Effective date: 11 August 2026
Whakaata Māori is Aotearoa New Zealand’s Indigenous broadcaster engaging with whanau across the motu, and beyond. Our purpose is to revitalise and normalise te reo Māori and Māori culture through exciting, inspiring, and empowering content for audiences across all our platforms.
Our viewers and users of our platforms play an important role in shaping the content we deliver, and also the partnerships we develop with other entities to provide the best possible experience for you.
This means that we collect and use some of your personal information that you have provided to us when you use our platforms. But there are rules about this under the Privacy Act 2020 that must be complied with by all of us.
This Privacy Policy explains how Whakaata Māori collects and manages your personal information when you use Whakaata Māori Platforms. It should be read alongside our Terms of Use, available at here.
About this Privacy Policy
1. This Privacy Policy applies to any personal information we collect when you use our platforms or interact with us. When we refer to “your information”, we mean personal information that identifies you or relates to you.
2. When we say “we”, “us”, or “our”, we mean Whakaata Māori. This statement applies across all of our platforms, including MĀORI+, Te Reo, Whakaata Māori, Te Ao Māori News, and Kōrero.
3. By continuing to use our websites, apps, or platforms, you agree to this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, please stop using our platforms. If you wish to stop receiving communications from us, you can close your account as described later in paragraph 25.
4. Some of our platforms may have their own privacy policies, which will be relevant to you when you are using those platforms. They should be read in conjunction with this Privacy Policy.
5. We may need to change or update this Privacy Policy to reflect the law or changes to our practices. Any changes will apply from the effective date stated in this policy.
Who this Privacy Policy applies to
6. This Privacy Policy applies to:
a. Anyone who uses our platforms, including anyone who:
(i) creates an account with us;
(ii) visits the MĀORI+, Te Ao Māori News websites or apps, or any other Whakaata Māori websites or apps;
(iii) engages with our social media pages.
b. Anyone who enters one of our competitions or promotions.
c. Anyone who contacts us, for example to ask a question, give feedback, or make a complaint.
7. If you allow someone else to use your account (for example a family member with their own profile), please make sure they are aware of this Privacy Policy as we may collect information relating to their use of the account.
8. If you provide us with personal information about another person, you must have their permission to do so and ensure they are aware of this Privacy Policy.
What information we collect
9. Depending on how you use our platforms, we may collect information such as:
a. Account and contact information - This helps us create and manage your account and communicate with you. It may include your username, email address, gender identity, year of birth, and password.
b. Profile information - Details about profiles created within your account.
c. Viewing and usage information - Information about how our platforms are used, including what content you watch, when you watch it, and what you add to your watchlists. This helps us improve our platforms and recommend content that may interest you.
d. Device and technical information - This may include your IP address, device ID, device type, approximate location, and the version of our app you are using.
e. Service performance information - Data that helps us understand the quality and performance of our platforms.
f. Communications - Records of messages you send us or recordings of phone calls if you contact us by phone.
g. Competition entries - Information you provide when entering promotions or competitions.
10. In some cases, we may also receive information about you from third parties. For example:
a. advertising or commercial partners who help deliver relevant advertising;
b. other trusted third parties where you have given consent or where it is permitted under the Privacy Act 2020.
Cookies and Other Tracking Technologies
11. When you visit our websites, we use cookies and similar technologies to collect information about how our platforms are used. This helps us understand which content is popular and how we can improve the experience for users. These technologies may collect information about when you visit our sites, how you navigate them, and where you arrived from (for example through a search engine, social media post, or online advertisement).
12. Cookies can also help improve your experience by keeping you signed in, showing content that is relevant to you, and helping our partners deliver advertising that may be of interest to you.
How we use your personal information
13. We use personal information in different ways depending on how you interact with our platforms. In some cases, we may combine information from different platforms (such as MĀORI+ and Te Ao Māori News) to better understand your preferences and improve your experience. This allows us to personalise content, recommend programmes you may enjoy, and display more relevant advertising.
14. If we match your information with information provided by another organisation using a specialist service provider, the results of that process will not be shared unless the data has been anonymised or aggregated.
15. When you register for our platforms, we may assign your account a unique identifier. This helps us recognise you when you sign in from a different device or application.
16. We may also use your information for the following purposes:
a. To send you advertising or promotional messages through email, social media, or other channels
b. To personalise your experience on our platforms, including recommendations and homepage content
c. To deliver advertising that is more relevant to you
d. To measure how our advertising performs across devices
e. To operate competitions and promotions
f. To develop, test and improve our platforms
g. To provide anonymised insights to our advertising and commercial partners
h. To securely manage user logins using authentication providers such as Auth0
i. To store and manage user profile information in secure databases such as AWS DynamoDB
j. To analyse website traffic and usage trends through analytics tools such as Google Analytics
k. To help our suppliers provide services to us
l. To comply with legal obligations and enforce our Terms of Use
m. To respond to enquiries or feedback you send through our contact forms
We only keep personal information for as long as it is necessary for these purposes.
When we share your information
17. We take privacy seriously and we do not sell your personal information. However, in some situations we may share information so we can provide our platforms effectively. This may include:
a. Sharing audience lists with advertising platforms such as Facebook, Amazon or Google to deliver relevant advertising;
b. Sharing information with trusted service providers who support our platform; We'll make sure that these suppliers commit to comply with the Privacy Act 2020.
c. Working with technical partners who help manage data systems, analytics or troubleshooting;
d. Providing anonymised and aggregated insights to advertising partners, agencies and content distributors;
e. Sharing information where you have given permission;
f. Where we are able to do so under the Privacy Act 2020, including requests from law enforcement agencies, the Broadcast Standards Authority or the New Zealand Media Council.
How we protect your information
18. We take reasonable steps to safeguard the personal information we hold and ensure we meet our obligations under the Privacy Act 2020.
19. Your information may be stored in New Zealand or with trusted service providers located overseas that maintain privacy protections comparable to the Privacy Act 2020.
20. Whenever information is stored or shared with trusted providers, we implement security measures designed to protect it.
21. Our platforms may contain links to third-party websites. These sites have their own privacy policies, and we recommend reviewing them before providing any personal information. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of other organisations.
22. If you believe your personal information may have been compromised, please contact us as soon as possible.
Data Retention
23. As long as you have an account with us, we will retain your personal information so that you will be able to use our platforms.
Privacy Breaches
24. If a serious data breach occurs, we will notify affected individuals and the Office of the Privacy Commissioner as required by law.
Your choices and rights
25. Our mobile apps may send push notifications. You can control or disable these through your device settings.
26. We may also send promotional emails. You can opt out of marketing communications through your account settings.
27. If you wish to close your MĀORI+ account, you can select the Delete Account option in the Account section of MĀORI+. Alternatively, you can request us to close your account through our Contact Us form. Once your request is received, we will remove your name and email address from our systems within 30 days unless we are legally required to keep certain information.
Accessing or correcting your information
28. Under the Privacy Act 2020, you generally have the right to request access to personal information we hold about you.
29. You can also ask us to correct information that is inaccurate, incomplete, or out of date.
30. To request access to or correction of your information, please contact us through our Contact Us form.
Further information about your rights is available from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner at
https://www.privacy.org.nz.
Contact Us
31. If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or would like to make a privacy complaint, please contact us through our Contact Us form.