Cookies, explained.

Cookies are small text files your browser stores when you visit a site. They let the site remember you — whether you're signed in, what you followed, which banner you dismissed, whether you've seen the cookie notice. They are not programs, they cannot run code, and they cannot see anything outside your browser.

We also use browser local storage for similar purposes — your followed titles and display preferences may live there instead of in a cookie. This policy covers both, because the distinction matters to browsers, not to you.

There are two kinds of cookies you will encounter on Previously: first-party cookies, set by watchpreviously.com itself, and third-party cookies, set by other companies whose content appears on our pages — video players, music embeds, and ad networks. We control the first kind. We do not control the second, but we disclose it here and point you to the controls.

These are the first-party cookies and storage entries Previously uses. The list is intentionally short.

• Essential cookies. Required for the site to function. These hold your sign-in session, security tokens that prevent forged requests, and load-balancing information that keeps you on a healthy server. Without these, you cannot stay logged in and some forms will not work. Set by Previously directly; they expire when your session ends or after a fixed period (sessions typically last up to 30 days of inactivity, shorter on shared devices you sign out of).
• Preference cookies and storage. Remember the choices you made: your followed titles and creators, dismissed notices and banners, theme and display settings, and your cookie-consent choice itself. These live on your device — clearing your browser data removes them, and the site will simply ask you again. No expiration beyond what your browser applies.
• Analytics cookies. Help us understand aggregate usage — which pages are visited, how long people stay, where errors occur, which searches return nothing. We configure our analytics to avoid collecting personally identifying information where possible, and we look at totals and trends, never at individual browsing histories. Retention is limited; raw logs age out and only aggregated statistics are kept long-term.
• Advertising cookies. Set by Google AdSense and its partners, not by us directly. These may be used to show you ads based on your visits to Previously and other sites, to cap how often you see the same ad, and to measure ad performance. Google's use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads to you based on your visit to our site and/or other sites on the internet. Retention is set by Google — typically up to 13 months — and governed by Google's advertising policies.

We do not use fingerprinting, canvas tracking, or other exotic identification techniques. If that ever changes, this page will say so before it happens.

Previously is a discovery guide, which means we embed content from across the internet — and that content brings its own cookies, set under its own policies:

• YouTube video players (Google). Embedded YouTube players may set cookies for playback, preferences, and measurement, and may associate viewing with your Google account if you are signed in. See Google's cookie policy.
• Spotify embeds (Spotify). Embedded players may set cookies for playback state and analytics under Spotify's cookie policy.
• Social widgets. Share buttons and social embeds may set cookies from their respective platforms.
• Ad network partners. Google AdSense and its approved partners may set cookies as described above.

We do not control these cookies, and blocking them in your browser will not break Previously's core features — though individual embeds may behave differently. Refer to each provider's cookie policy for details.

You have real, working controls — not theater. Here they are, in order of effectiveness:

1. Cookie consent preferences. The "Cookie choices" link in the site footer opens your consent preferences, where you can accept or decline non-essential cookies. You can revisit and change your choices at any time; changes apply going forward.

2. Browser controls. Every major browser lets you block or delete cookies in its settings — including blocking third-party cookies entirely, which stops most ad-network and embed tracking while leaving Previously's own sign-in working:

• Chrome: manage cookies
• Firefox: Enhanced Tracking Protection
• Safari (Mac): manage cookies and Safari (iPhone/iPad): prevent cross-site tracking
• Edge: delete and manage cookies

Note that blocking all cookies — including first-party — will prevent sign-in and some features from working. If the site suddenly forgets you, your cookie settings are the first place to look.

3. Advertising personalization opt-outs. To stop personalized ads specifically: Google's Ads Settings, aboutads.info (Digital Advertising Alliance), and Your Online Choices (EU). Opting out stops personalization, not advertising — you will still see ads, just less relevant ones.

4. Do Not Track. Some browsers send a Do Not Track (DNT) signal. There is no industry consensus on how to respond to it, so we do not currently alter our behavior in response to DNT — the controls above are the reliable way to manage cookies. If a standard emerges, we will follow it.

We update this policy when our cookie use changes — new categories, new providers, new controls. The date at the top reflects the latest version, and material changes are announced on the site before they take effect. If you have questions, privacy@watchpreviously.com reaches a human.