Last updated: September 2026
Who we are
Via Media Limited (“Via Media”, “we”, “us”) is a New Zealand-based automotive media and marketing company. We publish and operate Auto Channel, NZ Performance Car, and NZV8, and provide marketing services to clients in the New Zealand automotive sector.
This policy applies to all Via Media brands and explains how we collect, use, store, and share personal information. It applies to both consumers who engage with our publications and business contacts who engage with us commercially.
What information we collect
We collect personal information in the following ways:
- Email newsletter sign-ups on our brand websites
- Competition entries via our websites or promotional activations
- Direct business contact, including email correspondence and industry events
- Enquiries submitted through our websites or to our staff directly
The primary information we collect is your email address, name, and in some cases your business name, role, or phone number.
We also collect limited technical information automatically when you visit our websites. See Cookies and website analytics below.
How we use your information
We use your information for the following purposes:
- To send you editorial newsletters, promotional content, and marketing communications from Via Media brands
- To contact you if you have entered a competition and are selected as a winner
- To deliver marketing communications on behalf of our advertising clients, where this is consistent with the basis on which your contact details were collected
- To conduct our own business development and client relationship activities
- To operate and improve our marketing services
Business contacts: If you are a business contact — meaning you have corresponded with us, attended an industry event where contact details were exchanged, or have an existing commercial relationship with Via Media — we may contact you about relevant services and opportunities on the basis of that legitimate business relationship. You can opt out of these communications at any time.
Where we get your details from someone else: Sometimes we collect your contact details from a source other than you — for example from a client who supplies a contact list, from a colleague at your organisation, or from a public industry listing. When we do, we will tell you where we got your details, what we intend to use them for, and how to have them removed.
Cookies and website analytics
Our websites use cookies and similar technologies. A cookie is a small file stored by your browser that lets a website recognise your device when you return.
We use them for three purposes:
- Measuring how our sites are used. We use Google Analytics and Metricool to understand which articles are read, how visitors arrive, and which pages perform. This tells us about patterns of use. It does not tell us who you are.
- Measuring advertising. We use Google Tag Manager to manage our measurement tags, and advertising tools from Google and Meta to measure campaigns run by us and by our clients, and to show relevant advertising. These tools place small pieces of code, often called pixels, that record that a browser visited a page.
- Making the site work. Some cookies are needed for forms and site preferences to function.
You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings. If you block them, parts of our websites may stop working.
Third-party advertising platforms
We use third-party advertising platforms, including Meta (Facebook and Instagram) and Google Ads, to deliver targeted advertising campaigns for ourselves and our clients.
As part of this activity, we may upload email addresses from our contact lists to these platforms to create Custom Audiences. This allows us to serve relevant advertising to people on our lists via those platforms. We may also use those uploaded lists to generate Lookalike Audiences — groups of people with similar characteristics — to extend the reach of campaigns beyond our direct contacts.
We also use advertising pixels on our websites, as described above, to measure campaign performance and to build audiences based on pages visited.
We also build advertising audiences inside platforms such as Meta, based on people who have engaged with our pages, videos, and content on those platforms. These audiences are created and held by the platform, not by us. We do not receive the names or contact details of the people in them. We may also use interest-based targeting and Lookalike Audiences offered by those platforms.
If you would prefer your email address not to be used in this way, you can opt out at any time by contacting us at the address below.
Sharing your information
We will share your information only in the following circumstances:
- With our advertising clients, where this is consistent with the basis on which your contact details were collected (for example, competition terms and conditions or newsletter sign-up terms that reference client marketing)
- With third-party platforms such as Meta and Google for the advertising purposes described above
- With the service providers who operate our systems on our behalf, described below
- Where required by law
We do not sell your personal information to third parties.
Service providers and overseas storage
Our email newsletters are sent using Mailchimp, a service operated by Intuit Inc. in the United States. Your email address, name where supplied, and your subscription activity are stored on Mailchimp’s systems.
Our websites are hosted in Australia, and our analytics and advertising providers named above operate internationally. This means your information may be stored or processed outside New Zealand. We only use providers that are required to protect personal information to a standard comparable to that required by the New Zealand Privacy Act 2020.
Data retention
We retain your information for as long as you remain subscribed to our communications or maintain an active business relationship with us. If you have not engaged with our communications for two years or more, we will periodically review your details and may remove you from active lists.
You can request removal at any time — see Your rights below.
Data security
We take reasonable steps to protect your personal information from unauthorised access, loss, or misuse. Our systems and those of our platform partners — including Mailchimp, Meta, and Google — are subject to their own security and data protection standards.
Your rights
Under the New Zealand Privacy Act 2020, you have the right to:
- Access the personal information we hold about you
- Request correction of any inaccurate information
- Withdraw your consent to receiving marketing communications at any time
- Request that your information be removed from our lists
To exercise any of these rights, contact us at contact@viamedia.co.nz. We will respond within a reasonable timeframe and no later than 20 working days.
If you are not satisfied with our response, you can complain to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner at privacy.org.nz.
Visitors from outside New Zealand
Our websites are operated from New Zealand and are intended for a New Zealand audience. We handle personal information under the New Zealand Privacy Act 2020. If you access our sites from another country, your local law may give you additional rights. Contact us at the address above and we will consider any request made under that law.
Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time. The current version will always be available on our website, with the date of the most recent update noted at the top.