Who we are
Vineyard Vibes is made by WINTERHILL MEDIA LLC, an independent game studio based in Massachusetts, USA.
If you have any question about this policy or your data, email us at hello@winterhill.studio. We're a small independent studio; a real person reads that inbox.
The short version
- Vineyard Vibes has no accounts. The game never asks for your name, email, or password, and we don't run our own servers that store your data.
- Your complete save lives on your device. A limited progress snapshot can optionally sync through your own iCloud so completed levels follow you between devices. We can't see it.
- The game is free because it shows ads, and it uses a small set of well-known third-party services for ads, analytics, crash reporting, and purchases. Those services are named below, with exactly what they receive and why.
- Personalized ads happen only if you say yes to the iOS tracking prompt. Saying no changes nothing about price or gameplay—you just get less-relevant ads.
What we don't collect
The game does not automatically collect your name, email address, phone number, contacts, photos, precise location, or the content of anything on your device. There is no chat, no user-generated content, and no social feature. We do not sell your personal information for money.
If you choose Email Support or Report an Inappropriate Ad, iOS opens your email app. Winterhill and its email provider receive only what you decide to send, which can include your email address, message, and an optional screenshot. We use that correspondence only to answer you, investigate the reported ad, protect the service, or meet a legal obligation; it is not used for advertising.
Third-party services we use
The app includes software from the following companies. Each one collects some data on its own behalf and ours when you play. We've listed what each collects and why, and linked each company's own privacy policy.
Google AdMob (advertising)
Vineyard Vibes shows two kinds of ads: rewarded videos (which you choose to watch in exchange for an in-game bonus—they never play unless you tap the button) and occasional interstitial ads between levels (which you can remove permanently with a one-time purchase). We do not use ad mediation—ads come from Google AdMob only. Ads are rated G—suitable for general audiences.
AdMob may collect: device identifiers (the IDFA advertising identifier only if you allow tracking—see “The tracking prompt” below—otherwise a non-tracking device identifier), ad interaction data (which ads were shown, viewed, and tapped), general device information, and a coarse, city-level location estimated from your IP address. This is used to serve ads, measure them, prevent fraud, and—only with your consent—make ads more relevant.
In the EEA, UK, and applicable US states, a consent form (Google's User Messaging Platform) appears before any ads are personalized, and a Privacy Options button in the game's Settings lets you change your answer at any time.
Google Firebase (analytics, crash reporting, remote configuration)
We use Firebase Analytics to understand how the game is played—events like “level 12 started,” “level 12 failed with 0 moves left,” “booster used,” “ad watched,” and “purchase completed.” These events are tied to a random app-instance identifier, not to you personally, and include device model, OS version, and coarse IP-derived region. We use this to find levels that are too hard, fix funnels, and balance the economy.
We use Firebase Crashlytics to receive crash reports (stack traces, device model, OS version, what the app was doing when it crashed) so we can fix bugs. Crash reports are not used for advertising.
We use Firebase Remote Config to tune game settings (like lives regeneration time) without shipping an update; fetching the configuration sends basic device and app-version information.
RevenueCat (purchase management)
When you buy something, Apple processes the payment (see “Purchases” below). RevenueCat receives the purchase receipt from Apple, a random anonymous user ID we assign to your install, and your purchase history in the game, so that your purchases (like “No Interstitials”) are recognized reliably and can be restored on a new device. RevenueCat never sees your payment card, Apple ID password, or real identity.
Apple
Apple handles payments (App Store / StoreKit) and, if you use it, iCloud sync—both under Apple's privacy policy.
The tracking prompt (App Tracking Transparency)
Some time after you've played a few levels, the game will ask—first with our own explanation screen, then with the standard iOS prompt—whether to “Allow tracking.”
- If you allow: your device's advertising identifier (IDFA) is shared with Google AdMob so ads can be personalized and measured across apps. Ads pay more this way, which supports the game.
- If you don't allow: no IDFA is shared, and you get non-personalized ads chosen from context only. The game is identical—same price (free), same levels, same everything.
