Privacy policy
Privacy notice
Dear visitor, in this notice we explain as clearly as possible which data we need from you and what we do with that information.
Who is responsible for collecting and using my data?
We are the ‘Vlaamse Radio- en Televisie-omroeporganisatie’ (or the Flemish Radio and Television broadcasting corporation) (hereinafter also referred to in short as “(the) VRT”). We are a limited liability company governed by public law, with our registered office at 1043 Brussels, Auguste Reyerslaan 52, and registered in the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises under company number 0244.142.664. This privacy notice applies to your personal data that we collect and use in the context of this website. We are responsible for the collection and processing of your data.
What does this privacy notice apply to?
This privacy notice applies to the VRT international website. VRT international focuses on communicating the activities of VRT to (international B2B) audiences. This encompasses collaborating with international partners on innovation projects, services provided to start-ups and scale-ups by the in-house accelerator VRT Sandbox, as well as the promotion and sales of VRT Sales content to international distributors.
Why does the VRT collect my data and on what basis?
We process your data for the following purposes:
Personal identification:
First name and surname: to identify you as a user.
Email-address: we communicate all our information by email, including our newsletters.
If you make an account for VRT Sales, you will be asked for your (sur)name, country, company name and function. This is to identify yourself as well as which company you work for, your function and the country you are in to see which companies are interested in our VRT (Sales) content and are possible partners or buyers. We optionally ask for the address and telephone number, so we would be able to contact you.
We may also ask for additional information that can help us provide even more customised services. Should you contact us, for example if you send us an email with questions, reviews or complaints, we will also collect any personal data you provide to us in this email. We collect and use data for the purposes described above on the basis of an agreement that we conclude with you.
Statistical Purposes: We use your data for statistical purposes, to analyse and improve the use and overall operation of our services. In addition, the data helps us find out which services and content are interesting and useful for our users. By knowing how you use our services, we can provide the necessary feedback to our organisation and developers. In this way we can make our website even better and more relevant for you. We also need your data to be able to report to the Flemish government on the achievement of our objectives as a public broadcasting organisation. These reports are always based on coded data in the form of statistical reports. We take all the actions mentioned in order to be able to fulfil our task as a public broadcasting organisation. This is of the public interest.
Newsletter: You can subscribe to the 1) VRT Sales newsletter to stay updated about programmes and activities of VRT Sales, or 2) the VRT Sandbox newsletter to stay updated about relevant start-up and scale-up news and initiatives by VRT Sandbox. If you do not longer wish to receive our newsletter, you can easily unsubscribe via the unsubscribe link at the bottom of each newsletter in your mailbox.
Customer and Complaint Management: We welcome your opinion and feedback to improve our services every day, and our customer service is here to listen. For this purpose, we collect and use your data on the basis of your consent. For all questions and/or comments, you can contact the customer service at the e-mail address ‘hallo@vrt.be’.
Detecting and investigating abuse: Of course, we would like to be able to completely trust everyone, but that would be rather naive. Consequently, we use data to prevent and detect abuse on or via our platforms. We do this to avoid illegal practices on our website. This is always done on the basis of a legitimate interest or legal basis to properly carry out our mission as a public broadcasting organisation.
From which sources does the VRT collect my data?
We collect data from you directly, for example when you create an account, subscribe to our newsletter or when you visit our website.
Is my data at risk with VRT?
Unfortunately, the exchange of information via the Internet is never completely secure. Hackers and viruses are simply a part of the Internet. Therefore, we can never completely rule out the loss of or unauthorized access to data. We do everything we can to protect your data in the best possible way. We use various security technologies and measures to guarantee your privacy. In addition, we repeatedly evaluate those technologies and measures to ensure that our system is as resistant as possible to the latest viruses and malware. We work together with specialised companies to this end.
Which third parties can receive my data?
We can share your data with the following categories of recipients:
Service providers: We share your data with the service providers that we work with. They provide support services such as infrastructure or IT services, carry out payment transactions through our services or conduct surveys. Those service providers gain access to certain data and information in the context of their assignment for VRT. In other words, they only act on our behalf and on our account. They may therefore never use your data for their own purposes.
Social Media Providers: Have you noticed that some of our online services refer you to social networking sites such as LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube. With specific buttons you can share information on those platforms. The buttons that direct you to those social networking sites, are created and managed by those social networking sites themselves. These social networking sites sometimes also place cookies on your (mobile) device. In other words, as the buttons are managed by the social media platforms, we cannot provide any assurance regarding the data collected by them. We therefore recommend that you also read the terms of use and the cookies and privacy notice of such social networking sites. Our own privacy notice, which you are now reading, only covers the use of the data that we collect as VRT. Be sure to read our cookie notice, in which we explain more about how you can control cookies.
