De Checkmate Strategic Group Inc. gaat in navolging van de eerdere Class Action Suit tegen Google nu ook Yahoo! vervolgen voor in rekening brengen van oneigenlijke kliks (eg. klikfraude).In een meerdere A4’s lange email kondigt de Checkmate Strategic Group Inc. aan alle Yahoo! adverteerders aan dat zij Yahoo! aanklagen voor de reden dat Yahoo!:
breached its contracts with Class Person and committed unfair business practices under California Business & Professions Code § 17200 et seq., including improperly collecting revenue by charging and/or overcharging Class Persons for clicks that were click fraud, click through fraud, fraudulent clicks, click spam, invalid clicks, unwanted clicks, unqualified clicks, improper clicks, non-converting clicks, inadequately converting clicks, clicks that were not reasonably expected by Class Persons or otherwise claimed by Class Persons as clicks for which Class Persons should not have been charged, and improperly collecting revenue by charging and/or overcharging Class Persons for clicks where users did not actively choose the Class Persons’ listings (hereinafter “Challenged Clicks”).
De aanklager nodigt alle adverteerders uit om hun claim aan te dragen over de periode 1 januari 2004 tot aan 31 juli 2006.
Uiteraard verklaart Yahoo! dat zij niets verkeerd hebben gedaan, en er alles aan doen om klikfraude tegen te gaan.
De claim houdt verder in dat (in verkorte vorm) de aanklager van Yahoo! het volgende eist:
i) Yahoo! shall launch an online traffic quality center, which will be available to its advertisers within 90 calendar days of the Effective Date of the settlement. The traffic quality center will include a resource center which will contain FAQs, best practices documents, traffic quality articles, enforcement guidelines, and an advice column.
ii) Yahoo! shall designate a Yahoo! employee as a traffic quality advocate who will be part of a traffic quality group to fulfill the function of fielding advertisers’ concerns regarding traffic quality, including its click fraud prevention efforts, within 90 calendar days of the Effective Date of the settlement.
iii) Within 90 calendar days of the Effective Date of the settlement, Yahoo! shall start a program in which it chooses at least three advertisers per year who will be invited to Yahoo! to obtain special access to the traffic quality team and additional information with respect to Yahoo!’s click protection system, subject to the advertisers’ execution of nondisclosure agreements.
iv) Yahoo! shall work with third parties in an effort to develop industry-wide standards that define click fraud, set forth standards with respect to the detection of click fraud and provide the public with periodic general evaluations regarding the effectiveness of providers’ efforts to filter and prevent the charging of click fraud to customers.
v) Yahoo! will temporarily lift its 60-day contractual provision to allow Class Members to make click fraud claims for the period from January 1, 2004 to July 31, 2006. Any Class Member that wishes to participate in the additional claims review process will have to complete the Assertion of Right to Participate form, and mail by certified or registered mail the completed form to the Claims Administrator on or before November 20, 2006.
