Seattle-based Classmates.com has pulled in some $70 million -- while Bellevue-based Intelius has made more than $10 million -- by engaging in what a U.S. Senator described as manipulative online sales techniques with third party marketing companies. That's one of the conclusions from a report -- titled "Aggressive Sales Tactics on the Internet and Their Impact on American Consumers" -- that was released Monday in advance of a hearing conducted today by U.S. Senator John D. Rockefeller.

Rockefeller has taken his campaign to the national media, appearing on the Today show where he called the practices of the online marketing companies Affinion, Vertrue and WebLoyalty and their retail partners a "shameful, outrageous, embarrassing and un-American tactic." Meanwhile, a consumer who unknowingly signed up for one of the Web loyalty programs after visiting an online retailing site said she felt as if she had been "pick-pocketed."

In an interview today with TechFlash, the chief privacy officer at Bellevue-based Intelius said that the company is investigating the tactics, and is decreasing its reliance on Vertrue's Adaptive Marketing.

We mentioned last week that Intelius and Classmates.com -- along with other major online retailers such as Priceline.com, Shutterfly and Fandango -- had received letters asking for more information about their relationships with the online marketing firms Affinion, Vertrue and WebLoyalty.

Intelius -- a provider of online background checks -- is facing class action lawsuits over its relationship with Vertrue's Adaptive Marketing.

Intelius Chief Privacy Officer Jim Adler said that the company could discontinue its relationship with Adaptive Marketing. He declined to say when that might occur, but Adler said some of the information that came to light via the Senate hearing would be closely studied by the company.

As TechFlash previously reported, Intelius diminished its business relationship with Adaptive Marketing during the first half of this year, a trend that Adler said would continue.

"I have real concerns about it, and that's why we have been decreasing our reliance on these types of ads," said Adler.

Adler applauded the work of the Senate committee, saying that they have uncovered a "boatload of data" that was previously unavailable. As part of the contract with Adaptive Marketing, Adler said that they are not able to track customer complaints or other key metrics.

That's been one Adler's frustrations since he joined the company 14 months ago. "We have been trying to get these answers and it has been tough," said Adler.

Asked why the company didn't simply terminate the contract, Adler said that is a possibility now that the Senate hearing has brought more information to light.

"We are looking at it hard," he said. In the meantime, Adler said the company has taken steps to clearly identify the offers from Adaptive Marketing. The company entered into the agreement with Adaptive Marketing, Adler, said, in part because competitors were making use of the marketing tactics. "Evidently, a lot of folks are in that boat," said Adler.

The report released today indicates that more than 450 online retailers have partnered with Affinion, Vertrue and WebLoyalty.

Classmates.com -- which according to today's report made more money than any other online retailer through the post transaction marketing efforts -- could not be reached for comment.

Here's the look at the Today show video, which lays out in great detail how the process works.

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