The New York Attorney General is holding companies accountable for their adware advertising in a groundbreaking new case. This is the 1st time that legal action has been taken against the actual advertisers. Three major brands - Priceline, Travelocity, and Cingular have agreed to pay fines and reform their practices after being accused of advertising through nuisance adware programs according to the New York Attorney General. Priceline, Travelocity, and Cingular agreed to pay fines of $35,000, $30,000, and $35,000, respectively, to the State of New York.
The
SearchAnyway Blog reports on the story.
Press Release - NEW YORK, NY (January 29, 2007) - Attorney General Andrew Cuomo today announced that New York has reached ground-breaking settlements with three major online advertisers for promoting products and services on the Internet through deceptively installed programs known as “adware.” The agreements, with Priceline.com Incorporated (“Priceline”), Travelocity.com LP (“Travelocity”) and Cingular Wireless LLC (“Cingular”) mark the first time law enforcement has held advertisers responsible for ads displayed through adware.
“Advertisers will now be held responsible when their ads end up on consumers’ computers without full notice and consent,” Cuomo said. “Advertisers can no longer insulate themselves from liability by turning a blind eye to how their advertisements are delivered, or by placing ads through intermediaries, such as media buyers. New Yorkers have suffered enough with unwanted adware programs and this agreement goes a long way toward clamping down on this odious practice.”