Andrew Bachman (born June 9, 1983) is an American
entrepreneur
Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value in ways that generally entail beyond the minimal amount of risk (assumed by a traditional business), and potentially involving values besides simply economic ones.
An entreprene ...
and
investor
An investor is a person who allocates financial capital with the expectation of a future Return on capital, return (profit) or to gain an advantage (interest). Through this allocated capital the investor usually purchases some species of pr ...
. He is the founder of several companies, including Game Plan Holdings; after being charged with
mobile cramming by the
Federal Trade Commission
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil (non-criminal) United States antitrust law, antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection. It ...
, he resigned as president, chief executive officer, chief financial officer and chairman of Game Plan Holdings on February 11, 2014. He later agreed to a settlement with the FTC that includes a monetary judgment of more than $97 million. The judgment was partially suspended based on Bachman's inability to pay the full amount, after he turned over nearly all of his assets.
[Scholarships](_blank)
Babson.edu. Accessed November 12, 2014.
Early life and education
Bachman was born and raised in
Wayland, Massachusetts
Wayland is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The town was founded in 1638, and incorporated in 1780 and was originally part of neighboring Sudbury (incorporated 1639). At the 2020 United States census, the population wa ...
, to physician parents. He attended
Babson College
Babson College is a Private university, private business school in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States specializing in entrepreneurship education. Founded in 1919 by Roger Babson, the college was established as the Babson Institute in his We ...
in
Wellesley, Massachusetts
Wellesley () is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Wellesley is part of the Greater Boston metropolitan area. The population was 29,550 at the time of the 2020 census. Wellesley College, Babson College, and a campus of M ...
,
[Joel Holland]
“From College Students to Million-Dollar Partners,”
''Entrepreneur
Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value in ways that generally entail beyond the minimal amount of risk (assumed by a traditional business), and potentially involving values besides simply economic ones.
An entreprene ...
'', January 18, 2010. graduating in 2006. From 2010 through 2013, Bachman co-funded a scholarship at his alma mater
however his sponsorship of the scholarship has been rescinded by the college following the FTC proceedings and seizure of his assets
Career
Tatto Media
In 2005, while at Babson, Bachman partnered with fellow Babson students Lin Miao, Lucas Brown and Lee Brown to create
Tatto Media, an
Internet advertising
Online advertising, also known as online marketing, Internet advertising, digital advertising or web advertising, is a form of marketing and advertising that uses the Internet to promote products and services to audiences and platform users. ...
and marketing company.
[Gregory Gomer]
“Babson Grads Sell Ad Company Tatto Media for $60 Million,”
BostInno
BostInno is a local online news site and community publishing platform covering "the view from inside" innovation in Boston. It was founded in 2008 as a community startup blog by Chase Garbarino, CEO and co-founder of Streetwise Media, and Kevi ...
, April 12, 2011.[Natalie Jarvey]
“Ex-Phone Exec Placed on Hold,”
''Los Angeles Business Journal
The ''Los Angeles Business Journal'', established in 1979, is a weekly newspaper and online news source in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most po ...
'', December 23, 2013.[“Best Advice I Ever Got: Andrew Bachman,”](_blank)
'' Inc.'', March 29, 2012. The company offered advertisers a different way to pay for online
banner advertising
Digital display advertising is online graphic advertising through banners, text, images, video, and audio. The main purpose of digital display advertising is to post company ads on third-party websites. A display ad is usually interactive (i.e. ...
, with payment based on performance rather than
impressions
An impression is the overall effect of something.
Impression or impressions may also refer to:
Biology
* Colic impression, a feature of the gall bladder
* Duodenal impression, medial to the renal impression
* Gastric impression, a feature of th ...
.
Bachman served as president of Tatto, which was based in Boston and also had offices in Seattle and Los Angeles.
In 2008, Tatto was named a Top Global 250 company by AlwaysOn.
That year, the company reached annual revenue figures of $40 million.
