On December 22, 2020, the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) announced adoption of a final rule requiring the use of the EnergyGuide labels on portable air conditioners (ACs). Effective October 1, 2022, portable AC manufacturers must attach yellow EnergyGuide labels on the principal display panel of their packaging and include an image of the required label
Third-party service providers are vital to many companies and they handle a wide range of business activities essential for companies to deliver their own offerings. But a company is not adequately protecting consumers if it fails to perform proper due diligence on service providers and contractually require them to employ appropriate security measures to protect
For the second time since 2016, glue producer Chemence, Inc. (Chemence) has found itself adverse to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for making allegedly deceptive claims that its products are American made. And this time it cost them $1.2 million – the highest settlement amount ever paid in a “Made in USA” case.
In 2016,
Online opinions – and not just from celebrities – are big business. Consumer reviews can be highly influential in convincing other shoppers to buy a product. In fact, the founder and CEO of Sunday Riley Modern Skincare LLC (Sunday Riley Skincare) was so convinced about the power of those starred reviews on cosmetics chain Sephora’s
The EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework, which provided a mechanism to legally transfer personal information from the EU to the United States, was invalidated on July 16, 2020, but the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has made it clear that companies that claimed to be participants must still make good on their word. A case in point
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently announced settlements with two online companies for allegedly misleading customers about automatic membership renewal costs. On September 2, 2020, the FTC announced that Age of Learning, Inc., d/b/a ABCmouse, will pay $10 million to settle charges that the company enrolled thousands of consumers in a negative option scheme to
More than 160 million Americans play video games. Originally designed as single-use purchases for consoles or computers, video games are now downloadable, making them more accessible to consumers than ever. One important development for the video game industry has been the creation of “micro purchases” – in-game transactions such as “loot boxes” that players can
Marketing products as environmentally friendly can induce customers to pay higher prices than they would for other goods. But when promises of lower emissions or higher insultation ratings prove false, that hurts consumers, and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) steps in. The FTC recently concluded its four-year long false advertising case against Volkswagen and Porsche
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has for some years targeted deceptive Made in USA claims as an enforcement priority, as we have previously discussed (see our most recent blog post on Made in USA here). Since 1999, the FTC has brought 28 enforcement actions against companies falsely claiming their products were American made. The
One of the first formal privacy safe harbor programs was created under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). Put simply, businesses are deemed in compliance with COPPA if they belong to an FTC-approved COPPA safe harbor program and follow the safe harbor program’s guidelines. But the FTC takes seriously any false claim about participation
