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Spotting the signs of a crampage: Lessons from the FTC’s proposed settlement with T-Mobile

Lesley Fair
Flashes at a railroad crossing. That chirp from a smoke detector. The “check engine” light on the dashboard. Those are just a few warnings that merit your attention. The FTC’s proposed settlement with T-Mobile – which imposes at least $90 million in financial remedies, including full consumer refunds – highlights another warning that businesses should heed: clear indications that consumers are getting billed without consent. The FTC sued T-Mobile...

FTC Milestones: Cold War chills report on International Petroleum Cartel

Kelly Signs, Bureau of Competition
The FTC’s status as an independent agency, secured in an early constitutional challenge to the FTC Act, was tested during the early years of the Cold War when the agency’s international work provoked a national security debate at the highest levels. Students of constitutional history may recall that the Supreme Court in Humphrey’s Executor v. United States, 295 U.S. 602 (1935), determined that the President does not have the authority to fire...

Putting the brakes on deceptive auto ads

Lesley Fair
When it comes to cars, sometimes good things come in twos: double wishbone suspension, dual overhead cams, twin torsion bars, and classic 2 + 2 muscle cars. What’s not on that list? Two lawsuits charging two auto dealers with deceptive advertising in violation of two FTC orders. In 2012, the FTC settled separate administrative cases against Billion Auto and Ramey Motors, alleging that the companies had misrepresented key financing terms in the...

Information exchange: be reasonable

Michael Bloom, Bureau of Competition
Each day companies seek out market information to gain insights on how to compete more effectively. When companies compete more effectively, that can be good for consumers, making more and better goods and services available to them at lower prices. But when competing companies seek market intelligence by exchanging price or other commercially sensitive information, that may facilitate collusion or otherwise harm competition and consumers in...

FTC Milestones: Weighing in on weight loss cases

Lesley Fair, Bureau of Consumer Protection
“No need to be fat. No need to diet or go through unpleasant exercise.” “Your thin friends can tell you the right way to fight fat.” “Men avoided me. I was too fat.” Sounds like a lot of the bogus diet promotions the FTC has gone to court to shut down. But there are two things different about this false advertising case. First, it went to the Supreme Court. And second, the year was 1931. For the first two decades of the FTC’s existence, there was...

All about the tout: Takeaway tips from the FTC’s Sony-Deutsch settlements

Lesley Fair
Looking for PlayStation tips and tricks? We can’t tell you how ISA Vekta Special Forces Team Alpha can navigate the Akmir Snowdrift in Killzone 3. But for businesses – including ad agencies and PR firms – interested in keeping their practices out of the Pyrrhus Crater, the FTC’s proposed settlements with Sony Computer Entertainment America and ad agency Deutsch LA offer practical guidance. The lawsuits charge that the companies overhyped the...

Game over: FTC challenges Sony’s claims for PlayStation Vita and tweets by Deutsch LA

Lesley Fair
According to the ads, “It’s a problem as old as gaming itself. Stay home and just keep playing, or get to work on time so your coffee breath boss doesn’t ride you like a rented scooter.” For gamers who face that dilemma, Sony Computer Entertainment America marketed its PlayStation Vita as the solution. But according to a settlement announced by the FTC, Sony didn’t deliver on its promises. The lawsuit also charged that Sony’s ad agency, Deutsch...

Company to pay $22 million for offering "free" credit scores that turned out to be not so free

Lesley Fair
We’ve brought law enforcement actions – dozens of ‘em. We’ve held workshops, issued reports, and sent warning letters. If it takes sky writing, tap dancing, and a float in a Thanksgiving Day parade, we’ll do that, too. But here’s what’s not going to happen. The FTC is not giving up until businesses get the message that: 1) Free means free; and 2) Key terms and conditions have to be clearly and conspicuously disclosed. A $22 million settlement...

FTC Milestones: Making the case for reform of public utility holding company laws

Kelly Signs, Bureau of Competition
From its earliest days, the Commission has used its authority under Section 6 of the FTC Act to gain a deep understanding of competitive conditions in a variety of industries. In its first two decades alone, the FTC produced more than 100 studies or responses to general inquiries, most often pursuant to Congressional resolutions or Presidential orders. Information and insight gained in these inquiries generated policy recommendations to tackle...

The FTC's TRUSTe case: When seals help seal the deal

Lesley Fair
People who aren’t into marketing jargon might not know a “credence claim” from a Creedence Clearwater Revival, but experts tell us it’s a representation about a product that consumers aren’t in a position to evaluate for themselves. One example is what websites say about their privacy practices. Because consumers can’t test the accuracy of those claims, they often rely on third-party seals trusted for their expertise and independence. The FTC...
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