Category: Federal Trade Commission
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Court Orders $1.9 Million in Restitution for False Advertising of Diet Product
A federal court in Connecticut has ordered the payment of $1.9 million in equitable restitution to consumers who purchased Chinese Diet Tea and Bio-Slim Patch in 2003-2004. FTC v. Bronson Partners, LLC, No. 04-1866 (D. Conn., decided December 4, 2009). The court determined in 2008 that the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC’s) claims of false advertising…
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FTC Forum to Address Food Marketing to Children
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced a December 15, 2009, public forum titled “Sizing Up Food Marketing and Childhood Obesity,” which will include panels of industry representatives, federal regulators, consumer groups, scientific researchers, and legal scholars. The forum will address (i) the progress of self-regulatory initiatives, particularly the food and entertainment industries’ responses to…
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PETA Renews FTC Complaint Against California Milk Advisory Board
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has filed a new complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) claiming that the California Milk Advisory Board “is deliberately misleading consumers by advertising in its sales-promotion campaigns that cows on California dairy farms live in ‘comfort,’ are ‘very well cared for,’ and are ‘happy.’” According to…
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FTC Applies Guidelines on Product Endorsements and Testimonials to Social Media
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has updated its guidelines on product endorsements and testimonials to include those who use social media, such as blogs, Facebook® and Twitter®, to promote products in exchange for payment or free products. The guidelines, effective December 1, 2009, could result in penalties of $11,000 if violated and will require disclosures…
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FTC Plans Study Aimed at Food Marketing to Children, Adolescents
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) plans to conduct a study of food marketing to children and adolescents for a follow-up report to its 2008 study titled “Marketing Food to Children and Adolescents: A Review of Industry Expenditures, Activities, and Self-Regulation.” FTC seeks public comments by November 23, 2009, on proposed information requests to approximately 45…
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Proposed Application of Endorsement Guidelines to Blogging Raises Concerns
While the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) considers comments submitted by stakeholders to its proposed advertising endorsement guideline amendments, industry and blogging interests have reportedly expressed concerns about their ambiguity and suggested that voluntary ethical standards would best police the practice of “social media marketing.” The FTC’s Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising,…
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FTC Approves Final Consent Order in Whole Foods Litigation
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced its approval of a final consent order in its challenge to the merger of Whole Foods Market, Inc. and Wild Oats Markets, Inc. Under the agreement, Whole Foods will sell 32 of its supermarkets and give up unrestricted rights to the “Wild Oats” brand. When the agreement was announced…
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FTC Settles Charges over False-Advertising Claims for Cereal
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced that Kellogg Co. agreed to settle false-advertising charges involving Frosted Mini-Wheats® advertisements that claimed the product was “clinically shown to improve kids’ attentiveness by nearly 20 percent.” According to FTC, the clinical study on which the ads were based showed that “only about half the children who ate…