Government and authorities: We do share your data with the government and authorities if this is required by law.
Does the VRT engage in automated decision-making with legal consequences or does it have profiles?
We do not engage in automated decision-making with legal consequences. In concrete terms, this means that we never use your data to make decisions without human intervention that could have legal consequences or far-reaching consequences for you.
How can I check the data that VRT has about me?
Because this concerns your data, we believe it is important that you can check your personal information at any time. You have the following rights, which you can exercise in accordance with the conditions and modalities of the European privacy legislation:
You have the right to access your data. This means that you can check what data we have about you. For any information we may have about you, please contact us through our customer service (hallo@vrt.be). They will address your question as soon as possible. This process is the same whether you do or do not have a VRT Sales account.
You have the right to rectify your data. We may have information about you that is incorrect or no longer correct. Have you moved or do you have a new email address? Ask our customer service (hallo@vrt.be) to amend incorrect information. They will address your question as soon as possible.
You have the right to erasure of your data. If you want us to no longer store or use your data, you can delete the data we have of you. For example, you can request to delete your VRT Sales account and the data associated with it. For the erasure of all other data we hold, you can file a request for deletion with our customer service (hallo@vrt.be). Keep in mind, we are legally not always obliged to delete your data when you request this. We are only obliged to do this in the cases provided for by law.
You have the right to restrict the processing of your data. You can therefore request us to restrict the processing of your data. In that case, we will continue to store your data, but we will restrict its use. This happens, for example, if you believe that your data is incorrect and you do not want us to process that data until it has been amended. You also have this right if the storage or use of your data by us would be unlawful, but you would not want us to delete the data. Likewise, we are legally not always obliged to comply with such requests. We are only obliged to do this in the cases provided for by law. You can ask questions about the restricted processing of your data via our customer service (hallo@vrt.be). They will address your question as soon as possible.
You have the right to object to the processing of your data. This means that you can object to the further use of your data by us. You can only do this if you have valid grounds relating to your specific situation. We are not always obliged to comply with such a request.
You have the right to object to the use of your data for direct marketing purposes. You can exercise this right by managing your consents via the cookie settings. For more information be sure to read our cookie notice. You can also unsubscribe from newsletters you have previously consented to, if you do no longer want to receive information about our content or offers from us via this medium. You can unsubscribe via the link at the bottom of each newsletter in your mailbox.
You always have the right to withdraw your consent if the processing of your data is based on your consent.
You have the right to data portability. This offers you the option of moving, copying or forwarding personal data smoothly from one controller to another. However, we are not always obliged to comply with this request.
Should you ask us any of the above questions, we may first require you to provide us with additional information in order for us to verify whether you are the actual person providing the request.
How long does the VRT keep my data?
We do not keep your data longer than is necessary for the intended purpose. If you choose not to share your data with us anymore, we will no longer use your data. This happens, for example, when you unsubscribe from one of our newsletters. We will keep your data for another two years for the handling of possible complaints or legal disputes. In that case, your data is archived and accessibility is limited. At the end of that retention period, your data will of course be permanently deleted or anonymised.
If you do not log in to your account for a certain period of time (i.e., 1 year), we will send you a reminder email to inform whether your access is still required. If we receive no answer within 1 month or an error (e.g bounce by mailserver), we will assume that the access is no longer required, and we will deactivate your account.
Who can I contact if I have further questions or complaints about privacy?
Have you read our privacy notice, but you have not found an answer to your question? Then we kindly invite you to ask your question regarding privacy via our customer service (hallo@vrt.be). They will address your question as soon as possible.
In addition, we have a Data Protection Officer (DPO). This person guards the protection of your data at the VRT. Our DPO is happy to speak to you via DPO@vrt.be.
We hope you will not be needing the following email address any time soon. But for complaints regarding our privacy notice, we would like to forward you to our complaints department (hallo@vrt.be). You can also file a complaint with the supervisory authority. In Belgium, this is the Data Protection Authority (Gegevensbeschermingsautoriteit). More information about this can be found on their website.
Can this privacy notice change?
This privacy notice may be amended if our services or applicable laws require so. Our online services are, for example, a dynamic and innovative environment. This means that we are constantly looking for a better service tailored to your needs. It is possible that new applications will be introduced in which we will collect or want to use your data in a different way. Of course we will let you know when there are significant changes and if necessary, ask for your consent.
This privacy notice was updated on the 31st of March.
