The Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees, 16 C.F.R. Part 464, is effective as of May 12, 2025. According to the FTC’s recent press release, the Rule “prohibits bait-and-switch pricing and other...more
My favorite blog post of the year—where I get to assess the best commercials, track the rise in ad costs, and challenge you to identify your favorite celebrity endorsement. This year, demand for ad space was “robust” with...more
2/10/2025
/ Advertising ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Celebrity Endorsements ,
Endorsements ,
Entertainment Industry ,
Marketing ,
Media ,
Popular ,
Sports ,
Super Bowl ,
Television ,
Television Broadcast Stations
Earlier this month, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it had finalized changes to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) Rule to set new requirements around the collection, use, and disclosure of...more
1/28/2025
/ Advertising ,
Consent ,
COPPA ,
Data Collection ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Retention ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Marketing ,
Opt-Outs ,
Personal Information ,
Privacy Laws ,
Safe Harbors
Yesterday the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a 65-page report detailing what it views as its accomplishments over the last four years. In a press release summarizing the report, the FTC touts the following...more
1/20/2025
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
Competition ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
COPPA ,
Data Privacy ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Excessive Fees ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Healthcare ,
Mergers ,
Right to Repair ,
Small Business
Earlier this month, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a final rule—dubbed the Junk Fees Rule—to address what it views as deceptive pricing practices that cause harm to consumers and that undercut other honest...more
1/2/2025
/ Advertising ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Event Tickets ,
Excessive Fees ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Fees ,
Final Rules ,
Goods or Services ,
Hidden Fees ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Marketing ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Short-Term Lease ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
Vacation Rentals
With Black Friday and Cyber Monday only recently behind us, and with Christmas and New Years’ closing in soon, the deals are endless and consumer spending is amplified. The goal for companies this time of year is not just to...more
The Copyright Claims Board (CCB) was established by the Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement Act passed by Congress on December 27, 2020 and began accepting claims in June 2022. It is a voluntary and virtual...more
Unless you live under a rock, your news feed has been dominated by the upcoming presidential election and opinions about the respective images and branding embodied by the candidates. What seems different this time is the...more
Late last year, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) announced that it had adopted a Final Rule designed “to modernize the rules governing use of the official FDIC signs and advertising statements, and to...more
Last month, the Ninth Circuit reeled back protections for digital media platforms on which scam ads are found. Calise v. Meta Platforms, Inc., 103 F.4th 732 (9th Cir. 2024) Section 230(c)(1) of the Communications Decency Act...more
8/1/2024
/ Breach of Contract ,
Communications Decency Act ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Facebook ,
False Advertising ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Metaverse ,
Online Platforms ,
Scams ,
Section 230 ,
Social Media ,
Third-Party
Data recently released by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) shows how likely it is for a typical communication from a well-known company to be a scam in disguise. Whether it’s a fabricated email, a security pop-up with a...more
The advent of generative-AI tools has brought challenging questions of accountability to the forefront, especially when those tools generate content that may infringe on someone’s copyright. Determining liability—whether it...more
A few weeks ago, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reached an agreement with Williams-Sonoma over a lawsuit alleging that it listed multiple products as being “Made in USA” that were made in China and other countries and...more
The National Advertising Division (NAD) issues decisions on a periodic basis involving advertising claims submitted to it for review. Although the full case decisions are not publicly available without a subscription, the...more
Earlier this month, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and the United States Department of Commerce issued guidance on the use of artificial intelligence tools when practicing before the USPTO. As...more
The National Advertising Division (NAD) of the Better Business Bureau (BBB) recently reminded advertisers that tout the benefits and health-related features of their products to be mindful of the Federal Trade Commission’s...more
Earlier this month, the National Advertising Division (NAD) of the Better Business Bureau (BBB) announced a recommendation that Planting Hope Brands, LLC discontinue use of the ® (registered trademark symbol) in advertising a...more
Earlier today, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it had voted to essentially ban all non-compete agreements in the United States. Specifically, the FTC issued a final proposed rule banning new non-competes...more
In February, a bill was introduced in the United States House of Representatives by Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) called the “Bolstering Intellectual Rights against Digital Infringement Enhancement Act.”...more
This week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) submitted a comment to the U.S. Copyright Office to advocate for renewed and expanded exemptions to the Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DCMA),...more
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has announced the retirement of its Electronic Patent Assignment System (EPAS) and Electronic Trademark Assignment System (ETAS) and the launch of its new Assignment...more
This past week, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced in a press release that it has banned the use of AI-generated voices in robocalls. Specifically, the FCC adopted a ruling that finds calls using...more
The U.S. Copyright Office has issued a final rule amending the procedures for the still-new “small claims court” proceedings before the Copyright Claims Board (CCB) established last year that we previously blogged...more
Intuit, Inc. certainly had a disparate week in the world of advertising, with the high of sponsoring the AFC and NFC championship games and the low of an order finding that it had engaged in deceptive advertising. Just a few...more
Last week, the New Jesey local restaurant — Gregory’s Restaurant & Bar in Somers Point — gave up its “Taco Tuesday” trademark in New Jersey, in favor of resolving a legal dispute with Taco Bell. This comes on the heels of...more