Permuto Joins the Network Advertising Initiative and Receives TRUSTe Certification

October 14, 2009; 01:44 PM

Palo Alto, Calif. – October 14, 2009 –– Permuto (www.permuto.com), a new company bringing the same level of performance and measurability of search engine marketing to display advertising, announced today that it has been accepted as a member of the Network Advertising Initiative (NAI), the leading self-regulatory program for online behavioral advertising. In addition, Permuto announced it is now certified to display the TRUSTe Privacy Seal, which demonstrates its commitment to consumer privacy and trust online.   

“Recognition like this affirms our commitment to privacy standards and in advancing responsible information practices online,” said Permuto’s CEO and co-founder, Shaukat Shamim. “We are proud to join NAI and be included among peers like Google, Yahoo, and AOL’s Platform-A, and the TRUSTe certification serves as a benchmark in our ongoing commitment to safeguard consumer privacy and security.” 

The NAI is a cooperative of online marketing and analytics companies committed to building consumer awareness and establishing responsible business and data management practices and standards. As online advertising technologies evolve, the NAI aims to meet consumer privacy concerns with both effective industry self-regulation and sensible protections for online consumers. 

TRUSTe, the leading privacy certification and seal program, awards its privacy seal only to companies that complete the rigorous TRUSTe certification process and agree to comply with ongoing oversight and TRUSTe’s consumer dispute resolution process. The TRUSTe Privacy Seal is one of the most recognized branded symbols of trust among consumers, and communicates that a Web site has posted a privacy statement and that its information gathering and dissemination practices follow guidelines for notice, choice, access, security and redress outlined in the Federal Trade Commission’s Fair Information Practices. 

Permuto launched its flagship product, ShopperConnect™, at the Shop.org annual summit in Las Vegas in September 2009. ShopperConnect is an all-inclusive advertising platform and network for retail merchants and brands that integrates shopping data, dynamically-optimized creative, media buying, backend reporting and ROI calculation – all in one solution, eliminating the need for marketers to piece together these various offerings on their own.  ShopperConnect’s proprietary system accurately tracks and determines an online consumer's ActiveShopper™ Score for millions of individual products, letting merchants and brands deliver highly-personalized offers, with greatly enhanced conversion rates and search-style depth. 

Added Shamim: “Joining these two recognized institutions is a testament to the fact that we spent several months in development mode, creating a truly effective advertising platform that respects the privacy of consumers – and we’re pleased to receive NAI membership and TRUSTe certification so quickly after launch.” 

For more information about Permuto, please visit www.permuto.com.

About Permuto

Permuto, Inc. (www.permuto.com) is developing a unique online advertising solution that will greatly increase the value and effectiveness of display advertising, through its ShopperConnect™ Network. The company has an experienced world-class management team formerly from Yahoo!, DoubleClick, Oracle, and Microsoft with leading technology and domain expertise.  In October 2008, Permuto, Inc. raised $6.05M Series A from Rembrandt Ventures, Onset Ventures, Reid Hoffman, and SoftTech VC.

About the NAI

The NAI (Network Advertising Initiative) is a coalition of leading online marketing companies committed to building consumer awareness and reinforcing responsible business and data management practices and standards. Its initiatives are piloted by a cooperative of the most significant online behavioral companies including Akamai, AOL's Platform-A division, Microsoft's aQuantive division, Google, Yahoo!, AlmondNet, AudienceScience, BlueKai, MediaSixdegrees, SpecificMEDIA and 24/7 Real Media. As increasingly sophisticated online advertising technologies evolve, the NAI works to enhance consumer confidence through effective self-regulatory practices and user choice. To learn more, visit www.networkadvertising.org.

About TRUSTe
TRUSTe Privacy Seals help consumers click with confidence by guiding them to trustworthy Web sites. Thousands of Web sites rely on TRUSTe industry best practices to help them make the right decisions about privacy and protecting confidential user information. Most of the top fifty Web sites are certified to TRUSTe’s leading practices, including Yahoo, Facebook, MSN, eBay, AOL, Disney, New York Times, Comcast and Apple. To find out more about privacy, visit http://www.truste.com.