Cookie Policy

Last updated: 1 June 2025

This Cookie Policy explains how ("we", "us", "our") uses cookies and similar storage technologies on merquorianinsightblog.com (the "Website"). It should be read alongside our Privacy Policy, which describes how we handle personal data more broadly.

Our registered office is at (Company No. 9537284; GST No. 215-937-284). Any questions about this policy may be directed to privacy@merquorianinsightblog.com.

1. What Are Cookies and Similar Technologies?

A cookie is a small text file placed on your device (computer, tablet, smartphone or similar) when you visit a website. Cookies allow the website to recognise your device on subsequent visits, remember your preferences and gather certain usage information.

In addition to cookies, we may use related storage mechanisms such as:

Session storage – temporary data held only for the duration of your browser session and deleted when you close the tab or browser.
Local storage – data stored persistently in your browser without an expiry date unless cleared manually.
Pixel tags / web beacons – tiny invisible images embedded in web pages or emails that register when content has been accessed.
Device fingerprinting – the collection of device and browser attributes that, in combination, may identify a particular device.

Throughout this policy the word "cookies" is used as a collective term covering all of the above technologies unless otherwise stated.

2. How We Use Cookies

We use cookies to operate the Website reliably, to understand how visitors interact with our pages and, where you have given consent, to provide you with content and promotions that may be relevant to your interests. The specific purposes are described by category in Section 4 below.

We do not use cookies to collect special-category personal data, and we do not knowingly use cookies to collect information from persons under the age of 18. Access to casino areas of this Website is restricted to persons aged 18 and over.

3. Legal Basis for Processing

New Zealand's Privacy Act 2020 and applicable electronic communications rules govern our use of your personal data and our obligations around consent. We rely on the following bases:

Strictly necessary cookies – placed on the basis of our legitimate interest in delivering a functioning and secure website. These do not require your consent.
Optional cookies (analytics, functional and marketing categories) – placed only on the basis of your freely given, specific, informed and unambiguous consent provided through our cookie preference centre. Optional cookies remain switched off until you actively accept them.

4. Cookie Categories

The table below describes the categories of cookies that may be present on the Website. Where a category is marked Optional, those cookies are not active unless you accept that category through our consent tool.

Category	Purpose	Consent Required?	Typical Duration
Strictly Necessary	Enables core Website functionality such as navigation, secure log-in, session management, load balancing and fraud prevention. Without these cookies the Website cannot function properly.	No – always active	Session to 12 months
Functional / Preference	Remembers choices you make (such as language preference, region, accessibility settings or display options) so the Website behaves as you expect on return visits.	Yes – optional	Up to 12 months
Analytics / Performance	Collects aggregated or pseudonymised information about how visitors use the Website – for example, which pages are visited most often, how long visitors stay and where they navigate from – to help us improve the Website's structure and content.	Yes – optional	Up to 24 months
Marketing / Targeting	Used to deliver promotional content and offers relevant to your interests, to measure the effectiveness of campaigns and to limit how often you see the same promotional message. Information collected may be shared with trusted third-party partners who assist us in delivering those communications.	Yes – optional	Up to 24 months

Cookies within the optional categories are not deposited on your device and do not collect any data unless and until you give consent. You may withdraw that consent at any time; see Section 7.

5. Cookie Duration

Cookies can be classified by how long they remain on your device:

Session cookies – exist only for the duration of your browser session. They are automatically deleted when you close your browser and are typically used for essential functions such as maintaining a secure log-in state.
Persistent cookies – remain on your device for a set period after the session ends, or until you delete them. The typical maximum durations are shown in the table in Section 4. You can delete persistent cookies at any time through your browser settings.

6. First-Party and Third-Party Cookies

Some cookies on the Website are set directly by us (first-party cookies). Others may be set by external organisations whose services are integrated into our pages (third-party cookies).

Third-party providers operate their cookies under their own privacy and cookie policies, over which we have no control. We cannot accept responsibility for the content of third-party privacy practices. We encourage you to review the privacy documentation of any third party whose cookies you encounter. Third-party optional cookies are only activated once you have consented to the relevant category.

Where third-party services transfer data outside New Zealand, we require appropriate contractual safeguards to be in place consistent with the Privacy Act 2020.

8. Do Not Track Signals

Some browsers transmit a "Do Not Track" (DNT) signal to websites. There is currently no universally accepted standard for how websites must respond to such signals. We treat browser-level cookie controls and the choices you make through our consent tool as the primary mechanism for managing your preferences on this Website.

9. Changes to This Cookie Policy

We may update this Cookie Policy from time to time to reflect changes in technology, regulation or our business practices. Any material changes will be notified by updating the "Last updated" date at the top of this page and, where appropriate, by displaying a notice on the Website. We encourage you to review this page periodically. Continued use of the Website after the date of any update constitutes acknowledgement of the revised policy, subject to any requirement to re-obtain consent for optional cookies where required by law.

10. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns or requests relating to this Cookie Policy or to how we process your personal data in connection with cookies, please contact us:

Email: privacy@merquorianinsightblog.com

We aim to respond to all privacy-related enquiries within 20 working days in accordance with our obligations under the Privacy Act 2020.