Updated at 2:50 p.m. PST to include quotes from senators and names of retailers that do business with Vertrue, Webloyalty, and Affinion.



Words like "scam," "fraud," and "arrest" filled the air during a Senate hearing on Tuesday that focused on the controversial marketing companies that allegedly dupe consumers into paying monthly fees to join online loyalty programs.

Vertrue, Webloyalty, and Affinion generated more than $1.4 billion by "misleading" Web shoppers, said members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, which called the hearing. Lawmakers saved their harshest rebuke for Web retailers that accepted big money--a combined sum of $792 million--to share their customers' credit-card information with the marketers.



Senate investigators launched their six-month inquiry by examining complaints from people who discovered mysterious charges on their credit card bill. For years, Web shoppers have complained that they were signed up to some Web loyalty program without their knowledge and were charged fees until they discovered the problem and complained. Some paid fees for years.

"Classmates.com, which has been partnered with each company at different times and has earned more than any other partner, generated approximately $70 million in revenue."

--From the Senate report (click here to watch the Senate Hearing)

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