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UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-Q

Commission file number 000-30135

VALUECLICK, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

        Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days: Yes ý    No o

        The number of shares of the Registrant's common stock outstanding as of November 11, 2002 was 87,461,769.

VALUECLICK, INC.
INDEX TO FORM 10-Q FOR THE
QUARTERLY PERIOD ENDED SEPTEMBER 30, 2002

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PART I. FINANCIAL INFORMATION

ITEM 1. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

VALUECLICK, INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

See accompanying Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements

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VALUECLICK, INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE LOSS
(Unaudited)

See accompanying Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements

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VALUECLICK, INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE LOSS
(Unaudited)

See accompanying Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements

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VALUECLICK, INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(Unaudited)

See accompanying Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements

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VALUECLICK, INC.
NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

1.    BASIS OF PRESENTATION

        The condensed consolidated financial statements are unaudited and, in the opinion of management, reflect all adjustments (consisting only of normal recurring adjustments) that are necessary for a fair presentation of the results for the periods shown. The results of operations for such periods are not necessarily indicative of the results expected for the full fiscal year or for any future period. As required by the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") under Rule 10-01 of Regulation S-X, the accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements and related footnotes have been condensed and do not contain certain information that may be included in ValueClick, Inc.'s and its and subsidiaries annual consolidated financial statements and footnotes thereto. These condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and related notes included in ValueClick, Inc.'s and its and subsidiaries Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2001 and the information contained in the ValueClick, Inc.'s and its and subsidiaries registration statement on Form S-4 related to its merger with Be Free, Inc., as amended, originally filed with the SEC on March 22, 2002 and declared effective by the SEC on April 15, 2002.

        The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amount of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results may differ from those estimates.

        The condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of ValueClick, Inc. and its subsidiaries (collectively "ValueClick" or the "Company") from the dates of their respective acquisitions, acquisition of majority voting control or date of formation, for business combinations accounted for as pooling-of-interests.

        The Company derives its revenue from two reportable business segments based on the types of products and services provided. These business segments are ValueClick Media and ValueClick Technology.

        VALUECLICK MEDIA—The ValueClick Media segment provides digital marketing solutions for advertisers and Web publishers. Through a combination of digital advertising, digital marketing and digital retention marketing, the ValueClick Media segment provides marketers with custom media solutions to build brand value and attract targeted, high-quality customers. ValueClick provides online advertisers and publishers of Web sites advertising models known as cost-per-click ("CPC"), cost-per-action ("CPA") and cost-per-lead ("CPL"), in which an advertiser only pays ValueClick, and ValueClick in turn only pays a publisher of a Web site, when an Internet user clicks on an advertiser's banner advertisement or performs a specific action, such as a software download, an online registration or other transactions. Additionally, ValueClick provides media on a cost-per-thousand-impressions ("CPM") basis whereby the advertiser pays for the number of times an advertisement is viewed.

        VALUECLICK TECHNOLOGY—The ValueClick Technology segment operates through its wholly-owned subsidiaries Be Free, Inc., ("Be Free") acquired on May 23, 2002, and Mediaplex, Inc. ("Mediaplex") and AdWare Systems, Inc. ("AdWare") acquired on October 19, 2001.

        Be Free provides a marketing platform that enables online businesses to attract, convert and retain customers easily and cost effectively. Be Free's marketing platform includes technology and services to manage, track and analyze a variety of online marketing programs. It is offered on a hosted basis to enable businesses to execute marketing programs without the expense of building and maintaining their own in-house technical infrastructure and resources. Be Free offers two types of services on this platform, partner marketing services and site personalization services.

        Mediaplex serves the marketing communications industry with technology solutions for digital messaging, support services that enhance campaign return, and infrastructure tools to ensure effective program implementation. Mediaplex enables marketers to manage, target and distribute integrated

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messaging across all digital media. Mediaplex's proprietary MOJO® technology platform is unique in its ability to automatically configure messages in response to real-time information from a marketer's enterprise data system and to provide ongoing campaign optimization. Mediaplex's revenue is primarily derived from software access and use charges paid by its software clients. These fees vary based on the client's use of the technology.

        AdWare is an applications service provider ("ASP") delivering high-quality information management systems to advertising agencies, marketing communications companies, and public relations agencies. AdWare's revenue is generated primarily from monthly service fees paid by customers over the service periods.

2.    CHANGE IN ACCOUNTING PRINCIPLE and NEW ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS

        On January 1, 2002, the Company adopted the accounting standards set forth in Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 142, "Goodwill and other Intangible Assets" ("SFAS No. 142"). SFAS No. 142 changed the methodology for assessing goodwill impairments. In accordance with the transitional guidance of SFAS No. 142, the Company completed its impairment assessment in the second quarter of 2002 from the adoption of this standard and determined that goodwill of $7.6 million related to the Bach Systems and ValueClick Japan acquisitions was impaired at January 1, 2002 and reflected a cumulative effect of change in accounting principle for the goodwill impairment. The impact of the cumulative effect of this change in accounting principle on the results of operations for the first quarter of 2002 were as follows:

        Under the new standard, impairment is determined by comparing the carrying values of reporting units to the corresponding fair values. Additionally, under the new standard, goodwill is no longer amortized but is tested at the reporting unit within the related business segment annually or whenever events or circumstances occur indicating that goodwill might be impaired. The effect of no longer amortizing goodwill resulted in a reduction in amortization of intangible assets during the 2002 reporting periods. Pro forma net loss and basic and diluted net loss per common share for the three and nine-month periods ended September 30, 2001, excluding amortization of goodwill are as follows:

        Intangible assets at September 30, 2002 are comprised primarily of purchased technologies and are being amortized on a straight-line basis over 3 to 5 years. Intangible assets at September 30, 2002 are stated net of accumulated amortization of $922,000. Intangible assets (including goodwill) at December 31, 2001 are stated net of accumulated amortization of $3,070,000.

        In August of 2001, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued SFAS No. 143, "Accounting for Obligations Associated with the Retirement of Long-Lived Assets," which establishes accounting standards for the recognition and measurement of an asset retirement obligation and its associated asset retirement cost. It also provides accounting guidance for legal obligations associated with the retirement of tangible long-lived assets. SFAS No. 143 is effective for fiscal years beginning after June 15, 2002, with early adoption permitted. Management expects to adopt SFAS No. 143

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effective January 1, 2003 and does not expect that the adoption of this new standard will have a significant impact on the Company's results of operations and financial position.

        In October 2001, the FASB issued SFAS No. 144, "Accounting for the Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived Assets," which addresses financial accounting and reporting for the impairment of long-lived assets and for long-lived assets to be disposed of. This Statement supersedes FASB Statement No. 121, "Accounting for the Impairment of Long-Lived Assets and for Long-Lived Assets to Be Disposed Of." This Statement also supersedes the accounting and reporting provisions of APB Opinion No. 30 ("APB 30"), "Reporting the Results of Operations—Reporting the Effects of Disposal of a Segment of a Business, and Extraordinary, Unusual and Infrequently Occurring Events and Transactions," for segments of a business to be disposed of. This Statement also amends ARB No. 51, "Consolidated Financial Statements," to eliminate the exception to consolidation for a temporarily controlled subsidiary. The adoption of SFAS No. 144 effective January 1, 2002 did not have a material effect on the Company's results of operation or financial position.

        In April 2002, the FASB issued SFAS No. 145, "Rescission of FASB Statements No. 4, 44, and 64, Amendment of FASB Statement No. 13, and Technical Corrections." This Statement rescinds FASB Statement No. 4, "Reporting Gains and Losses from Extinguishment of Debt," and an amendment of that Statement, SFAS No. 64, "Extinguishments of Debt Made to Satisfy Sinking-Fund Requirements." This Statement also rescinds SFAS No. 44, "Accounting for Intangible Assets of Motor Carriers." This Statement amends SFAS No. 13, "Accounting for Leases," to eliminate an inconsistency between the required accounting for sale-leaseback transactions and the required accounting for certain lease modifications that have economic effects that are similar to sale-leaseback transactions. This Statement also amends other existing authoritative pronouncements to make various technical corrections, clarify meanings, or describe their applicability under change conditions. SFAS No. 145 is effective for fiscal years beginning after May 15, 2002. The Company does not anticipate that the initial adoption of SFAS No. 145 will have a significant impact on the consolidated financial statements.

        In June 2002, the FASB issued SFAS No. 146, "Accounting for Costs Associated with Exit or Disposal Activities." This Statement addresses financial accounting and reporting for costs associated with exit or disposal activities and nullifies Emerging Issues Task Force Issue No. 94-3, "Liability Recognition for Certain Employee Termination Benefits and Other Costs to Exit an Activity (including Certain Costs Incurred in a Restructuring)." This Statement is to be applied prospectively to exit or disposal activities initiated after December 31, 2002, though early adoption is encouraged. The Company is currently evaluating the provisions of SFAS No. 146 and its potential impact on the consolidated financial statements.

3.    RECENT BUSINESS COMBINATIONS

Purchases

Be Free, Inc.

        On May 23, 2002, the Company completed its acquisition of Be Free, Inc. Under the terms of the merger agreement, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company was merged with and into Be Free and Be Free survived as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company. Be Free is a provider of performance-based marketing technology and services.

        Under the terms of the merger agreement, Be Free stockholders received 0.65882 shares of the Company common stock for each share of Be Free common stock. The Company issued a total of approximately 43.4 million shares of its common stock for all the outstanding stock of Be Free. In addition, the Company assumed options to purchase approximately 4.2 million additional shares of ValueClick common stock.

        The offer and sale of ValueClick common stock under the merger agreement was registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, pursuant to the Company's Registration Statement on Form S-4 (Registration No. 333-84802) ("Registration Statement"), filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on March 22, 2002 and declared effective by the SEC on April 15, 2002. The Joint Proxy Statement/Prospectus of ValueClick and Be Free included in the Registration Statement contains additional information about this transaction.

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        The Company accounted for the acquisition under the purchase method. Accordingly, the results of Be Free's operations are included in the Company's consolidated financial statements from the date of acquisition. The aggregate consideration constituting the purchase price of approximately $129.3 million, includes the issuance of 43,361,717 shares of common stock valued at approximately $122.3 million (based on the average common stock price for the public announcement date and the day before, the day of and after that date), the assumption of options and warrants to purchase an aggregate of 4,164,918 shares of common stock valued at $5.0 million using the Black-Scholes option pricing model and transaction costs of approximately $2.0 million, which include legal fees, accounting fees, and fees for other related professional services.

Mediaplex, Inc.

        On October 19, 2001, the Company completed its acquisition of Mediaplex, Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiary AdWare Systems, Inc. Under the terms of the merger agreement, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company was merged with and into Mediaplex and Mediaplex survived as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company. Mediaplex serves the marketing communications industry with technology solutions for digital messaging, support services that enhance campaign return, and infrastructure tools to ensure effective program implementation.

        Under the terms of the merger agreement, Mediaplex stockholders received 0.4113 shares of ValueClick common stock for each share of Mediaplex common stock. The Company issued a total of approximately 15.1 million shares of its common stock for all the outstanding stock of Mediaplex. In addition, the Company assumed options to purchase approximately 3.0 million additional shares of ValueClick common stock.

        The offer and sale of ValueClick common stock under the merger agreement was registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, pursuant to the Company's Registration Statement on Form S-4, as amended (Registration No. 333-65562) ("Registration Statement"), filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on July 20, 2001 and declared effective on September 27, 2001. The Joint Proxy Statement/Prospectus of ValueClick and Mediaplex included in the Registration Statement contains additional information about this transaction.

        The Company accounted for the acquisition under the purchase method. Accordingly, the results of Mediaplex's operations are included in the Company's consolidated financial statements from the date of acquisition. The aggregate consideration constituting the purchase price of approximately $47.6 million, includes the issuance of 15,084,898 shares of common stock valued at approximately $42.7 million (based on the average ValueClick common stock price for the public announcement date and the five trading days before and after that date), the assumption of options and warrants to purchase an aggregate of 2,968,562 shares of common stock valued at $3.4 million using the Black-Scholes option pricing model and transaction costs of approximately $1.5 million, which include legal fees, accounting fees, and fees for other related professional services.

        The historical operating results of Mediaplex and Be Free prior to their respective acquisition dates have not been included in the Company's historical condensed consolidated operating results. Pro forma data (unaudited) for the three-month period ended September 30, 2001 and nine-month periods ended September 30, 2001 and 2002 as if the Mediaplex and Be Free acquisitions had been effective as of January 1, 2001 is as follows:

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Pooling-of-Interests

        On January 31, 2001, the Company consummated its merger with Z Media. In connection with the merger, the Company issued an aggregate of 2,727,678 shares of its Common Stock in exchange for all outstanding shares of Z Media and reserved 419,366 additional shares of Common Stock for issuance upon exercise of outstanding employee stock options of Z Media. The Company accounted for the merger as pooling-of-interests.

        Merger-related costs of $141,000 and $0, and $1,121,000 and $17,000 included in the condensed consolidated statements of operations for the three and nine-month periods ended September 30, 2001 and 2002, respectively, were comprised of direct transaction costs related to the ClickAgents and Z Media mergers, respectively.

4.    ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE

        Accounts receivable are stated net of an allowance for doubtful accounts of $1,546,000 and $1,513,000 at December 31, 2001 and September 30, 2002, respectively.

