Public documentation

MediaHelm Legal

Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions (End User License Agreement) for the MediaHelm Android application, package com.mediahelm.app.

Last updated: September 18, 2026

This page describes how MediaHelm is designed to behave. It is not a substitute for independent legal advice. MediaHelm is not directed at children; a parent or guardian is responsible for any use by minors (including built-in demo channels that may be oriented toward kids’ programming).

Privacy Policy

Overview

MediaHelm is an Android-first multimedia suite. The app includes Browser, Files, TV, Queue, and Settings. It is play-first: you can play media in the app without linking a receiver. Casting is optional and available when you choose a compatible device on your local network.

This Privacy Policy explains what MediaHelm does not collect, what remains on your device, how the app uses the network, and which Android permissions it requests. It applies to the MediaHelm software identified as com.mediahelm.app.

Local-first & serverless

MediaHelm is designed as a local-first tool. You do not need a MediaHelm cloud account. There is no MediaHelm-operated backend that collects or stores your personal data, browsing history, or media libraries.

Preferences, bookmarks, history, and libraries persist on the device (using on-device preferences storage). MediaHelm does not operate a SQLite or cloud database for your personal data.

Device discovery (mDNS/SSDP), the Browser media sniffer (on-device inspection of media requests from pages you open), Shields/blocklists, and the media cache run on your device and on your local area network (LAN). Casting uses that local network. For remote HLS, Chromecast receives a phone MediaProxy URL on the LAN (the playlist is rewritten so variants and segments stay on that proxy). MediaHelm does not send that media traffic to a MediaHelm cloud. See MediaProxy & headers for how the phone serves media on the LAN.

Network use is not the same as our collection. The app does make user-initiated network requests: websites you open in the Browser, HLS, M3U, or CDN URLs you choose (including TV channels you add), and LAN communication with receivers such as Chromecast, DLNA, or Roku. Those requests go to the destinations you select, or to devices on your network. They are not a mechanism for MediaHelm to collect your data on MediaHelm servers. We do not operate those websites, CDNs, or receivers.

What we do not collect

MediaHelm does not:

Collect or send your personal data, browsing history, or media libraries to MediaHelm external servers.
Sell personal data.
Require an account to use the app.
Operate a MediaHelm cloud service that stores your history, bookmarks, files, or playback queue.

If you later install a different build, add-on, or unofficial fork, that software may behave differently. This policy describes the MediaHelm app identified above.

What stays on your device

Data the app remembers for its own features is stored locally on your device. You can typically clear it by using in-app controls (where provided) or by clearing the app’s storage in Android settings.

Examples of on-device data include:

Browser history (title, URL, and timestamp; approximately 300 URLs, with consecutive-URL deduplication).
Bookmarks and related library entries you save.
Mute-tab / mute-site preferences (these mute local WebView audio on the phone, not Cast volume).
Settings, device nicknames, and queue-related preferences.
Media cache used for Files: SAF and SMB follow a cache-then-cast model. A persistable SAF tree URI is used to read files you choose; content is served to the receiver over local HTTP. The receiver plays that local HTTP URL, not the Android content URI.

Uninstalling the app, or clearing its storage, removes this local data from that device. MediaHelm does not keep a copy on MediaHelm servers.

Permissions

MediaHelm requests Android permissions needed for browsing, local playback, discovery, and optional casting. In plain language:

Network / Internet. Used to load websites you open, fetch playlists and media from URLs you choose, and talk to devices on your LAN.
Local network discovery. Used to find Cast, DLNA, Roku, and similar devices on your network (for example via mDNS/SSDP multicast). This is not a request for device location.
Storage / Storage Access Framework (SAF). Files uses user-chosen folder trees and the system picker. MediaHelm does not use MANAGE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE as its default permission path. You grant access only to the trees you select.
Notifications and foreground work. Used when casting or keeping playback-related work running (for example an ongoing playback notification while a session is active). Notification permission on current Android versions is requested when that foreground work starts, not as a condition of opening the app.

