Hosting.com Awarded National Science Foundation Grant to Study Pay-Per-Click Fraud

Hosting.com, Inc., a global leader in managed hosting and colocation, announced today it has been awarded an STTR Phase I grant by the National Science Foundation (award #0637563) to further Hosting.com's research and development of pay-per-click (PPC) technology that detects and prevents invalid clicks (aka "click fraud").

The research and development will be done through Hosting.com Labs, Hosting.com's Internet think tank designed to research some of the present day Internet challenges that may springboard into development of new products and services for its customers. Hosting.com is working in cooperation with the University of Louisville on this project.

"We're honored to have been awarded this National Science Foundation (NSF) grant to study click quality," said Darren King, President & CEO of Hosting.com. "Only 15% of all STTR applications are approved, so the fact that we received one speaks volumes to the technology we have created and the opportunity for commercialization of that technology given some additional research and development."

PPC fraud occurs when a person or software program deceptively clicks on a company's paid online advertising links with the intent of increasing advertising costs. During 2006, the practice began receiving increased media coverage as large search engines such as Google and Yahoo began battling lawsuits from disgruntled advertisers who claimed they were overcharged for invalid clicks. In the third quarter of 2006, Google began reporting invalid clicks it detects for its advertisers.

About Hosting.com

Hosting.com provides award-winning managed hosting and colocation to a global customer base demanding a high level of security, reliability and responsiveness. Known for its personalized and proactive approach to managed hosting and colocation, Hosting.com employs teams of industry experts who monitor, maintain and enhance the web-based data interests of small, medium and enterprise businesses. For more information, please visit www.Hosting.com.

Hosting.com's research results are based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program under Grant No. 0637563, and any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. Anyone wishing to participate in this research at no cost or obligation should fill out the form located at http://labs.hosting.com/contact.php.