5.    PROPERTIES AND EQUIPMENT

        Property and equipment consisted of the following:

6.    MARKETABLE SECURITIES

        Marketable securities as of September 30, 2002 consist primarily of marketable debt securities in high-grade corporate and government securities with maturities of less than two years. All of the Company's investments are classified as available-for-sale. Available-for-sale securities are carried at fair value, with unrealized gains and losses, net of tax, reported in a separate component of stockholders' equity.

        Marketable securities at September 30, 2002 have an aggregate cost of $233.5 million, an estimated fair value of $234.2 million, and unrealized gains of $60,000. Marketable securities at December 31, 2001 had an aggregate cost of $136.0 million, an estimated fair value of $136.5 million, and unrealized gains of $467,000.

        During April 2001, the Company sold marketable securities comprised of its remaining 567,860 shares of its DoubleClick common stock for cash proceeds of $6.9 million. The sale of these shares resulted in a realized gain of $701,000.

7.    COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Legal Action

Mediaplex and Be Free Class Action Litigation

        Mediaplex, Inc., ValueClick's wholly-owned subsidiary acquired on October 19, 2001, is involved in three putative class action lawsuits. In July and August 2001, these class action lawsuits were commenced on behalf of all persons who acquired Mediaplex securities between November 19, 1999 and December 6, 2000. The cases are entitled Levovitz vs. Mediaplex, Inc. et al., Atlas vs. Mediaplex, Inc. et al., and Mashayekh vs. Mediaplex, Inc. et al. In addition to Mediaplex and each of its underwriters for its November 1999 initial public offering, Gregory Raifman, Sandra Abbott, Jon Edwards, Lawrence Lenihan, Peter Sealy, James Desorrento, and A. Brooke Seawell, all of whom are former officers and

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directors of Mediaplex, are named as individual defendants. The Company is defending and indemnifying these individual defendants as part of its obligation under its indemnification agreements. The cases are pending before the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.

        Be Free, Inc., ValueClick's wholly-owned subsidiary acquired on May 23, 2002, is involved in a putative class action litigation. This class action lawsuit, entitled Saul Kassin v. Be Free et al., was filed on November 30, 2001 with the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of all persons who acquired Be Free securities between November 3, 1999 and December 6, 2000. This lawsuit names as defendants Be Free, its underwriters for its November 3, 1999 initial public offering and its March 28, 2000 public offering, and Gordon B. Hoffstein, Samuel Gerace, Jr., Thomas A. Gerace and Stephen M. Joseph, all of whom were either officers and/or directors of Be Free during the class period. Gordon Hoffstein and Samuel Gerace, Jr. are members of the Company's board of directors, Mr. Gerace is also the Chief Technology Officer of Be Free, and Stephen Joseph is Executive Vice President of Corporate Development. The Company is defending and indemnifying the individual defendants in this lawsuit as part of its obligation under its indemnification agreements.

        These complaints allege that the defendants violated the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 by issuing a prospectus that contained "materially false and misleading information and failed to disclose material information." They allege that the prospectuses were false and misleading because they failed to disclose the underwriter defendants' purported agreement with investors to provide them with unspecified amounts of Mediaplex and Be Free shares in their respective initial public offerings in exchange for undisclosed commissions; and the purported agreements between the underwriter defendants and certain of their customers whereby the underwriter defendants would allocate shares in Mediaplex's and Be Free's public offerings to those customers in exchange for the customers' agreement to purchase Mediaplex and Be Free shares in the after-market at pre-determined prices.

        Five additional putative class action lawsuits were recently commenced on behalf of all persons who acquired Mediaplex, Inc. securities against the underwriter defendants only. These cases are also pending before the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Information on these cases is incomplete. Based on the information available, neither Mediaplex, Inc. nor its former directors or officers have been named as defendants in these cases. At a later date, Mediaplex, Inc. and its former officers and directors may be added as defendants.

        ValueClick believes that the plaintiffs' allegations are without merit and intends to vigorously defend itself. ValueClick has not recorded an accrual related to damages, if any, resulting from these cases, as an unfavorable outcome is, in management's opinion, not probable and an amount of loss, if any, is not estimable.

24/7 Real Media Patent Infringement Litigation

        In October of 2001, ValueClick received a demand letter from 24/7 Real Media, Inc. alleging that the ad-serving technology of both ValueClick and Mediaplex infringes upon 24/7 Real Media's "368 ad-serving patent and including a demand that the companies purchase a license for the patent. The Company responded with a detailed letter denying liability. In February of 2002, 24/7 Real Media filed a patent infringement suit against ValueClick and Mediaplex in the Southern District of New York. The complaint seeks injunctive relief and unspecified damages relating to alleged patent infringement of 24/7 Real Media's "368 patent. ValueClick believes that neither its nor Mediaplex's technology violates 24/7 Real Media's patent. In February of 2002, after receiving notice of 24/7 Real Media's lawsuit, ValueClick filed a Declaratory Judgment action in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. ValueClick believes that the patent infringement allegations are without merit and intends to vigorously defend itself. ValueClick has not recorded any accrual related to damages, if any, resulting from this case, as an unfavorable outcome is, in management's opinion, not probable and an amount of loss, if any, is not estimable.

Lorenc v. Be Free, Inc. et al.

        On September 27, 2000, Joseph Lorenc, a former employee of Be Free, Inc. filed a lawsuit against Be Free and two officers of Be Free, Steven Joseph and Gordon Hoffstein, in the United States District Court, District of Massachusetts. The complaint alleges, among other things, breach of

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contract. Defendants have brought a motion for summary judgment. No date for the motion has been set. ValueClick believes that the plaintiffs' allegations are without merit and intends to vigorously defend itself. ValueClick has not recorded an accrual related to damages, if any, resulting from this case, as an unfavorable outcome is, in management's opinion, not probable and an amount of loss, if any, is not estimable.

        Other than the matters discussed above, the Company is not a party to any other material legal proceedings, nor is it aware of any pending or threatened litigation that would have a material adverse effect on the business, operating results, cash flows or financial condition. From time to time, the Company may become subject to additional legal proceedings, claims, and litigation arising in the ordinary course of business. In addition, the Company may receive letters alleging infringement of patent or other intellectual property rights. Management believes that these letters generally are without merit and intend to contest them vigorously.

8.    STOCK REPURCHASE PROGRAM

        In September 2000, the board of directors authorized a $10 million Stock Repurchase Program to purchase outstanding shares of ValueClick common stock from time to time at prevailing market prices in the open market or through unsolicited negotiated transactions depending on market conditions. The Stock Repurchase Program was increased by the board of directors to $30 million in February 2002 and to $50 million in July 2002. Under the program, the purchases will be funded from available working capital, and the repurchased shares are held in treasury and may be used for ongoing stock issuances such as issuances under employee stock plans. There is no guarantee as to the exact number of shares that will be repurchased by the Company and the Company may discontinue purchases at any time that management determines additional purchases are not warranted. As of September 30, 2002, and since the initiation of the Stock Repurchase Program, the Company has repurchased approximately 10.8 million shares of the Company's common stock for approximately $28.3 million, $25.0 million of which was purchased pursuant to the Stock Repurchase Program. As of September 30, 2002, up to $25.0 million of the Company's capital is available under its Stock Repurchase Program to purchase shares of the Company's outstanding common stock.

9.    SEGMENTS, GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION AND SIGNIFICANT CUSTOMERS

        The Company derives its revenue from two business segments based on the types of products and services provided. These business segments are ValueClick Media and ValueClick Technology.

        Revenue and gross profit by segment are as follows:

        The Company's operations are domiciled in the United States with operations in Japan through its majority owned subsidiary, ValueClick Japan and with operations in Europe through its wholly-owned subsidiaries, ValueClick Europe, ValueClick France and ValueClick Germany. Other international

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subsidiaries included ValueClick Brazil and ValueClick Canada, which were discontinued during 2001. The Company's geographic information is as follows:

        For the three-month period ended September 30, 2001, no customer comprised more than 10% of total revenue. For the three-month period ended September 30, 2002, one customer comprised 13% of total revenue. At December 31, 2001 and September 30, 2002 no customer comprised more than 10% of accounts receivable.

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ITEM 2. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS
                OF OPERATIONS

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT

        This Report contains forward-looking statements based on our current expectations, estimates and projections about our industry, management's beliefs, and certain assumptions made by us. Words such as "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "believes," "seeks," "estimates," "may," "will" and variations of these words or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. In addition, any statements that refer to expectations, projections or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. Such statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Therefore, our actual results could differ materially and adversely from those expressed in any forward-looking statements as a result of various factors. The section entitled "Risk Factors" set forth in this Form 10-Q and similar discussions in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2001 and in our other SEC filings including our Registration Statement on Form S-4 related to our merger with Be Free, Inc., as amended, originally filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 22, 2002 and declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 15, 2002, discuss some of the important risk factors that may affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. You should carefully consider those risks, in addition to the other information in this Report and in our other filings with the SEC, before deciding to invest in our company or to maintain or increase your investment. We undertake no obligation to revise or update publicly any forward-looking statements for any reason. The information contained in this Form 10-Q is not a complete description of our business or the risks associated with an investment in our common stock. We urge you to carefully review and consider the various disclosures made by us in this Report and in our other reports filed with the SEC that discuss our business in greater detail and advise interested parties of certain risks, uncertainties and other factors that may affect our business, results of operations or financial condition.

OVERVIEW

        We provide digital marketing solutions and advertising technology tools. We offer a broad range of media and technology products and services to our customers to allow them to address all aspects of the digital marketing process, from pre-campaign to execution, including measurement and campaign refinements. Combining media and technological expertise, our products and services help our customers optimize their advertising and marketing campaigns on the Internet and through other media.

        We derive our revenue from two business segments based on the types of products and services provided. These business segments are ValueClick Media and ValueClick Technology.

        VALUECLICK MEDIA—Our Media segment provides digital marketing solutions for advertisers and Web publishers. Through a combination of digital advertising, digital marketing and digital retention marketing, our Media segment provides marketers with custom media solutions to both build brand value and attract targeted, high-quality customers. To accomplish this, we employ rigorous network quality control, advanced targeting capabilities and an integrated product line. For Web site publishers of all sizes, we offer the ability to create reliable new revenue opportunities from their advertising inventory. We offer marketers and advertisers a wide spectrum of custom media solutions. Specifically, we provide online advertisers and publishers of Web sites advertising models known as cost-per-click ("CPC"), cost-per-action ("CPA") and cost-per-lead ("CPL"), in which an advertiser only pays us, and we in turn only pay a publisher of a Web site, when an Internet user clicks on an advertiser's banner advertisement or performs a specific action, such as a software download, an online registration or other transactions. Additionally, we provide media on a cost-per-thousand-impressions ("CPM") basis whereby the advertiser pays for the number of times an advertisement is viewed.

        VALUECLICK TECHNOLOGY—Our Technology segment operates through our wholly-owned subsidiaries Be Free, Inc., acquired on May 23, 2002, and Mediaplex, Inc. and AdWare Systems, Inc. acquired on October 19, 2001.

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        Be Free provides a marketing platform that enables online businesses to attract, convert and retain customers easily and cost effectively. Be Free's marketing platform includes technology and services to manage, track and analyze a variety of online marketing programs. It is offered on a hosted basis to enable businesses to execute marketing programs without the expense of building and maintaining their own in-house technical infrastructure and resources. Be Free offers two types of services on this platform, partner marketing services and site personalization services.

        Mediaplex serves the marketing communications industry with technology solutions for digital messaging, support services that enhance campaign return, and infrastructure tools to ensure effective program implementation. Mediaplex enables marketers to manage, target and distribute integrated messaging across all digital media. Our proprietary MOJO® technology platform includes the ability to automatically configure messages in response to real-time information from a marketer's enterprise data system and to provide ongoing campaign optimization. Mediaplex's revenue is primarily derived from software access and use charges paid by our software clients. These fees vary based on the client's use of the technology.

        AdWare is an applications service provider ("ASP") delivering high-quality information management systems to advertising agencies, marketing communications companies, and public relations agencies. AdWare's revenue is generated primarily from monthly service fees paid by customers over the service periods.

        Revenue and gross profit by segment are as follows:

        The Company's operations are domiciled in the United States with operations in Japan through our majority owned subsidiary, ValueClick Japan and with operations in Europe through our wholly-owned subsidiaries, ValueClick Europe, ValueClick France and ValueClick Germany. Other

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international subsidiaries included ValueClick Brazil and ValueClick Canada, which were discontinued during 2001. The Company's geographic information is as follows:

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS—THREE-MONTH PERIOD ENDED SEPTEMBER 30, 2002 COMPARED TO SEPTEMBER 30, 2001

        The 2002 results include three full months of operations from our Technology segment, given that we acquired Mediaplex and Adware in late October 2001 and Be Free in late May of 2002.

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        Revenue.    Net revenue from our Media segment and our Technology segment were $7.6 million and $9.7 million, respectively, for the three-month period ended September 30, 2002, resulting in consolidated net revenue of $17.3 million compared to $10.3 million for the same period in 2001, an increase of $7.0 million, or 68.2%. The increase in net revenue was a result of the inclusion of the Technology segment in the 2002 period. The decline in Media segment revenue reflects the continued effects of the generally weak U.S. economy and advertising market.

