Much has already been said and written about the FTC’s recent enforcement initiative, dubbed “Operation AI Comply.” The coordinated sweep announced last month involved five separate FTC enforcement actions against companies...more
Last year, we wrote about the FTC’s proposal to massively expand the Negative Option Rule to cover any goods or services involving a negative option or automatic renewal plan, including free trials, subscriptions, and repeat...more
Last week, advertising and legal professionals, experts, regulators, and business representatives convened in New York for the annual National Advertising Division (NAD) Conference to consider hot topics, share perspectives...more
As we rapidly approach the November election, important legal and political questions are resurfacing at the FTC—with new criticism coming from both within the Commissioner ranks and from Congress. On Tuesday, September 17,...more
Join Kelley Drye Ad Law attorneys for an upcoming webinar: “Why You Should Care About the FTC’s Rule on Fake Reviews.” This session will break down the final rule announced by the FTC on August 14, 2024, designed to combat...more
Yesterday, the Federal Trade Commission announced its final rule addressing consumer reviews and testimonials. With this rule, the Commission takes aim at “fake” reviews and testimonials by prohibiting their sale or purchase...more
AI capabilities are growing by the day, and with them, so are increasing government efforts to put in place guardrails, principles, and rules to govern the AI space. In May alone, Utah’s Artificial Intelligence Policy Act...more
As an update to our earlier blog post detailing the FTC’s amendments to the Telemarketing Sales Rule, the changes have since been published in the Federal Register, with an effective date of May 16, 2024....more
Over the past two years, we have seen FTC staff express its opinions on the state of the law in multiple ways. In December 2022, for example, staff issued its Health Products Compliance Guidance, intended to supersede the...more
The beginning of 2024 has brought with it a decided regulatory focus on telemarketing. In the past couple of months, we’ve written about several important FCC actions related to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA),...more
On December 12, the FTC issued the Combating Auto Retail Scams Rule (“CARS Rule”) which will broadly regulate sales activities of motor vehicle dealers. Authorized by Congress through the Dodd-Frank Act and promulgated under...more
This week, the FTC and Florida AG announced a settlement with Chargebacks911, a chargeback mitigation company that touted its ability to help companies respond to and reverse consumer credit card disputes. The FTC and Florida...more
Generative AI continues to dominate the conversation in 2023, and one particular aspect receiving increased scrutiny in the past weeks is AI-powered customer service chatbots. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)...more
The buzz around generative AI has raised many IP-related questions, such as the legality of using IP to train AI algorithms or ownership of AI-generated content. But the FTC warns that claims about content ownership don’t...more
On the Friday before a long 4th of July weekend, the FTC delivered some light beach reading in the form of a 100-page notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) “banning fake reviews and testimonials.” While banning fake reviews...more
In May 2022, the FTC proposed changes to its Endorsement Guides. Among other things, those changes created more prescriptive disclosure requirements for endorsements, imposed various requirements for consumer reviews, and...more
Yesterday, the FTC announced an $18.5 million settlement with Publishers Clearing House (PCH), a marketing company known for using sweepstakes to sell magazine subscriptions. In its 52-page complaint, the FTC alleges PCH used...more
Last week, a mental-health chatbot used by the National Eating Disorder Association suddenly began giving diet advice to people seeking help for eating disorders. The rogue chatbot had apparently been developed as a closed...more
Artificial intelligence and algorithmic processes continue to remain at the top of federal law enforcement agencies’ agendas. Yesterday, the FTC, CFPB, DOJ, and EEOC issued a joint statement pledging to use their respective...more
The FTC sent out new penalty offense notices to 670 companies today, warning them that failure to substantiate product claims could result in civil penalties of more than $50,000. The companies also received copies of the...more
If you’re offering any products or services involving a negative option or automatic renewal plan, pay close attention to the FTC’s announcement today of a proposed rule that would drastically alter requirements for negative...more
On March 13, 2023, the FTC submitted its 2024 budget request to Congress, along with a performance plan for FY 2023-2024 and a performance report for FY 2022. While generally an aspirational document, the budget includes a...more
On February 9, the FTC provided the CFPB with its annual summary of activities enforcing the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA). The release of this summary provides a great opportunity for a round-up and some updates on new...more
Downloading an app, buying a product or service, or otherwise interacting with a company frequently requires consumers to consent to multi-page contracts. In a new proposed rule, the CFPB would require nonbank financial...more
No, we’re not talking about sinister sewing guides, but rather practices or formats that may manipulate or mislead consumers into taking actions they would not otherwise take.
We untangled the topic of so-called “dark...more