• by Wendy Davis  @wendyndavis, March 7, 2005

America Online's Advertising.com quietly stopped doing business with adware companies such as Claria, WhenU, and 180solutions last year, OnlineMediaDaily has learned.

The move, confirmed by AOL, happened last fall--after the Dulles, Va.-based portal company acquired the ad network Advertising.com in August for $435 million. Shortly after buying the Baltimore, Md.-based Advertising.com, executives from both companies conducted a review of policies regarding adware and spyware, said AOL spokesman Andrew Weinstein. "From that review, we decided to make clear that we would not do business with companies that distribute adware or spyware that interefers with or damages our members' online experience," Weinstein said.

The decision was implemented around the time when adware and spyware were attracting significant media attention, including a Newsweek story late last year.

Recently, AOL has touted itself as offering members protection against adware, spyware, and pop-ups. "AOL as a company has dedicated significant resources to protecting our members and giving them options for removing adware," Weinstein said.

Ad industry experts say AOL's decision isn't likely to affect adware companies' business, because such companies sell most of their inventory themselves. JupiterResearch analyst Gary Stein said that only a small portion of ads served by adware companies are brokered through networks. "Most relationships are direct," Stein said.