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Gator Files for IPO to Raise $150 Million
michalas writes "Wired reports on the IPO filing of adware/spyware kings Claria who have recently changed their name from Gator.
Claria on Thursday filed for an initial public offering to raise $150 million to continue developing its 'behavioral marketing platform.' Claria had a net income of $35 million on revenues of $90 million in 2003. In addition, Claria said it has 43 million active users and 425 advertisers."
Yea, the only way I'd buy this stock is if my static ip address is blacklisted by their crapware so that it won't/can't install itself on my systems. Surely an incentive like that would entice people to buy into this IPO.
Of course, then they'll have their money for development except by that time every person with a computer will have purchased a share of stock to keep that crap off their system...in which case there would be no reason for them to continue development of the software, and really have no reason for them to continue to exist as a company.
Heck, where do I sign up for that?
I remember seeing a comment earlier about how Microsoft buys up companies and shuts them down or kills off the technology. Maybe MSFT could do us all a favor, buy them out, and shut them down? It's probably one of the few humane things to do...
" 43 million active users " Those are not users, they are called "victims"
In addition, Claria said it has 43 million active users and 425 advertisers.
I think 'infected computers' would be more likely. Whenever I tell people I can make those pop-ups stop by running Ad-aware, they are more than happy to remove themselves from this list of 'active users.'
Claria who have recently changed their name from Gator.
Nice name. But, a frosted dog turd is not a wedding cake; it is still a frosted dog turd. I hope whatever stock they have drops like a brick.
The coolest voice ever.
Does anyone know where to get a list of the 425 advertisers, so I know which companies to avoid?
Napster was a dead company walking from a legal perspective from day one. Nobody was that surprised when it got shutdown. However, it was able to float an IPO...
Sometimes, crime does pay. Even if Gator is made illegal by state laws, they'll still be functioning until such laws are enforced. Simply passing a law won't make them go away.
Anybody got a current quote for what SCOX is going for while we're at it?
The selection of the name "Claria" is a study how to avoid a mucked-up name... pick a made up word that has the seems to have the a tie to the words that represent what you wish you weren't so bad at.
People think you can't keep your promises? Call yourself Verizon or Verisign... "Vari-" meaning "truth"
You're stuck in the drug business trying to make people get high? Call yourself Altria... "alt-" meaning high
People confused about complex multiple rate plan options? Call yourself Cingular... kinda sounds like "singular" where there's only one option.
You're main product requires confusing people into aceptng it to work? Call yourself Claria... even though there's nothing clear to users about what they're getting themselves into.
Gator has 43 million users in the same way that 43 million people actively have the common cold. They have no control over how they got it, can't do anything about it, and don't notice that it's been gestating until they start sneezing bright flashy ads. It's that sort of misrepresentation that makes me want to work in the department of Statistics and Information Synthesis.
At any rate, how can someone "use" Gator/Claria? Their "users" are simply presented with ads and such. Are you a "user" of the ads you see on Television? No. You are an audience member, and a very passive one at that. Amazing. Simply amazing.
Not to sound extreme here but lots of spyware can cause a system to act just like its infected with virii and cause it be unfunctional.
I have seen it first hand.
My gf's pc and at work where I assist students in a university computer lab.
My gf's computer use to take 20 minutes to boot and would reboot every 30 minutes or so and was highly unresponsive. Especially IE.
McAfee anti virus showed no viruses? I then ran ad-aware and it found 600 objects and tons and tons of spyware.
After that it was fine.
Second, spyware installs backdoors( tell me that does not sound like a worm)so hackers can see your keystrokes and get things like credit card numbers, etc. God forbid anyone doing the taxes with these worms aka spyware ridden systems. Hackers can easily do identity theft.
So I ask slashdotters now. Why is gatorsoft legal? If this thing was called A.mydoom or something the FBI would hound them.
THis is pure fraud, it steals computer cycles, causes break-ins, etc. Its a worm in my book. It may not copy itself to other systems but it sure acts like one. Hmmm I bet if gator soft did email itself over the address book then it could get even MORE customers. lol
This and Divx need to be brought down.
http://saveie6.com/
If someone buys enough shares of Gator, or Claria as they're now calling themselves, could they force the company to shut down? Sure, that would hurt your wallet but it sure would make a lot of people happy.
Let's take that philosophy one step further ... so you'd support a company that sold a product that caused Cancer or AIDS as long as you didn't use that product? Nice to see you've got principles.
In my opinion, after spending 2 hours removing spyware from a friend's computer, Gator's products are no more than viruses.
Which leads me to my point.... why doesn't Symantec (Norton) classify Gator as a virus. It has all the hallmarks of a virus (hell... Blaster was LESS destructive. It just rebooted your machine), and no legitimate use. How isn't it a virus?? Just because the company's legit at the moment, does it really make it okay?
Can anyone answer me?
-- If you try to fail and succeed, which have you done? - Uli's moose
43 million active users... How many are unwilling or unaware victims? I've never met anyone who had gator on their computer know what it was or want it installed. That doesn't sound like being an "active user" to me, more like virtual date-rape victims than anything else.