Permission prompts and exact labels depend on your Android version. Denying a permission may disable the related feature (for example, discovery, Files access, or background playback notices) without requiring a MediaHelm account.

Third parties & LAN

When you open a website, load an HLS/M3U/CDN URL, or add a playlist, that third party receives whatever your device sends in the ordinary course of HTTP(S) (such as IP address, user-agent, cookies the site sets, and referrers). Those services have their own privacy policies. MediaHelm does not operate them and does not control how they use data.

When you cast, your phone and the receiver exchange media and control traffic on the LAN (and, for remote HLS, via the phone MediaProxy described above). Guest Wi‑Fi, client isolation, VPNs, firewalls, and receiver firmware can affect whether discovery and playback work. Destination devices (Chromecast, Google TV / Android TV with Cast, DLNA, Roku, experimental AirPlay, and similar) are made by others; their software may log or process streams according to their own terms.

Optional tips. If the app offers a tip jar, it is voluntary. If you leave MediaHelm to an external tip site, that site’s privacy policy applies. MediaHelm does not require a tip to use the app.

MediaProxy & headers

When you cast (and for some local Files flows), your phone can act as a short-lived HTTP media server on your LAN (MediaProxy and/or a local media server). The casting receiver fetches playlists and segments from your phone over the local network. That hop is often cleartext HTTP on the LAN (receivers commonly expect HTTP for media), even when the original source was HTTPS.

On a shared or untrusted Wi‑Fi network, other devices on the same LAN may be able to observe or request that local HTTP traffic while a cast session is active. Prefer a trusted private network when casting sensitive streams. MediaHelm does not tunnel that LAN media hop through a MediaHelm cloud.

To play authenticated or site-restricted media, MediaHelm may forward an allowlisted set of HTTP headers needed for upstream fetches and playback. In the current app, that allowlist includes User-Agent, Referer / Referrer, Cookie / Cookie2, Origin, and Authorization when present on sniffed or supplied requests. Those values stay on-device for the session and may be sent to the origin CDN and/or used when the receiver pulls media via the phone proxy — they are not uploaded to MediaHelm servers. Diagnostic logs avoid printing Cookie or Authorization values.

The Browser sniffer inspects media-related network requests on your device (for example to surface HLS playlists) so you can play or cast what you choose. It is not a MediaHelm cloud crawler and does not replace the site’s own terms.

Contact

For privacy questions or requests about this policy, contact the publisher by email:

heribertolord@gmail.com

You may also open an issue on this public legal repository (secondary channel):

https://github.com/heribertolord96/mediahelm-legal/issues

Because MediaHelm does not store your personal data on MediaHelm servers, there is typically no operator-held account profile or cloud history to export or delete. Local data is under your control on the device.

Terms and Conditions

End User License Agreement (EULA)

Acceptance

By installing, accessing, or using MediaHelm (com.mediahelm.app), you agree to these Terms and Conditions. If you do not agree, do not use the app.

You must be allowed to enter into this agreement under the laws that apply to you. If you use MediaHelm on behalf of an organization, you represent that you have authority to bind that organization.

License

Subject to these Terms, you are granted a personal, limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to install and use MediaHelm on devices you own or control, for lawful purposes.

This license does not sell you the software. You may not reverse engineer, redistribute, or misrepresent the app except to the extent applicable law (including open-source licenses that apply to included components) expressly allows it. Third-party and open-source components remain under their own licenses.

Neutral tool / BYOC

MediaHelm is a neutral tool. It follows a Bring Your Own Content (BYOC) model.

The app does not include, host, or provide multimedia catalogs, pirate IPTV directories, or third-party video-on-demand libraries. The built-in TV catalog is limited to a small number of legal public HLS demo streams. Any user-added M3U (from a URL or a file) is entirely your responsibility, including legality, terms of service, geography, and copyright.

