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.
I am amazed by a front-business page New York Times story - Why Short Sellers Want to Crash The Tupperware Party -- reporting that investors are short selling positions in companies such as Avon Products, Herbalife, and Pre-Paid Legal because of pending Federal Trade Commission rulemaking on business opportunity programs. Wall Street is not only seeking to read tea leaves, but some investors are going so far as to try to influence the promulgation of the regulation in order to advance the value of their short positions.
Jane Pauley, the television news anchor has sued The New York Times and DeWitt Publishing, alleging she was misled to believe she was being interviewed for an article on mental health when she actually was being featured in a special advertising supplement.
Promotions are constantly embracing the latest technology and trends in an effort to capture the public's attention. Currently, Web 2.0 is shaping the Internet and is a driving force behind many promotions. Creating a "Web 2.0 Promotion" presents many new legal challenges that must be considered and carefully evaluated.
In a major boost to food nutrition and responsible marketing, Disney announced that it was moving to only permit its licensed properties (such as Mickey Mouse, Buzz Lightyear, and Ariel the Little Mermaid) to be utilized on food products that meet prescribed nutritional standards.
After previously obtaining a consent order with retail-drug store chain CVS regarding the availability of a free alternative method of entry in sweepstakes promotions, on October 16, 2006, the New York Attorney General announced that CVS had breached the order. In the breach challenge, CVS Corporation agreed to pay $152,000 in civil penalties.
There are a number of commonly held myths about copyright and its limitations. If you or your clients believe any of the following myths, you may be including unauthorized work within your Web site or other creative projects without intending to.
The Connecticut Attorney General announced that GEICO insurance company has said it will no longer run a false and misleading television advertisement in Connecticut that claims the company repairs cars in a few days or less.
New legislation, by Representative Jim Leach (Republican Iowa), was added to an unrelated bill on port security and passed by Congress.
Following a trial this past summer, an Illinois federal court recently ruled for the Federal Trade Commission in its case against the marketers of the Q-Ray ionized bracelet.
On November 1, 2006, the DMA will discontinue all mail and most web-based consumer registrations for Telephone Preference Service (TPS). Consumers will be redirected to the Federal Trade Commission's Do Not Call Registry instead. This was first reported in AdvertisingLawBlog on July 7, 2006.