On May 18, 2007, online advertising competitor ValueClick, Inc. (VLCK) received a letter from the Federal Trade Commission("FTC") stating that the FTC was conducting an inquiry to determine whether the Company's lead generation activities violated either the Federal Trade Commission Act or the CAN-SPAM Act. Specifically, the FTC is investigating certain ValueClick websites, which promised consumers a free gift of substantial value, and the manner in which the Company drives traffic to such websites, in particular through email....
Form 8-K for VALUECLICK INC/CA
http://biz.yahoo.com/e/070522/vclk8-k.html
22-May-2007
Regulation FD Disclosure
Item 7.01 Regulation FD Disclosure.
On May 18, 2007, ValueClick, Inc. ("ValueClick" or "the Company") filed a Form 8-K which stated that, on May 16, 2007, the Company received a letter from the Federal Trade Commission ("FTC") stating that the FTC is conducting an inquiry to determine whether the Company's lead generation activities violate either the Federal Trade Commission Act or the CAN-SPAM Act. Specifically, the FTC is investigating certain ValueClick websites which promise consumers a free gift of substantial value, and the manner in which the Company drives traffic to such websites, in particular through email. The Company defines the use of ValueClick websites which promise consumers a free gift as "promotion-based" lead generation.
As a result of the Form 8-K filed on May 18, 2007, the Company received several calls from analysts regarding the revenue contribution of its lead generation business in general, and its promotion-based sub-category of lead generation in particular, to its Media segment. In response, ValueClick stated that lead generation accounted for more than 60 percent of its Media segment revenue for the quarter ended March 31, 2007. In addition, the Company stated that the promotion-based sub-category of lead generation, which is the subject of the FTC inquiry, accounted for less than 30 percent of its Media segment revenue for the quarter ended March 31, 2007.
ValueClick provided these financial metrics for informational purposes only, and the Company does not intend to update these financial metrics in future communications with the financial community, including periodic reports filed by the Company.
