A rumor that Commission Junction may be for sale prompts some speculation on why ValueClick might want to part with CJ and who might be interested in it.

Saying she has no inside information - only rumor - but sees a logical rationale for such a sale, Beth Kirsch lays out her case in a ReveNews post. CJ's profitable partnership with eBay is on the rocks, she argues, with eBay's recent move to set up its own affiliate infrastructure. Moreover, some believe ValueClick's leadership doesn't understand, and so doesn't value, affiliate marketing; recent missteps by CJ regarding its Link Management Initiative support that theory - as does a recent exodus of CJ staffers.

Citing failed merger talks in May between ValueClick and aQuantive (which consists of agency AvenueA/Razorfish, ad-serving tech Atlas and ad network DrivePM), Kirsch says Value Click seems to value the aQuantive model. By selling CJ it could afford to acquire an agency and "scale its behavioral-marketing technology into a massive network."

As for finding potential buyers for CJ, Kirsch considers two possibilities: AOL's Advertising.com has long wanted an affiliate network, and Experian Interactive has been "building an online lead gen powerhouse," she points out.