A group of Web publishers filed suit in federal court this week against the scrappy Internet ad network Gator Corp., charging that Gator sells ads on their Web sites without authorization and pockets the proceeds. "Gator Corp. is essentially a parasite that free rides on the hard work and investment" of the publishers, said the lawsuit, filed Tuesday by a dozen large publishers in U.S. District Court in Alexandria.

Among the most confusing ad tactics are pop-ups, in which a browser window suddenly opens to display a commercial message. Often consumers can't tell where the ad originated; they assume it came from whatever page they are viewing. The publishers charge that Gator takes advantage of this confusion and offers to sell ads that appear when Gator users visit specific Web sites, even though those Web sites haven't authorized the ads. Gator accomplishes that with its own software, which displays ads, the suit says. Source: WP Tech