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Business Blog

6 tips for keeping your green claims clean

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A recent FTC law enforcement crackdown focused on allegedly deceptive biodegradability claims for plastics. Four of the cases settled and a fifth is heading to trial. Another action targeted green...
Business Blog

Made in USA? Avoiding a Yankee Doodle Don't

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There are lots of nifty phone accessories, bottle holders, tow straps, pet items, and lanyards out there. So a label that says the product is Made in the USA may help make the decision for some...
Business Blog

FTC's Jamster case: 5 tips for mobile marketers

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So people were taking a few minutes to play the free version of Angry Birds on their Android device. At some point between the Giant Slingshot and the Mighty Eagle, they got a "Virus Detected" warning...
Business Blog

Surely you Jesta: Jamster jammed for mobile cramming

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You thought Angry Birds get peeved at those annoying green pigs? That's nothing compared to consumers’ reaction when they found unauthorized charges “crammed” onto their cell phone bills for phony...
Business Blog

FTC to mattress companies: Don't pad your green claims

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If you or your clients make environmental marketing claims, don’t sleep on three actions the FTC just announced against companies that sell mattresses. What's more, the pleadings in one case offer...
Business Blog

Last resort

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Three FTC cases, 83 civil actions brought by 28 states, more than 184 defendants facing criminal charges in cases filed by federal and local prosecutors, and 25 actions brought by agencies in 10 other...
Business Blog

Calling all cards

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We’ve been saying it for years: “What the headline giveth, the footnote cannot taketh away.” The same holds true for the dense block of text, the hidden-away reverse side, the vague hyperlink, or any...
Business Blog

Screen regs and spam?

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Do you like them on the screen Of your mobile phone machine? I do not like text message spam. I do not like them, Sam I am. Fighting back against text message spam isn’t child’s play, and consumers...
Business Blog

Building your VOCabulary

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The FTC just accepted final settlements with two of the largest paint manufacturers in the country — Sherwin-Williams and PPG Architectural Finishes. The complaints charged that the companies made...
Business Blog

Bamboo snafu

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Bamboo: It’s not just for tiki huts anymore. Consumers are seeing more items, especially clothing and textiles, labeled or advertised as “bamboo.” But according to FTC lawsuits , Amazon.com, Leon Max...
Business Blog

FTC's settlement with Google: In brief

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Not too long ago, talking on the phone, listening to music, and playing games required three clunky pieces of equipment. Manage that wirelessly? Fuhgeddaboutit. But now we can do all that — and more —...
Business Blog

Sporting goods companies: Guard against deception

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Some sports fans spend Saturdays on the field. For the rest of us, raising a Big Foam Finger is exertion enough. But we’ve all read stories about the dangers that head injuries pose to participants in...
Business Blog

Painting the town green

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The biggest decision facing a DIYer in the paint store used to be whether Dusting of Snow or Wistful Beige was right for the dining room. But nowadays more businesses are making express claims about...
Business Blog

Private eyes: Lessons from the rent-to-own webcam cases

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The charges outlined in the FTC’s lawsuits against a software business and seven rent-to-own companies are surprising — and OK, some might say a little creepy. Software on rented computers gave the...