[Leena Rao]
“Ozura World Buys Affiliate Marketing And Ad Network Tatto Media For $60 Million,”
TechCrunch
TechCrunch is an American global online newspaper focusing on topics regarding high tech, high-tech and Startup company, startup companies. It was founded in June 2005 by Archimedes Ventures, led by partners Michael Arrington and Keith Teare.
I ...
, April 11, 2011. The following year, revenues topped $100 million, and by 2010, according to
comScore
Comscore, Inc. is an American-based global media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, advertising agencies, brand marketers, and publishers.
History
Comscore was founded in July 1999 in Resto ...
, the company had become the third-largest ad network in the world, and had 120 employees.
Tatto was sued by the
attorney general
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...
of Washington state in 2008 and again in 2009 for running MyLuvCrush ads that promised to reveal the identity of a user's secret admirer. Instead, users were sent a text with the name of a fake person and then charged a subscription fee for monthly horoscopes.
[Eric Eldon]
“Can the Advertising Offers Business Find Redemption In Social Networks?”
Inside Facebook, November 19, 2009. In November 2009,
Facebook
Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...
banned Tatto from providing offers in games and apps. This was due to "repeated policy violations" of the social network's guidelines for offers, specifically for deceptive in-game ads and other scamming issues enabling the company to collect hidden obligations and fees.
Former
Zynga
Zynga Inc. () is an American video game developer and Video game publisher, publisher known for its social video game services. It was founded in April 2007, with headquarters in San Mateo, California. The company primarily focuses on mobile an ...
CEO
Mark Pincus
Mark Jonathan Pincus (born February 13, 1966) is an American Internet entrepreneur known as the founder of Zynga, a mobile social gaming company. Pincus also founded the startups Freeloader, Inc., Tribe Networks, and Support.com. Pincus was the ...
referred to Tatto as the "worst offender" on Facebook.
In 2011, mobile social network game developer Ozura World acquired Tatto Media for $60 million.
[MeiMei Fox]
“Six Sizzling Entrepreneurs Under 40,”
''Huffington Post
''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers ...
'', June 18, 2012. By 2013, according to Liao, Tatto was defunct and no longer had any ties to Ozura World.
Scambook
On March 1, 2011, following the sale of Tatto, Bachman, Miao and Jay Edelson, managing partner of law firm
Edelson PC, founded Scambook.com, a consumer-complaint platform that linked consumers with attorneys to address various types of scams perpetrated by companies.
[“Is Scambook.com a Scam Itself?”](_blank)
NBC Chicago
WMAQ-TV (channel 5) is a television station in Chicago, Illinois, United States, serving as the market's NBC outlet. It is owned and operated by the network's NBC Owned Television Stations division alongside Telemundo station WSNS-TV (channel 4 ...
, July 23, 2013.[“Young Entrepreneurs From 100 Companies Contribute Over 2,500 Jobs and $374 Million to the U.S. Economy,”](_blank)
PRWeb
Cision Ltd. is a public relations and earned media software company and services provider. The company is incorporated in the Cayman Islands and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Cision offers a portfolio of services including PRNewswire, PRW ...
, November 16, 2011. Bachman served as the company's president.
In 2011, after being named to the Empact 100 list of top US entrepreneurs under the age of 30, Bachman was invited to the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...
and honored for his accomplishments at Scambook.
He sold his shares of Scambook in July 2012.
In 2013, Scambook was investigated by the Illinois attorney general's office for fraudulent trading. The
FBI
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
received thousands of complaints from both companies and consumers about Scambook's unethical activities and lack of transparency.
Investigations alleged that Scambook would post fraudulent complaints about companies and individuals. Companies were then expected to subscribe to Scambook's business resolve service, where they effectively had to pay a monthly fee in order to remove the complaints made against them.
The Chicago
Better Business Bureau
The Better Business Bureau (BBB) is an American private, 501(c)(6) nonprofit organization founded in 1912. BBB's self-described mission is to focus on advancing marketplace trust, consisting of 92 independently incorporated local BBB organizati ...
gave Scambook an F rating and issued a red alert against the company due to a pattern of unresolved complaints, and the fact that, in Chicago, there was no office at the address listed for the company.
