With the end of summer and the start of school also comes the fall advertising law conference season, starting with the annual NAD conference. We wanted to share some highlights of the two-day event from last week.
FTC Bureau Director Jessica Rich gave the keynote. While the FTC will not discuss pending cases, when discussing priorities, the Bureau Director is obviously aware of what is in the pipeline and where the staff is investigating and considering new cases, so we always give these remarks close attention. Jessica said when deciding what cases to bring, “we take our cues from the marketplace and target our enforcement on practices that limit consumer choice and do consumers harm.” She said the marketplace issues are currently closely tied to technology – how people shop for goods and engage with friends and with the products they buy. She flagged the establishment of the Office of Technology Research and Investigation (OTech) and credited it with helping the Bureau of Consumer Protection get on top of tech issues including training staff about new technology, hosting visiting scholars, engaging with the tech community and planning workshops. She said “we want to be the consumer protection agency for tech issues.” As far as current advertising enforcement priorities, Jessica noted 3 trends in Advertising Practices, in addition to the “steady diet” of health and weight loss claims and problems of disclosures. These are health apps, health claims targeting older consumers and advertising in new media. In more detail:Continue Reading Live from New York It’s the NAD Advertising Law Conference!