        Cost of Revenue.    Cost of revenue for the Media segment consists primarily of amounts that we pay to Web site publishers on the ValueClick consolidated networks. We pay these publishers on either a CPC, CPA, CPL or CPM basis. Cost of revenue for both the Media and Technology segments also includes depreciation costs of the revenue producing technologies and Internet access costs. Cost of revenue was $5.9 million for the three-month period ended September 30, 2002 compared to $4.6 million for the same period in 2001, an increase of $1.3 million or 29.2%. Cost of revenue decreased as a percentage of net revenue over the 2001 period. This decrease, as well as the corresponding increase in the gross profit margin to 65.6% for the three-month period ended September 30, 2002 from 55.2% for the same period in 2001, was primarily attributable to the change in product mix as a result of the inclusion of the operations of our higher profit margin Technology segment in the 2002 period.

        Sales and Marketing.    Sales and marketing expenses consist primarily of compensation, sales commissions, travel, advertising, trade show costs and costs of marketing materials. Sales and marketing expenses for the three-month period ended September 30, 2002 were $5.0 million compared to $2.7 million for the same period in 2001, an increase of $2.3 million or 85.6%. The increase in sales and marketing expenses was due primarily to the addition of sales and marketing personnel for our Technology segment. Our sales and marketing costs as a percentage of revenue increased to 28.8% for the three-month period ended September 30, 2002 form 26.0% for the same period in 2001 due primarily to the mix of sales and marketing personnel within our Technology segment.

        General and Administrative.    General and administrative expenses consist primarily of facilities costs, executive and administrative compensation and professional service fees. General and administrative expenses increased to $4.6 million for the three-month period ended September 30, 2002 compared to $3.3 million for the same period in 2001, an increase of $1.3 million or 37.9%. General and administrative expenses increased due primarily to the addition of facilities costs and additional executive and administrative personnel in our Technology segment offset by management's efforts to scale general and administrative costs in line with the decreased media revenue production, as well as synergistic cost reductions associated with the acquisitions of Mediaplex, Inc. and Be Free, Inc.

        Product Development.    Product development costs include expenses for the development of new technologies designed to enhance the performance of our service, including the salaries and related expenses for our software engineering department, as well as costs for contracted services and supplies. With the exception of certain internal use software qualifying for capitalization, all product development costs have been expensed as incurred. Product development expenses for the three-month period ended September 30, 2002 were $3.4 million compared to $0.8 million for the same period in 2001, an increase of $2.6 million or 318.0%. The increase in product development expenses was due primarily to the addition of engineers and support personnel in our Technology segment as a result of the acquisitions of Mediaplex and Be Free. We anticipate that the ratio of product development expense to revenue will continue to be higher than our historical experience due to the increasing importance of, and contribution to our business by, our Technology segment.

        Stock-Based Compensation.    Stock-based compensation included in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations reflects the amortization of the difference between the deemed fair value of our common stock for financial accounting purposes and the exercise price of options on the date of the options were granted. Stock-based compensation expense for the three-month period ended September 30, 2002 amounted to $412,000, which relates primarily to the amortization of existing deferred compensation recorded in prior periods for stock options and restricted shares. The decrease in stock-based compensation from $542,000 for the three-month period ended September 30, 2001 relates to our amortization method that charges to expense a higher portion of the deferred stock- based compensation in the earlier years of the option vesting period. We expect a continued decline in the amortization of the existing deferred stock-based compensation over future periods.

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        Amortization of Intangible Assets.    Amortization of intangible assets for the three-month period ended September 30, 2002 represents principally the amortization of software acquired through business combinations.

        For the three-month period ended September 30, 2001 amortization of intangible assets also included the amortization of goodwill created as a result of the acquisitions of Bach Systems and a majority interest in ValueClick Japan. On January 1, 2002, we adopted the accounting standards set forth in Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 142, "Goodwill and other Intangible Assets" ("SFAS No. 142"). SFAS No. 142 changed the methodology for assessing goodwill impairments and ceased the continued amortization of goodwill. In accordance with the transitional guidance of SFAS No. 142, we completed our impairment assessment in the second quarter of 2002 from the adoption of this standard and determined that goodwill of $7.6 million related to the Bach Systems and ValueClick Japan acquisitions was impaired at January 1, 2002 and reflected a cumulative effect of change in accounting principle for the goodwill impairment.

        Merger-Related Costs.    Merger-related costs for the three-month period ended September 30, 2001 represent the direct transaction costs incurred related to the mergers with ClickAgents and Z Media in December 2000 and January 2001, respectively, accounted for as a pooling-of-interests. We incurred no such costs in the third quarter of 2002.

        Interest Income, Net.    Interest income, net principally consists of interest earned on our cash and cash equivalents and marketable debt securities and is net of interest paid on debt obligations. Interest income was $1.6 million for the three-month period ended September 30, 2002 compared to $1.2 million for the same period in 2001. The increase is attributable to increased balances of cash and cash equivalents and marketable debt securities resulting from the Mediaplex and Be Free acquisitions offset by the effects of decreasing average investment yields due to declines in interest rates since 2001. Interest income in future periods may fluctuate in correlation with the average cash and investment balances we maintain and as a result of changes in the market rates of our investments.

        Foreign Currency Transaction Loss.    The foreign currency transaction loss recognized during the three- month period ended September 30, 2001 represents foreign currency fluctuations on investments held by our subsidiary in Japan not denominated in their local currency. Theses unrealized losses reversed in subsequently periods prior to the sale of the related investments resulting in a nominal realized foreign currency transaction gain.

        Provision for Income Taxes.    For the three-month period ended September 30, 2002, we recorded a provision for income taxes of $200,000, compared to $175,000 for the same period in 2001. Income taxes for interim periods are computed using the effective tax rate estimated to be applicable for the full fiscal year, which is subject to our ongoing review and evaluation. The effective income tax rate reflects certain non-deductible expenses, including the stock-based compensation charges and goodwill amortization in the 2001 period.

        Minority Share of Income/Loss of Consolidated Subsidiary.    Minority share of income of ValueClick Japan was $10,000 for the three-month period ended September 30, 2002 and minority share of loss of ValueClick Japan was $264,000 for the corresponding period in 2001. We account for our interest in ValueClick Japan on a consolidated basis for financial reporting purposes, resulting in a minority interest in the net income or losses incurred by ValueClick Japan.

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS—NINE-MONTH PERIOD ENDED SEPTEMBER 30, 2002 COMPARED TO SEPTEMBER 30, 2001

        The 2002 results include nine full months of our Mediaplex and AdWare subsidiaries' performance and four months of our Be Free subsidiary's performance, given that we acquired Mediaplex and AdWare in late October 2001 and Be Free in late May 2002.

        Revenue.    Net revenue from our Media segment and our Technology segment were $21.8 million and $22.0 million, respectively, for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2002, resulting in consolidated net revenue of $43.8 million compared to $32.7 million for the same period in 2001, an increase of $11.1 million or 34.0%. The increase in net revenue was a result of the inclusion of the Technology segment in the 2002 period, specifically a full nine-month period of Mediaplex operations

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and four months of Be Free operations. The decline in Media segment revenue reflects the continued effects of the generally weak U.S. economy and advertising market.

        Cost of Revenue.    Cost of revenue was $15.5 million for both the nine-month period ended September 30, 2002 and the same period in 2001. Cost of revenue decreased as a percentage of net revenue over the 2001 period. This decrease, as well as the corresponding increase in the gross profit margin to 64.6% for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2002 from 52.6% for the same period in 2001 was directly attributable to the change in product mix as a result of the inclusion of the operations of our higher profit margin Technology segment in the 2002 period.

        Sales and Marketing.    Sales and marketing expenses for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2002 were $12.7 million compared to $8.4 million for the same period in 2001, an increase of $4.3 million or 50.7%. The increase in sales and marketing expenses was due primarily to the inclusion of sales and marketing personnel for our Technology segment. Our sales and marketing costs as a percentage of revenue increased to 29.0% for the three-month period ended September 30, 2002 form 25.8% for the same period in 2001 due primarily to the mix of sales and marketing personnel within our Technology segment.

        General and Administrative.    General and administrative expenses increased to $12.5 million for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2002 compared to $10.0 million for the same period in 2001, an increase of $2.5 million or 24.8%. General and administrative expenses increased due primarily to the addition of facilities costs and additional executive and administrative personnel in our Technology segment offset by management's efforts to scale general and administrative costs in line with the decreased media revenue production, as well as synergistic cost reductions associated with the Mediaplex, Inc. and Be Free, Inc. mergers.

        Product Development.    Product development expenses for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2002 were $8.2 million compared to $2.7 million for the same period in 2001, an increase of $5.5 million or 203.2%. The increase in product development expenses was due primarily to the addition of engineers and support personnel in our Technology segment as a result of the Mediaplex and Be Free mergers. We anticipate that the ratio of product development expense to revenue will continue to be higher than our historical experience due to the increasing importance of, and contribution to our business by, our Technology segment.

        Stock-Based Compensation.    Stock-based compensation expense for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2002 amounted to $1.4 million, which relates primarily to the amortization of existing deferred compensation recorded in prior periods for stock options and restricted shares. The decrease in stock-based compensation from $2.2 million for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2001 relates to our amortization method that charges to expense a higher portion of the deferred stock-based compensation in the earlier years of the options vesting period. We expect a continued decline in the amortization of the existing deferred stock-based compensation over future periods.

        Amortization of Intangible Assets and Cumulative Effect of Change in Accounting Principle. Amortization of intangible assets for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2002 represents principally the amortization of software acquired in business combinations.

        For the nine-month period ended September 30, 2001 amortization of intangible assets also included the amortization of goodwill created as a result of the acquisitions of Bach Systems and a majority interest in ValueClick Japan. On January 1, 2002, we adopted the accounting standards set forth in Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 142, "Goodwill and other Intangible Assets" ("SFAS No. 142"). SFAS No. 142 changed the methodology for assessing goodwill impairments and ceased the continued amortization of goodwill. In accordance with the transitional guidance of SFAS No. 142, we completed our impairment assessment in the second quarter of 2002 from the adoption of this standard and determined that goodwill of $7.6 million related to the Bach Systems and ValueClick Japan acquisitions was impaired at January 1, 2002 and reflected a cumulative effect of change in accounting principle for the goodwill impairment.

        Merger-Related Costs.    Merger-related costs for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2001 represent the direct transaction costs incurred related to the mergers with ClickAgents and Z Media in December 2000 and January 2001, respectively, accounted for as a pooling-of-interests. Merger-related

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costs for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2002 represent the last of such direct transaction costs.

        Interest Income, Net.    Interest income, net principally consists of interest earned on our cash and cash equivalents and marketable debt securities and is net of interest paid on debt obligations. Interest income was $4.4 million for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2002 compared to $3.7 million for the same period in 2001. The increase is attributable to increased balances of cash and cash equivalents and marketable debt securities resulting from the Mediaplex and Be Free acquisitions offset by the effects of decreasing average investment yields due to declines in interest rates since 2001. Interest income in future periods may fluctuate in correlation with the average cash and investment balances we maintain and as a result of changes in the market rates of our investments.

        Foreign Currency Transaction Gain (Loss).    The foreign currency transaction loss recognized during the nine-month period ended September 30, 2001 represents foreign currency fluctuations on investments held by our subsidiary in Japan not denominated in their local currency. Theses unrealized losses reversed in subsequently periods prior to the sale of the related investments resulting in a nominal realized foreign currency transaction gain. The foreign currency transaction gain recognized the 2002 represents a portion of such reversal.

        Gain on Sale of Marketable Securities.    The gain on sale of marketable securities recognized during the nine-month period ended September 30, 2001 represents the sale of our remaining 567,860 shares of DoubleClick common stock for cash proceeds of $6.9 million. The sale of these shares resulted in a realized gain of $701,000.

        Provision for Income Taxes.    For the nine-month period ended September 30, 2002, we recorded an income tax provision of $181,000, compared $155,000 for the same period in 2001. Income taxes for interim periods are computed using the effective tax rate estimated to be applicable for the full fiscal year, which is subject to our ongoing review and evaluation. The effective income tax rate reflects certain non-deductible expenses, including the stock-based compensation charges and goodwill amortization in the 2001 period.

        Minority Share of Income/Loss of Consolidated Subsidiary.    Minority share of loss of ValueClick Japan was $10,000 for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2002 and $225,000 for the corresponding period in 2001. We account for our interest in ValueClick Japan on a consolidated basis for financial reporting purposes, resulting in a minority interest in the net losses incurred by ValueClick Japan.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

        Since our inception, we have financed our operations through working capital generated from operations and equity financings. As of September 30, 2002, we had a combined cash and cash equivalents and marketable securities balance of $263.3 million. The net cash used in operating activities of $1.1 million for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2002 primarily resulted from the timing of payments on accounts payable and accrued liabilities.

        The net cash provided by investing activities for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2002 of $25.6 million was primarily the result of the sale of marketable securities of $31.1 million, offset by $1.0 million of computer equipment purchases, net purchase of investment grade corporate debt securities of $4.3 million and the net cash used in the Be Free acquisition of $212,000.

        Net cash used in financing activities for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2002 of $23.7 million primarily resulted from the purchase of $25.4 million in treasury stock and repayment of $0.8 million on notes payable, offset by the proceeds received from the exercise of stock options of $2.5 million.

