Privacy Policy
How we collect, use, and protect your information.
Last Updated: August 2026
Best of the Year Media LLC (“Best of the Year,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Notice explains how we collect, use, disclose, retain, and protect Personal Information when you visit bestoftheyearmedia.com or interact with our website, awards programs, submission platform, judging and evaluation programs, consumer testing and research initiatives, editorial content, newsletters, and related products and services (collectively, the “Services”).
By accessing or using the Services, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Privacy Notice.
1. Scope and Applicability
This Privacy Notice applies to Personal Information collected in connection with the Services, including information relating to:
companies and organizations submitting products, services, destinations, programs, experiences, or other offerings for consideration;
employees, agents, public relations representatives, and other authorized representatives of submitting organizations;
judges, evaluators, subject-matter experts, contributors, and advisors;
consumer testers, survey respondents, research participants, and members of our community;
partners, collaborators, and service providers;
newsletter subscribers and other individuals who communicate with us; and
visitors to our website and other users of the Services.
Awards submissions are generally made on behalf of companies or organizations. In connection with those submissions, we may collect Personal Information relating to individuals who submit, administer, evaluate, or otherwise participate in the submission.
This Privacy Notice does not govern the privacy practices of third parties that we do not control.
2. Information We Collect
For purposes of this Privacy Notice, “Personal Information” means information that identifies, relates to, describes, or could reasonably be linked with an identified or identifiable individual. Personal Information does not include information that has been aggregated, anonymized, or deidentified so that it cannot reasonably be associated with an individual. Certain types of Personal Information may be considered “sensitive” under applicable privacy laws.
Depending on how you interact with Best of the Year, we may collect Personal Information directly from you, from others, automatically through your use of the Services, or from other sources.
Information You Provide to Us
We may collect information you voluntarily provide, including:
your name, email address, telephone number, professional title, and company or organizational affiliation;
account or registration information;
information submitted in connection with an awards entry or nomination;
product or service descriptions, specifications, claims, documentation, images, videos, samples, certifications, testing information, and other supporting materials;
professional credentials, biographies, areas of expertise, affiliations, headshots, and other information provided by judges, evaluators, experts, or contributors;
survey responses, evaluations, product-testing feedback, research responses, reviews, comments, photographs, videos, testimonials, or other materials submitted by consumer testers or research participants;
communications you send to us through email, forms, surveys, customer support, or other feedback mechanisms; and
information you provide when subscribing to newsletters, updates, events, or other communications.
We may also collect payment and transaction information necessary to process awards submission fees or other purchases. Payment card transactions may be processed by third-party payment processors. Best of the Year does not store full payment card numbers or security codes.
Information You Provide About Others
You may sometimes provide Personal Information relating to another individual, such as a colleague, company representative, client, employee, expert, or other contact.
You should provide Personal Information about another person only if you are authorized to do so or otherwise have an appropriate basis for providing that information to us.
Information Collected Automatically
When you use the Services, we and our service providers may automatically collect certain information through cookies, pixels, tags, scripts, and similar technologies.
Depending on the technologies used in connection with the Services, this information may include:
Internet Protocol (IP) address;
browser type and version;
device type and operating system;
approximate geographic location derived from an IP address;
referring and exit pages;
pages viewed and features used;
dates and times of visits;
interactions with links and other elements of the Services; and
information about interactions with emails or other electronic communications.
We use this information for purposes including operating and securing the Services, understanding how the Services are used, measuring performance, diagnosing technical issues, and improving our website, content, communications, and programs.
Information We Obtain From Other Sources
We may obtain information about companies, organizations, products, services, destinations, programs, experiences, and individuals from other sources, including:
publicly available websites and databases;
company and organizational websites;
social media and other digital platforms;
judges, evaluators, consumer testers, experts, and research participants;
business and media partners;
service providers; and
other third parties.
We may combine information obtained from these sources with information submitted directly to us where appropriate for evaluation, verification, research, editorial, program administration, or other business purposes.
Sensitive Personal Information
Sensitive Personal Information is not generally required to enter or participate in the Best of the Year awards program.
Certain research, consumer-testing, survey, or other programs may involve information that is considered sensitive under applicable law. Where required, we will provide appropriate additional disclosures and obtain consent before collecting or using such information.
Please do not provide sensitive Personal Information through awards submissions or general communications unless we specifically request it.
3. How We Use Personal Information
We may use Personal Information to:
provide, operate, administer, maintain, and improve the Services;
administer awards entries, nominations, payments, and accounts;
evaluate products, services, destinations, programs, experiences, and other submissions;
manage judging, evaluation, testing, verification, and research processes;
communicate with submitters, judges, evaluators, consumer testers, experts, partners, and other users;
provide customer service and technical support;
conduct surveys, consumer research, testing, analysis, and benchmarking;
develop aggregated or anonymized research, trends, insights, and analyses;
develop and improve Best of the Year programs, methodologies, content, products, and services;
send newsletters, updates, promotional communications, and other information where permitted by applicable law;
process payments and maintain financial and business records;
detect, investigate, prevent, and address fraud, misuse, security incidents, or technical problems;
enforce our Terms of Service, awards rules, submission requirements, and other applicable policies;
protect the rights, property, safety, security, integrity, and lawful operation of Best of the Year, our users, and others;
comply with legal, regulatory, tax, accounting, contractual, and other obligations; and
establish, exercise, or defend legal claims.
