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Claria Leaves Adware Business
Alex Stern writes "In an attempt to clean up its tarnished name, Claria
has hired Deutsche Bank to help them sell off the software tools that were previously supported by their adware. Claria says they are unwilling to sell the software for the GAIN ad network, or the data they have collected from their users. Claria is also holding on to their eWallet software that manages passwords. On July 1, Claria will shutdown the GAIN network and inform their users they can either uninstall their software or pay for it. Claria's new business model is 'a new platform designed to provide consumers with a personalized Internet experience.'"
I don't think you can clear a name that has been into spyware. I know I won't trust them for anything else they might do...
Send email from the afterlife! Write your e-will at Dead Man's Switch.
Oh boy, a screen saver. Let me whip out my billion dollars in venture capital for that!
is now knitting little sweaters for orphaned puppies.
How does a 7-person democracy cut a pie? Into 4 pieces.
In other words, spying on what you do on the 'net....
A new company starts up called Claritor, who restarts the GAIN network...
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>> Claria's new business model is 'a new platform designed to >> provide consumers with a personalized Internet experience.'" To create a personalized Internet experience, don't they have to collect more intimate user information?
So what's the going rate for buying a product line and promising not to use it?
Pond scum by any other name is still pond scum. And no matter how they change their product line-up, pond scum is still pond scum.
I want a new quote. One that won't spill. One that don't cost too much. Or come in a pill.
The real question is: can I pay with American Express or will they only take visa and mastercard. Don't take my GATOR away!!!
Claria's new business model is 'a new platform designed to provide consumers with a personalized Internet experience.'
Sounds like a recipe for failure to me. I doubt the value that they add is going to be enough to make people want to pay for their software. I doubt that very much.
Why would anybody pay for software to pre-populate fields w/ credit cards, addresses, etc. when Internet Explorer and Firefox can already do that for free? (If you're into that sort of thing.)
Hello toilet, goodbye Claria.
...
"Claria's new business model is 'a new platform designed to provide consumers with a personalized Internet experience.'"
No doubt by spying on you, showing you ads, AND making you pay for the software that does it.
Thanks, but no thanks.
====
Crudely Drawn Games
So, some other company is going to continue business as usual? I don't care what sort of agreement the new owners have to abide by, there's always a way around such things. For all we know, the new purchaser could be just another entity that's owned by Claria via several layers of legal entities.
Saturday is April 1. Slashdot will be shut down. Sorry for the inconvenience.
a new platform designed to provide consumers with a personalized Internet experience
So they'll be releasing a tool bar, which will do all of this again and claim other wise?
I like muppets.
So, they are going forward to start a legitimate business based on the profits and contacts they've made in the ad-ware (some may say spy-ware) business? If they really wanted to turn over a new leaf, they'd dissolve the corporation and return all the money to the shareholders.
Oceania has always been at war with Eastasia.
"Claria says they are unwilling to sell the software for the GAIN ad network, or the data they have collected from their users."
Uh, why? Did they wake up some morning and magically get some ethics? Or are they afraid of what people will discover?
They should get (another) name change at the same time. Most people know the relationship Claria == Gator == spyware/adware == scum.
I have always had trouble understanding how spyware can be legal anyway...
I mean basically the company is spying on you, its similar to if Walmart hired someone to constantly stalk you and take notes on what kind of shampoo you buy...it just does not seem logical.
But then who said laws have to be logical, I mean the RIAA/MPAA DMCA CRAP states that for each movie/song one downloads the loss to the companies is the hundreds of thousands of dollars, doesnt really make sense does it...
Post apocalyptic gaming goodness
It's a trick, get an axe.
swanker than you
If I were Deutsche Bank, I'd run from these guys like hell.
17779 eligible voters in a district, 17779 'vote' as one. This is Russia.
'a new platform designed to provide consumers with a personalized Internet experience.' Sounds like they're going to release a browser with inbuilt spyware, like some preconfigured Firefox or something...
I guess this means they won't be liable for any legal actions. I'd like to see a sopena of their records so we can see whom they sold their illegally gotten data. I wonder how many reputable businesses use this kind of info. They have the tools and infrastructure to start another venture on the lawless wild wild web, so we can expect to see them again when the heat is off, if this is more than postering.
"Never say Never."
Sorry, but businesses don't get out of a market to "clean up their name". Something financial was driving this, though I don't know what. Are they scared of litigation, or did their revenue from ads drop? Was google stealing their market?
At first glance, this move on Claria's part seems nonsensical. They are gutting their business model and walking away from a very lucrative source of revenue, all in the name of (more or less) doing the right thing.
Well, here's the rub.
Vista is coming in 2007. Vista is going to have antispyware built directly into the operating system. By 2009, when XP is going to be a minority OS as people's crummy hardware dies (helped along by spyware infestations), there isn't going to be a market for Claria's BS.
They quite simply have no other choice but to cash out what they can and change their profit model. (Of course, this is assuming that the anti-spyware elements of Vista will work at all... but like it or not, MS *does* have a lot of very bright people, and preventing modifications to critical system files *should* be a bit of a no brainer.)