Stock Repurchase Program

        In September 2000, the board of directors authorized a $10 million Stock Repurchase Program to purchase outstanding shares of ValueClick common stock from time to time at prevailing market prices in the open market or through unsolicited negotiated transactions depending on market conditions. The Stock Repurchase Program was increased by the board of directors to $30 million in February 2002 and

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to $50 million in July 2002. Under the program, the purchases will be funded from available working capital, and the repurchased shares are held in treasury and may be used for ongoing stock issuances such as issuances under employee stock plans. There is no guarantee as to the exact number of shares that will be repurchased by us and we may discontinue purchases at any time that management determines additional purchases are not warranted. As of September 30, 2002 and since the initiation of the Stock Repurchase Program we had repurchased a total of approximately 10.8 million shares of our common stock for approximately $28.3 million, $25.0 million of which was purchased pursuant to the Stock Repurchase Program. As of September 30, 2002, up to $25.0 million of our capital is available under our Stock Repurchase Program to purchase shares of our outstanding common stock.

Commitments and Contingencies

        As of September 30, 2002, we had no material commitments other than obligations under operating and capital leases for office space and office equipment, of which some commitments extend through 2010, and a note payable to a bank, which requires monthly payments through 2003.

        We believe that our existing cash and cash equivalents and our marketable securities are sufficient to meet our anticipated cash needs for working capital and capital expenditures for at least the next twelve months. However, it is possible that we may need or elect to raise additional funds to fund our activities beyond the next year or to consummate acquisitions of other businesses, products or technologies. We could raise such funds by selling more stock to the public or to selected investors, or by borrowing money. In addition, even though we may not need additional funds, we may still elect to sell additional equity securities or obtain credit facilities for other reasons. We cannot assure you that we will be able to obtain additional funds on commercially favorable terms, or at all. If we raise additional funds by issuing additional equity or convertible debt securities, the ownership percentages of existing stockholders would be reduced. In addition, the equity or debt securities that we issue may have rights, preferences or privileges senior to those of the holders of our common stock.

        Although we believe we have sufficient capital to fund our activities for at least the next twelve months, our future capital requirements may vary materially from those now planned. The amount of capital that we will need in the future will depend on many factors, including:

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the market acceptance of our products and services;

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the levels of promotion and advertising that will be required to launch our new products and achieve and maintain a competitive position in the marketplace;

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our business, product, capital expenditure and research and development plans and product and technology roadmaps;

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capital improvements to new and existing facilities;

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technological advances;

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our competitors' response to our products and services;

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our pursuant of strategic transactions; and

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our relationships with customers.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

        Management's discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations is based upon our consolidated financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. The preparation of these financial statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenue and expenses, and related disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities. On an on-going basis, we evaluate our estimates, including those related to revenue recognition, allowance for doubtful accounts, investments, deferred taxes, impairment of long-lived assets, and contingencies and litigation. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates.

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        We apply the following critical accounting policies in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements:

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Revenue Recognition Policy.

        Our Media segment revenue are recognized in the period that the advertising click-throughs or actions occur or when lead-based information is delivered, provided that no significant obligations remain and collection of the resulting receivable is probable.

        Our Technology segment revenue are generated primarily from fixed fees for campaign management services and from application management services and professional services. Campaign management service revenue is recognized when the related services are performed. Application management services revenue is recognized as the services are performed. Application management services provide customers rights to access applications, hardware for the application access, customer service, and rights to enhancements and updates. Our customers do not have the right to take possession of the software at any time during the hosting agreement. Contracts for application management services that exceed designated minimum monthly or quarterly volume usage are recognized as revenue in the month or quarter in which minimum volume is exceeded.

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Allowance for Doubtful Accounts. We maintain an allowance for doubtful accounts for estimated losses resulting from the inability of our customers to make required payments. If the financial condition of our customers were to deteriorate, resulting in an impairment of their ability to make payments, additional allowances may be required.



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Investments. We record an impairment charge when we believe an asset has experienced a decline in value that is other than temporary. Future adverse changes in market conditions or poor operating results of underlying investments could result in losses or an inability to recover the carrying value of the investments that may not be reflected in an investment's current carrying value, thereby possibly requiring an impairment charge in the future.



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Deferred Taxes. We record a valuation allowance to reduce our deferred tax assets to the amount that is more likely than not to be realized. While we have considered future taxable income and ongoing prudent and feasible tax planning strategies in assessing the need for the valuation allowance, in the event we were to subsequently determine that we would be able to realize our deferred tax assets in the future in excess of our net recorded amount, an adjustment to the deferred tax asset would increase income in the period such determination was made. Similarly, should we determine that we would not be able to realize all or part of our net deferred tax asset in the future, an adjustment to the deferred tax asset would reduce income in the period such determination was made.



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Impairment of Long-Lived Assets. We evaluate the recoverability of our identifiable intangible assets and other long-lived assets in accordance with SFAS No. 121, which generally requires us to assess these assets for recoverability when events or circumstances indicate a potential impairment by estimating the undiscounted cash flows to be generated from the use and ultimate disposition of these assets. On January 1, 2002, we adopted the accounting standards set forth in Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 142, "Goodwill and other Intangible Assets" (SFAS No. 142). SFAS No. 142 changed the methodology for assessing goodwill impairments. Although the application of this standard did not change our evaluation of our other identifiable intangible assets, the initial application of this statement resulted in an impairment of goodwill of $7.6 million to write down goodwill related to the Bach Systems and ValueClick Japan acquisitions. The impairment was due solely to the change in accounting standards and was reported as a cumulative effect of change in accounting principle during the first quarter of 2002. Under the new standard, impairment is determined by comparing the carrying values of reporting units to the corresponding fair values. Additionally, under the new standard, goodwill is no longer amortized but is to be tested at the reporting unit within the related business segment annually and whenever events or circumstances occur indicating that goodwill might be impaired.



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Contingencies and Litigation. We evaluate contingent liabilities including threatened or pending litigation in accordance with SFAS No. 5, "Accounting for Contingencies" and record accruals when the outcome of these matters is deemed probable and the liability is reasonably estimable. We make these assessments based on the facts and circumstances and in some instances based in part on the advice of outside legal counsel.

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Recently Issued Accounting Standards

        In July 2001, the FASB issued SFAS No. 141, "Business Combinations" and SFAS No. 142, "Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets." SFAS No. 141 establishes a new standard for accounting and reporting requirements for business combinations initiated after June 30, 2001 and prohibits the use of the pooling-of-interests method for combinations initiated after June 30, 2001. On January 1, 2002, we adopted the accounting standards set forth in Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 142, "Goodwill and other Intangible Assets" (SFAS No. 142). SFAS No. 142 changed the methodology for assessing goodwill impairments and ceased the continued amortization of goodwill. In accordance with the transitional guidance of SFAS No. 142, we completed our impairment assessment from the adoption of this standard and determined that goodwill of $7.6 million related to the Bach Systems and ValueClick Japan acquisitions was impaired at January 1, 2002 and reflected a cumulative effect of change in accounting principle for the goodwill impairment. Under the new standard, impairment is determined by comparing the carrying values of reporting units to the corresponding fair values. Additionally, under the new standard, goodwill is no longer amortized but is to be tested at the reporting unit within the related business segment annually and whenever events or circumstances occur indicating that goodwill might be impaired.

        In August of 2001, the FASB issued SFAS No. 143, "Accounting for Obligations Associated with the Retirement of Long-Lived Assets," which establishes accounting standards for the recognition and measurement of an asset retirement obligation and its associated asset retirement cost. It also provides accounting guidance for legal obligations associated with the retirement of tangible long-lived assets. SFAS No. 143 is effective for fiscal years beginning after June 15, 2002, with early adoption permitted. We expect to adopt SFAS No. 143 effective January 1, 2003 and do not expect that the adoption of this new standard will have a significant impact on our results of operations and financial position.

        In October 2001, the FASB issued SFAS No. 144, "Accounting for the Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived Assets," which addresses financial accounting and reporting for the impairment of long-lived assets and for long-lived assets to be disposed of. This Statement supersedes FASB Statement No. 121, "Accounting for the Impairment of Long-Lived Assets and for Long-Lived Assets to Be Disposed Of." This Statement also supersedes the accounting and reporting provisions of APB Opinion No. 30 ("APB 30"), "Reporting the Results of Operations—Reporting the Effects of Disposal of a Segment of a Business, and Extraordinary, Unusual and Infrequently Occurring Events and Transactions," for segments of a business to be disposed of. This Statement also amends ARB No. 51, "Consolidated Financial Statements," to eliminate the exception to consolidation for a temporarily controlled subsidiary. The adoption of SFAS No. 144 effective January 1, 2002 did not have a material effect on our results of operation or financial position.

        In April 2002, the FASB issued SFAS No. 145, "Rescission of FASB Statements No. 4, 44, and 64, Amendment of FASB Statement No. 13, and Technical Corrections." This Statement rescinds FASB Statement No. 4, "Reporting Gains and Losses from Extinguishment of Debt," and an amendment of that Statement, SFAS No. 64, "Extinguishments of Debt Made to Satisfy Sinking-Fund Requirements." This Statement also rescinds SFAS No. 44, "Accounting for Intangible Assets of Motor Carriers." This Statement amends SFAS No. 13, "Accounting for Leases," to eliminate an inconsistency between the required accounting for sale-leaseback transactions and the required accounting for certain lease modifications that have economic effects that are similar to sale-leaseback transactions. This Statement also amends other existing authoritative pronouncements to make various technical corrections, clarify meanings, or describe their applicability under change conditions. SFAS No. 145 is effective for fiscal years beginning after May 15, 2002. Management does not anticipate that the initial adoption of SFAS No. 145 will have a significant impact on our consolidated financial statements.

        In June 2002, the FASB issued SFAS No. 146, "Accounting for Costs Associated with Exit or Disposal Activities." This Statement addresses financial accounting and reporting for costs associated with exit or disposal activities and nullifies Emerging Issues Task Force Issue No. 94-3, "Liability Recognition for Certain Employee Termination Benefits and Other Costs to Exit an Activity (including Certain Costs Incurred in a Restructuring)." This Statement is to be applied prospectively to exit or disposal activities initiated after December 31, 2002, though early adoption is encouraged. Management is currently evaluating the provisions of SFAS No. 146 and its potential impact on our consolidated financial statements.

Inflation

        Inflation was not a material factor in either revenue or operating expenses during the three-month periods ended September 30, 2001 and 2002.

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ITEM 3. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURE ABOUT MARKET RISK

INTEREST RATE RISK

        The primary objective of our investment activities is to preserve capital while at the same time maximizing yields without significantly increasing risk. We are exposed to the impact of interest rate changes and changes in the market values of our investments. Our interest income is sensitive to changes in the general level of U.S. interest rates. In this regard, changes in U.S. interest rates affect the interest earned on our cash equivalents and marketable debt securities. Our exposure to market rate risk for changes in interest rates relates primarily to our investment portfolio. We have not used derivative financial instruments in our investment portfolio. We invest a portion of our excess cash in debt instruments of high-quality corporate issuers and, by policy, limit the amount of credit exposure to any one issuer. We protect and preserve our invested funds by limiting default, market and reinvestment risk. Investments in both fixed rate and floating rate interest earning instruments carry a degree of interest rate risk. Fixed rate securities may have their fair market value adversely impacted due to a rise in interest rates, while floating rate securities may produce less income than expected if interest rates fall. Due in part to these factors, our future investment income may fall short of expectations due to changes in interest rates, or we may suffer losses in principal if forced to sell securities, which have declined in market value due to changes in interest rates.

        Marketable securities as of September 30, 2002 consist primarily of marketable debt securities in high-grade corporate and government securities with maturities of less than two years. As of September 30, 2002, our investment in marketable securities had a weighted-average time to maturity of approximately 223 days. We classify all of our investments as available-for-sale. Available-for-sale securities are carried at fair value, with unrealized gains and losses, net of tax, reported in a separate component of stockholders' equity. As of September 30, 2002, unrealized gains in our investments in marketable securities aggregated $60,000.

        During the three-month period ended September 30, 2002, our investments in marketable securities yielded an effective interest rate of 2.68%. If interest rates were to decrease 1%, the result would be an annual decrease in our interest income related to our cash and cash equivalents of approximately $2.3 million. However, due to the uncertainty of the actions that would be taken and their possible effects, this analysis assumes no such action. Further, this analysis does not consider the effect of the change in the level of overall economic activity that could exist in such an environment.

FOREIGN CURRENCY RISK

        We transact business in various foreign countries and are thus subject to exposure from adverse movements in other foreign currency exchange rates. This exposure is primarily related to revenue and operating expenses for ValueClick Japan and ValueClick Europe, which denominate their transactions in Japanese Yen and primarily in U.K. pounds, respectively. The effect of foreign exchange rate fluctuations for the three-month period ended September 30, 2002 was not material. If there were an adverse change of 10% in overall foreign currency exchange rates, the result would be a reduction of revenue of approximately $400,000 a quarter. Historically, we have not hedged our exposure to exchange rate fluctuations. Accordingly, we may experience economic loss and a negative impact on earnings, cash flows or equity as a result of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations. We assess the need to utilize financial instruments to hedge currency exposures on an ongoing basis. As of September 30, 2002, we had $22.6 million in cash and cash equivalents denominated in foreign currencies.

