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PropellerAds hit back at the MPA after the Hollywood-backed group nominated the company as a “notorious marketplace” that facilitates piracy. The ad company classifies the report as factually false and defamatory. The company also reminds the US government that Hollywood also framed the VCR as illegal technology years ago.
With 1 billion users reached and 10,000 new ad campaigns per week, PropellerAds A major player in the online advertising industry.
The Cyprus-based company works with advertisers and publishers from all over the world. Many of these companies are legitimate, but there are likely to be some bad apples in the bunch as well.
MPA’s list of notorious markets
A few weeks ago, the Hollywood MPA listed the company as a potential candidate for United States Trade RepresentativeAnnual list of “Notorious Markets”. In public view, the advertising outfit is surrounded by traditional pirate websites such as The Pirate Bay and Fmovies.
“Although PropellerAds is headquartered in Cyprus, it is an advertising network run by Russian individuals with branch offices in the Czech Republic and the Isle of Man. The company is the dominant provider of advertisements for Internet broadcasts,” the MPA wrote.
The goal of this “Notorious Markets” operation is to identify pressing piracy problems. It’s very much a diplomatic leverage tool with the ultimate goal of helping American rights holders confront online piracy around the world.
PropellerAds refutes the allegations
Initially, PropellerAds did not respond to the allegations. However, after the official deadline passed, Val Gurvitz of the Boston Law Group sent a letter to the USTR, refuting the MPA’s allegations. According to the lawyer, PropellerAds is a completely legitimate business.
The letter states that “PropellerAds does not knowingly or intentionally do business with any advertiser or publisher that engages in any illegal or illegal activities”.
“PropellerAds actively combats abuse by promptly taking action on reports of illegal or illegal activities including, where appropriate, terminating business transactions with an advertiser or publisher that engages in such activities.”
The company’s attorney provides a detailed overview of relevant US case law showing that advertising networks are not responsible for alleged infringing activities by their publishers.
“factual error and defamation”
Among other things, PropellerAds does not store or transmit the infringing material and does not solicit copyright infringement in any way, as the letter indicates. PropellerAds describes the MPA listing as legally baseless and even defamatory.
In short, there is no basis for claiming that PropellerAds can or should claim to be engaging in piracy. The MPA’s assertions that PropellerAds knowingly funds piracy sites are not only factually false, but also legally unfounded and defamatory.”
The advertising company continues by noting that the MPA never reached out to hear its side of the story or ask for more details about its business practices.
PropellerAds says it complies with all the “best practices” recommended by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR). In addition, it provides an easily accessible abuse report form. However, the MPA never used this, and the company has not sent any notices of copyright infringement.
Without knowing any inside details about the business, and without due process, the MPA decided to flag PropellerAds as a piracy company. This clearly goes too far, the company says.
Remember the illegal VCR?
This kind of “scapegoating” is not new, according to the lawyer, who notes that Hollywood has also portrayed the VCR as dangerous and illegal technology for years.
“I remind you that the MPA is a special interest industry group. MPA members have historically had difficulties accepting new technology—they are the same companies that at one point claimed that VCRs were illegal,” the letter reads.
While the MPA may not like some websites that use PropellerAds, the company says there is no good reason to conclude that they engage in illegal activities or that they involve copyright infringement.
PropellerAds warns USTR
Finally, the ad machine warns that if the USTR espouses the MPA’s claims without disputing them, it is participating in the manufacture of evidence.
In general, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) handles recommendations from rights holders without conducting its own research. The rights holders then use this “US government” report in lawsuits and lobbying efforts, even though they have provided this “evidence” themselves.
“I warn you that once you repeat the MPA’s unsubstantiated allegations, the Office of the United States Trade Representative gets involved in making the evidence,” PropellerAds wrote.
PropellerAds is not the only advertising company that has heeded the MPA’s recommendations. Previously, Popadas called the Hollywood group’s submission false and misleading.
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A copy of PropellerAds’ full response to the US Trade Representative is available here (pdf)