Game Plan Holdings
In April 2012, Bachman became president and chief financial officer of Game Plan Holdings, a supplement company he co-founded with two of his former Babson College students. He became chairman and chief executive officer in March 2013.
[Game Plan Holdings Inc](_blank)
''Bloomberg Businessweek
''Bloomberg Businessweek'', previously known as ''BusinessWeek'' (and before that ''Business Week'' and ''The Business Week''), is an American monthly business magazine published 12 times a year. The magazine debuted in New York City in Septembe ...
''. Accessed November 12, 2014.[Caryn Tomer]
“Exclusive Interview: Can Andrew Bachman Make A Comeback?”
Techli, July 3, 2014. Game Plan Holdings is a
publicly traded company
A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of stock which are intended to be freely traded on a stock exchange or in over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) company can be listed on a stock exchange ( ...
under the ticker GPLH.
Game Plan formerly operated the sports-related social networking sites Hazzsports.com, Totalscout.com and CheckinSave.com, all of which were folded in February 2013.
[“Game Plan Holdings Looks Like It Could Really RYUN,”](_blank)
aimhighprofits.com, February 15, 2013. At that time, Game Plan Holdings acquired Sporting Blood, a vitamin and nutritional supplements company,
and launched Game Plan Nutrition, which makes protein shakes and other supplements. It has an online network of trainers who earn commissions by recommending the company's products.
[Callum Borchers]
''Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe,'' also known locally as ''the Globe'', is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Boston Globe'' is the oldest and largest daily new ...
'', November 12, 2013. The nutritional products have been used by
NFL
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...
,
NBA
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...
and
MLB
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
athletes.
In November 2013, Bachman was featured in the ''
Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe,'' also known locally as ''the Globe'', is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Boston Globe'' is the oldest and largest daily new ...
'' as an example of "fit entrepreneurs" breaking longstanding stereotypes of the tech world.
On February 11, 2014, he resigned as president, chief executive officer, chief financial officer and chairman of Game Plan.
Legal issues
In December 2013, charges were filed by the Federal Trade Commission in
US District Court
The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district. Each district covers one U.S. state or a portion of a state. There is at least one feder ...
against Bachman, Miao and corporate defendants including Tatto, accusing them of a mobile cramming scheme. Miao's attorneys denied that Tatto engaged in deceptive or unfair practices, and argued the suit had no merit because Tatto was no longer in business.
On June 15, 2014, the FTC announced that Miao and the corporate defendants agreed to surrender more than $10 million in assets to settle the monetary judgment of over $150 million.
[Chris Caesar]
“FTC: Settlement Reached in Multi-Million Dollar Texting Scam Case,”
Boston.com, June 15, 2014. Although he was named in the original FTC complaint, Bachman was not named in the settlement. He was, however, said to be involved with some of the corporate defendants in the settlement at the time of the alleged scheme.
Bachman stated that he was years removed from any involvement with Tatto.
In Augusts 2014, judgment was entered against Bachman in the amount of approximately $97 million. The judgment was partially suspended based on Bachman's inability to pay the full amount. He agreed to surrender over $1.2 million in assets to settle the FTC charges. He also was permanently banned from placing any charges on consumers' phone bills, misrepresenting products or a consumer's obligation to pay, and was prohibited from charging consumers for a product or service without their consent, which were similar to the conditions Miao and the corporate defendants faced in their settlement.
Among the assets Bachman was required to surrender under the terms of the settlement are:
*the contents of four bank accounts, less $4,500;
*two vehicles: a 2012 Ferrari 458 Italia and a 2012 Mercedes G550 SUV;
*shares in a number of startup companies; and
*jewelry items, including three Audemars watches, one Patek Phillippe watch, and four Rolex watches.
References
External links
Game Plan website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bachman, Andrew
Living people
American investors
American stock traders
Businesspeople from Massachusetts
Babson College alumni
People from Wayland, Massachusetts
1983 births
American chief financial officers
American chief executives