        Our international business is subject to risks typical of an international business, including, but not limited to, differing economic conditions, changes in political climate, differing tax structures, other regulations and restrictions and foreign exchange rate volatility. Accordingly, our future results could be materially and adversely affected by changes in these or other factors.

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RISK FACTORS

        You should carefully consider the following risks before you decide to buy shares of our common stock. The risks and uncertainties described below are not the only ones facing us. Additional risks and uncertainties, including those risks set forth in "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" above, may also adversely impact and impair our business. If any of the following risks actually occur, our business, results of operations or financial condition would likely suffer. In such case, the trading price of our common stock could decline, and you may lose all or part of the money you paid to buy our stock.

        This Report contains forward-looking statements based on the current expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections about us and our industry. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those discussed in these forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors, as more fully described in this section and elsewhere in this Report. We do not undertake to update publicly any forward-looking statements for any reason, even if new information becomes available or other events occur in the future.

INTEGRATING OUR ACQUIRED OPERATIONS MAY DIVERT MANAGEMENT'S ATTENTION AWAY FROM OUR DAY-TO-DAY OPERATIONS.

We have grown in part because of business combinations with other companies. Acquisitions generally involve significant risks, including difficulties in the assimilation of the operations, services, technologies and corporate culture of the acquired companies, diversion of management's attention from other business concerns, overvaluation of the acquired companies, and the acceptance of the acquired companies' products and services by our customers. The integration of our acquired operations, products and personnel may place a significant burden on management and our internal resources. The diversion of management attention and any difficulties encountered in the transition and integration process could harm our business.

IF WE FAIL TO MANAGE OUR GROWTH EFFECTIVELY, OUR EXPENSES COULD INCREASE AND OUR MANAGEMENT'S TIME AND ATTENTION COULD BE DIVERTED.

As we continue to increase the scope of our operations, we will need an effective planning and management process to implement our business plan successfully in the rapidly evolving Internet advertising market. Our business, results of operations and financial condition will be substantially harmed if we are unable to manage our expanding operations effectively. We plan to continue to expand our sales and marketing, customer support and research and development organizations. Past growth has placed, and any future growth will continue to place, a significant strain on our management systems and resources. We will likely need to continue to improve our financial and managerial controls and our reporting systems and procedures. In addition, we will need to expand, train and manage our work force. Our failure to manage our growth effectively could increase our expenses and divert management's time and attention. Moreover, we consummated the acquisitions of Mediaplex, Inc. and Be Free, Inc. on October 19, 2001 and May 23, 2002, respectively. Because of the maturity and the size of Mediaplex's and Be Free's operations, the locations of their headquarters, the differences in their customer base and functionality of Mediaplex's and Be Free's and our products, the acquisition may present a materially higher product, marketing, research and development, facilities, information systems, accounting, personnel, and other integration challenges than those we have faced in connection with our prior acquisitions and may delay or jeopardize the complete integration of certain businesses we had acquired previously.

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UNEXPECTED SIGNIFICANT COSTS TO INTEGRATE OUR ACQUIRED OPERATIONS INTO A SINGLE BUSINESS MAY NEGATIVELY IMPACT OUR FINANCIAL CONDITION AND THE MARKET PRICE OF OUR STOCK.

We will incur costs from the integration of purchased company operations, products and personnel. These costs may be significant and may include expenses and other liabilities for:

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employee redeployment, relocation or severance;

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conversion of information systems;

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combining teams and processes in various functional areas;

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reorganization or closures of facilities; and

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relocation or disposition of excess equipment.

The integration costs that we incur may negatively impact our financial condition and the market price of our stock.

WE HAVE A LIMITED OPERATING HISTORY, A HISTORY OF LOSSES, AN ACCUMULATED DEFICIT AND MAY CONTINUE TO EXPERIENCE LOSSES.

For the three-month period ended September 30, 2002, we incurred a net loss of approximately $0.8 million and at September 30, 2002 we had an accumulated deficit of approximately $76.0 million. Though we expect to reach net income the next 12 months, events could arise that prohibit obtaining net income in such a timeframe and we may never become profitable.

Because we have a limited operating history, it may be difficult to evaluate our business and prospects. You should consider our prospects in light of the risks, expenses and difficulties frequently encountered by early-stage companies in the rapidly-changing Internet market. These risks include our ability to:

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maintain and increase our inventory of advertising space on Web sites;

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maintain and increase the number of advertisers that use our products and services and offer banner advertisements that generate significant response rates;

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continue to expand the number of products and services we offer and the capacity of our systems; and

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adapt to changes in Web advertisers' promotional needs and policies, and the technologies used to generate Web advertisements.

If we are unsuccessful in addressing these risks and uncertainties, our business, results of operations and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected.

IF BANNER ADVERTISING ON THE INTERNET LOSES ITS APPEAL TO DIRECT MARKETING COMPANIES, OUR REVENUE COULD DECLINE.

Our Media segment accounted for 43.7% of our revenue for the three-month period ended September 30, 2002 by delivering advertisements that generate click-throughs and other actions to our advertisers' Web sites. This business model may not continue to be effective in the future for a number of reasons, including the following: click rates have always been low and may decline as the number of banner advertisements on the Web increases; Internet users can install "filter" software programs which allow them to prevent banner advertisements from appearing on their screens; banner advertisements are, by their nature, limited in content relative to other media; direct marketing companies may be reluctant or slow to adopt banner advertising that replaces, limits or competes with their existing direct marketing efforts; and direct marketing companies may prefer other forms of Internet advertising, including permission-based e-mail. If the number of direct marketing companies who purchase banner clicks from us does not continue to grow, we may experience difficulty in attracting publishers, and our revenue could decline.

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IF OUR BUSINESS MODEL IS NOT ACCEPTED BY INTERNET ADVERTISERS OR WEB PUBLISHERS, OUR REVENUE COULD DECLINE.

Traditionally, substantially all of our revenue have been derived from our Media segment. Although we intend to grow our Technology segment, we expect that our Media segment will continue to generate a substantial amount of our revenue in the future. For the three-month period ended September 30, 2002, our Media segment accounted for 43.7% of our revenue. In addition, most of our Media products and services are based on a cost-per-click, or CPC, cost-per-action, or CPA, or cost-per-lead, or CPL, pricing model. These business models are relatively new and much less common than the cost-per-thousand impressions, or CPM, pricing model, which many other Internet advertising companies use. Our ability to generate significant revenue from advertisers will depend, in part, on our ability to demonstrate the effectiveness of our pricing models to advertisers, many of which may be more accustomed to the CPM pricing model, and to Web publishers; and on our ability to attract and retain advertisers and Web publishers by differentiating our technology and services from those of our competitors. One component of our strategy is to enhance advertisers' ability to measure their return on investment and track the performance and effectiveness of their advertising campaigns. However, we have limited experience in implementing our strategy. To date, few advertisers have taken advantage of the most sophisticated tool we offer for tracking Internet users' activities after they have reached advertisers' Web sites. We will not be able to assure you that our strategy will succeed.

Intense competition among Web sites and Internet advertising services has led to the proliferation of a number of alternative pricing models for Internet advertising. These alternatives, and the likelihood that additional pricing alternatives will be introduced, make it difficult for us to project the levels of advertising revenue or the margins that we, or the Internet advertising industry in general, will realize in the future. Moreover, an increase in the amount of advertising on the Web may result in a decline in click rates. Since we predominantly rely on a performance-based pricing model to generate revenue, any decline in click rates may make our pricing models less viable or less attractive solutions for Web publishers and advertisers.

OUR REVENUE COULD DECLINE IF WE FAIL TO EFFECTIVELY MANAGE OUR EXISTING ADVERTISING SPACE AND OUR GROWTH COULD BE IMPEDED IF WE FAIL TO ACQUIRE NEW ADVERTISING SPACE.

Our success depends in part on our ability to effectively manage our existing advertising space. The Web sites that list their unsold advertising space with us are not bound by long-term contracts that ensure them a consistent supply of advertising space, which we refer to as inventory. In addition, Web sites can change the amount of inventory they make available to us at any time. If a Web site publisher decides not to make advertising space from its Web sites available to us, we may not be able to replace this advertising space with advertising space from other Web sites that have comparable traffic patterns and user demographics quickly enough to fulfill our advertisers' requests. This would result in lost revenue. We expect that our customers' requirements will become more sophisticated as the Web matures as an advertising medium. If we fail to manage our existing advertising space effectively to meet our customers' changing requirements, our revenue could decline. Our growth depends on our ability to expand our advertising inventory. To attract new customers, we must maintain a consistent supply of attractive advertising space. We intend to expand our advertising inventory by selectively adding to our network new Web sites that offer attractive demographics, innovative and quality content and growing Web user traffic. Our ability to attract new Web sites to our network and to retain Web sites currently in our network will depend on various factors, some of which are beyond our control. These factors include our ability to introduce new and innovative product lines and services, our ability to efficiently manage our existing advertising inventory, our pricing policies and the cost-efficiency to Web publishers of outsourcing their advertising sales. In addition, the number of competing Internet advertising

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networks that purchase advertising inventory from small- to medium-sized Web sites continues to increase. We will not be able to assure you that the size of our inventory will increase or even remain constant in the future.

WE MAY FACE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY DISPUTES THAT ARE COSTLY OR COULD HINDER OR PREVENT OUR ABILITY TO DELIVER OUR PRODUCTS AND SERVICES.

We may be subject to disputes and legal actions alleging intellectual property infringement, unfair competition or similar claims against us. One of our principal competitors, DoubleClick, was awarded a patent on certain aspects of ad-delivery technology, including the ability to target the delivery of ads over a network such as the Internet and the ability to compile statistics on individual Web users and the use of those statistics to target ads. DoubleClick has previously brought lawsuits against other companies in our industry on the basis of this patent. We have, however, entered into an agreement with DoubleClick whereby DoubleClick has agreed to not sue or threaten to sue us, or any of our customers, affiliates or licensees, in connection with its patent, so long as DoubleClick or any of its subsidiaries hold at least five percent of our capital stock on a fully diluted basis. DoubleClick has agreed that if it no longer owns at least five percent of our capital stock, it will in good faith negotiate with us for a license to use its technology under commercially reasonable terms. However, there can be no assurance that we will be able to secure such a license.

Other companies may apply for or be awarded patents or have other intellectual property rights covering aspects of our technology or business. In 2000, 24/7 Real Media was awarded a patent relating to our technology for delivering content and advertising information over the Internet. We are currently involved in a patent infringement lawsuit with 24/7 Real Media related to our ad-serving technology. Our failure to prevail in any litigation with any party asserting intellectual property infringement, including our current lawsuit with 24/7 Real Media, could result in substantial monetary damages, including: damages for past infringement, which could be tripled if a court determines that the infringement was willful; an injunction requiring us to stop offering our services in their current form; the need to redesign our systems; or the need to pay significant license fees in order to use technology belonging to third parties. For additional information regarding our lawsuit with 24/7 Real Media, see "Risk Factors—If we are unsuccessful in defending against 24/7 Real Media's lawsuit for patent infringement, we may be required to pay significant monetary damages to 24/7 Real Media and may be enjoined from utilizing our ad-serving technology in our business" and "Legal Proceedings."

IF THE TECHNOLOGY THAT WE CURRENTLY USE TO TARGET THE DELIVERY OF BANNERS AND TO PREVENT FRAUD ON OUR NETWORK IS RESTRICTED OR BECOMES SUBJECT TO REGULATION, OUR EXPENSES COULD INCREASE AND WE COULD LOSE CUSTOMERS OR ADVERTISING INVENTORY.

Web sites typically place small files of information, commonly known as cookies, on an Internet user's hard drive, generally without the user's knowledge or consent. Cookie information is passed to the Web site through an Internet user's browser software. We currently use cookies to track an Internet user's movement through the advertiser's Web site and to monitor and prevent potentially fraudulent activity on our network. We do not share, collect or sell any other information concerning Internet users. Most currently available Internet browsers allow Internet users to modify their browser settings to prevent cookies from being stored on their hard drive, and some users currently do so. Internet users can also delete cookies from their hard drives at any time. Some Internet commentators and privacy advocates have suggested limiting or eliminating the use of cookies, and legislation has been introduced in some jurisdictions to regulate the use of cookie technology. The effectiveness of our technology could be limited by any reduction or limitation in the use of cookies. If the use or effectiveness of cookies were limited, we would have to switch to

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other technologies to gather demographic and behavioral information. While such technologies currently exist, they are substantially less effective than cookies. We would also have to develop or acquire other technology to prevent fraud. Replacement of cookies could require significant reengineering time and resources, might not be completed in time to avoid losing customers or advertising inventory, and might not be commercially feasible. Our use of cookie technology or any other technologies designed to collect Internet usage information may subject us to litigation or investigations in the future. Any litigation or government action against us could be costly and time-consuming, could require us to change our business practices and could divert management's attention.

WE COULD LOSE CUSTOMERS OR ADVERTISING INVENTORY IF WE FAIL TO MEASURE CLICKS ON BANNER ADVERTISEMENTS IN A MANNER THAT IS ACCEPTABLE TO OUR ADVERTISERS AND WEB PUBLISHERS.

