Privacy Policy

The Watch Party ("The Watch Party," "we," "us," or "our") operates the watchpartytheater.com website together with The Watch Party apps for Apple (iOS/iPadOS), Android, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV (collectively, the "Service"). This Privacy Policy applies to all of these — the website and every app — and explains what information we collect, how we use it, and the choices you have. By using the Service on any platform you agree to the practices described here.

1. Information We Collect

Information you give us

• Account details — the email address and password you use to register. Passwords are stored only as a secure cryptographic hash; we never store them in plain text.
• Profile and social data — the friends you add (by email), the watch parties you host or join, invitations, and RSVPs.
• Payment information — when you rent a film, buy a ticket, or sponsor a party, web purchases are processed by Stripe, and purchases made directly on the Roku or Amazon Fire TV apps are processed through those platforms' billing. In either case we do not receive or store your full card number. We retain a record of the transaction (amount, date, what it granted, and a payment reference) to deliver your purchase and, for hosts, to calculate earnings.
• Communications — messages you send us for support at admin@watchpartytheater.com.

Information collected automatically

• Usage and device data — basic technical information such as your IP address, browser or device type, and the actions you take in the Service, used to operate, secure, and improve it.
• Live session data — while you are in a watch party we process real-time state such as your selected seat and voice-mode participation so the shared experience stays synchronized.
• Advertising data (free films only) — when you watch a free, ad-supported film, our advertising partner receives the data needed to request and measure ads, including your IP address and, on the TV apps, a resettable advertising identifier provided by the platform. See "Advertising on Free, Ad-Supported Films" below.

Rentals and rewards history

We keep a record of your rentals and purchases to deliver what you bought and to run our loyalty rewards program (for example, a "rent five, get the sixth free" punch card), which tracks how many qualifying rentals you have made toward a free-rental reward.

Voice in watch parties

Some parties include live spatial voice audio. Your microphone audio is transmitted in real time to other participants in the same party. We do not record, store, or listen to your voice audio. Voice is carried through our own media server and is never persisted. Your microphone is only active when you join a voice room and can be muted at any time; a host may also mute participants.

2. How We Use Your Information

• Create and secure your account and authenticate you.
• Provide the Service: catalog browsing, rentals, free ad-supported films, tickets, hosting and joining watch parties, friends, seating, and live voice.
• Process payments and, for hosts, track earnings and payouts.
• Run our loyalty rewards program and track your progress toward a free rental.
• Serve and measure advertising on free, ad-supported films.
• Send you Service-related messages (for example, friend invitations you initiate, receipts, and account or security notices).
• Prevent fraud and abuse, enforce our Terms, and comply with legal obligations.
• Diagnose problems and improve the Service.

3. How We Share Information

We do not sell your personal information. We share it only as needed to run the Service:

• Service providers — Stripe (payment processing), DigitalOcean (hosting, database, and storage infrastructure), Resend (transactional email delivery, such as receipts and invitations), and Google Ad Manager (advertising on free, ad-supported films — see the Advertising section below). These providers process data on our behalf under their own terms; the advertising partner also uses ad data as described in the Advertising section.
• Other users — when you host or join a party, limited information (such as your display name derived from your email and your presence in the party) is visible to other participants. When you add a friend by email, that person can see that you sent the request. Once a party has a ticket holder, the party is locked and plays at its scheduled time whether or not the host attends.
• Legal — when required by law, subpoena, or to protect the rights, safety, and property of our users or The Watch Party.
• Business transfers — in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, subject to this Policy.

4. Advertising on Free, Ad-Supported Films

Some films are available to watch for free, supported by advertising. When you watch a free, ad-supported film, ads are delivered through Google Ad Manager and the advertising components built into each platform (Google's IMA SDK on the web and Fire TV, and the Roku Advertising Framework on Roku). To request and measure those ads, the advertising system and Google may receive technical data such as your IP address, general location, device type, and — on the TV apps — a resettable advertising identifier provided by the platform (for example, Roku's Advertising ID or Amazon's Advertising ID). This information is used to serve ads, measure their performance, and limit repetition.

