Press Release December 07 2012

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Anonymizer Cautions Consumers about Misleading Online Pricing TacticsOnline privacy and security leader, Anonymizer Inc., addresses Bing's recent "Scroogled" campaign and warns consumers about the prevalence of misleading online pricing tactics.

San Diego, CA - December 7, 2012 - Anonymizer applauds Microsoft’s “Scroogled” campaign for drawing attention to pricing tactics used in search results. “Microsoft’s Scroogled campaign is only focused on Google,” said Anonymizer Founder and CTO Lance Cottrell, “but the problem is much larger. While a search engine might disguise paid search results as organic, a store can actually charge higher prices based on who and where you are.”

A recent example reported by the Wall Street Journal, describes how online travel agency, Orbitz, displays costlier travel options to Mac users than Windows users. Anonymizer has seen many examples of “Scroogling” during their 20-year history and recommends consumers be aware of other misleading pricing tactics:

1) Comparative pricing – Websites inflate the original price of a product to make the discounted price seem more attractive to customers.

2) Time-limited offers – Retailers attract customers with a discounted, time-limited offer while knowing there is only a small portion of the product available at the lower price.

3) Geo-targeting – The price of a product or service is based solely on the shopper’s geographic location, causing customers in some cities to be charged more than others.

4) Drip pricing – Websites add hidden charges not originally disclosed in the purchase price. Shoppers might not notice the higher price until well into the check-out process.

Cottrell concludes, “It is important not to get tunnel vision about Google, this is a much bigger and broader problem”. About Anonymizer, Inc.