarketers, for
non-cable related purposes. Under the Cable Act, any disclosures for
purposes other than as described in the first three paragraphs of
this Section 2 and in Section 3 of this Notice is limited to the
following “mailing list information”: your name, address and the
particular services to which you subscribe (e.g., HBO or other
premium channels or tiers of service). In addition, Operator may add
to its mailing list publicly available information about subscribers
that is obtained from third parties. Mailing list information cannot
include the extent of your viewing or use of a particular service,
including the extent of your use of any ISP Service, or the nature
of any transaction you make over the cable system. Operator may
disclose such mailing list information from time to time. If you
wish to have Operator remove you from its mailing list, please
notify Operator in writing.
(f) In addition to any disclosures permitted in
the first paragraph of this Section 2, Operator’s Affiliated
Providers may also disclose, pursuant to the consent you granted in
your ORBITEL COMMUNICATIONS Subscription Agreement, the personally
identifiable information described in Section 1 in connection with
the provision of services to you, in order to fulfill transactions
that you request, to personalize your online experience, to comply
with criminal or civil legal process (including as described in
Section 3 of this Notice), and as otherwise necessary in the
ordinary course of their businesses. For example, Operator’s
Affiliated Providers may disclose your personally identifiable
information routinely to their employees, agents and contractors to
maintain, market, provide, and audit your cable-based services; to
outside auditors to check their records; to attorneys and
accountants as necessary to render services to such Providers; and
to merchants from whom you make purchases. The frequency of such
disclosures varies according to business needs. The names and
addresses of subscribers to Operator’s Affiliated Providers may also
be disclosed to selected companies in order to provide you direct
mail product and service offers, subject to the marketing
preferences you may select when using your cable-based services. In
disclosing name and address information for such purposes,
Operator’s Affiliated Providers may combine these lists with
publicly available information (such as census and household
information), or segment them (i.e., create separate sub-lists)
based on such publicly available information or on other information
(such as when the subscriber began using the cable-based service, or
the subscriber's computer type).
3. Disclosure of Information to Government
Entities and Other Legal Process
(a) Federal law requires Operator to disclose
personally identifiable information to a governmental entity or
other third party pursuant to a court order. If the court order is
sought by a governmental entity, the Cable Act requires that you be
afforded the opportunity to contest in court any claims made in
support of the court order sought. At such a proceeding, the Cable
Act requires the governmental entity to offer clear and convincing
evidence that the subject of the information is reasonably suspected
of engaging in criminal activity and that the information sought
would be material evidence in the case. In addition, pursuant to an
administrative subpoena, state welfare agencies may obtain the names
and addresses of individuals as they appear in the subscriber
records of cable operators with respect to those who owe, or are
owed, welfare support. Such information may be obtained without a
court order and does not require that a subscriber be given notice
of and the opportunity to contest the disclosure.
(b) If you are a subscriber to an ISP Service,
ECPA requires your ISP or Operator to reveal information to the
government in certain additional circumstances. ECPA addresses both
the content of communications on the ISP Service, as well as
subscriber record information. ECPA requires Operator and/or its
Affiliated Providers to disclose to governmental authorities the
content of communications in response to a criminal warrant or court
order without any notice to you and without your consent.
(c) In addition, under ECPA the government may
require Operator or your ISP to disclose subscriber record
information (but not the content of communications) pursuant to a
warrant, court order or subpoena without any notice to you and
without your consent.
(d) If you subscribe to an ISP Service, a private
party may use a subpoena under the Copyright Act to obtain
information about you to maintain a copyright infringement suit
against the poster of online material, without any notice to you.
Additionally, Operator’s Affiliated Providers may release
information about you to comply with valid legal process such as a
subpoena or court order, or as required by law.
(e) In your ORBITEL COMMUNICATIONS Subscription
Agreement, you have agreed that Operator and its Affiliated
Providers may also disclose any information in its possession to
protect its rights, property and/or operations, or where
circumstances suggest that individual or public safety is in peril.
4. Time Period That Operator Retains
Personally Identifiable Information
Operator and its Affiliated Providers maintain
personally identifiable information about subscribers for as long as
it is necessary for business purposes. This period of time lasts as
long as you are a subscriber and up to fifteen additional years so
that Operator and its Affiliated Providers can comply with tax and
accounting requirements. When information is no longer necessary for
these purposes, Operator or its Affiliated Providers destroy the
information unless there is a legitimate outstanding request or
order to inspect the information.
5. Your Online Communications on an ISP
Service
In addition to the situations described in
Section 3, ECPA provides for other exceptional circumstances under
which Operator and/or your ISP may be compelled to disclose
information about you or your communications, or are permitted to
disclose such information. For example, such information may be
disclosed to law enforcement if it appears to be evidence of child
pornography, or was inadvertently obtained and appears to pertain to
a crime. Such disclosure is also permitted to an addressee or
intended recipient (or his or her agent), or to a person involved in
forwarding such information to its destination; when it is
necessarily incident to providing service or to protect Operator’s
rights or property; to others with your consent or the consent of an
addressee or intended recipient (or his or her agent) of
communications sent by you; or as otherwise provided for by law. In
your ORBITEL COMMUNICATIONS Subscription Agreement, you have agreed
that Operator and its Affiliated Providers may disclose any
information in their possession to protect their rights, property
and/or operations, or where circumstances suggest that individual or
public safety is in peril.
6. Access to Records
Under the Cable Act, you have the right to
inspect the records of a Cable Operator that contain personally
identifiable information about you and correct any errors in such
information. If you wish to inspect these records, please notify
Operator in writing and an appointment at its local business office
will be arranged during its regular business hours.
7. Your Rights Under the Cable Act
The Cable Act provides you with a cause of action
for damages, attorneys’ fees and costs in Federal District Court
should you believe that any of the Cable Act’s limitations on the
collection, disclosure, and retention of personally identifiable
information have been violated by a Cable Operator. Your ORBITEL
COMMUNICATIONS Subscription Agreement contains your agreement that,
to the extent permitted by law, any claims that you have under the
Cable Act will be decided in arbitration and attorneys’ fees and
punitive damages will not be available.
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