We may also use aggregated, anonymized, or deidentified information for research, analytics, benchmarking, editorial, business, and other lawful purposes.
4. Awards Submissions, Judging, and Confidentiality
Submission materials may be made available to Best of the Year employees, contractors, judges, evaluators, experts, consumer testers, and other individuals involved in administering or evaluating the applicable program, as reasonably necessary for the evaluation process.
Where practicable, submission materials provided to judges or evaluators may be anonymized or limited to information reasonably necessary for evaluation. Because the identity of a company, product, service, or other entrant may sometimes be apparent from the materials or the nature of the submission, complete anonymity cannot be guaranteed.
Judges and evaluators are subject to confidentiality obligations or other requirements intended to protect nonpublic submission information.
Submission-level confidential information is not provided to advertisers, sponsors, or other commercial partners for their independent marketing purposes.
5. Consumer Testing and Research
Best of the Year may conduct consumer testing, surveys, panels, interviews, research studies, or other feedback initiatives in connection with our awards, editorial content, research, and related programs.
Depending on the program, we may collect information such as demographic characteristics, preferences, experiences, survey responses, product feedback, ratings, photographs, videos, testimonials, and other information participants choose to provide.
We may use this information to evaluate submissions, verify findings, understand consumer experiences, conduct research, create aggregated or anonymized insights, improve our methodologies and Services, and support editorial content.
Where a particular research initiative involves additional uses of Personal Information or information considered sensitive under applicable law, we may provide a separate notice or consent process applicable to that initiative.
6. Editorial and Journalistic Activities
Best of the Year is a media and publishing company. We may collect, research, use, retain, and publish information in connection with our editorial, journalistic, research, review, awards, and publishing activities.
This may include information concerning companies, products, services, destinations, organizations, experts, judges, award recipients, and other subjects of our editorial coverage.
Certain privacy laws provide exceptions or different requirements for information processed for journalistic, editorial, or similar purposes. To the extent permitted by applicable law, information processed for these purposes may not be subject to all of the rights or practices described in this Privacy Notice.
7. Submitted Materials and Awards Results
Submitted materials may contain Personal Information. We may collect, use, disclose, and retain Personal Information contained in submissions as described in this Privacy Notice, including as reasonably necessary to administer and evaluate submissions, conduct testing and research, document evaluation and judging decisions, maintain program integrity, conduct analysis and benchmarking, resolve disputes, maintain appropriate business and historical records, and support our editorial and publishing activities.
Best of the Year may maintain and publish information concerning its awards programs and results, including award categories, winners, finalists, judges, evaluation methodology, and related editorial coverage, subject to applicable law.
Ownership, licensing, use, retention, return, and disposal of submitted materials, products, samples, and other physical items—including intellectual property such as trademarks, images, photographs, videos, logos, and product descriptions—are governed by the applicable Terms of Service, awards rules, submission requirements, or other agreement.
8. How We Disclose Personal Information
Best of the Year does not sell Personal Information.
We may disclose Personal Information in the following circumstances:
Service Providers
We may provide information to vendors and service providers that perform services on our behalf, including providers of website hosting, cloud storage, submission-management systems, payment processing, email and communications services, analytics, survey and research tools, security and fraud prevention, professional services, and other technology and operational support.
These providers may access Personal Information as reasonably necessary to perform services on our behalf and are expected to handle information consistent with applicable contractual and legal requirements.
Awards Administration and Evaluation
We may provide information to judges, evaluators, experts, consumer testers, research participants, contractors, or others involved in administering, testing, evaluating, or verifying submissions as reasonably necessary for those activities.
Legal and Safety Purposes
We may disclose information where we reasonably believe disclosure is necessary or appropriate to comply with applicable law, regulation, legal process, court order, subpoena, or governmental request; enforce our rights or agreements; investigate fraud or misconduct; or protect the rights, property, security, or safety of Best of the Year, our users, or others.
Corporate Transactions
We may disclose or transfer information in connection with the consideration, negotiation, or completion of a merger, acquisition, financing, restructuring, bankruptcy, sale of assets, or other corporate transaction, subject to applicable legal requirements.
With Your Direction or Consent
We may disclose information to other parties when you direct us to do so, authorize the disclosure, or otherwise consent where consent is required.
9. Cookies and Similar Technologies
Best of the Year and our service providers may use cookies and similar technologies to operate the website, remember preferences, understand website usage, measure performance, improve the Services, and support our communications and marketing activities.
Depending on the technologies we use, cookies and similar technologies may include:
Essential technologies, which support core website functionality, security, and operation;
Analytics and performance technologies, which help us understand how visitors interact with the Services and improve performance; and
Marketing technologies, where used, which may help us understand the effectiveness of our marketing and communications.
Most web browsers allow you to control cookies through browser settings. Blocking certain cookies may affect the availability or functionality of portions of the Services.