We will never nag you to change your answer, and we never gate rewards on it.
Changing your mind (consent withdrawal)
- In the game: Settings → Privacy Options re-opens the consent form so you can change your ad-privacy choices at any time. This button appears where the law provides these choices—the EEA, UK, and applicable US states.
- In iOS: Settings → Privacy & Security → Tracking → turn off Vineyard Vibes (or turn off “Allow Apps to Request to Track” entirely). This revokes IDFA access immediately.
- Reset your advertising identifier any time in the same iOS Settings area.
Your rights—EEA, UK, and Switzerland (GDPR)
Where GDPR applies, our lawful bases are: consent for personalized advertising and the associated identifiers (collected via the consent form and ATT prompt); legitimate interests for non-personalized ads, crash reporting, fraud prevention, and aggregate analytics needed to run and improve a free game; and performance of a contract for delivering purchases you make.
You have the right to access, correct, delete, or receive a copy of your personal data, to restrict or object to processing, to withdraw consent at any time (see above—withdrawal doesn't affect prior processing), and to lodge a complaint with your local supervisory authority. Because we hold no account data ourselves, most data lives with the providers named above; email us and we will help you direct a request to the right place, or you can contact them directly via the links above.
Your rights—US states
If you live in California or another US state with a comprehensive privacy law, you have rights to know/access, delete, and correct personal information, and to opt out of “targeted advertising” and the “sale” or “sharing” of personal information. We don't sell data for money, but sharing device identifiers with an ad network for personalized ads counts as “sharing”/“targeted advertising” under some of these laws. To opt out: Settings → Privacy Options in the game, or deny/revoke tracking in iOS Settings. We will never treat you differently for exercising these rights.
How long data is kept
- We keep nothing on our own servers—we don't have any.
- On your device: progress and settings stay until you delete the app (consent choices are stored in app preferences on the device).
- In your iCloud: the limited progress snapshot stays until you delete the app's data from iCloud or stop using iCloud—it's under your Apple Account's control, not ours.
- Support correspondence: voluntary emails and attachments stay in our support inbox only as long as reasonably needed to answer, investigate a report, prevent abuse, or meet a legal obligation. You can ask us to delete them by replying or emailing the address below.
- Third parties: Firebase Analytics data is retained for at most 14 months as we've configured it; Crashlytics crash reports are retained for about 90 days; Google and RevenueCat retain other data per their policies linked above. Aggregated statistics (for example, “40% of players failed level 23”) aren't personal data and may be kept indefinitely.
Children
Vineyard Vibes is not directed at children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. We do not enable child-directed ad treatment because the game is intended for a general audience. If you believe a child under 13 has used the app and data was collected, email us at hello@winterhill.studio and we will work with our providers to delete it.
Game progress and iCloud
Your complete save—including progress, coins, boosters, lives, purchases, and settings—is saved on your device. If your device is signed in to iCloud, only your completed levels, earned stars, and claimed landmark-chest count sync through Apple's iCloud key-value storage. Spendable currency, boosters, lives, purchase receipts, and settings deliberately remain device-only. The iCloud copy is managed entirely by Apple and tied to your Apple Account; it never passes through us, and we cannot read it. Turning off iCloud for the app stops the sync; local play is unaffected.
Purchases
All purchases go through Apple's App Store. We never see your payment details—Apple processes the payment and gives the app a receipt, which is validated through RevenueCat as described above. Refunds are handled by Apple (see the Terms of Use).
Notifications
The game may schedule local notifications (for example, “your lives are refilled”). These are created and delivered entirely on your device—no data leaves it, and there's no push-notification server. Pause them in the game's Settings or turn them off in iOS Settings → Notifications at any time.
Changes to this policy
If we change this policy—for example, if a future update adds a new SDK—we'll update this page and the effective date at the top, and for material changes we'll note it in the app's release notes. The current version always lives at this URL.
Contact
WINTERHILL MEDIA LLC
Massachusetts, USA
hello@winterhill.studio