February 27, 1998

• For Your Information: FEBRUARY 27, 1998
  Announced Actions for February 27, 1998
  The consent agreement with Sears, Roebuck and Co., Hoffman Estates, Illinois, settles FTC charges that Sears made certain misrepresentations in inducing consumers who filed for bankruptcy protection to agree to reaffirm their Sears credit account debts.

February 26, 1998

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 26, 1998
  FTC Staff To Survey Consumer Privacy on the Internet
  Agency to Review 1,200 Web Sites
  for Privacy Policy Disclosures

February 25, 1998

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 25, 1998
  RiteAid To Pay $900,000 in Civil Penalties for Failure To Divest Three Drug Stores in Maine and New Hampshire as Required under FTC Agreement
  Rite Aid Corporation has agreed to pay $900,000 in civil penalties for failing to divest three drug stores in Maine and New Hampshire as required by a 1994 order issued by the Federal Trade Commission.
• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 25, 1998
  FTC "Project Scofflaw" Defendant Sentenced: Ronald Dante Receives 67-month Prison Term
  On February 23, 1998, U.S. District Judge Audrey B. Collins in Los Angeles, California, sentenced Ronald Dante, a defendant in a case stemming from the Federal Trade Commission's "Project Scofflaw," to 67 months in jail and three years supervised release.
• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 25, 1998
  FTC Settlement Would Preserve Competition in U.S. Market for Heart-Attack Treatments and Drug Abuse Testing Reagents
  Commission-Approved Buyer Named for the Cardiac Thrombolytic Agent Assets to be Divested Under Agreement

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 25, 1998
  Stone Container Settles FTC Charges
  Agency Alleges Industry-Wide Invitation To Raise Prices
• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 25, 1998
  FTC Announces Results of Compliance Testing of Over 300 Funeral Homes
  During the second year of the Funeral Rule Offenders Program (FROP), the FTC and state Attorneys General have test-shopped over 300 funeral homes nationwide and found that over 85 percent of the homes are substantially complying with the FTC's Funeral Rule.

February 24, 1998

• For Your Information: FEBRUARY 24, 1998
  Announced Action(s) for February 24, 1998
  The FTC’s consent order with The Dow Chemical Company, based in Midland, Michigan, allows it to complete its $500 million tender offer for Sentrachem Limited, a South African chemical company that operates in the United States through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Hampshire Chemical Company.

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 24, 1998
  Don't Get Taken for a Ride over Spring Break: FTC
  Students planning vacation getaways over Spring Break could be taken for a ride if they aren't careful consumers, according to the Federal Trade Commission. A new FTC Fact Sheet, "Avoid A Spring Break Bust," warns that flights for many spring break trips are by public charters, which have different rules than commercial flights.

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 24, 1998
  Lawyers Title Corporation Agrees To Divest 12 "Title Plants" To Settle FTC Charges that Merger Would Reduce Competition
  The Federal Trade Commission today announced that it was publishing for public comment a proposed consent order with Lawyers Title Corporation (LTC) that would require the company to divest title plants in 11 localities in three states and in the District of Columbia.
• For Your Information: FEBRUARY 24, 1998
  Joint Campaign To Educate Consumers about Investing and Saving
  The Federal Trade Commission will join the Securities and Exchange Commission, the North American Securities Administrators Association and a broad alliance of public and private organizations including government, industry associations and consumer organizations to launch a campaign to educate consumers about investing and saving.

February 23, 1998

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 23, 1998
  Defendant in Telemarketing "Recovery Room" Scheme Agrees To Settle Charges
  Rena Warden, a defendant in the Federal Trade Commission's lawsuit against Fraudulent Action Network, Inc. (FANS) of Las Vegas, Nevada, has agreed to settle charges stemming from her role in the alleged scheme.

February 20, 1998

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 20, 1998
  "OPERATION MONEY PIT" Targets Fraudulent Business Opportunity Schemes
  FTC, Regional Law Enforcement Officials Announce 14 Cases

February 19, 1998

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 19, 1998
  Las Vegas Filmmaking Telemarketer in FTC Investment Fraud Case Permanently Banned From Engaging in Telemarketing Activities
  Rosario "Ray" Filosi, one of the defendants named by the Federal Trade Commission in its "Project Field of Schemes" investment fraud cases, is permanently banned from engaging in, or assisting others, in telemarketing activities.

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 19, 1998
  FTC Obtains Preliminary Injuction Against Chicago-Area Defendants Charged with Operating Postal Jobs Scam
  A U.S. District Court judge has found that the Federal Trade Commission has "shown a likelihood of proving" that four corporations, with offices in Merrillville and Crown Point, Indiana (near Chicago), through classified ads and telephone pitches, misled consumers by deceptively offering employment with the U.S. Postal Service.
• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 19, 1998
  FTC Alleges a Second Company Made False and Deceptive Claims for Eye Care Treatment
  Non-Surgical Procedure Does Not Correct Bad Vision
• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 19, 1998
  Colorado Physician Group To Settle FTC Charges that They Conspired To Raise Prices and Limit Choice for Consumers
  A western Colorado physicians' organization -- which comprises at least 85 percent of the doctors in private practice in Mesa County -- has agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it fixed prices and prevented or deterred entry into the county by third-party payers.

