News Sites Settle Pop-Up Lawsuit
Sites sued Gator over the ads displayed by its software, which users may unknowingly download with other applications.
Todd R. Weiss, Computerworld
A lawsuit filed last July by seven major news organizations to stop pop-up online advertising company Gator from displaying its ads on their Web sites has been settled, but the outcome has been sealed by the court.
That means that there will be no public announcement of whether the result favored Gator or the seven news organizations.
The lawsuit alleged that Redwood City, California-based Gator piggybacked off their Web sites by placing pop-up ads that compete with the advertising that the sites sell. The plaintiffs were the Washington Post, Dow Jones, Tribune Interactive, the New York Times, Knight Ridder, Advance Publications, and Gannett. The publishers said they have 15 Web sites among them that draw millions of viewers monthly.
Gator attorney Janet Cullum Monday confirmed that a settlement was reached last week, but added that all details are to remain confidential under an agreement by the parties. Cullum had no additional comment on the settlement.
Online Conflicts
The suit alleged that Gator displays ads that directly compete with services and products offered by the plaintiffs' Web sites. For instance, the suit says Gator displayed an ad for travel Web site Travelocity.com on a plaintiff-owned Web site--Concierge.com--that offered discount travel deals similar to those promoted by Travelocity.com.
Gator chief executive officer and president Jeff McFadden couldn't be reached for comment Monday.
Gator's software and other programs like it often come bundled with other applications that users download, such as file-sharing software or media players. The software can then track users' surfing habits and display content, such as ads, that most users are unaware have no connection with the site they are viewing.
A similar lawsuit was filed in November by the Six Continents Hotels and Inter-Continental Hotels chains, which also alleged that Gator illegally added its pop-up ads to their Web sites, leading to confusion for customers.

For more enterprise computing news, visit Computerworld. Story copyright © 2007 Computerworld Inc. All rights reserved.
Acer Laptop Center
Perfect Print Solutions
- Great year-end deals

for small business! -
Get 24/7 live remote AT&T Tech Support 360* service along with select Lenovo* PCs (with Intel® Core™ 2 Duo processors) and save up to 200!
-
HP EliteBook* 6930p Notebook with Intel® vPro™ technology and a free HP Basic Docking Station - $641 instant savings!
- *Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others. ©2009 Intel Corporation. Intel, the Intel logo, vPro and Core trademarks of Intel Corporation in the United States and other countries. All rights reserved.
Dell End of Year Deals
-
Ring in the New Year with Huge Deals on Dell Computers
Up to 30% Popular Dell Laptops, up to 25% off Popular Dell Desktops. Sales ends 12/31 5AM EST.
People who read this also read:
Best Prices on Laptops
MacBook NotebookPrice: $954.99
Compaq Presario CQ61Z Notebook - CustomizablePrice: $399.99
G71-340US NotebookPrice: $649.99
13.3" MacBook Pro NotebookPrice: $1149.00
Pavilion dv4-1540us NotebookPrice: $679.99
Eee PC 1005HA Seashell NetbookPrice: $289.83
- Perfect Printing Solutions Find just the right All-in-One Printer for you from HP. Visit the HP Resource Center.
- Acer Laptop Center Forget the Mouse...check out the next generation multi-gesture touch screen technology from Acer.
- Dell Shopping Center Check out great deals from Dell!
Cameras
Camcorders
Cell Phones
Components
Desktops
HDTV
Home Theater
GPS
Laptops
Monitors
MP3 Players
Networking &
Printers
Storage