We earn advertising revenue and make payments to Web publishers based on the number of clicks on advertisements delivered on our network. Advertisers' and Web publishers' willingness to use our services and join our network will depend on the extent to which they perceive our measurements of clicks to be accurate and reliable. Advertisers and Web publishers often maintain their own technologies and methodologies for counting clicks, and from time to time we have had to resolve differences between our measurements and theirs. Any significant dispute over the proper measurement of clicks or other user responses to advertisements could cause us to lose customers or advertising inventory.

IF WE FAIL TO COMPETE EFFECTIVELY AGAINST OTHER INTERNET ADVERTISING COMPANIES, WE COULD LOSE CUSTOMERS OR ADVERTISING INVENTORY AND OUR REVENUE COULD DECLINE.

The Internet advertising markets are characterized by rapidly changing technologies, evolving industry standards, frequent new product and service introductions and changing client demands. The introduction of new services embodying new technologies and the emergence of new industry standards and practices could render our existing services obsolete and unmarketable or require unanticipated investments in research and development. Our failure to adapt successfully to these changes could harm our business, results of operations and financial condition.

The market for Internet advertising and related services is intensely competitive. We expect this competition to continue to increase because there are no significant barriers to entry. Increased competition may result in price reductions for advertising space, reduced margins and loss of our market share. Our principal competitors are other companies that provide advertisers with performance-based Internet advertising solutions, such as CPC, CPL or CPA. We directly compete with a number of competitors in the CPC market segment, such as Advertising.com. We also compete in the performance-based marketing segment with CPL and CPA performance-based companies such as DirectLeads and CommissionJunction. We also compete with other Internet advertising networks that focus on the traditional CPM model, including Maxworld and 24/7 Real Media. Unlike us, these companies primarily deal with publishers of large Web sites and advertisers seeking increased brand recognition. These companies have longer operating histories, greater name recognition and have greater financial and marketing resources than we have.

Competition for advertising placements among current and future suppliers of Internet navigational and informational services, high-traffic Web sites and ISPs, as well as competition with other media for advertising placements, could result in significant price competition and reductions in advertising revenue. In addition, as we expand the scope of our Web services, we may compete with a greater number of Web publishers and other media companies across an increasing range of different Web services, including in vertical markets where competitors may have advantages in expertise, brand recognition and other areas. If existing or future competitors develop or offer

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services that provide significant performance, price, creative or other advantages over those offered by us, our business, result of operations and financial condition would be negatively affected. We will also compete with traditional advertising media, such as direct mail, television, radio, cable and print, for a share of advertisers' total advertising budgets. Many current and potential competitors enjoy competitive advantages over us, such as longer operating histories, greater name recognition, larger customer bases, greater access to advertising space on high-traffic Web sites, and significantly greater financial, technical and marketing resources. As a result, we may not be able to compete successfully. If we fail to compete successfully, we could lose customers or advertising inventory and our revenue could decline.

OUR REVENUE GROWTH COULD BE NEGATIVELY IMPACTED IF INTERNET USAGE AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF INTERNET INFRASTRUCTURE DO NOT CONTINUE TO GROW.

Our business and financial results will depend on continued growth in the use of the Internet. Internet usage may be inhibited for a number of reasons, such as: inadequate network infrastructure; security concerns; inconsistent quality of service; and unavailability of cost-effective, high-speed service. If Internet usage grows, our infrastructure may not be able to support the demands placed on it and our performance and reliability may decline. In addition, Web sites have experienced interruptions in their service as a result of outages and other delays occurring throughout the Internet network infrastructure, and as a result of sabotage, such as the recent electronic attacks designed to interrupt service on many Web sites. The Internet could lose its viability as a commercial medium due to delays in the development or adoption of new technology required to accommodate increased levels of Internet activity. If use of the Internet does not continue to grow, or if the Internet infrastructure does not effectively support our growth, our revenue could be materially and adversely affected.

OUR LONG-TERM SUCCESS MAY BE MATERIALLY ADVERSELY AFFECTED IF THE MARKET FOR E-COMMERCE DOES NOT GROW OR GROWS SLOWER THAN EXPECTED.

Because many of our customers' advertisements encourage online purchasing, our long-term success may depend in part on the growth and market acceptance of e-commerce. The growth and acceptance of e-commerce has developed more slowly than expected and our business will be adversely affected if the market for e-commerce does not grow or grows slower than now expected. A number of factors outside of our control could hinder the future growth of e-commerce, including the following:

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the network infrastructure necessary for substantial growth in Internet usage may not develop adequately or our performance and reliability may decline;

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insufficient availability of telecommunication services or changes in telecommunication services could result in inconsistent quality of service or slower response times on the Internet;

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negative publicity and consumer concern surrounding the security of e-commerce could impede our acceptance and growth; and

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financial instability of e-commerce customers.

In particular, any well-publicized compromise of security involving Web-based transactions could deter people from purchasing items on the Internet, clicking on advertisements, or using the Internet generally, any of which could cause us to lose customers and advertising inventory and could materially, adversely affect our revenue.

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IF WE ARE UNSUCCESSFUL IN DEFENDING AGAINST 24/7 REAL MEDIA'S LAWSUIT FOR PATENT INFRINGEMENT, WE MAY BE REQUIRED TO PAY SIGNIFICANT MONETARY DAMAGES TO 24/7 REAL MEDIA AND MAY BE ENJOINED FROM UTILIZING OUR AD-SERVING TECHNOLOGY IN OUR BUSINESS.

In February 2002, 24/7 Real Media, Inc. filed a lawsuit against us and Mediaplex, Inc., our wholly-owned subsidiary, in the District Court for the Southern District of New York seeking unspecified damages and injunctive relief arising from our alleged infringement of 24/7 Real Media's '368 patent.

This lawsuit is in the early stages. We intend to defend ourselves vigorously in this lawsuit. Although we believe 24/7 Real Media's patent infringement allegations are without merit, the outcome of this lawsuit, at this time however, is uncertain. Our expenses and other resources expended on this lawsuit have not been material to date. However, as this lawsuit progresses, we expect to incur greater legal fees and expenses. In addition, our defense of this lawsuit is expected to divert the efforts and attention of our management and technical personnel. As a result, our defense of this lawsuit, regardless of its eventual outcome, will likely be costly and time consuming. If 24/7 Real Media's patent is found to be valid and enforceable and our ad-serving technology is found to infringe, we may be enjoined from utilizing this technology in our business, we may be liable for significant monetary damages and/or we may be required to obtain a license from 24/7 Real Media to use its patented technology, any of which could disrupt our ability to offer our products and services. An injunction preventing us from using our ad-serving technology would have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results, cash flow and financial condition. If we are required to obtain a license to 24/7 Real Media's patent, such license may not be available from 24/7 Real Media on commercially reasonable terms, if at all. For additional details regarding this lawsuit, see "Legal Proceedings."

WE WILL DEPEND ON KEY PERSONNEL, THE LOSS OF WHOM COULD HARM OUR BUSINESS.

The successful integration of the companies we have acquired will depend in part on the retention of personnel critical to our combined business and operations due to, for example, unique technical skills or management expertise. We may be unable to retain existing management, technical, sales and customer support personnel that are critical to the success of the integrated company, resulting in disruption of operations, loss of key information, expertise or know-how and unanticipated additional recruitment and training costs and otherwise diminishing anticipated benefits of these acquisitions.

Our future success is substantially dependent on the continued service of our key senior management. Our employment agreements with our key personnel are short-term and on an at-will basis. We will not have key-person insurance on any of our employees. The loss of the services of any member of our management team, or of any other key employees, could divert management's time and attention, increase our expenses and adversely affect our ability to conduct our business efficiently. Our future success also depends on our continuing ability to attract, retain and motivate highly skilled employees. Competition for employees in our industry is intense. We may be unable to retain our key employees or attract, assimilate or retain other highly qualified employees in the future. We have experienced difficulty from time to time in attracting the personnel necessary to support the growth of our business, and may experience similar difficulties in the future.

DOUBLECLICK IS OUR LARGEST STOCKHOLDER, AND DOUBLECLICK MAY HAVE INTERESTS THAT ARE DIFFERENT FROM, OR IN ADDITION TO, YOURS.

DoubleClick, which is one of our competitors, currently owns approximately 9.0% of our outstanding common stock. DoubleClick also has the right to maintain its percentage ownership if

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we issue new securities, other than in a public offering, in connection with an acquisition of, or merger with, another company or under other specified exceptions until February 28, 2003. DoubleClick may have interests that are different from, or in addition to, your interests. We have not implemented specific policies with respect to this potential conflict of interest.

DELAWARE LAW AND OUR STOCKHOLDER RIGHTS PLAN CONTAIN ANTI-TAKEOVER PROVISIONS THAT COULD DETER TAKEOVER ATTEMPTS THAT COULD BE BENEFICIAL TO OUR STOCKHOLDERS.

Provisions of Delaware law could make it more difficult for a third party to acquire us, even if doing so would be beneficial to our stockholders. Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law may make the acquisition of the company and the removal of incumbent officers and directors more difficult by prohibiting stockholders holding 15% or more of our outstanding voting stock from acquiring the company without the board of director's consent for at least three years from the date they first hold 15% or more of the voting stock. DoubleClick is not subject to this provision of Delaware law with respect to its investment in ValueClick. In addition, our Stockholder Rights Plan has significant anti-takeover effects by causing substantial dilution to a person or group that attempts to acquire us on terms not approved by our board of directors.

SYSTEM FAILURES COULD SIGNIFICANTLY DISRUPT OUR OPERATIONS, WHICH COULD CAUSE US TO LOSE CUSTOMERS OR ADVERTISING INVENTORY.

Our success depends on the continuing and uninterrupted performance of our systems. Sustained or repeated system failures that interrupt our ability to provide services to customers, including failures affecting our ability to deliver advertisements quickly and accurately and to process users' responses to advertisements, would reduce significantly the attractiveness of our solutions to advertisers and Web publishers. Our business, results of operations and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected by any damage or failure that interrupts or delays our operations. Our computer systems will be vulnerable to damage from a variety of sources, including telecommunications failures, power outages, malicious human acts and natural disasters. We lease server space in Los Angeles and Sunnyvale, California; Louisville, Kentucky; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Tokyo, Japan. Therefore, any of the above factors affecting the Los Angeles, Sunnyvale, Louisville, or Tokyo areas would substantially harm our business. Moreover, despite network security measures, our servers are potentially vulnerable to physical or electronic break-ins, computer viruses and similar disruptive problems in part because we cannot control the maintenance and operation of our third-party data centers. Despite the precautions taken, unanticipated problems affecting our systems could cause interruptions in the delivery of our solutions in the future. Our data storage centers incorporate redundant systems, consisting of additional servers, but our primary system does not switch over to our backup system automatically. Our insurance policies may not adequately compensate us for any losses that may occur due to any failures in our systems.

WE MAY EXPERIENCE CAPACITY CONSTRAINTS THAT COULD REDUCE OUR REVENUE.

Our future success depends in part on the efficient performance of our software and technology, as well as the efficient performance of the systems of third parties. As the numbers of Web pages and Internet users increase, our services and infrastructure may not be able to grow to meet the demand. A sudden and unexpected increase in the volume of advertising delivered through our servers or in click rates could strain the capacity of the software or hardware that we have deployed. Any capacity constraints we experience could lead to slower response times or system failures and adversely affect the availability of advertisements, the number of advertising views delivered and the level of user responses received, which would harm our revenue. To the extent that we do not effectively address capacity constraints or system failures, our business, results of operations and financial condition could be harmed substantially. We will also depend on the

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Internet service providers, or ISPs, that provide consumers with access to the Web sites on which our customers' advertisements appear. Internet users have occasionally experienced difficulties connecting to the Web due to failures of their ISPs' systems. Any disruption in Internet access provided by ISPs or failures by ISPs to handle the higher volumes of traffic expected in the future could materially and adversely affect our revenue.

IT MAY BE DIFFICULT TO PREDICT OUR FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE BECAUSE OUR QUARTERLY OPERATING RESULTS MAY FLUCTUATE.

Our revenue and operating results may vary significantly from quarter to quarter due to a variety of factors, many of which are beyond our control. You should not rely on period-to-period comparisons of our results of operations as an indication of our future performance. Our results of operations may fall below the expectations of market analysts and investors in some future periods. If this happens, the market price of our common stock may fall. The factors that may affect our quarterly operating results include:

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fluctuations in demand for our advertising solutions;

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fluctuations in click rates;

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fluctuations in the amount of available advertising space, or views, on Web sites in our network;

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the timing and amount of sales and marketing expenses incurred to attract new advertisers;

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fluctuations in sales of different types of advertising, for example, the amount of advertising sold at higher rates rather than lower rates;

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seasonal patterns in Internet advertisers' spending;

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changes in our pricing policies, the pricing policies of our competitors or the pricing policies for advertising on the Internet generally;

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timing differences at the end of each quarter between our payments to Web publishers for a given set of clicks and our collection of advertising revenue for those clicks; and

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costs related to acquisitions of technology or businesses.

Expenditures by advertisers also tend to be cyclical, reflecting overall economic conditions as well as budgeting and buying patterns. Any decline in the economic prospects of advertisers or the economy generally may alter current or prospective advertisers' spending priorities, or may increase the time it takes us to close sales with advertisers, and could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

WE MAY BE UNABLE TO REDUCE SPENDING IF OUR REVENUE ARE LOWER THAN EXPECTED BECAUSE OUR SHORT-TERM EXPENSES ARE FIXED AND FUTURE REVENUE AND OPERATING RESULTS ARE DIFFICULT TO FORECAST.

