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KRosh · 01-29-2005, 01:12 PM

Interesting story. I wonder who will win.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/busin...9_adware09.html

Two adware firms battling in court

By JOHN COOK
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

As millions of computer users try to deal with the scourge of adware and other nefarious online marketing programs, two purveyors of the technology are battling in a Seattle court.

Avenue Media, a Caribbean Islands entity with ties to a Seattle Internet pornography company, alleges in a lawsuit that New York-based DirectRevenue "surreptitiously uninstalled" Avenue Media's software from millions of computers and then hijacked advertising revenues of more than $7,000 per day.

Reached yesterday, DirectRevenue Chief Executive Joshua Abram declined to comment on the suit. Officials at Avenue Media, which is seeking an injunction to stop the uninstall process and more than $100,000 in damages, could not be reached.

Filed last month in U.S. District Court in Seattle, the lawsuit provides a rare look into a complex -- yet highly lucrative -- business that has drawn scrutiny from federal agencies, legislators and consumer groups in recent months.

It is known in industry parlance as contextual advertising. Most consumers who have encountered this category of software -- which redirects Internet searches, generates streams of pop-up advertisements or interferes with a computer's normal operations -- have come to know the programs as adware, spyware or malware.

The lawsuit is significant because it is thought to be the first time that an adware company has sued a rival for intentionally disabling a competing program, said Benjamin Edelman, a Harvard law student and computer expert.

"There have been a few occasions in which programs would remove Adaware," Edelman said, referring to an anti-spyware program. "But there is never an instance that I am aware of of one spyware removing another spyware."

In many cases, computer users have no idea the programs are running on their machines, Edelman said. Complicating matters, he said, they also may not have accepted or seen a license agreement from either of the companies.

"When both of the programs have gotten onto the user's computer through security holes, which is what I have observed, then the user probably didn't want either one of them," Edelman said. "It is really a complicated situation."

Edelman, who tests adware and spyware programs, said he observed the behavior alleged in the lawsuit during a period in mid-November.

"I didn't know what to make of it; it seemed crazy to me," he said. "What I had seen was a program deleting its competitor."

Based on the Caribbean island of Curacao, Avenue Media has ties to Shawn Boday, who in court documents is listed as a "sales consultant." Boday, who could not be reached for comment, is the founder of Seattle-based Flying Crocodile Inc. Flying Crocodile operates SexTracker.com, a compilation of pornographic Web sites and marketing tools for adult Web masters.

In sworn court documents filed last month, Boday said that Avenue Media suffered a loss of nearly a million Web "hits" during a two-day period in mid-November. He said an investigation determined that DirectRevenue was responsible for sending "computerized commands" that deleted the company's software from users' hard drives.

"Without any cause or right, we have been severed from our business relationship with millions of customers without their knowledge and consent," Boday said.

Avenue Media, which has been in business for about two years, said it was generating up to $25,000 per day before it was cut off by DirectRevenue. Since February 2003, it also has received $800,000 in commissions for distributing DirectRevenue's ad-generating software to computer users.

In its response to the lawsuit, DirectRevenue, whose software is also known as BetterInternet, said that its licensing agreement allows it to remove other adware programs.

"Making (BetterInternet) the exclusive adware on an end-user's computer is favorable to the end-user ... ," the response says. "If more than one adware client is operating on an end-user's computer, the end-user may receive duplicative ads and a high volume of advertising."

It goes on to say that Avenue Media, as a distributor of the BetterInternet software, should know the particulars of the licensing agreement it is offering to computer users. That agreement includes language about DirectRevenue being permitted to remove other adware programs.

01-29-2005, 01:12 PM
KRosh So Fucking Outlawed Industry Role: Join Date: Nov 2001 Posts: 5,114	Adware install Feud ... Better Internet and Sextracker Interesting story. I wonder who will win. http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/busin...9_adware09.html Two adware firms battling in court By JOHN COOK SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER As millions of computer users try to deal with the scourge of adware and other nefarious online marketing programs, two purveyors of the technology are battling in a Seattle court. Avenue Media, a Caribbean Islands entity with ties to a Seattle Internet pornography company, alleges in a lawsuit that New York-based DirectRevenue "surreptitiously uninstalled" Avenue Media's software from millions of computers and then hijacked advertising revenues of more than $7,000 per day. Reached yesterday, DirectRevenue Chief Executive Joshua Abram declined to comment on the suit. Officials at Avenue Media, which is seeking an injunction to stop the uninstall process and more than $100,000 in damages, could not be reached. Filed last month in U.S. District Court in Seattle, the lawsuit provides a rare look into a complex -- yet highly lucrative -- business that has drawn scrutiny from federal agencies, legislators and consumer groups in recent months. It is known in industry parlance as contextual advertising. Most consumers who have encountered this category of software -- which redirects Internet searches, generates streams of pop-up advertisements or interferes with a computer's normal operations -- have come to know the programs as adware, spyware or malware. The lawsuit is significant because it is thought to be the first time that an adware company has sued a rival for intentionally disabling a competing program, said Benjamin Edelman, a Harvard law student and computer expert. "There have been a few occasions in which programs would remove Adaware," Edelman said, referring to an anti-spyware program. "But there is never an instance that I am aware of of one spyware removing another spyware." In many cases, computer users have no idea the programs are running on their machines, Edelman said. Complicating matters, he said, they also may not have accepted or seen a license agreement from either of the companies. "When both of the programs have gotten onto the user's computer through security holes, which is what I have observed, then the user probably didn't want either one of them," Edelman said. "It is really a complicated situation." Edelman, who tests adware and spyware programs, said he observed the behavior alleged in the lawsuit during a period in mid-November. "I didn't know what to make of it; it seemed crazy to me," he said. "What I had seen was a program deleting its competitor." Based on the Caribbean island of Curacao, Avenue Media has ties to Shawn Boday, who in court documents is listed as a "sales consultant." Boday, who could not be reached for comment, is the founder of Seattle-based Flying Crocodile Inc. Flying Crocodile operates SexTracker.com, a compilation of pornographic Web sites and marketing tools for adult Web masters. In sworn court documents filed last month, Boday said that Avenue Media suffered a loss of nearly a million Web "hits" during a two-day period in mid-November. He said an investigation determined that DirectRevenue was responsible for sending "computerized commands" that deleted the company's software from users' hard drives. "Without any cause or right, we have been severed from our business relationship with millions of customers without their knowledge and consent," Boday said. Avenue Media, which has been in business for about two years, said it was generating up to $25,000 per day before it was cut off by DirectRevenue. Since February 2003, it also has received $800,000 in commissions for distributing DirectRevenue's ad-generating software to computer users. In its response to the lawsuit, DirectRevenue, whose software is also known as BetterInternet, said that its licensing agreement allows it to remove other adware programs. "Making (BetterInternet) the exclusive adware on an end-user's computer is favorable to the end-user ... ," the response says. "If more than one adware client is operating on an end-user's computer, the end-user may receive duplicative ads and a high volume of advertising." It goes on to say that Avenue Media, as a distributor of the BetterInternet software, should know the particulars of the licensing agreement it is offering to computer users. That agreement includes language about DirectRevenue being permitted to remove other adware programs. Last edited by KRosh; 01-29-2005 at 01:15 PM..