Instagram Macher Facing Wire Fraud Charges Over Bitcoin - “Jay Mazini” was raking in the virtual currency but didn’t bother paying for it, Feds say …Or Lie Tryin’ - A famous playwright once noted that if you tell an audience...more
4/12/2021
/ Advertising ,
Bitcoin ,
Cannabidiol (CBD) oil ,
E-Commerce ,
FDA Warning Letters ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Food Labeling ,
GMO ,
Marketing ,
Online Marketplace ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Reimbursements ,
Wire Fraud
DraftKings Settles Class Action Lawsuit for $8 Million - Settlement is a hybrid payment whose lion’s share is in-game currency - Two Fair Households - It wasn’t too long ago that DraftKings and FanDuel, the biggest names in...more
FTC Shines Light Inside ‘Dark Patterns’ - Move over cookies, fingerprinting, ad trackers—there’s an old species of internet chicanery in town - Everything Old … It’s hard to find a nongovernmental clearing house filled with...more
3/12/2021
/ Advertising ,
Arbitration ,
Class Action ,
False Advertising ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
In-Game Purchases ,
Internet Streaming ,
Loot Boxes ,
Marketing ,
Settlement ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
Websites
Sean Combs Opens New Front in War Against GBG Sean John - Accuses majority holder of using election-related trademarks to sell goods - Puffy Prologue - The lawsuit between Sean John Combs (AKA Puff Daddy, AKA P. Diddy, AKA...more
3/8/2021
/ Advertising ,
Cannabidiol (CBD) oil ,
Class Action ,
Dietary Supplements ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Genericide ,
Marketing ,
Name and Likeness ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademarks ,
USPTO
Google Bests Consumer Class Action with Section 230 Defense - But district court leaves door open for an amended complaint - Four Americans = 12 Opinions - The tsouris invoked by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act...more
2/26/2021
/ Advertising ,
Class Action ,
Communications Decency Act ,
Farm Animals ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Google ,
In-Game Purchases ,
Mobile Apps ,
Online Platforms ,
Section 230 ,
Video Games
Product Guides Don’t Protect Speech - Ninth Circuit overturns First Amendment dismissal of hidden endorsement suit - First, Do No Harm - NutriSearch, publisher of the “NutriSearch Comparative Guide to Nutritional...more
Mars Mired in Milk Chocolate Melee - Yet another suit is hawkish over Dove Bar packaging claims - Strike Two? Here’s a follow-up to the recent battle between Mars Wrigley Confectionery and Mohammed Garadi. If you recall — and...more
Candymaker Tries to Fend Off Vanilla Class Action- Plaintiff argues that consumer taste justifies painful legal extraction - Bean Stalkers - Mars Wrigley Confectionery—we’ll just call them Mars, the familiar corporate...more
Last week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against Procter & Gamble to enjoin the consumer goods company from acquiring New York-based...more
Major Gaming Company Sued for Making Games Too Challenging - Loot Boxes plus in-game skill adjustments perpetuate addictive behavior? Don’t Hate the Playa - When does a pastime become an addiction?...more
FTC Tries to Clean Out 25 Fake Disinfectant Websites - But all information about scheme masterminds has been wiped away - Less Is More - There are elaborate schemes out there – boy, have we covered them. Misdirection, shadowy...more
11/19/2020
/ Advertising ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
False Advertising ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Fraud ,
Instagram ,
MLM Industry ,
NAD ,
Photographs ,
Scams ,
Social Media
Eleventh Circuit Pries Apart Sticky Trade Dress Decision - Is Gorilla Glue throwing a monkey fit after J-B Weld’s loss is torn apart? Opposites Attract - If you’re an average, buy-it-when-you-need-it glue consumer, you’re...more
“The Dog Ate My Plush Toy” Doesn’t Fly in Orca Case - Sea World prevails in bench trial when plaintiff fails to produce stuffed toy - Whale of a… Okay, okay, it’s a class action involving Sea World’s former orca shows—you...more
Supremes Deny Energy Drink Company’s First Amendment Petition - 5-Hour Energy drink maker asks to pour unsubstantiated claims down the drain - Free Speech Spotting - Not too long ago, we covered a dustup between a state...more
Puffy Class Action Deflated by $1.9 Million Settlement - Mass-producer of tandoori supermarket breads won’t change packaging (much) - Folklore Fusion - Friend v. FGF Brands (USA), Inc. is a modern-day, South-Asian themed take...more
10/20/2020
/ Advertising ,
Breweries ,
CARES Act ,
Class Action ,
Competition ,
False Advertising ,
Food Labeling ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Lenders ,
Marketing ,
Misbranding ,
NAD ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Product Packaging
Just the Carefully Worded, Interminable Facts, Ma’am - FDA widens dragnet on COVID-19 drug claims - DC ‘COVID-dential’ - Let’s repeat it again in case anyone out there doesn’t know already: “Currently there are no...more
First Amendment Rescues Butter Marketing from Regulation’s Hot, Hot Knife - Miyoko’s Kitchen can keep buttering up consumers, but must let the hormones go - Precious?...more
Hemp and CBD Supplements: Free at Last? Bipartisan sponsors introduce House bill to clear marketing haze - It’s a Mouthful - Hemp-derived and CBD product manufacturers are feeling hopeful....more
Plaintiff: Salmon Farmer’s All-Natural Claims Are, You Know, Fishy - Consumer expectations front and center in new class action against Ducktrap Salmon - Wide Net - According to its own account, Mowi, a Norwegian fish-farming...more
Consumers Sue Mobile App Maker Over Loot Boxes - Supercell singled out for creating a gambling space for youngsters - Too Old for This - We need a minute. Just a minute. Our heads are throbbing. We just got through looking at...more
8/31/2020
/ Advertising ,
Class Action ,
Dietary Supplements ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Labeling ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Gambling ,
Games ,
In-Game Purchases ,
Loot Boxes ,
Marketing ,
Mobile Apps ,
Scams
The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), a leading advertising industry organization, has launched a CCPA Benchmark Survey to assess how companies across the digital advertising ecosystem are approaching CCPA compliance. The...more
8/28/2020
/ Advertising ,
Benchmarking ,
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Compliance ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
Cookies ,
Corporate Branding ,
Interactive Advertising Bureau ,
Mobile Apps ,
Publishers ,
Request For Information ,
Risk Management ,
Surveys ,
Targeted Digital Advertising ,
Web Tracking
Finally, CCPA Regs Become Final – but Wait, There's More…or Less… On Aug. 14, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced approval by the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) of final regulations (Regs) under the...more
8/26/2020
/ Advertising ,
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Class Action ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
False Advertising ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Information Governance ,
Office of Administrative Law ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Scams ,
Social Media ,
Twitter
I’m Counting, and I Can’t Add Up! Is medical alert systems manufacturer Life Alert fudging some deadly serious numbers? League of Legends - “I’ve fallen, and I can’t get up!” The genius who cooked up this line belongs in the...more
Alleged COVID-19 Treatment Claims Land Doc in Hot Water - CSPI and friends send letters to FTC, FDA about dangerous ‘coronadvice’ - Abbondanza! - You have to hand it to Joseph Mercola. He went all in....more
Bumble Settles over Multistate Dating Lawsuit - Company allegedly renewed services without consent - All the Young Dudes - For a while there, online dating was beginning to look IRLish. ...more