News

Advocacy Groups Ask FTC to Investigate Six Brands' Kid Sites

According to Adweek, the Center for Digital Democracy and 13 other advocacy groups focused on children's issues filed several complaints with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on August 22 asking the government regulator to investigate six child-targeted websites. The groups are concerned that marketers may have violated children's online privacy laws by asking young visitors participating in games and activities related to the site's brand to "tell a friend" or "refer a friend" to the site.

Sites mentioned in the complaints are McDonald's HappyMeal.com; General Mills' ReesesPuff.com and TrixWorld.com; Doctor's Associates' SubwayKids.com; Viacom's Nick.com; and Turner Broadcasting's CartoonNetwork.com.

The advocacy groups charge that the "tell a friend" campaigns circumvent the requirements in the FTC's Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) rules that require operators of a website directed to children under 13 not to collect personal information from children without parental permission.

Click here to read Adweek's coverage of the complaints.

Click here to read the Center for Digital Democracy's press release and complaints to the FTC.

Mouthguard Marketer Settles Concussion Reduction Claims Case with FTC

On August 16, the FTC announced a settlement with Brain-Pad, Inc. which prohibits the company and its president, Joseph Manzo, from misrepresenting the health benefits of any mouthguard or other athletic equipment intended to protect against brain injuries. 

According to the FTC's press release, Brain-Pad and Manzo made unsubstantiated claims about the company's mouthguards such as "creates new brain safety space," "reduces risk of concussions from lower jaw impacts" and "reduces risk of concussions" in internet and print advertisements. In addition, the company's advertisements claimed that the mounthguards' ability to reduce the risk of concussion was "clinically proven."

"Mouthguards can help to shield a person's teeth from being injured, and some can reduce impact to the lower jaw," said David Vladeck, Director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection in the press release. "But it's a big leap to say these devices can also reduce the risk of concussions. The scientific evidence to make that claim just isn't adequate."

The FTC cited the case as one of the Commission's many recent investigations and settlements intended to combat overhyped health and fitness claims.

Click here to read the FTC's press release and access a copy of the settlement agreement.

Analysis

Anti-Counterfeiting Best Practices for the Toy and Game Industry (and Others)

The manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP) value of the counterfeit toys and electronic games seized by customs and border patrol agents in 2011 alone was $27 million, write Venable attorneys Justin E. Pierce and Meaghan Hemmings Kent in a recent article published by the Toy Industry Association. And that number accounts only for what was seized. 

Counterfeiting, Pierce and Kent say, is an unfortunate reality of having a commercially successful toy or game in today's marketplace. In addition to eating into marketers' profits, infringing on their rights and diluting their brand, counterfeiters also expose marketers to significant liability.

In the article, Pierce and Kent provide perspective on the counterfeiting problem and outline practical strategies that marketers of toys and games -- or any other consumer product for that matter -- can employ to help deter, identify and take action against counterfeiters attempting to compromise their brands.

Click here to read the article by Pierce and Kent.

Edited by Jeffrey D. Knowles and Gary D. Hailey Roger Colaizzi and Gregory J. Sater

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.