The Bottom Line Children and teens are spending a considerable amount of time in immersive environments, where advertising content can be difficult to distinguish from entertainment, educational or other content.Following a wave of recent Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) Continue Reading
The Deep Dive: FTC Updates Endorsement Guides for Modern Marketing and Advertising
The Bottom Line The FTC has revised its Endorsement Guides to take into account how businesses reach modern consumers in the digital era. Brands, agencies and influencers should revisit their standard policies and practices now to ensure they comply with the FTC’s new guidance.Many commonly used Continue Reading
A Prime Example of Dark Patterns? FTC Sues Amazon for Use of “Dark Patterns” in Prime Enrollment
The Bottom Line: The FTC’s lawsuit is likely to be the first of many alleging the use of “dark patterns” in e-commerce and is instructive as to the specific types of practices the FTC will find deceptive in the future.Against the backdrop of the FTC’s revisions to the Negative Option Rule, the Continue Reading
The Warnings Were Real: FTC Takes Action Against Ed Tech Company for COPPA Violation
The Bottom Line The legal responsibility for complying with COPPA remains with the ed tech provider — not schools, students or parents.Ed tech providers may rely on schools to authorize data collection in lieu of parental consent only if the information collected from children is used solely for Continue Reading
Talking Trash: Takeaways from FTC Workshop on Recyclable Claims
The Bottom Line The FTC is continuing its review of the Green Guides and companies should stay tuned for further updates.The FTC is accepting public comments on "recyclable" claims through June 13, 2023. The FTC is in the process of reviewing – and potentially revising – its Guides for the Continue Reading
FTC Orders The Bountiful Company to Pay $600,000 in Fines in First Case Challenging “Review Hijacking”
The Bottom Line Review hijacking can result in a misperception that consumers have reviewed and endorsed products that they have not actually used. Brands should be mindful when creating relationships between products or integrating new products or formulations onto webpages for existing Continue Reading
Can You Back That Claim Up? FTC Sends Nearly 700 Notices About Substantiating Product Claims
The Bottom Line As the FTC appears focused on seeking monetary penalties in response to product claims, brands and marketers should ensure that their practices are lawful.While a response to a Notice of Penalty Offenses is not required by the FTC, any entity receiving such notice should conduct a Continue Reading
From Record Clubs to Retail Subscriptions: FTC Proposes Significant Expansion of Negative Option Rule
The Bottom Line The FTC is seeking public comment on sweeping proposed revisions to the Negative Option Rule that could significantly update the rule to govern negative option offers in all forms of media.The FTC is hyper-focused on the subscription economy. E-commerce sellers, telemarketers and Continue Reading
FTC Warns Marketers on AI Claims in Advertising
The Bottom Line The FTC is paying close attention to artificial intelligence, its work product and any false or unsubstantiated claims stemming from it.Marketers must have adequate support for any claims they make about their AI products or they could face FTC scrutiny. As anticipated in our Continue Reading
The FTC Enforces its First Fine Under the Health Breach Notification Rule
The Bottom Line The FTC is showing that it intends to be more active regarding the misuse and exploitation of sensitive personal information. Companies that use health information should take precautions to protect consumer data and provide proper disclosures when sharing health information with Continue Reading