Pittsburgh, PA – August 30, 2005 – Direct Response Technologies, Inc., (DRT) a leading provider of online media and technology solutions, received a motion from PrimaryAds, a client utilizing DirectTrack® (DRT’s proprietary affiliate and ad serving technology) as the back bone for its network, on August 26, 2005 which will force both companies back into court. PrimaryAds is a wholly owned subsidiary of Think Partnership, Inc. (AMEX – THK), a direct competitor of DRT.
In the motion that Think Partnerships’ subsidiary, PrimaryAds, filed in the Court of Common Pleas in Pittsburgh, PA, it claims that Direct Response Technologies, Inc. is not providing a copy of the business information and data of PrimaryAds that have been captured on DirectTrack in accordance with the Consent Decree entered into by both parties on June 24, 2005. In particular, PrimaryAds asks the Court to compel DRT to provide three specific categories of information to PrimaryAds.
It is DRT’s position that the Consent Decree clearly requires DRT to provide only the business information and data belonging to PrimaryAds. However, the Consent Decree expressly states that DRT is not required to provide PrimaryAds with any of DRT’s proprietary or confidential information regarding the operation of DirectTrack®. The information that PrimaryAds, as well as Think Partnership, seek in their motion pertain to the fundamental structural compositions to the DirectTrack® tracking system. These fundamental structural items are not business data, which – as most all of DRT’s clients are well aware – can be retrieved easily from their copies of the DirectTrack® system. What PrimaryAds really wants is a road map on how to build out Kowabunga’s My Affiliate Program, which is clearly neither part of the Consent Decree nor reasonable.
Jason Wolfe, President/CEO of DRT states, “as mentioned in our prior press releases, as well as in the Consent Decree, our primary concern was the level of access THK had to the intellectual capital, embodied within our DirectTrack® system, and that this access would help it to develop its Kowabunga / MYAP subsidiary at our expense. We entered into the Consent Decree thinking that PrimaryAds would uphold the confidential nature of our technology and system – when in fact it was sharing our proprietary information with Kowabunga / MYAP in violation of the Consent Decree as well as its client agreement.”
What THK wants is for DRT to provide Kowabunga / MYAP with a road map of how the DirectTrack® databases and systems fit together. THK also wants to provide its PrimaryAds affiliates and advertisers with the same DirectTrack® tracking codes and logins, thereby confusing PrimaryAds’ affiliates and advertisers into thinking that they are on the DirectTrack® system when in reality they are on an inferior Kowabunga / MYAP platform.
Wolfe continues, “it’s like owning a KFC franchise, and then discontinuing your franchise license while at the same time keeping a confusingly similar KFC store signs up on the outside of the restaurant and changing the name by one letter to fool users into thinking that they are eating the same chicken when they entered the store. We simply will not allow DirectTrack® to be compromised in that fashion, and we will not allow affiliates and advertisers to be fooled.”
"Mr. Jacobs, the CEO of THK, believed that he could enter this market space, acquire a number of companies by setting unrealistic expectations, and become a dominant player. When he received resistance from DRT, instead of signing a long term agreement to protect THK’s investment in PrimaryAds, he decided to abuse the court system to intimidate DRT and to force DRT to assist their direct competitor in building out the Kowabunga / MYAP product. The public markets are keen on THK; it is reflective in its poorly performing stock. These latest legal maneuverings will be played out in the courts, again. DRT intends on proving to the Court that the requested data regarding the manner in which DRT operates DirectTrack® is not the property of PrimaryAds, but instead belongs to DRT.
George Bordo, the COO of DRT has been working with PrimaryAds during this transaction, “The comments in the press release reflect how unfamiliar the THK teams are for a transition of this magnitude. Considering the interaction to date, there appears to be no defined process or structure to their transition plan, which is usually reflective of an immature product.” Bordo continued, “Ken’s comments in the press release actually support our position. The information they are demanding is not collected by DirectTrack, but rather they are generated using proprietary DRT algorithms”
DirectTrack® currently powers 120 networks including affiliate networks, ad serving networks, and co-registration networks. The DirectTrack® ‘network of networks’ delivers roughly 12 billion ads per month, and over 65,000,000 clicks through its patent pending CrossPublication™ technology. DirectTrack® was launched as a low cost network platform for advertising and affiliate networks to get setup and launched quickly, and has proven that a company can grow rapidly utilizing the power of DirectTrack® and the network of networks.
About Direct Response Technologies, Inc.
Direct Response Technologies, Inc. founded in 1994, is a media and technology firm dedicated to delivering performance-based results and technology solutions to clients. Direct Response Technologies is a privately held company with offices in Pittsburgh, PA, and New York NY, owned in part by Jupiter Media (NASDAQ: JUPM). The company also operates an office in North Dakota in conjunction with the Department of Commerce of North Dakota.
Direct Response Technologies (http://www.directresponse.com) provides technology for (1) secure coupon delivery and tracking solutions through www.mycoupons.com ; (2) keyword tracking through www.keywordmax.com; (3) affiliate tracking through www.directtrack.com; and (4) gift certificates and gift card solutions through www.giftcards.com;
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Direct Response Technologies, Inc.
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