Here's hoping that the party is over.
It's not in their press release, but really their CEO is just afraid he's going to have to box with that crazy Russian guy. ;)
"The new system will serve up personalized content and advertising to opt-in users."
...which is always (claimed to be) opt-in? Usually in a confusing, most people would feel deceptive way, but at some point in the process you have clicked "yes" on a button, with or without having paid any attention to a complicated notice in obfuscated legalese...
In other words, adware...
"How to Do Nothing," kids activities, back in print!
They said they would like to order one million space heaters. Or one million Intel PCs, whichever is cheaper.
"George W Bush lied about WMD during his first term in office, but people forgot/forgave him and voted him in for a second term."
That was less about forgiving him and more about people being terrified of terrorists and/or gay marriage.
"A lot of people hated the Vietnam war and the soldiers who fought there, but now most have come to terms that the soldiers did what the country asked them to do, and had to go through hell and back."
It only took 10-15 years.
"Microsoft has a terrible track record when it comes to security, but people still install their software."
It's called a "monopoly" for a reason.
"Union Carbide was responsible for 15,000 people's deaths in India, but the company is still alive and well."
Few people in the US know, let alone care. Fewer still know how their purchaes support UC.
Your inbox is awash in spam, your boss is chuckling over your credit report, and you've got a sneaking suspicion that Uncle Sam counts how many Löwenbräu you chug. Yes, your privacy's shot to hell, and you're tempted to shrug and settle for an open source life. But privacy isn't like virginity, forever lost after the first trespass. With some work, "reprivatization" is possible. Use this three-tiered guide to pick a level of solitude. But be warned: Going all the way off the grid is more Ted Kaczynski than Howard Hughes.
Going
Diss credit: Want to be hard to find? Start by dashing off stern opt-out letters to the big database companies and credit bureaus - Experian, Acxiom, Equifax. These folks may make a mint peddling personal info, but they can be cajoled into stopping. First, though, they'll make you jump through hoops - like filling out a 1040-sized form or idling in toll-free hell. Junkbusters (www.junkbusters.com) has a good list of opt-out addresses.
Anonymize: Ditch your ISP and sign up with a service that lets you surf by proxy, keeping your IP address concealed. Send email via an anonymous remailer like Mixmaster, a digital middleman that scrambles timestamps and message sizes. And if you're going to be advocating the violent overthrow of the government or bragging about your cool new bong, make sure your remailer routes messages through multiple machines.
Grok the fine print: Boring as it sounds, read the privacy statements that clutter your mailbox around tax time and sever ties with companies that admit, "Our privacy policy may change over time" - industry lingo for "We reserve the right to screw you."
Going Further
Ditch the digits:Want to drop out?Start by rustling up a new Social Security number.
The Social Security Administration doesn't accept paranoia as a criterion for granting a new card, but it recognizes cultural objections and religious pleas. One stratagem: Contend that your credit has been irrevocably damaged by a number-related snafu, or that you live in fear of a stalker who knows your digits. Once you switch your SSN, never use it. Instead, dole out 078-05-1120, an Eisenhower-era card that works 99 percent of the time.
Call cell-free: Use the humble pay phone. Mobile phones are being outfitted with global positioning satellite chips to comply with an FCC mandate. By 2006, all wireless networks must feature 911-friendly tracking technology. Marketers are cooking up ways to capitalize, like zapping burger coupons to your Nokia as you stroll by a fast-food joint.
Pay full price: You may relish saving 10 percent on Prell, but deep-six your buyers' club cards. Supermarkets and pharmacies haven't yet perfected the art of data mining, but it won't be long. "If you're having a child custody fight, they could subpoena your frequent-shopper cards and say, 'Look, he's buying too many potato chips, he's hurting the kids,'" says Robert Gellman, a Washington-based privacy consultant.
Gone
Move: Want to go completely off the grid? Start by moving - address changes bedevil databasers. But don't buy a home. All those loan apps will blow your cover. Residential hotels smell like cheap cigars and urine, but at least you can register under a pseudonym. Give a fake address: 3500 S. Wacker, Chicago, IL, 60616 - the front door for Comiskey Park.
Toss your cards:Pay cash for everything, and don't plan on a life of luxury. Any (legal) cash transaction more than $10,000 triggers government reporting regulations, which means you can forget about that Cadillac Escalade you've had your eye on. Settle for the subway or bus, using coins rather than prepaid fare cards, which keep a record of trips.
Go incognito: Facial-recognition gear will soon be ubiquitous in public spaces. To fool the systems, invest in a pair of bulky aviator sunglasses and a hat. If you fear being tailed, alter your gait every time you hit the street - a pigeon-toed shuffle one day, a bowlegged amble the next. There are also Central American plastic surgery mills, beloved of drug lords, that can alter the loops and whorls on your fingertips. It'll set you back 10 Gs, but then, Costa Rican doctors have been known to accept gold Rolexes in lieu of cash.
March 27, 2006, GAIN becomes self aware......
Don't take life so seriously. No one makes it out alive.
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