(Podcast) The Briefing: Influencer Fail – ALO Yoga & Influencers Named in $150M Class Action Lawsuit for FTC Violations
LEGAL ALERT | NAD Finds Kevin Hart’s Social Media Disclosures Insufficient in Monitoring Decisions
The Briefing: How “Knockoff” Furniture Landed Kim Kardashian in an IP Lawsuit
The Briefing: How “Knockoff” Furniture Landed Kim Kardashian in an IP Lawsuit (Podcast)
(Podcast) The Briefing: Beyond the Hashtag – FTC Revises Guidelines for Endorsement Use in Advertising
Podcast - The FTC Cracks Down on Celebrity Endorsers
Hsu Untied interview with Brian Anderson, Partner at Sheppard Mullin
Is the Grass Greener? Weighing the Risks and Rewards of Celebrity Branding in the Cannabis Industry – The 2022 Cannalaw Summit: Part 2
Is the Grass Greener? Weighing the Risks and Rewards of Celebrity Branding in the Cannabis Industry – The 2022 Cannalaw Summit: Part 1
A class action lawsuit has been filed against ALO Yoga and several influencers for failing to disclose that various social media campaigns were actually paid ads. Weintraub attorneys Scott Hervey and Tara Sattler break down...more
From world-famous celebrities to teens reviewing products on TikTok, influencers continue to shape consumer perceptions. Recent decisions from the National Advertising Division (NAD) have brought attention to the challenges...more
Kevin Hart may know how to land a punchline, but the National Advertising Division (“NAD”) recently reminded him that when it comes to influencer endorsements, the only thing that should be subtle is the humor—not the...more
And we’re back with more NAD drama! You may remember that earlier this year, we blogged about a case where the National Advertising Division (NAD) of the Better Business Bureau found that disclosures @Revolve and the...more
As part of its on-going monitoring of influencer campaigns, NAD recently launched an inquiry to assess whether influencers Brittany Mahomes and Lana Del Rey had adequately disclosed their relationship to Skims Body – a...more
Celebrity Endorsements - As companies continue to seek effective advertising strategies, celebrity endorsements remain a powerful tool, particularly in reaching broad and receptive audiences through social media platforms....more
If you have been following our blogs, it should be no surprise that the Attorneys General remain focused on combatting Organized Retail Crime (ORC) using available state and federal tools. The Attorneys General of...more
Under the FTC’s Endorsement Guides, influencers and celebrities have to disclose any material connection they have to the brands they promote “when a significant minority of the audience for an endorsement does not...more
As previously blogged about here, following notices of proposed rulemaking in 2022 and 2023, on August 22, 2024 the Federal Trade Commission finalized a rule that will impose monetary civil penalties false and misleading...more
On August 14, the FTC announced its much-anticipated final rule banning fake reviews and testimonials. The final rule prohibits the purchase, sale, and dissemination of fake reviews, incentivized reviews, and certain...more
Surprise, surprise, it turns out that the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) is serious about the misuse of endorsements and testimonials in advertising. In October 2021, the FTC sent out a Notice of Penalty Offenses to...more
While social media influencers were showing off pictures from the Amalfi Coast this summer, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) was finalizing its guidelines regarding the endorsements that paid for their vacations in Italy....more
Thank you for reading the September 2023 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter. This month, we discuss the significant revisions to the FTC's guidelines for endorsements and examine the benefits of design...more
“Influencer marketing” generally involves collaborating with social media influencers to promote products or services in exchange for compensation, freebies, or other benefits. Contrary to popular belief, social media...more
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (“FTC” or “the Commission”) maintains Guides Concerning Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising to “set forth the general principles that the Commission will use in evaluating...more
The Federal Trade Commission has proposed a new rule that would make it illegal to post fake reviews and testimonials, suppress negative reviews, or pay for positive reviews....more
This week the FTC announced that it finalized its revisions to the Endorsement Guides, which give advertisers guidance on ensuring that their use of endorsements or testimonials complies with the FTC Act. At the same time,...more
Online cryptocurrency promotion—and promotion on social media in particular—has garnered national media attention in recent months. First, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that it had entered into a...more
The SEC spread its reach to Hollywood this month – on October 3, 2022, the SEC announced charges against Kim Kardashian for her social media promotions of EMAX, a digital token issued by EthereumMax. The SEC found that...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is proposing to update its Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising to address new marketing methods introduced since the Guides were last updated in 2009....more
Cryptocurrency, social media, and celebrity or influencer endorsements have all been top of mind recently, including for advertisers. A newly filed lawsuit is asking a federal court to consider the intersection of these...more
A class action lawsuit filed against Kim Kardashian, Floyd Mayweather, and former professional basketball player Paul Pierce earlier this month underscores the need for celebrity endorsers to take care when they approach any...more
A well-known German influencer has to mark her posts on Instagram as advertising if she uses so-called “tap tags” to link her posts with the Instagram profiles of other brands. This was recently decided by the Higher District...more
Social media influencers have become the latest source of health information for many. This is especially true right now, amidst the ongoing and rapidly evolving COVID-19 pandemic....more