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SEAN R E I S - S B N 184004sreis@edelson.comEde lson McGui re LLC30021 Tomas Street, Suite 300Rancho Santa Margarita, California 92688Telephone: (949) 459-2124Facsimile: (949) 459-2123JAY EDBLSON*jedelson@edelson.comRAFEY S. BALABAN1AN*rbalabanian@edelson.comCHRISTOPHER L. DORK*cdore@edelson.comE de l s on M c G u i r e LLC350 North LaSalle Street, Suite 1300Chicago, Illinois 60654Telephone: (312) 589-6370Facsimile: (312) 589-6378"prohac vice application to be filed

E-filing

Attorneys forPlaintiffand theputative classUNITED S T A T E S D I ST R IC T COURT

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

v.Vj,n

VERNA PARINO, on behalfof herself and al lothers similarly situated,

Plaintiff,CMfa l i 3149

v .

BIDRACK INC., a Delaware corporation, andJOHN DOE DEFENDANT,

Defendants.

CLASS ACTION COMPLA INT

CLAS S AC T IO N COMP L AI NT

PlaintiffVenia Parino brings this class action complaint against Defendant BidRackInc. ("BidRack" or "Defendant") and John Doe Defendant based upon their practice of

CLASS ACTION COMPLAINT

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deceptivelymarketingto and billing consumers for unauthorizedcharges relating toBidRack's Internet-based "penny auction" website. Plaintiff, for her Complaint, alleges asfollows upon personal knowledge as to herself and her own acts and experiences and, as toall other matters, upon informationandbelief, including investigation conductedby herattorneys.

PART IES

1. PlaintiffVernaParino is a natural person and citizen of the State of California.2. Defendant BidRack Inc. is the owner and operator of an online "penny

auction" located at www.bidrack.com. BidRack Inc. is a corporation incorporated andexisting under the laws of the State of Delaware, with its principal place of business locatedinVancouver, Canada. BidRack does business throughout the United States, the State ofCalifornia, an d this District.

3. John Doe Defendantis an online advertising network that directly participatesin the acts and practices alleged herein. John Doe Defendant, through the use of deceptiveand fraudulent sponsored links, online pages, and other advertisements, partners withBidRack to drive consumers to the landingpagesofBidRack.com, and profits from eachBidrack.com registration conversion. On information and belief, John Doe Defendant mayinclude, but is not limited to, Coleadium Inc. (Ads4Dough), CPA Staxx, Inc., ProminentLeads, LLC, and/or EWA Network Inc. Defendant BidRack is in possession of the identityo f John Doe De fendant

JURI SD ICT ION AND VENUE

4. The Court has subject matter jurisdiction over this action pursuant to 28U.S.C. 1332(d), because (a) at least one member of the putative class is a citizen of a statedifferent from Defendants, (b) the amount in controversy exceeds $5,000,000, exclusive ofinterest and costs, and(c) none of the exceptions under that subsection apply to this action.

C O M P L A I N T

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5. Venueis properin this District under28U.S.C. 1391(a) as Plaintiffresidesin thisDistrictand the injuryarose here. Venueis additionally properbecause Defendantstransact significant business in this District, including soliciting consumer business,andentering into consumer transactions.

FACTS COMMON TO ALL COUNTS6. In recentyears, the Internet has seen a proliferation of"pennyauction" sites

likeBidRack.com wherebyconsumers canpurchase bids in thehopesof "winning" atauction a valuable item at a highly discountedprice. Consumers reach these sites fromsponsored links, fake news articles andblogs,andothertypesof paid advertisements. Initialrepresentations oftenadvertisethat "bids"cancost as littleas a fewcents,and allegedly showthe numerous items that are available to win at incredibly discountedprices.

7. Once a consumer reaches the actual homepageof the auction site, theyarefurther bombarded withadvertisements andotherrepresentations urgingthemto register for"free."

8. However, Defendants fail to conspicuouslydisclose, and in fact, activelydisguise the actual cost of registration and membership. Namely, Defendantsdisclose thatconsumers who register on the site do not affirmalively choose or know that they are beingcharged for an initial "bid pack."

9. Consumers are primarily routed to the BidRack.com homepagethroughaseries of sponsored advertisements and fake news stories. Advertisements appearinginnumerous places across the web include:

C O MPLA IN T

Get a 3GWi-fi Kindle for $21.93. Limit One Per Day. GrabYours Now .

BidRack.com Official SiteToday Only: Online auction site to give away 1,000Kindles for$21.93!www.bidrack.com/AmazonKindleChicago: Online auctionwebsite is selling over

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1,000 new apple iPads for $24.19 each!Overstock Kindle: $21.93Get a 3G Wi-Fi Kindle for $21.93. Limit One Per Day. Grab YoursNow.www.bidrack .com/AmazonKindleBidRack- 98% Off Retail. iPads-$25.71 & LED TVs- $69.38.BidRack Ranked #1 in U SFewe r Bidders . Better Deals .iPads for $29.21 & LED TVs fo r $47.www.bidrack.comSHOCKING: 52 Samsung HDTV for $74.07TODAY ONLY: Auction site to give away 1,000 52 SamsungHDTVs for $74.07!Channel4.com/Shocking-DealsOverstock Kindle: $21.93 Special Offer for Returning Users. Geta3GWi-f i Kindle for $21.93.www.BidRack.com/AmazonKindle

10. These advertisements overtly misrepresent the services and products offeredby BidRack.

11. Likewise, Defendants' advertisements represent thai products are available fora fixed price, while in reality, the prices wildly fluctuate from auction to auction.

12. Fake news articles include "Channel 9 News," which reports on the "massivemoney savings trick" for surplus auctions in a "special report," and similarly, "Chamiel 7Reports" exposes "How Smart Shoppers are Getting 98% Discounts on Brand NewMerchandise." Other pages contain supposed "consumer reviews," with pictures of allegedBidRack members who relate their positive experiences with the site, such as:

"Hi, my name is Samantha and I won a pocketbook from BidRack...Ireally enjoy your products""My name is Lauren...and I won these shoes from BidRack for only 9cents!""Hi! My name is Robin and I'm from Iowa and I won this beautifulring on BidRack for only 8 cents...THANKS!"

C O MPLA IN T

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