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I really enjoyed playing Far Cry. Wish I could find my original disk and ID code. :blink:

 

My wife bought a copy of Far Cry 2 for me from a "bargain Bin" for about $20 USD and I was happy ...

 

This morning for some reason, I decided to read some of the PDF manual that is included with the game. It appears that there is a company called Massive Incorporated that is in charge of in-game ad placement. But they don't just place the ads before the game ships ...

 

Their Disclosure statement from the PDF:

DISCLOSURE STATEMENT

This game incorporates technology of Massive Incorporated (“Massive”) that enables in-game advertising, and the display of other similar in-game objects, which are uploaded temporarily to your personal computer or game console and replaced during online game play. As part of this process, Massive may collect your Internet protocol address and other basic anonymous information, and will use this information for the general purposes of transmitting and measuring in-game advertising. Massive does not store or use any of this information for the purpose of discovering your personal identity. For additional details regarding Massive’s in-game advertising practices, and to understand your options with respect to in-game advertising and data collection, please see Massive’s privacy policy at http://www.massiveincorporated.com/site_network/privacy.htm. The trademarks and copyrighted material contained in all in-game advertising are the property of the respective owners. Portions of this product are © 2007 Massive Incorporated. All rights reserved.

 

The link supposedly works from inside the manual but has a small problem. someone very carefully insured that the closing period became a part of the link. The actual link is:

http://www.massiveincorporated.com/site_network/privacy.htm

with no period at the end.

 

 

 

 

Now, a very interesting read from the companies privacy statement located at the above URL:

MASSIVE INCORPORATED WEB SITE – PRIVACY STATEMENT

(last updated: August 2008)

 

Massive Incorporated (“Massive”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation (“Microsoft”), is committed to protecting your privacy. This privacy statement applies to the data collected by Massive through the Massive public Web site at http://www.massiveincorporated.com and the data collected through Massive private Web sites that link to this statement (the “Sites”); it does not apply to data collected through other online or offline Massive sites, products or services. For information about the data collection and use practices of Massive’s In-Game Advertising Service, please read http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=122...amp;clcid=0x409 .

 

Collection of Your Personal Information

We will ask you when we need information that personally identifies you or allows us to contact you. The personal information we collect may include name, phone number, and e-mail address. Private Sites also allow Massive customers to upload advertising materials to Massive.

We may collect information about your visit, including the pages you view, the links you click and other actions taken in connection with the Sites. We also collect certain standard information that your browser sends to every Web site you visit, such as your IP address, browser type and language, access times and referring Web site addresses.

 

Use of Your Personal Information

The personal information collected on the Sites will be used to operate the Sites and to provide the service(s) or carry out the transaction(s) you have requested or authorized.

 

In support of these uses, Massive may use personal information to provide you with more effective customer service, to improve the Sites and any related Massive products or services, and to make the Sites easier to use by eliminating the need for you to repeatedly enter the same information or by customizing the Sites to your particular preference or interests.

 

We may use your personal information to provide you with important information about the product or service that you are using, including critical updates and notifications. Additionally, with your permission, we may send you information about other Massive products and services, and/or share information with third parties so they may send you information about their products and services.

 

Massive occasionally hires other companies to provide limited services on our behalf, such as Web site hosting, packaging, mailing and delivering prizes, answering customer questions about products and services, and sending information about our products, special offers, and other new services. We will only provide those companies the personal information they need to deliver the service. They are required to maintain the confidentiality of the information and are prohibited from using that information for any other purpose.

 

Massive may disclose personal information if required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that such action is necessary to (a) conform to the edicts of the law or comply with legal process served on Massive or the Sites; (b) protect and defend the rights or property of Massive; or © act in urgent circumstances to protect the personal safety of users of Massive products or services, or members of the public.

 

Personal information collected on the Sites may be stored and processed in the United States or any other country in which Massive or its affiliates, subsidiaries or service providers maintain facilities, and by using the Sites, you consent to any such transfer of information outside of your country. Massive abides by the safe harbor framework as set forth by the U.S. Department of Commerce regarding the collection, use, and retention of data from the European Union.

 

Control of Your Personal Information

Except as otherwise described in this statement, personal information you provide on the Sites will not be shared outside of Massive and its controlled subsidiaries and affiliates without your permission.

Please be aware that this privacy statement and any choices you make on the Sites will not necessarily apply to personal information you may have provided to Massive in the context of other, separately operated, Massive products or services.

 

Access to Your Personal Information

You can review and edit the personal information you provided at the Sites by e-mailing massadop@microsoft.com with your request.

 

Security of Your Personal Information

Massive is committed to protecting the security of your personal information. We use a variety of security technologies and procedures to help protect your personal information from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure. For example, we store the personal information you provide on computer servers with limited access that are located in controlled facilities. Additionally, when we transmit sensitive personal information over the Internet, we protect it through the use of encryption, such as the Secure Socket Layer (SSL) protocol.

 

Use of Cookies

We use cookies on the Sites to ensure the integrity of the registration process and to personalize the Sites. A cookie is a small text file that is placed on your hard disk by a Web page server. Cookies cannot be used to run programs or deliver viruses to your computer. Cookies are uniquely assigned to you, and can only be read by a Web server in the domain that issued the cookie to you.

 

One of the primary purposes of cookies is to provide a convenience feature to save you time. For example, if you personalize a Web page, or navigate within a site, a cookie helps the site to recall your specific information on subsequent visits. This simplifies the process of delivering relevant content, eases site navigation, and so on. When you return to the Web site, the information you previously provided can be retrieved, so you can easily use the site's features that you customized.

 

You have the ability to accept or decline cookies. Most Web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies if you prefer. If you choose to decline cookies, you may not be able to use interactive features of this or other Web sites that depend on cookies.

 

Changes to this Privacy Statement

We may occasionally update this privacy statement. When we do, we will also revise the "last updated" date at the top of the privacy statement. For material changes to this privacy statement, we will notify you either by placing a prominent notice on the home page of our Web site or by directly sending you a notification. We encourage you to periodically review this privacy statement to stay informed about how we are helping to protect the personal information we collect. Your continued use of the Sites constitutes your agreement to this privacy statement and any updates.

 

Contact Information

Massive welcomes your comments regarding this privacy statement. If you have questions about this statement or believe that we have not adhered to it, please contact us via e-mail at masspriv@microsoft.com or via postal mail at the address below.

Massive Privacy

Microsoft Corporation

One Microsoft Way

Redmond, Washington 98052 USA

 

Why am I not surprised?

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The gathering of browser info, exploitation system and such is standard though.

 

But this:

 

"Additionally, with your permission, we may send you information about other Massive products and services, and/or share information with third parties so they may send you information about their products and services."

 

is basically allowing them legally to spam you

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