February 18, 1998

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 18, 1998
  FTC Restructures Electric/Coal Combination To Ensure that Consumers Reap Low Prices from Electricity Deregulation
  The Federal Trade Commission today announced that it will publish for public comment a proposed consent order with PacifiCorp that would settle FTC charges that the company's $10.7 billion acquisition of The Energy Group PLC (TEG) would potentially lead to increases in wholesale and retail electricity prices in the United States.

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 18, 1998
  Self-Regulation and Antitrust:
  FTC Chairman Lays Out How Self-Regulatory Efforts Can Avoid Antitrust Challenge

February 13, 1998

• For Your Information: FEBRUARY 13, 1998
  Announced Action for February 13, 1998
  Schnuck Markets, Inc. of St. Louis, Missouri, has petitioned the Federal Trade Commission for permission to divest two closed supermarkets.

• REGULATORY REFORM UPDATE: FEBRUARY 13, 1998
  Commission Amends Textile-related Rules to Streamline Disclosure Requirements; Automates Registration Number (RN) Process
  As part of its ongoing effort to review and revise all of its rules, the Federal Trade Commission published today in the Federal Register amendments to its Rules and Regulations under the Textile Fiber Products Identification Act, the Wool Products Labeling Act, and the Fur Products Labeling Act.
• REGULATORY REFORM UPDATE: FEBRUARY 27, 1998
  Federal Trade Commission Announces Amendments to "Fast-Track" Procedure
  The Federal Trade Commission today published in the Federal Register final rule amendments to Rule 3.11A, which allows for expedited treatment of certain administrative adjudications before the agency.

February 12, 1998

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 12, 1998
  FTC Hails Success of Regulatory Reform Effort in Testimony Before House Small Business Committe
  One-Third of Agency's Rules and Guides Have Been Revoked
• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 12, 1998
  FTC Staff Finds High Rate of Compliance with Consumer Protection Law in Fort Worth Funeral Homes
  As part of an ongoing nationwide law enforcement program, the Federal Trade Commission staff today announced the results of a sweep of 24 funeral homes in the Fort Worth, Texas-area to test for compliance with the FTC's Funeral Rule.

February 11, 1998

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 11, 1998
  FTC Staff Advises Automobile Dealers May Not Obtain Credit Reports on Consumers Out for a "Test Drive"
  The staff of the Federal Trade Commission today advised automobile dealers that access to consumer credit reports is strictly limited under federal law.

February 10, 1998

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 10, 1998
  Internet Fraud Could Chill Consumer Confidence: Pitofsky
  Robert Pitofsky, Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, today told a Senate Committee that business on the Internet could explode -- from $2.6 billion in 1996 to $220 billion in 2001 -- but that if the trend and benefits it implies are to continue, "... consumers must feel confident that the Internet is safe from fraud."

February 9, 1998

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 9, 1998
  FTC Requires Cigar Companies to Supply Data on Cigar Sales and Advertising Expenditures
  Agency Action Represents the First Time Cigar Industry Supplies Information
• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 9, 1998
  FTC Staff Comments on Reforms to Promote Competition with New England Public Utilities
  The Federal Trade Commission staff suggested that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) consider structural remedies in order to increase the likelihood of effective competition in the electric power industry in New England.

February 6, 1998

• For Your Information: FEBRUARY 6, 1998
  Announced Action for February 6, 1998
  The Commission's consent order with Beylen Telecom Ltd. of Grand Cayman in the Cayman Islands; NiteLine Media, Inc. of Brooklyn, New York; and Ron Tan (also known as Roeun Tan), an officer of NiteLine Media, settles charges that the companies' falsely advertised that using their special "viewer" would be "free."

February 5, 1998

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 5, 1998
  Consumers Lose Billions Annually to Fraud, FTC Chairman Tells Senate Subcommittee
  Elderly Are Most Often the Victims
• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 5, 1998
  FTC To Junk E-Mailers: "No Scamming While You're Spamming."
  The Federal Trade Commission and the U. S. Postal Inspection Service have put more than 1,000 junk e-mailers on notice that the agencies are monitoring unsolicited e-mail for fraudulent schemes and are keeping track of the schemers.

February 4, 1998

• For Your Information: FEBRUARY 4, 1998
  Glittering Gifts: Getting What You Bargained For
  Jewelry sales often rise in February because of Valentine's Day, and to help ensure that Cupid's gifts don't lose their luster, the Federal Trade Commission recently released a new consumer education brochure, ""All That Glitters ... The Jive on Jewelry."

February 3, 1998

• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 3, 1998
  Defendants in "Operation False Alarm" Agree To Settle
  Amended Complaint Adds Two More Defendants To Be Covered By Settlements; Principal Defendant and His Companies Admit To Law Violations
• FOR RELEASE: FEBRUARY 3, 1998
  Defendants in "Project $cholar$cam" Case Agree To Settle Charge
  The two remaining defendants in a case brought by the Federal Trade Commission under "Project $cholar$cam" have agreed to settle charges they misrepresented their ability to obtain college scholarships for consumers.