Our current and future expense estimates are based, in large part, on our estimates of future revenue and on our investment plans. In particular, we plan to increase our operating expenses significantly in order to expand our sales and marketing operations; enhance our technology and software solutions; acquire additional advertising inventory; enhance our advertising management platform; and continue our international expansion. Most of our expenses are fixed in the short term. We may be unable to reduce spending if our revenue is lower than expected. Any significant shortfall in revenue in relation to our expectations could materially and adversely affect our cash flows.

IF WE DO NOT SUCCESSFULLY DEVELOP OUR INTERNATIONAL STRATEGY, OUR REVENUE AND CASH FLOWS AND THE GROWTH OF OUR BUSINESS COULD BE HARMED.

We initiated operations, through joint ventures and wholly-owned subsidiaries or divisions, in Japan in 1998, in the United Kingdom in 1999, and Brazil, Canada, France and Germany in 2000. Subsequently, we discontinued operations in Brazil and Canada in 2001. Our foreign operations

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subject us to foreign currency exchange risks. We currently do not utilize hedging instruments to mitigate foreign exchange risks.

Our international expansion will subject us to additional foreign currency exchange risks and will require management's attention and resources. We expect to pursue expansion through a number of international alliances and to rely extensively on these business partners initially to conduct operations, establish local networks, register Web sites as affiliates and coordinate sales and marketing efforts. Our success in these markets will depend on the success of our business partners and their willingness to dedicate sufficient resources to the relationships. We cannot assure you that we will be successful in our efforts overseas. International operations are subject to other inherent risks, including:

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the impact of recessions in economies outside the United States;

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changes in and differences between regulatory requirements, domestic and foreign;

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export restrictions, including export controls relating to encryption technologies;

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reduced protection for intellectual property rights in some countries;

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potentially adverse tax consequences;

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difficulties and costs of staffing and managing foreign operations;

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political and economic instability;

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tariffs and other trade barriers; and

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seasonal reductions in business activity.

Our failure to address these risks adequately could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

WE MAY BE LIABLE FOR CONTENT DISPLAYED ON THE WEB SITES OF OUR PUBLISHERS WHICH COULD INCREASE OUR EXPENSES.

We may be liable to third parties for content in the advertising we deliver if the artwork, text or other content involved violates copyright, trademark, or other intellectual property rights of third parties or if the content is defamatory. Any claims or counterclaims could be time-consuming, result in costly litigation or divert management's attention.

REVENUE GENERATED BY OUR TECHNOLOGY PRODUCTS AND SERVICES DEPEND UPON A FEW KEY CLIENTS, AND IF WE LOSE A MAJOR CLIENT FOR THESE PRODUCTS OR SERVICES, OUR REVENUE MAY BE SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED.

For the three-month period ended September 30, 2002, revenue from our Technology segment accounted for 56.3% of our revenue. With our recent acquisition of companies offering complimentary technology products and services, including our May 2002 acquisition of Be Free, Inc. and our October 2001 acquisition of Mediaplex, Inc., we expect that our Technology segment may account for a greater percentage of our revenue in the future. Revenue generated by our technology products and services have been derived from a limited number of advertisers and advertising agencies. Our results of operations would be harmed by the loss of any of these clients. In the third quarter of 2002, one company accounted for 13% of our overall revenue. No other customer accounted for more than 10% of our total revenue in the third quarter of 2002. We expect that this and other entities may continue to account for a significant percentage of our revenue generated by our technology products and services. Current advertisers may not continue to purchase advertising services from us or we may not be able to successfully attract additional advertisers. If sales of our technology products and services do not grow, we will be unable to grow our Technology segment.

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IF WE FAIL TO ESTABLISH, MAINTAIN AND EXPAND OUR TECHNOLOGY BUSINESS AND MARKETING ALLIANCES AND PARTNERSHIPS, OUR ABILITY TO GROW COULD BE LIMITED, WE MAY NOT ACHIEVE DESIRED REVENUE AND OUR STOCK PRICE MAY DECLINE.

In order to grow our technology business, we must generate, retain and strengthen successful business and marketing alliances with advertising agencies.

We depend, and expect to continue to depend, on our business and marketing alliances, which are companies with which we have written or oral agreements to work together to provide services to our clients, to refer business from their clients and customers to us. If companies with which we have business and marketing alliances do not refer their clients and customers to us to perform their online campaign and message management, our revenue and results of operations would be severely harmed.

Our AdWare company has two primary business partnerships that have an impact on our ability to deliver needed functionality to our customers. The first is with Strata, the company whose radio pre-buy product is integrated with AdWare SPOT. Radio pre-buy is an integral part of broadcast media buying functionality. A loss of that partnership would necessitate the development of an entirely new product that would require resources and time. The second is with IBM; loss of this partnership might damage our reputation and negatively impact our ability to drive revenue in the digital asset management arena.

WE WILL BE DEPENDENT UPON TECHNOLOGIES, INCLUDING OUR MOJO, ADWARE AND BE FREE TECHNOLOGIES, FOR OUR FUTURE REVENUE, AND IF THESE TECHNOLOGIES DO NOT GENERATE REVENUE, OUR BUSINESS MAY FAIL.

Our future revenue is likely to be dependent on the acceptance by clients of the use of technologies, which we believe to be the cornerstone of the technology business. If these technologies do not perform as anticipated or otherwise do not attract clients to use our services, our operations will suffer. In addition, we have incurred and will continue to incur significant expense developing our technologies. If our revenue generated from the use of our technologies does not cover these development costs, our financial condition would suffer.

IF OUR TECHNOLOGIES SUFFER FROM DESIGN DEFECTS, WE MAY NEED TO EXPEND SIGNIFICANT RESOURCES TO ADDRESS RESULTING PRODUCT LIABILITY CLAIMS.

Our business will be harmed if our technologies suffer from design or performance defects and, as a result, we could become subject to significant product liability claims. Technology as complex as our technology may contain design and/or performance defects which are not detectable even after extensive internal testing. Such defects may become apparent only after widespread commercial use. Our contracts with our clients currently do not contain provisions to limit our exposure to liabilities resulting from product liability claims. Although we have not experienced any product liability claims to date, we cannot assure you that we will not do so in the future. A product liability claim brought against us, which is not adequately covered by our insurance, could materially harm our business.

TECHNOLOGY SALES AND IMPLEMENTATION CYCLES ARE LENGTHY, WHICH COULD DIVERT OUR FINANCIAL AND OTHER RESOURCES, AND IS SUBJECT TO DELAYS, WHICH COULD RESULT IN DELAYED REVENUE.

If the sales and implementation cycle of our technology products and services are delayed, our revenue will likewise be delayed. Our sales and implementation cycles are lengthy, causing us to recognize revenue long after our initial contact with a client. During our sales effort, we spend significant time educating prospective clients on the use and benefit of our message management services. As a result, the sales cycle for our products and services is long, ranging from a few weeks

36

to several months for our larger clients. In addition, in order for a client to implement our services, the client must commit a significant amount of resources over an extended period of time. Furthermore, even after a client purchases our services, the implementation cycle is subject to delays. These delays may be caused by factors within our control, such as possible technology defects, as well as those outside our control, such as clients' budgetary constraints, internal acceptance reviews, functionality enhancements, lack of appropriate customer staff to implement our media management applications and the complexity of clients' advertising needs. Also, failure to deliver service or application features consistent with delivery commitments could result in a delay or cancellation of the agreement.

WE MAY NOT BE ABLE TO PROTECT OUR INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY FROM UNAUTHORIZED USE, WHICH COULD DIMINISH THE VALUE OF OUR SERVICES, WEAKEN OUR COMPETITIVE POSITION AND REDUCE OUR REVENUE.

Our success depends in large part on our proprietary technology, including our eTrax™ tracking management software, BeFast, BeSelect and our MOJO platform. In addition, we believe that our trademarks are key to identifying and differentiating our services from those of our competitors. We may be required to spend significant resources to monitor and police our intellectual property rights. If we fail to successfully enforce our intellectual property rights, the value of our services could be diminished and our competitive position may suffer.

We rely on a combination of copyright, trademark and trade secret laws, confidentiality procedures and licensing arrangements to establish and protect our proprietary rights. Third-party software providers could copy or otherwise obtain and use our technology without authorization or develop similar technology independently which may infringe upon our proprietary rights. We may not be able to detect infringement and may lose competitive position in the market before we do so. In addition, competitors may design around our technology or develop competing technologies. Intellectual property protection may also be unavailable or limited in some foreign countries.

We generally enter into confidentiality or license agreements with our employees, consultants, vendor clients and corporate partners, and generally control access to and distribution of our technologies, documentation and other proprietary information. Despite these efforts, unauthorized parties may attempt to disclose, obtain or use our services or technologies. Our precautions may not prevent misappropriation of our services or technologies, particularly in foreign countries where laws or law enforcement practices may not protect our proprietary rights as fully as in the United States.

IF WE FAIL TO KEEP PACE WITH RAPIDLY CHANGING TECHNOLOGIES, WE COULD LOSE CUSTOMERS OR ADVERTISING INVENTORY.

The Internet advertising market is characterized by rapidly changing technologies, evolving industry standards, frequent new product and service introductions and changing customer demands. The introduction of new products and services embodying new technologies and the emergence of new industry standards and practices can render existing products and services obsolete and unmarketable or require unanticipated investments in research and development. Our success will depend on our ability to adapt to rapidly changing technologies, to enhance existing solutions and to develop and introduce a variety of new solutions to address our customers' changing demands. For example, advertisers are increasingly requiring Internet advertising networks to have the ability to deliver advertisements utilizing new formats that surpass stationary images and incorporate rich media, such as video and audio, interactivity, and more precise consumer targeting techniques. Our system does not support some types of advertising formats, such as certain video and audio formats, and many of the Web sites in our network have not implemented systems to allow rich media advertisements. In addition, an increase in the bandwidth of Internet access resulting in faster data delivery may provide new products and services that will take advantage of this

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expansion in delivery capability. If we fail to adapt successfully to developments such as these, we could lose customers or advertising inventory. We purchase most of the software used in our business from third parties. We intend to continue to acquire technology necessary for us to conduct our business from third parties. We cannot assure you that, in the future, these technologies will be available on commercially reasonable terms, or at all. We may also experience difficulties that could delay or prevent the successful design, development, introduction or marketing of new solutions. Any new solution or enhancement that we develop will need to meet the requirements of our current and prospective customers and may not achieve significant market acceptance. If we fail to keep pace with technological developments and the introduction of new industry and technology standards on a cost-effective basis, our expenses could increase, and we could lose customers or advertising inventory.

CHANGES IN GOVERNMENT REGULATION AND INDUSTRY STANDARDS COULD DECREASE DEMAND FOR OUR SERVICES AND INCREASE OUR COSTS OF DOING BUSINESS.

Laws and regulations that apply to Internet communications, commerce and advertising are becoming more prevalent. These regulations could affect the costs of communicating on the Web and adversely affect the demand for our advertising solutions or otherwise harm our business, results of operations and financial condition. The United States Congress has enacted Internet legislation regarding children's privacy, copyrights and taxation. Other laws and regulations may be adopted, and may address issues such as user privacy, pricing, intellectual property ownership and infringement, copyright, trademark, trade secret, export of encryption technology, acceptable content, taxation and quality of products and services. This legislation could hinder growth in the use of the Web generally and decrease the acceptance of the Web as a communications, commercial and advertising medium.

Legislation has been proposed recently to prohibit the sending of unsolicited commercial e-mail. We have a consent-based email delivery business that we believe should not, as a matter of policy, be affected by this kind of legislation. However, it is possible that legislation will be passed that requires us to change our current practices, or subject us to increased possibility of legal liability for our practices.

Due to the global nature of the Web, it is possible that, although our transmissions originate in California, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Japan, the governments of other states or foreign countries might attempt to regulate our transmissions or levy sales or other taxes relating to our activities. In addition, the growth and development of the market for Internet commerce may prompt calls for more stringent consumer protection laws, both in the United States and abroad, that may impose additional burdens on companies conducting business over the Internet. The laws governing the Internet remain largely unsettled, even in areas where there has been some legislative action. It may take years to determine how existing laws, including those governing intellectual property, privacy, libel and taxation, apply to the Internet and Internet advertising. Our business, results of operations and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected by the adoption or modification of laws or regulations relating to the Internet, or the application of existing laws to the Internet or Internet-based advertising.

WE COULD BE HELD LIABLE FOR OUR OR OUR CLIENTS' FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH FEDERAL, STATE AND FOREIGN LAWS GOVERNING CONSUMER PRIVACY.

Recent growing public concern regarding privacy and the collection, distribution and use of information about Internet users has led to increased federal, state and foreign scrutiny and legislative and regulatory activity concerning data collection and use practices. Any failure by us to comply with applicable foreign, federal and state laws and regulatory requirements of regulatory authorities may result in, among other things, indemnification liability to our clients and the advertising agencies we work with, administrative enforcement actions and fines, class action

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lawsuits, cease and desist orders, and civil and criminal liability. Recently, class action lawsuits have been filed alleging violations of privacy laws by Internet service providers. In October 1998, the European Union adopted a directive addressing data privacy that may result in limitations on our ability to collect and use information regarding Internet users. These restrictions may limit our ability to target advertising in most European countries. Our failure to comply with these or other federal, state or foreign laws could result in liability and materially harm our business.