Pump up the stock price based on nice big numbers ("43 million active users and 425 advertisers") that lead the unwary/uninformed to assume that this company has specialized capabilities that can be the beginning of the next Internet boom; the executives and investment backers incrementally cash out while stories about the sure thing are dribbled to the media to keep the stock price up. Groklaw discusses the SCO strategy in greater detail.
The good thing about Gator going public is that their Financial Statements will tell us what advertisers are funding them. Makes for a nice boycott list.
:)
The ads popping up on desktops might give us a clue as to whom is paying for ads as well...
Seems like people use it because they like the features, like remembering passwords and filling forms. I never installed it so I don't know if there are other things, but how hard can it be to write the same thing over again, just open source? I don't suppose they have a patent, do they?
You could even profit: write/test it in secret, after their IPO place a bid that their stock would drop, and then advertise/release your free version. Eh?
I run nothing but OS X, IRIX and Redhat 9 (soon to be debian) at home and at my colo provider, so anything that makes Windows a nasty experience is A-OK by me.
Yeah. And AIDS is fine by me, coz I'm in a steady monogamous relationship - hence reasonably safe.
Honestly, what kind of sorry excuse for a human being are you? Actively wishing pain for other people because they don't share your taste in something as boring as an operating system?
Congratulations. You've actually made me feel quite depressed about the world.
I'm a freshmen at RIT. When the non computer literate people on my floor ask for help, and I run adaware, I get 300+ hits easy. Install Google Toolbar, and that'll severly get reduced. So, to the average user, I say putting that handy little google toolbar on your computer is the easiest way to solve alot of headaches.
Depends on what you mean by "support," but probably, yeah I would. As long as they were forthright and honest about what risks were entailed in using their products.
Yes, i have principles, it's called a belief in freewill and the right to make your own choices. If someone wants to use a cancer causing product, and they've been told upfront that the product may cause cancer, it's their life to do with as they wish.
I support drug legalization, but i don't think drug education is a bad thing either, as long as it's _real_ education, but "facts" the government is trying to brainwash you with.
Oh, and have you heard about the new chemical they've found in cooked starches that they think causes cancer? Am i supposed to boycott all baked goods producers because of my principles?
And as long as we're talking about principles, how about those "principled" health activists that are trying to force resturants who sell french fries to add a cancer warning but who don't seem to be urgent to get companies to label bread and pasta in the same fashion? They want to get people off of french fries but apparently have no problem supporting companies that make products with the exact same chemical in them but which are considered healthier in other aspects.
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Mostly because it's illegal to do so. ANY unauthorized intrusion into someone's computer is against the law - even if you're helping them. This is one of the reason why some people thought it was such a bad idea when the "anti-virus virus" idea was floating around last year.
Anthony Papillion
Advanced Data Concepts, Inc.
"Quality Custom Software and IT Services"
You know, I have a problem with people who gripe about "secret stuff" being installed on their computer "without their consent" even though, had they read the EULA, they would have known exactly what was being installed and what it does.
While I am not a fan of Gator or any of those damn spyware crapware programs I have to wonder why a company is so wrong installing spyware on your computer because you were too lazy to read the EULA? If they don't HAVE a EULA or it's deceptive then that's a different thing but I'm talking about EULA's that clearly spell out what happens in the program and where users just don't take the time to read it.
Why do we call Gator unethical and sleazy (which I do) when if we wrote a program that told the user "Accepting this EULA will format your entire hard disk" and the user didn't read it we'd be saying "stupid user"? When a company meets its responsibility of disclosure and the users are too lazy to read it then how is that the companies fault?
Anthony Papillion
Advanced Data Concepts, Inc.
"Quality Custom Software and IT Services"
Ugg!!
Now I have to boycott: Alstate insurance, Sun and Apple.
Why coulden't it have been McDonalds, Wal*Mart and Microsoft? They're easy to boycott - unless you happen to like stale food, crappy junk and buggy software.
Moneyed corporations, non-working 'poor' and criminal prisoners are turning productive citizens into tax-slaves.
And that is the "boycott". Named after the English Colonel who's impoverished and powerless Irish peons nonetheless discovered a way of forcing him off their land and out of their lives.
Gator/Claria survives by delivering an effective way for advertisers to reach consumers. You cannot punish Gator/Claria directly - some other company would simply take its place.
Rather, let us organize a boycott of any advertiser who tries to sell his product via spyware of any kind.
Writing to any company that advertises via spyware, and telling them that you will not be using their products any more is a good idea. Telling everyone you know about such companies may also be effective. The best thing would be pressure from consumer groups to government so that advertisers are forced to adhere to a code of conduct that excludes spyware.
Finally, spyware companies will find that the only clients they can find are the same criminal rings that pay for worms, trojans, and viruses, and this is one commercial sector that will find it hard to lobby governments for protection.
Boycott the bums into behaving properly!
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