WASHINGTON, D.C.—Senator John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, issued the following statement regarding the notification from several major e-retailers that they will no longer allow third party companies to make misleading offers to their customers during the checkout process on their websites. For financial gain, these e-retailers had shared their customers’ billing information, including credit card numbers, with Affinion, Vertrue, and Webloyalty.

“This is a step in the right direction for American consumers that is a direct result of the Commerce Committee’s investigation into Affinion, Vertrue, and Webloyalty’s aggressive online marketing tactics,” said Chairman Rockefeller. “Tricking consumers into buying goods and services they do not want is not okay. It’s not ethical, it’s not right, and it’s not the way business should be done in America. American consumers shouldn’t have to worry that their favorite websites are ripping them off during the checkout process. While I am pleased that Fandango, Priceline.com, and other companies have discontinued using these misleading practices, there are many other websites still engaged in practices designed to confuse and trick online consumers. I will continue working until these practices have been stopped.”

List of companies that have notified the Commerce Committee they will no longer allow aggressive post-transaction sales tactics on their websites:

• Fandango
• US Airways
• Air Tran Airways
• Continental Airlines
• Priceline.com
• Intelius
• Vistaprint
• 1-800Flowers.com

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