In addition to government activity, privacy advocacy groups and the high-technology and direct marketing industries are considering various new, additional or different self-regulatory standards. This focus, and any legislation, regulations or standards promulgated, may impact us adversely. Governments, trade associations and industry self-regulatory groups may enact more burdensome laws, regulations and guidelines, including consumer privacy laws, affecting our clients and us. Since many of the proposed laws or regulations are just being developed, and a consensus on privacy and data usage has not been reached, we cannot yet determine the impact these regulations may have on our business. However, if the gathering of profiling information were to be curtailed, Internet advertising would be less effective, which would reduce demand for Internet advertising and harm our business.

Our customers are also subject to various federal and state regulations concerning the collection and use of information regarding individuals. These laws include the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, the Federal Drivers Privacy Protection Act of 1994, the privacy provisions of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, as well as other laws that govern the collection and use of consumer credit information. We cannot assure you that their clients are currently in compliance, or will remain in compliance, with these laws and their own privacy policies. We may be held liable if our clients use our technology in a manner that is not in compliance with these laws or their own stated privacy standards.

OUR STOCK PRICE IS LIKELY TO BE VOLATILE AND COULD DROP UNEXPECTEDLY.

        Our common stock has been publicly traded only since March 30, 2000. The market price of our common stock has been subject to significant fluctuations since the date of our initial public offering. The stock market has from time to time experienced significant price and volume fluctuations that have affected the market prices of securities, particularly securities of technology companies. As a result, the market price of our common stock may materially decline, regardless of our operating performance. In the past, following periods of volatility in the market price of a particular company's securities, securities class action litigation has often been brought against that company. We may become involved in this type of litigation in the future. Litigation of this type is often expensive and diverts management's attention and resources.

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ITEM 4. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

(a)

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

Based on their evaluation of our disclosure controls and procedures conducted within 90 days of the date of filing this report on Form 10-Q, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer have concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-14(c) and 15d-14(c) promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934) are effective.

(b)

Changes in Internal Controls

There were no significant changes in our internal controls or in other factors that could significantly affect these controls subsequent to the date of their evaluation.

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PART II.

OTHER INFORMATION AND SIGNATURES

ITEM 1. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

        Reference is made to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 22, 2002 and our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q filed with the SEC on May 13, 2002 and August 14, 2002 under the heading "Legal Proceedings" for a discussion of litigation involving us relating to (i) Mediaplex and Be Free Class Action Litigation, (ii) 24/7 Real Media Patent Infringement Litigation, and (iii) the Lorenc v. Be Free litigation.

Mediaplex and Be Free Class Action Litigation

        Mediaplex, Inc., ValueClick's wholly-owned subsidiary acquired on October 19, 2001, is involved in three putative class action lawsuits. In July and August 2001, these class action lawsuits were commenced on behalf of all persons who acquired Mediaplex securities between November 19, 1999 and December 6, 2000. The cases are entitled Levovitz vs. Mediaplex, Inc. et al., Atlas vs. Mediaplex, Inc. et al., and Mashayekh vs. Mediaplex, Inc. et al. In addition to Mediaplex and each of its underwriters for its November 1999 initial public offering, Gregory Raifman, Sandra Abbott, Jon Edwards, Lawrence Lenihan, Peter Sealy, James Desorrento, and A. Brooke Seawell, all of whom are former officers and directors of Mediaplex, are named as individual defendants. We are defending and indemnifying these individual defendants as part of our obligation under our indemnification agreements. The cases are pending before the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.

        Be Free, Inc., ValueClick's wholly-owned subsidiary acquired on May 23, 2002, is involved in a putative class action litigation. This class action lawsuit, entitled Saul Kassin v. Be Free et al., was filed on November 30, 2001 with the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of all persons who acquired Be Free securities between November 3, 1999 and December 6, 2000. This lawsuit names as defendants Be Free, its underwriters for its November 3, 1999 initial public offering and its March 28, 2000 public offering, and Gordon B. Hoffstein, Samuel Gerace, Jr., Thomas A. Gerace and Stephen M. Joseph, all of whom were either officers and/or directors of Be Free during the class period. Gordon Hoffstein and Samuel Gerace, Jr. are members of our board of directors, Mr. Gerace is also the Chief Technology Officer of Be Free, and Stephen Joseph is Executive Vice President of Corporate Development. We are defending and indemnifying the individual defendants in this lawsuit as part of our obligation under our indemnification agreements.

        These complaints allege that the defendants violated the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 by issuing a prospectus that contained "materially false and misleading information and failed to disclose material information." They allege that the prospectuses were false and misleading because they failed to disclose the underwriter defendants' purported agreement with investors to provide them with unspecified amounts of Mediaplex and Be Free shares in their respective initial public offerings in exchange for undisclosed commissions; and the purported agreements between the underwriter defendants and certain of their customers whereby the underwriter defendants would allocate shares in Mediaplex's and Be Free's public offerings to those customers in exchange for the customers' agreement to purchase Mediaplex and Be Free shares in the after-market at pre-determined prices.

        Five additional putative class action lawsuits were recently commenced on behalf of all persons who acquired Mediaplex, Inc. securities against the underwriter defendants only. These cases are also pending before the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Information on these cases is incomplete. Based on the information available, neither Mediaplex, Inc. nor its former

41

directors or officers have been named as defendants in these cases. At a later date, Mediaplex, Inc. and its former officers and directors may be added as defendants.

        ValueClick believes that the plaintiffs' allegations are without merit and intends to vigorously defend itself. ValueClick has not recorded an accrual related to damages, if any, resulting from these cases, as an unfavorable outcome is, in management's opinion, not probable and an amount of loss, if any, is not estimable.

24/7 Real Media Patent Infringement Litigation

        In October of 2001, ValueClick received a demand letter from 24/7 Real Media, Inc. alleging that the ad-serving technology of both ValueClick and Mediaplex infringes upon 24/7 Real Media's '368 ad-serving patent and including a demand that the companies purchase a license for the patent. ValueClick responded with a detailed letter denying liability. In February of 2002, 24/7 Real Media filed a patent infringement suit against ValueClick and Mediaplex in the Southern District of New York. The complaint seeks injunctive relief and unspecified damages relating to alleged patent infringement of 24/7 Real Media's '368 patent. ValueClick believes that neither its nor Mediaplex's technology violates 24/7 Real Media's patent. In February of 2002, after receiving notice of 24/7 Real Media's lawsuit, ValueClick filed a Declaratory Judgment action in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. ValueClick believes that the patent infringement allegations are without merit and intends to vigorously defend itself. ValueClick has not recorded any accrual related to damages, if any, resulting from this case, as an unfavorable outcome is, in management's opinion, not probable and an amount of loss, if any, is not estimable.

Lorenc v. Be Free, Inc. et al.

        On September 27, 2000, Joseph Lorenc, a former employee of Be Free, Inc. filed a lawsuit against Be Free and two officers of Be Free, Steven Joseph and Gordon Hoffstein, in the United States District Court, District of Massachusetts. The complaint alleges, among other things, breach of contract. Defendants have brought a motion for summary judgment. No date for the motion has been set. ValueClick believes that the plaintiffs' allegations are without merit and intends to vigorously defend itself. ValueClick has not recorded an accrual related to damages, if any, resulting from this case, as an unfavorable outcome is, in management's opinion, not probable and an amount of loss, if any, is not estimable.

        Other than the matters discussed above, we are not a party to any other material legal proceedings, nor are we aware of any pending or threatened litigation that would have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results, cash flows or financial condition. From time to time, we may become subject to additional legal proceedings, claims, and litigation arising in the ordinary course of business. In addition, we may receive letters alleging infringement of patent or other intellectual property rights. Our management believes that these letters generally are without merit and intend to contest them vigorously.

ITEM 2. CHANGES IN SECURITIES AND USE OF PROCEEDS

        None.

ITEM 3. DEFAULTS UPON SENIOR SECURITIES

        None.

ITEM 4. SUBMISSION OF MATTERS TO A VOTE OF SECURITY HOLDERS

        None.

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ITEM 5. OTHER INFORMATION

        Samuel P. Gerace, a member of our board of directors, informed us of his adoption of a written stock selling plan in November 2002 in accordance with our insider trading policy and SEC Rule 10b5-1. The stock selling plan will provide for pre-determined sales of a portion of his holdings of ValueClick common stock until October 2004, subject to certain restrictions and other contingencies. The plan provides for the sale of 10,000 shares of ValueClick common stock per day (which amounts may be adjusted to account for shares not sold on prior days) over a ten-day period in each of the next four quarters beginning in November 2002. The aggregate amount of shares to be sold under the plan is 400,000 shares. SEC Rule 10b5-1 permits an implementation of a written plan for stock selling at times when insiders are not in possession of material non-public information and allows them to sell shares on a regular basis, regardless of any subsequent material non-public information they receive or the price of the stock at the time of the sale.

ITEM 6. EXHIBITS AND REPORTS ON FORM 8-K

(a)

Exhibits:

(b)

Reports on Form 8-K filed during the quarter ended September 30, 2002:

A Current Report on Form 8-K was filed by ValueClick with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 14, 2002 to disclose under Item 9 the certifications of ValueClick, Inc.'s Chief Executive Officer, James R. Zarley, and Chief Financial Officer, Samuel J. Paisley, pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 1350 adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

A Current Report on Form 8-K/A was filed by ValueClick with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 7, 2002, which amends the Current Reports on Form 8-K and Form 8-K/A filed on May 24, 2002 and June 7, 2002, respectively, to report under Item 2 and Item 7 the consummation of the acquisition of Be Free, Inc and the related historical and pro forma financial statements, respectively.

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SIGNATURES

        Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

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Certification of CEO Pursuant to
Securities Exchange Act Rules 13a-14 and 15d-14
as Adopted Pursuant to
Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

I, James R. Zarley, the Chief Executive Officer of ValueClick, Inc., certify that:

1.

I have reviewed this quarterly report on Form 10-Q of ValueClick, Inc.;



2.

Based on my knowledge, this quarterly report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this quarterly report;



3.

Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this quarterly report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this quarterly report;



4.

The registrant's other certifying officer and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-14 and 15d-14) for the registrant and we have:



a.

designed such disclosure controls and procedures to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this quarterly report is being prepared;



b.

evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant's disclosure controls and procedures as of a date within 90 days prior to the filing date of this quarterly report (the "Evaluation Date"); and



c.

presented in this quarterly report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures based on our evaluation as of the Evaluation Date;




5.

The registrant's other certifying officer and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation, to the registrant's auditors and to the audit committee of registrant's board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent function):



a.

all significant deficiencies in the design or operation of internal controls which could adversely affect the registrant's ability to record, process, summarize and report financial data and have identified for the registrant's auditors any material weaknesses in internal controls; and



b.

any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant's internal controls; and




6.

The registrant's other certifying officer and I have indicated in this quarterly report whether or not there were significant changes in internal controls or in other factors that could significantly affect internal controls subsequent to the date of our most recent evaluation, including any corrective actions with regard to significant deficiencies and material weaknesses.

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Certification of CFO Pursuant to
Securities Exchange Act Rules 13a-14 and 15d-14
as Adopted Pursuant to
Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

I, Samuel J. Paisley, the Chief Financial Officer of ValueClick, Inc., certify that:

1.

I have reviewed this quarterly report on Form 10-Q of ValueClick, Inc.;



2.

Based on my knowledge, this quarterly report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this quarterly report;



3.

Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this quarterly report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this quarterly report;



4.

The registrant's other certifying officer and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-14 and 15d-14) for the registrant and we have:



a.

designed such disclosure controls and procedures to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this quarterly report is being prepared;



b.

evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant's disclosure controls and procedures as of a date within 90 days prior to the filing date of this quarterly report (the "Evaluation Date"); and



c.

presented in this quarterly report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures based on our evaluation as of the Evaluation Date;




5.

The registrant's other certifying officer and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation, to the registrant's auditors and to the audit committee of registrant's board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent function):



d.

all significant deficiencies in the design or operation of internal controls which could adversely affect the registrant's ability to record, process, summarize and report financial data and have identified for the registrant's auditors any material weaknesses in internal controls; and



e.

any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant's internal controls; and




6.

The registrant's other certifying officer and I have indicated in this quarterly report whether or not there were significant changes in internal controls or in other factors that could significantly affect internal controls subsequent to the date of our most recent evaluation, including any corrective actions with regard to significant deficiencies and material weaknesses.

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VALUECLICK, INC.
Index to Exhibits

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QuickLinks

ITEM 1. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

ITEM 2. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

ITEM 3. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURE ABOUT MARKET RISK

ITEM 4. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

ITEM 1. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
ITEM 2. CHANGES IN SECURITIES AND USE OF PROCEEDS
ITEM 3. DEFAULTS UPON SENIOR SECURITIES
ITEM 4. SUBMISSION OF MATTERS TO A VOTE OF SECURITY HOLDERS
ITEM 5. OTHER INFORMATION
ITEM 6. EXHIBITS AND REPORTS ON FORM 8-K