We do not sell your personal information. Because this ad delivery involves disclosing limited data to Google, California law treats it as “sharing” for cross-context behavioral advertising, and you have the right to opt out — see Your California Privacy Rights below. On the web you can opt out any time using the Your Privacy Choices link in the page footer. Paid rentals and watch parties are not ad-supported. You can also limit ad personalization or reset your advertising identifier in your device settings — for example, Roku: Settings → Privacy → Advertising; Fire TV: Settings → Preferences → Advertising ID; and in a web browser, through your ad and cookie settings. Google's handling of advertising data is governed by Google's own policies at policies.google.com/privacy and policies.google.com/technologies/ads.

5. Data Retention

We keep your account and related data for as long as your account is active. We keep transaction and earnings records as long as needed for accounting, tax, and legal purposes. When you delete your account we remove or anonymize your personal information, except records we are required to retain by law. You can request deletion at any time (see "Your Rights" below).

6. Security

We protect the Service with measures including encrypted connections (HTTPS/TLS), hashed passwords, signed and time-limited media URLs, private storage, role-based access controls, network firewalls, and rate limiting. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, but we work to protect your information and to promptly address any issues.

7. Your Rights and Choices

• Access and update — view and edit your profile and change your password from your account page.
• Advertising choices — on the web, opt out of ad personalization on free films any time with the Your Privacy Choices link in our footer (or open it here). On the TV apps, reset or limit your advertising identifier in your device settings (see the Advertising section above).
• Delete — request deletion of your account and personal data by emailing admin@watchpartytheater.com.
• Access, correction, or a copy — depending on where you live (including under the GDPR and the CCPA), you may have the right to access, correct, port, or delete your personal information, and to object to certain processing. Contact us to exercise these rights; we will not discriminate against you for doing so.

Your California Privacy Rights (CCPA/CPRA)

If you are a California resident, the California Consumer Privacy Act, as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act, gives you the rights below. We honor these rights for all users where practical.

• Right to know, access, correct, and delete — request the categories and specific pieces of personal information we hold about you, and ask us to correct or delete it. Email admin@watchpartytheater.com.
• Right to opt out of sale or sharing — we do not sell your personal information. We do “share” limited data with Google to show ads on free, ad-supported films (cross-context behavioral advertising). You can opt out of that sharing at any time using the Your Privacy Choices link in our footer (open it here). When you opt out, we request only non-personalized ads.
• Global Privacy Control (GPC) — if your browser sends a GPC signal, we treat it as a valid opt-out of sale/sharing automatically, with no action needed from you.
• Right to limit use of sensitive personal information — we do not use or disclose sensitive personal information for advertising or to infer characteristics about you, so no separate limitation is required.
• Non-discrimination — we will not deny you service, charge you a different price, or provide a different level of quality because you exercised any of these rights.

You may use an authorized agent to submit a request on your behalf; we may ask for proof of authorization and to verify your identity before we act. This page also serves as our notice at collection: the categories we collect and how we use and share them are described in the sections above.

8. Children's Privacy

The Service is not directed to children under 13 (or the minimum age required in your jurisdiction), and we do not knowingly collect personal information from them. If you believe a child has provided us information, contact us and we will delete it.

9. Platform-Specific Notes (Website, Apple, Android, Roku, Fire TV)

The same core privacy practices apply everywhere you use the Service, but how you reach some features can differ by platform:

• Website (watchpartytheater.com) — the full Service, including hosting parties, purchases, free ad-supported films, and browser-based voice.
• Apple (iOS/iPadOS) and Android apps — the companion experience: sign in, browse and join parties, take a seat, and use live spatial voice. On mobile we request microphone access only to carry your voice in a party (you control this in your device settings and can revoke it at any time), and we may request notification permission to alert you about parties. Purchases are completed on the web; the apps do not collect card details.
• Roku and Amazon Fire TV apps — used to watch on the big screen, including free, ad-supported films. On free films, ads are served by the platform's advertising framework using a resettable advertising ID that you can reset or limit in the device's settings (see the Advertising section). Live voice stays on your phone or in the browser, never on the TV device. Each platform (Apple, Google, Roku, Amazon) may also collect its own device and usage data under its own privacy policy, which we do not control.

10. International Users

We operate the Service from the United States, and your information is processed and stored there. By using the Service you consent to this transfer and processing.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will revise the "Last updated" date above and, where appropriate, provide additional notice. Your continued use of the Service after changes take effect means you accept the updated Policy.

12. Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or your information, contact us: