The Advertising Law Blog provides commentary and news on developing legal issues in advertising, promotional marketing, Internet, and privacy law. This blog is sponsored by the Advertising, Marketing & Promotions group at Olshan. The practice is geared to servicing the needs of the advertising, promotional marketing, and digital industries with a commitment to providing personal, efficient and effective legal service.
The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced that it is seeking public comment on ways to improve its existing regulations for negative option marketing, namely, the need for amendments to its Rule Concerning the Use of Prenotification Negative Option Plans (the “Negative Option Rule” or “Rule”).
ESPN reported that the World Boxing Organization (WBO) ordered an immediate rematch for Olshan client Krzysztof Glowacki against current WBO cruiserweight (200-pound) champion, Mairis Briedis.
The National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus (“NAD”) recently recommended that Bayer Healthcare LLC (“Bayer” or the “advertiser”) discontinue particular comparative superiority claims for Aleve, including “Proven Better on Pain than Tylenol,” following a challenge by Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc., maker of Tylenol products. The decision shows the scrutiny NAD will give to broad and unqualified superior efficacy claims.
California’s onerous privacy regulations will soon be in effect. Unless exempted, businesses that collect personal data from residents of California need to make sure they are in compliance with the California Consumer Privacy Act, California Civil Code §§1798.100-1798.199 (“CCPA”) by January 1, 2020. If you have not yet done so, we urge you to take appropriate steps now to avoid potential liability for failure to comply with this new law.
Ariana Grande has filed a lawsuit against Forever 21 and its related beauty brand, Riley Rose (founded by the daughters of Forever 21 founder, Do Wan Chang), alleging that the fast fashion and beauty brands capitalized on the success of Ms. Grande’s Thank U, Next album by posting images of Ms. Grande on the brands’ social media accounts as well as images of a model bearing a striking resemblance to Ms. Grande.
Focusing on its use of warning letters to crack down on impermissible health claims, the FTC recently sent warning letters to three companies that sell a variety of CBD products, including those taking the form of “oils, tinctures, capsules, gummies, and creams.” In its Press Release announcing the issuance of the warning letters, the FTC noted that it had cautioned the companies against advertising that products, including those containing CBD, can “prevent, treat, or cure human disease” in the absence of “competent and reliable scientific evidence to support such claims.”
Decision Means That Issue of TCPA Standing Is Likely Headed To Supreme Court
On September 4, 2019, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced that YouTube and its parent company, Google, agreed to pay a record-breaking $170 million fine to settle claims by the FTC and New York Attorney General (“NYAG”) that YouTube violated children’s privacy laws.
As we have discussed previously, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) has consistently relied on Section 13(b) of the FTC Act (15 U.S.C. §53(b)) for authority to initiate and maintain federal court challenges against defendants it believes have violated the FTC Act. Section 13(b) states that when the FTC has “reason to believe” that an individual or corporate entity “is violating, or is about to violate” a law enforced by the FTC, it may bring suit in federal court “to enjoin such acts or practices.” Moreover, the statute states that “in proper cases, the Commission may seek, and after proper proof, the court may issue, a permanent injunction.”
In today’s global marketplace, it is more important than ever to make sure your brand is protected around the world. Failing to do so could prevent you from entering a key marketplace, or even worse, could allow an unscrupulous individual to create a business in another country that directly mimics your business. One of the first steps in protecting your brand is obtaining trademark protection in countries in which you do business or intend to do business. Unfortunately, this can be an expensive endeavor for brand owners as trademark protection is territorial and, with very few exceptions, must be handled on a country-by-country basis. Each country will have its own governmental filing fees, and the filings will generally need to be handled by an attorney who is licensed to practice in that country.