Internet Firms Face Legal Test On Advertising Fees
A group of advertisers quietly filed a lawsuit in February against Google Inc., Yahoo Inc. and other Internet companies in a potentially important legal test of those companies' liability for a form of online-advertising fraud.
The plaintiffs, led by Lane's Gifts & Collectibles LLC, a Texarkana, Ark., retailer, allege that the Internet companies knowingly overcharged for advertisements they sold and conspired with each other to continue doing so. The plaintiffs are seeking to have their suit, which hasn't received widespread attention, certified as a class action.
The suit concerns a growing search-industry problem of "click fraud," in which someone clicks on online ads with ill intent. Advertisers generally pay Google, Yahoo and others based on the number of times people click on their ads displayed alongside Web-search results, with each click costing roughly 50 cents on average. By repeatedly clicking on the ads, or using software programs to automate the clicking, fraudsters can run up ad charges for rivals.
The suit, filed in Circuit Court in Miller County, Ark., alleges that the search companies improperly charged the plaintiffs for such fraudulent clicks. The Lane's suit also names as defendants Time Warner Inc. and its America Online unit; Ask Jeeves Inc.; Walt Disney Co.'s online unit; Daum Communications Corp. subsidiary Lycos Inc.; LookSmart Ltd.; and FindWhat.com Inc.
An Ask Jeeves spokeswoman said the company was evaluating the lawsuit. LookSmart and Lycos spokeswomen declined to comment. Officials at the other companies, including Google and Yahoo, confirmed that they were aware of the suit but declined to comment.
Ask Jeeves , which recently agreed to be acquired by IAC/InterActive Corp, warned in a March regulatory filing that "we intend to defend this lawsuit vigorously," and that advertisers may become less willing to buy search-related ads if they come to perceive click-fraud as a pervasive problem.
The search engines have antifraud systems and sometimes issue refunds for bogus clicks. But they decline to comment in detail on the scope of the problem, exactly how they are fighting it, and any specific instances of click fraud, in part because they don't want to tip off fraudsters. That has fed some advertisers' fears that the problem is bigger than the search companies acknowledge. Estimates of click fraud run as high as 20% of all clicks on search ads
互联网公司面临广告收费法律诉讼
一广告客户团体2月份悄无声息地对Google Inc. (GOOG)、雅虎(Yahoo Inc., YHOO)和其他互联网公司提起诉讼。这桩纠纷可能会成为划分这些公司在构成网络广告欺诈时应负责任的重要法律标准。
以阿肯色州苔克斯卡那零售商Lane's Gifts & Collectibles LLC为首的原告，指控互联网公司故意抬高广告销售价格，并相互串通、执迷不悟。原告要求将他们尚未获得广泛注意的诉讼认定为集体诉讼。
这桩诉讼涉及搜索引擎行业一个日渐突出的问题：“点击诈骗”，即有人恶意点击网络广告。广告客户通常根据在网络搜索结果旁边出现的广告获得的点击量向Google、雅虎及其他互联网公司支付费用，点击1次的费用平均约为50美分。通过多次点击广告、或使用自动点击广告的软件程序，作祟者便可以抬高竞争对手的广告支出。
向阿肯色州米勒县巡回法庭(Circuit Court)递交的诉状，指控搜索引擎公司不恰当地向原告收取了这些诈骗性点击量的费用。
诉状中列出的被告还包括时代华纳公司(Time Warner Inc., TWX)及其子公司美国在线(America Online)、Ask Jeeves Inc. (ASKJ)、沃尔特-迪斯尼公司(Walt Disney Co., DIS)的网络子公司、Daum Communications Corp. (035720.KQ)旗下的来科思公司(Lycos Inc.)、LookSmart Ltd. (LOOK)和FindWhat.com Inc. (FWHT)。
Ask Jeeves发言人表示，公司正在评估诉讼。LookSmart和来科思的发言人拒绝置评。Google和雅虎等其他公司的管理人士证实知道这桩诉讼，但拒绝置评。