You are fully responsible for what you browse, cache, play, and cast. MediaHelm does not choose, license, or clear rights in the websites, files, or streams you supply.

MediaHelm is not affiliated with Google, Chromecast, YouTube, Netflix, Roku, or other companies whose names or marks appear in the app or in this document. Those names are used only to identify compatible technologies or to describe out-of-scope features.

The following are out of scope and are not promised:

Official YouTube, Netflix, or partner Cast integration.
Miracast.
Operation on every smart TV, every firmware, or every network configuration.

Acceptable use

You agree to use MediaHelm only in ways that are lawful where you use it. You must not:

Use the app to copy, cache, play, or cast content in violation of copyright, neighboring rights, or other intellectual-property rights.
Circumvent technical protection measures, DRM, or access controls, or attempt official partner Cast for services that MediaHelm does not support.
Attack, scan without authorization, or interfere with networks, receivers, or other people’s devices.
Misuse discovery, proxy, or cache features to hide unlawful activity.

You are responsible for complying with the terms of websites, CDNs, playlists, and devices you use through MediaHelm.

Your responsibility & indemnity

MediaHelm does not host, sell, or operate pirate IPTV directories or third-party VOD libraries. Built-in TV entries are only a small set of legal public HLS demos. User-supplied M3U playlists (URL or file), Browser-sniffed site media, cached Files content, and anything you play or cast are supplied by you.

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, you agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless the people who publish MediaHelm from and against claims, damages, losses, liabilities, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of or related to: (a) user-supplied M3U/IPTV or other playlists; (b) websites or streams you open or sniff in the Browser; (c) media you cache, play, or cast; (d) your violation of these Terms or of third-party rights or terms; and (e) your network or device configuration. This does not require you to indemnify for liability that mandatory law says cannot be shifted to you.

Networks & casting devices

You are responsible for your network setup and for every destination device you select. Casting depends on LAN conditions that MediaHelm does not control, including guest Wi‑Fi, access-point isolation, firewalls, VPNs, multicast, IPv4/IPv6, and receiver firmware.

Compatible-looking devices may include Chromecast, Google TV / Android TV with Cast, DLNA, Roku, and experimental AirPlay support. Presence of a brand name in the UI does not mean certification, partnership, or that the device will work in your environment.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, you use local networks and external casting devices at your own risk. This includes risk of discovery failure, interrupted playback, data loss, device malfunction, overheating, unwanted visibility of media on a shared screen, and service bans or account actions by third parties.

Disclaimer of warranties

MediaHelm is provided “AS IS” and “AS AVAILABLE”, without warranties of any kind, whether express, implied, or statutory. This includes, without limitation, implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title, non-infringement, uninterrupted service, error-free operation, and cast reliability.

No documentation, in-app copy, or store listing should be read as a guarantee that a given website, file, playlist, or TV will play or cast. Optional tips or donations, if you choose to give them, are voluntary and do not purchase a warranty, SLA, or priority support.

Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, the people who publish MediaHelm are not liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary, or punitive damages, or for lost profits, lost data, device failure, service interruption, or third-party bans, arising from your use of the app, your local network, or external casting devices — even if advised of the possibility of such damages.

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability that cannot be excluded or limited under mandatory consumer-protection or other laws that apply to you. Where such laws apply, they may give you additional rights.

These Terms do not designate a governing-law jurisdiction. Mandatory local consumer law may still apply.

Changes

This document may be updated from time to time. The “Last updated” date at the top of this page will change when it is. Continued use of MediaHelm after an update constitutes acceptance of the revised text, except where mandatory law requires a different process.

The current public version is published in this repository. If a copy inside the app and this page differ, the version posted here is intended as the public reference.

Contact

For questions about these Terms, contact the publisher by email:

heribertolord@gmail.com

You may also open an issue on this public legal repository (secondary channel):

https://github.com/heribertolord96/mediahelm-legal/issues