MySpace starts suing affiliate networks

Posted on Tuesday, January 23 2007 @ 17:07 CET by Thomas De Maesschalck

In effort to reduce spamming and phishing activity on MySpace, the social networking site today started filling lawsuits against over 20 advertising networks. Most media only report about the lawsuit against "Spam King" Scott Richter, but according to affiliate forum WickedFire at least 20 more networks got hit by MySpace's lawsuits.

Richter is the owner of OptInRealBig.com and owner of the CPA Empire affiliate network. MySpace claims he send out millions of unsolicited bulletins to MySpace members. The social networking site says Richter phished MySpace accounts and then used the network's bulletin feature to send bulletins to all of a user's "friends" for products like ringtones and "free" iPods.

According to Jon, WickedFire's administrator who talked to several industry sources at Affiliate Summit West (ASW) in Las Vegas, MySpace is seeking punitive damages from $20 million to $75 million per ad network. The biggest network being hit is Richter's CPA Empire, for a staggering $75 million.

About the Author

Thomas De Maesschalck

Thomas has been messing with computer since early childhood and firmly believes the Internet is the best thing since sliced bread. Enjoys playing with new tech, is fascinated by science, and passionate about financial markets. When not behind a computer, he can be found with running shoes on or lifting heavy weights in the weight room.

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