Where required by applicable law, we will provide additional choices regarding non-essential cookies and similar technologies.
Where required by applicable law, we recognize applicable browser-based privacy preference signals, such as Global Privacy Control, to the extent supported by our systems.
10. Marketing Communications
If you subscribe to newsletters, marketing communications, or promotional updates, we may use your contact information to provide those communications.
You may opt out of marketing emails at any time by using the unsubscribe link included in the applicable communication or by contacting us.
Even if you opt out of marketing communications, we may continue to send transactional, administrative, or service-related communications, including communications concerning awards submissions, judging, evaluation, payments, accounts, security, or changes to the Services.
11. Data Retention
We retain Personal Information for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes for which it was collected and as permitted or required by applicable law.
The length of time we retain information may depend on factors including:
the nature and sensitivity of the information;
the purposes for which it was collected;
the duration of our relationship with you or the applicable organization;
the administration and integrity of awards, judging, testing, and research programs;
maintenance of appropriate business, financial, editorial, research, and historical records;
legal, regulatory, accounting, tax, and contractual requirements;
fraud prevention and security;
the resolution of complaints or disputes; and
the establishment, exercise, or defense of legal claims.
We may retain aggregated, anonymized, or deidentified information for longer periods where permitted by law.
Where we are required to delete Personal Information, we will take reasonable steps to do so, subject to applicable legal exceptions and legitimate retention requirements.
12. Your Privacy Rights and Choices
Depending on where you reside and subject to applicable law, you may have rights concerning your Personal Information, which may include the right to:
request access to or information about Personal Information we maintain about you;
request correction of inaccurate Personal Information;
request deletion of certain Personal Information;
obtain a copy of certain Personal Information;
object to or restrict certain processing;
withdraw consent where processing is based on consent;
opt out of certain uses or disclosures of Personal Information; and
appeal certain decisions regarding a privacy request where applicable.
These rights are not absolute and may be subject to exceptions under applicable law.
To submit a privacy request, please contact us at hello@bestoftheyearmedia.com.
We may take reasonable steps to verify your identity before processing a request and may request additional information where reasonably necessary to verify your identity, locate relevant information, or process your request.
Where permitted by applicable law, you may designate an authorized agent to submit a request on your behalf. We may require information reasonably necessary to verify both your identity and the agent's authority to act for you.
We will not discriminate against you for exercising privacy rights available to you under applicable law.
13. U.S. State Privacy Rights
Residents of certain U.S. states may have additional privacy rights under applicable state privacy laws.
Depending on your state of residence and the applicability of those laws to Best of the Year, these rights may include rights to know or access Personal Information, correct inaccuracies, delete Personal Information, obtain a portable copy of certain Personal Information, opt out of certain processing, limit certain uses of sensitive Personal Information, or appeal a decision regarding a privacy request.
Best of the Year does not sell Personal Information.
Certain state privacy laws use terms such as “sale,” “sharing,” or “targeted advertising” in specific ways that may include particular uses of cookies or similar technologies even where no money is exchanged. Where applicable, we will provide any notices and opt-out mechanisms required by law.
Privacy requests may be submitted to hello@bestoftheyearmedia.com.
14. International Users
Best of the Year is based in the United States. Personal Information collected through the Services may be processed and stored in the United States or in other jurisdictions where our service providers operate.
The privacy and data protection laws of these jurisdictions may differ from those of your home jurisdiction.
Where applicable law requires additional safeguards for international transfers of Personal Information, we will take appropriate measures to provide such safeguards.
Depending on where you reside, you may have additional rights relating to access, correction, deletion, restriction, objection, portability, withdrawal of consent, or complaints to an applicable data protection authority.
15. Children's and Minors' Privacy
The Services are intended for adults and are not directed to children or minors under the age of 18.
We do not knowingly collect Personal Information directly from children under the age of 13 through the Services without appropriate parental consent or another lawful basis where required.
If we become aware that we have collected Personal Information from a child in circumstances where such collection is not permitted, we will take reasonable steps to delete the information.
If Best of the Year conducts future research, testing, or other programs specifically involving minors, participation will be subject to a separate consent process and any additional privacy disclosures required by applicable law.
16. Security
We maintain reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational safeguards designed to protect Personal Information against unauthorized access, use, disclosure, alteration, loss, or destruction. However, no method of electronic transmission or storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee the absolute security of information.
17. Third-Party Services and Links
The Services may contain links to or integrations with websites, platforms, social media services, payment processors, or other services operated by third parties.
Those third parties may collect information directly from you and maintain their own privacy practices. Best of the Year is not responsible for the privacy practices of third parties that we do not control.
We encourage you to review the privacy notices of third-party services before providing Personal Information to them.
18. Changes to This Privacy Notice
We may update this Privacy Notice from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technologies, Services, legal requirements, or other factors.
When we make changes, we will update the “Last Updated” date at the top of this Privacy Notice. Where required by applicable law, we will provide additional notice or obtain consent for material changes.
Contact Us
If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us at hello@bestoftheyearmedia.com.