FTC Settles Charges Against Kids’ Apparel Brands for Alleged COPPA Violations
Remember Candie’s shoes and Op shorts? The FTC announced yesterday that it has settled charges against Iconix Brand Group, the owner, licensor, and marketer of popular kids’ apparel brands such as...
View ArticleKerry Releases Draft of “Privacy Bill of Rights”
A week after the Senate held a hearing on the state of online consumer privacy, Senator John Kerry (D-Mass) has published a draft of the "Commercial Privacy Bill of Rights Act of 2011." The Act,...
View ArticleThe Legal Implications of Social Networking: The Basics (Part One)
We are in the midst of a communications revolution. Use of social media for communication purposes continues to grow, while "old school" messaging media like email is on the decline. Facebook...
View ArticlePartners Justine Young Gottshall and Jamie Rubin Join InfoLawGroup
InfoLawGroup LLP is delighted to welcome to the firm partners Justine Young Gottshall and Jamie Rubin. Gottshall and Rubin are former partners at Wildman, Harrold Allen & Dixon in Chicago. As...
View ArticleGoogle+ Pages Allow Linking, but Not Hosting Promotions
Google+ just opened itself up for businesses and now allows entities to set up company Google+ pages. With this launch, Google announced a number of policies dictating what page owners can and cannot...
View ArticleThe NAD’s First Take on Pinterest: Pinterest Content Subject to Testimonial...
In a recent decision, the National Advertising Division (“NAD”) found that consumer “pins” on the “virtual bulletin board” site, Pinterest.com (“Pinterest”), are subject to the FTC’s Guides Concerning...
View ArticleAdvertising About Charities and Charitable Causes: It’s the Details that Matter
“Our company will support the Charity.” “A percentage of proceeds go to cancer research.” “With every purchase, a donation goes to Charity.” Stating or implying that a purchase or other action by a...
View ArticleAre You Getting Shortchanged? The NAD Examines “Cash Back” Advertising Claims
In a recent case brought by Discover Financial Services LLC (Discover) against Chase Bank USA LLC (Chase), the National Advertising Division (NAD) recommended that Chase discontinue or modify certain...
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Trolls Attack! Another Reason “Template” Official Rules Aren’t Enough for...
Ben Stein contributed to this post. Earlier this week, Boston’s KISS FM canceled its “Taylor Swift’s Biggest Fan” contest after trolling users of the 4chan and Reddit online forums catapulted a...
View ArticleWhat’s Up with Up To Claims?
For years, the generally accepted principle at the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”), the Better Business Bureau (“BBB”) and the National Advertising Division (“NAD”) has been that an “Up To Claim”...
View ArticleNew York Attorney General Cracks Down on Falsified Online Reviews
Last week, New York’s Attorney General’s Office announced that it had entered into settlements with nineteen companies, totaling more than $350,000 in fines, based on those companies’ involvement in...
View ArticleNative Advertising: The Blurred Line Between Editorial and Sponsored Claims
The act of using editorial content for promotional and marketing purposes, or what has come to be known as “native advertising,” is a burgeoning and profitable area of advertising. And not...
View ArticleEven When the Connection is Obvious, Publishers Should Consider Disclosures...
Recently, a publisher’s article about its own branded products was caught in the headlights of a decision by the National Advertising Division (NAD). An article in Shape magazine discussed the health...
View ArticleCARU IS WATCHING YOUR…APPS
The Children’s Advertising Review Unit of the Council of Better Business Bureaus (CARU) routinely monitors advertising to children. Through those monitoring efforts, CARU brings challenges against...
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Right of Publicity Update: Watch What You Tweet.
Last month, actress Katherin Heigl sued pharmacy chain Duane Reade for, among other things, violating her right of publicity. (See our previous coverage on the right of publicity here and here.) The...
View ArticleAlert: The NAD Rejects Use of Aggregated Online Consumer Reviews As...
In a case of first impression, the National Advertising Division (NAD) recently issued a decision concerning substantiation for consumer preference claims that should put advertisers on alert. In,...
View Article“Like-Gated” Promotions No Longer Permissible on Facebook
Last week, Facebook, Inc. (“Facebook”) announced a major upcoming change, effective November 5, 2014, to its Platform Policies that will affect the vast majority of promotions run on the platform. The...
View ArticleAlcohol Ads In the Digisphere – New-ish Guides In Town
At the end of September, thirteen leading beer, wine and spirits producers published the Digital Guiding Principles (DGPs) as part of their global commitment to reducing harmful drinking. These are...
View ArticleIt’s Not Just For Kids – FTC Takes Issue with Search Terms and Testimonials
The FTC started 2015 by showing its continued attention to advertising concerning kids and testimonial issues, as well as an advertiser’s purchase of search terms. In a recent case brought against a...
View ArticleBYOB: Be Your Own Broadcaster (and Studio) –What to watch out for in content...
2017 is starting to look like the year of DIY content creation and distribution. Companies are becoming their own studios and broadcasters at a seemingly record pace. If your organization doesn’t...
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