An 18 month-old lawsuit over reciprocity in list rentals appears headed for trial.
The suit, filed in 1999 by Progressive Business Publications (PBP), alleges that Skillpath Seminars violated an agreement to reciprocate with PBP on list rentals.
Also named as defendants are Direct Media, which acted as broker for Skillpath, and Acxiom, the former corporate parent of Direct Media.
PBP posted a press release about the suit on Business Wire today. The firm’s attorney, Wayne A. Mack, told DIRECT Newsline that the case is nearing trial.
In a related development, U.S. Judge Jan E. Debois denied a request by Acxiom to “preclude” the deposition of Acxiom CEO Charles Morgan. This order, issued yesterday, was in response to a motion filed by Acxiom on Feb. 9.
The suit, which asks for $4.4 million in damages, states that Skillpath started renting names from PBP, a Malvern, PA-based newsletter publisher, in 1998.
However, PBP had advised Direct Media that as a condition of renting the names, Skillpath must “reciprocate” and supply names to PBP for telemarketing. Skillpath later refused to grant access to its list for that purpose, the suit alleges.
“This constituted a breach of the reciprocal agreement,” according to a pre-trial brief filed by Mack for PBP.
The brief also charged that PBP’s names were included in Direct Media’s Executive Seminar (DME) cooperative database, maintained at Acxiom, without permission.
There was no immediate comment from Axciom. Skillpath executives had no comment.
Dave Florence, CEO of Greenwich, CT-based Direct Media, called the suit “an honest misunderstanding.”
Florence added, “Skillpath has never allowed anyone to use their list for telemarketing, just as the 90% of the list owners don’t allow their lists to be used for it. When I hear ‘reciprocal,’ that means to me you can mail my list and I mail yours.”
An executive familiar with the case argued that PBP’s names were used with permission.
Direct Media executives purchased the firm from Little Rock, AR-based Acxiom last year.
Mack states in his brief that PBP was allowed to rent roughly 54,000 names from Skillpath for mailing, but that a request for 200,000 names for telemarketing was refused.
The brief also says the Bureau of Business Practice and Prentice Hall initially refused to permit PBP to use their names for telemarketing, but did agree later.
PBP rented 2 million names to Skillpath, using Mail Marketing, Inc. as broker, the brief continues.
The case is on file with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
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