Look how old this is!
I post at SearchCommander.com now, and this post was published 16 years 10 months 23 days ago. This industry changes FAST, so blindly following the advice here *may not* be a good idea! If you're at all unsure, feel free to hit me up on Twitter and ask.

In August of 2005, I put some money into the new Ask sponsored listings program, and after a couple of months of practically no activity, I completely forgot about it.

Today, over two years later, I received an email telling me that I may be entitled to a refund for failure to prevent fraudulent clicks, directing me to a website with a claim form to fill out.

Can this be for real? Did anyone really get enough clicks of any kind from an Ask sponsored listings campaign to pursue a lawsuit? 😉

Here’s a copy of the letter –

Re: Legal Notice of Class Action Settlement Affecting Your Rights

Legal Notice:

If you purchased online advertising from IAC Search & Media, Inc. and/or Ask Jeeves, Inc. (collectively “Ask”) between August 1, 2005 and the present, you may be a class member in a class-action lawsuit, Lane’s Gifts and Collectibles et al. v. Ask Jeeves, Inc. et al., Case No. CV-2005-52-1, in the Circuit Court of Miller County, Arkansas. This notice advises you of your legal rights.

You should review the detailed Settlement Notice as soon as possible, as there are several important deadlines that you must meet to take certain actions in connection with a proposed settlement of the class action lawsuit. Your legal rights are affected whether you act or do not act. The deadline for filing an objection or excluding yourself from the proposed settlement is February 2, 2008, and the last day to file a claim under the proposed settlement is February 2, 2008. For further information, please refer to the Settlement Notice.

The Settlement Notice informs you of the Court’s certification of a class for settlement purposes; the nature of the claims alleged; your right to participate in, or exclude yourself from, the class; a proposed settlement; and how you can claim an award of advertising credits under the settlement or object to the settlement.

• • The proposed settlement will provide advertising credits to class members who certify that they were the victims of “click fraud” or other invalid or improper clicks on online advertisements purchased from IAC Search & Media, Inc. and/or Ask Jeeves, Inc. on or after August 1, 2005.
  • The proposed settlement will resolve claims that IAC Search & Media, Inc. and/or Ask Jeeves, Inc. breached its contracts with advertisers and violated other laws by failing to adequately detect and stop “click fraud” or other invalid or improper clicks on online advertisements.
  • If you are a member of the class, your legal rights are affected by whether you act or do not act.For a copy of the Settlement Notice, click on the link, or visit the case website at www.AskSettlement.com.

    To file a claim for your award of advertising credits under the settlement, click on the following link: AskSettlement.com/claim. Each advertiser will be allowed one claim per account.

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