AIT continues battle against click fraud; Partners with Click Authority

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. -- AIT (http://www.AIT.com) is taking another step at battling click fraud through a partnership with Click Authority (http://clickauthority.com), a third-party click authentication service. This agreement makes AIT the only hosting provider to offer its customers - many of whom depend on pay-per-click search engine advertising to promote their businesses - a proven way of protecting their marketing dollars. "AIT is determined to be at the forefront of battling click fraud, not just talking about it," said Clarence Briggs, AIT's Chief Executive Officer. "This partnership is a tangible means of confronting this growing problem with a company whose lifeblood is helping small businesses protect their marketing investment."

This is the first in a series of anticipated partnerships with makers of tools that protect advertisers and website owners. Earlier this year, AIT developed the website Igeryon.com (http://igeryon.com) as a portal dedicated to rooting out perpetrators of fraud and highlighting companies that work to minimize it. Partners like Click Authority will be featured on that site as well as the AIT site. Click Authority offers real-time click filtering, detecting fraud as it occurs on the user's website or on a site an advertiser is promoting. "We are honored to be partnering with AIT, who has taken the lead in the fight against click fraud, and that they have recognized Click Authority as a leading technology in click fraud detection and prevention," said Charles Petruzzi, Click Authority's President.

AIT is currently embroiled in a potential class-action suit against Google over the fraud issue. While that plays out, the company is intent on shining a light on the various participants in this controversial practice, including companies that make software which automates clicking on ads and affiliate networks that serve little purpose beyond repeated ad-clicking to drive up payouts, plus help on avoiding scams. "There are some who've asked us if this isn't simply part of the cost of doing business," says Briggs. "That high a cost is neither acceptable nor tenable."