Fergie's Tech Blog

Companies Can't Break Ties to Adware

Tom Spring writes on PC World:

Earlier this year, AT&T's Cingular division and Travelocity both pledged not to advertise anymore via adware--programs that slip onto PCs and inject ads into a user's browser. Verizon took a stance against computer invaders when it became a sponsor of an antispyware initiative. Yet, in March, ads from all three companies were being distributed through adware.

These businesses, along with Comcast and Vonage, acknowledge that their ads have surfaced in adware, but say they never intended for that to happen. The incidents raise a troubling question: Have advertising networks grown so complicated that sponsoring firms can't control where their ads appear, or are the companies simply not being vigilant enough?

posted by Fergie @ 4/27/2007 01:30:00 AM