This summer the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has turned up the heat on two companies that provide extended car repair coverage, CarShield and American Auto Shields, for deceptive and misleading advertising and telemarketing...more
8/6/2024
/ Advertising ,
Celebrity Endorsements ,
Consumer Contracts ,
Consumer Insurance Products ,
Endorsements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Advertising ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Influencers ,
Service Contracts ,
Social Media ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
This week, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a stay of the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) price transparency and “junk fee” rule (the Rule or the Final Rule). The ruling effectively blocks the DOT from enforcing...more
8/1/2024
/ Air Carriers ,
Airlines ,
Chevron Deference ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Fees ,
Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo ,
New Rules ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Price Transparency ,
Stays ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
Retailers today have grown increasingly sophisticated in how they collect and use sales data and price their merchandise to optimize sales, revenue, and profits, using that information in conjunction with digital marketing...more
7/11/2024
/ Advertising ,
Data Collection ,
Data Use Policies ,
Marketing ,
Price Discrimination ,
Price Optimization ,
Pricing ,
Retailers ,
Sales Promotions ,
Sellers ,
Webinars
On May 20, Minnesota Gov. Tim Waltz signed the state’s so-called junk fee bill into law. The law, similar to a proposed Federal Trade Commission rule and laws in other states, requires businesses to include all mandatory fees...more
In a pair of Notices of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture this week, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has proposed a collective $8 million in fines against telecommunications company Lingo Telecom and political...more
6/3/2024
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Deep Fake ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FCC ,
Machine Learning ,
Memorandum of Understanding ,
Primary Elections ,
Robocalling ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Spoofing ,
State Attorneys General ,
Telecommunications
Late last week, the California attorney general released Frequently Asked Questions regarding California’s “Honest Pricing Law” or “Hidden Fees Statute,” which will take effect July 1, 2024. The law is anticipated to have a...more
Early this week, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced it had fined the largest U.S. wireless carriers for sharing access to customers’ geolocation information without consent and without taking reasonable...more
5/2/2024
/ Communications Act of 1934 ,
Consent ,
Customer Proprietary Network Information (CPNI) ,
Data-Sharing ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FCC ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Forfeiture ,
Geolocation ,
Personal Data ,
Prior Express Consent ,
Statutory Authority ,
Telecommunications ,
Wireless Industry
The Rule-A-Palooza continues at the FTC. On March 7, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a Final Rule that updates the recordkeeping requirements under the Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR). The Final Rule requires...more
On January 29, 2024, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. introduced the Do Not Disturb Act, a bill that would amend the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and “fix” the Supreme Court’s ruling in Duguid that limited the...more
It’s that time of year again—Ad Law Symposium is back!
Please join us in DC for this highly anticipated event focused on providing you with the information you need to promote your brand with confidence. Combining the...more
2/22/2024
/ Advertising ,
Advertising Substantiation ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Automatic Renewals ,
Best Practices ,
Defense Strategies ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Events ,
False Advertising ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Green Marketing ,
Lanham Act ,
Legal Ethics ,
Marketing ,
Pricing ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Social Media ,
State Privacy Laws ,
Telemarketing ,
Text Messages
Tractor maker Kubota North America Corporation will pay a $2 million civil penalty for falsely labeling its replacement parts as “Made in USA,” the largest civil penalty ever in a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Made in USA...more
1/31/2024
/ Advertising ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Country of Origin ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Advertising ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Labeling ,
Made in the USA ,
Manufacturers ,
Product Labels
Stay informed about two recent FTC actions on price transparency, the “CARS” and “Unfair or Deceptive Fees” Rules, as well as similar state laws. By understanding regulators’ expectations regarding fee disclosure, add-on...more
Telemarketers celebrating the new year should be aware of Maryland’s new telemarketing law, Stop the Spam Calls Act, which took effect January 1, 2024. Like the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), Maryland now...more
This week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a Proposed Stipulated Order with lead generator Response Tree LLC and its president, resolving allegations that the company violated the Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR)...more
1/9/2024
/ Consent ,
Do Not Call List ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FCC ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Lead Generators ,
Misrepresentation ,
Robocalling ,
Settlement ,
Telemarketing ,
Telemarketing Sales Rule
Manufacturers need to be careful in the New Year to start complying with new laws in New York and California expanding consumers’ right to repair certain products. California joined the right-to-repair movement with the...more
On December 20, 2023, New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a Petition in state court alleging Sirius XM Radio’s autorenewal practices violated New York’s autorenewal law. In the lawsuit, New York alleges that Sirius...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) continues to focus its attention on “Made in the USA” claims, and this time the agency has fixed its gaze on a Florida-based company and its principal, whose claims regarding patriotic and...more
With the holiday shopping season in full swing, companies will soon begin the annual fight for every consumer dollar. But before companies can make the sale, they will face an even more daunting task: grabbing customer...more
Over the past few decades, as demand for wireless spectrum has grown, many presidential administrations have put out various plans for handling spectrum policy. On November 13, 2023, the Biden administration released its...more
11/17/2023
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Biden Administration ,
Broadband ,
Executive Orders ,
Machine Learning ,
NTIA ,
Research and Development ,
Spectrum ,
Telecommunications ,
Wireless Industry ,
Wireless Technology
Large banks and credit unions must provide certain information to customers free of charge, such as account balances, transaction history, and fees, according to an advisory opinion issued by the Consumer Financial Protection...more
10/17/2023
/ Advisory Opinions ,
Banks ,
Biden Administration ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Credit Unions ,
Excessive Fees ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Fees ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Hidden Fees ,
Supervisory Highlights
This week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a Proposed Rule, “Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees.” The Proposed Rule comes after the FTC solicited comments through its Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in...more
10/12/2023
/ Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) ,
Brick-and-Mortar Stores ,
Comment Period ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
E-Commerce ,
Fees ,
Goods or Services ,
Governor Newsom ,
New Legislation ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment
Last week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) won a large battle in its extended war with Intuit, the makers of TurboTax tax-preparation software. An administrative law judge (ALJ) issued a lengthy initial decision, ruling...more
Last week, the Federal Communication Commission’s (FCC) issued a Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture proposing a $20 million forfeiture, essentially a fine, against two telecommunications service providers for failing...more
As we recently previewed, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) published its Proposed Rule that would codify its updated guidance on the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). The TCPA regulates calls and text...more
7/12/2023
/ ATDS ,
Automated Systems ,
Comment Period ,
Compliance ,
Consent ,
FCC ,
Proposed Rules ,
Revocation ,
TCPA ,
Telecommunications ,
Text Messages ,
Wireless Devices
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking intending to strengthen consumers’ ability to revoke consent to receive both robocalls and robotexts, in addition to strengthening...more