AI in Digital Marketing

FTC alleged that Richard Berry orchestrated regional scheme to falsify consumer information on financing applications The FTC reached an agreement with Richard Berry, the owner and manager of a group of bankrupt auto dealerships in Arizona and New Mexico, to resolve charges that he and the dealerships deceived consumers and falsified information on vehicle financing applications.  Many of the affected consumers were members of the Navajo Nation. “When Berry’s auto dealerships falsified income and down payment information to qualify people for loans they couldn’t afford to pay back, they set people up for failure – including default, repossession, and ruined credit,” said Samuel Levine, Acting Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “That’s why the FTC sued Berry and his dealerships.” The FTC reached an earlier settlement with the four dealerships: Tate’s Auto Center of Winslow, Tate’s Automotive, Tate Ford-Lincoln-Mercury, and Tate’s Auto Center of Gallup. If approved by

The Federal Trade Commission testified before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce on legislation to modify the FTC’s authority and address other pressing issues facing the agency. Testifying on behalf of the Commission, FTC Chair Lina M. Khan and Commissioners Noah Joshua Phillips, Rohit Chopra, Rebecca Kelly Slaughter, and Christine S. Wilson expressed gratitude to the Subcommittee for all it is doing to ensure the agency’s critical work can continue. Many of the reform measures currently before Congress give the Commission a much-needed boost in critical areas where enforcement tools are needed, the testimony states. The FTC plays a critical role in ensuring that markets are fair for individuals, families, and honest businesses but, the testimony notes, the agency currently faces many challenges: A surge in corporate mergers threatens to further concentrate market power and protect dominant incumbents, and the Commission’s ability to tackl

Today, the Federal Trade Commission will hold its second virtual open Commission meeting followed by live comments from the public. This is part of a series of monthly meetings opening the work of the Commission to the public. WHO: Chair Lina M. Khan, Commissioner Noah Joshua Phillips, Commissioner Rohit Chopra, Commissioner Rebecca Kelly Slaughter, Commissioner Christine S. Wilson, members of the public WHAT: The meeting will follow the agenda announced on July 12. WHEN: Today, July 21, 2021 1 p.m. ET. Note: The start time for this meeting previously had been scheduled for 12 p.m. ET. WHERE: The meeting will be livestreamed to FTC.gov The event will be recorded, and the webcast and any related comments will be available on the Commission’s website after the meeting. The Commission retains discretion to make public comments available following the event on ftc.gov. Due to challenges related to the ongoing COVID-19 public health crisis, open meeti

July 27 online event will highlight cutting-edge privacy and security research The Federal Trade Commission has released the final agenda  for its sixth annual PrivacyCon event, which will be held online on July 27, and will include a focus on the privacy and security risks associated with algorithms, online advertising, and the Internet of Things. PrivacyCon 2021 will highlight exciting new research and build on discussions in the United States and around the globe on trends related to consumer privacy and data security. Commissioner Rebecca Kelly Slaughter and Chief Technologist Erie Meyer will give opening remarks followed by six panels focused on algorithms, privacy considerations and understanding, advertising technology, the Internet of Things, privacy issues related to children and teens, and privacy and the pandemic. The event will also feature a presentation on the Algorithmic Bias Playbook by Ziad Obermeyer, Professor of Health Policy and Management at the Berkeley Schoo

New Jersey-based defendants are banned from telemarketing, will pay more than $1.6 million, and turn over property The owners of a New Jersey-based company that sells septic tank cleaning products agreed to a permanent ban on telemarketing and will pay more than $1.6 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that the company and its telemarketer made illegal robocalls to consumers, including tens of millions of calls to numbers listed on the agency’s Do Not Call Registry. In addition, the defendants will turn over a residential property as part of the settlement. According to the FTC’s complaint , Environmental Safety International, Inc. or ESI; ESI’s two officers, brothers Joseph Carney and Sean Carney; and their other brother Raymond Carney, acted together to initiate more than 45 million illegal telemarketing calls to consumers nationwide between January 2018 and March 2019 to promote ESI’s “Activator 1000” line of septic tank cleaning products. The FTC alleges that 31 m

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Following a public comment period, the Federal Trade Commission has approved a final administrative consent order against Scottsdale, Arizona-based Kushly Industries LLC (Kushly) and the company’s owner, Cody Alt, for allegedly making false or unsupported health claims during the marketing and sale of cannabidiol (CBD) products to consumers. According to the FTC’s May 2021 complaint , Kushly and Alt made false or unsubstantiated claims that their CBD products could effectively treat or cure a host of conditions—from common ailments, like acne and psoriasis, to more serious diseases, including cancer and multiple sclerosis. In addition, the complaint alleges the respondents falsely told consumers that scientific studies or research prove that CBD product effectively treat, mitigate, or cure the diseases, including hypertension, Parkinson’s disease, and Alzheimer’s disease.           The final order settling the FTC’s charges bars the respondents from the illegal conduct alleged in the

Digital marketing is the component of marketing that utilizes internet and online based digital technologies such as desktop computers, mobile phones and other digital media and platforms to promote products and services.  Digital marketing campaigns have become prevalent, employing combinations of search engine optimization (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), content marketing, influencer marketing, content automation, campaign marketing, data-driven marketing, e-commerce marketing, social media marketing, social media optimization, e-mail direct marketing, display advertising, e–books, and optical disks and games have become commonplace.  Digital marketing extends to non-Internet channels that provide digital media, such as television, mobile phones (SMS and MMS), callback, and on-hold mobile ring tones. 

Online marketing includes a wider range of marketing elements than traditional business marketing due to the extra channels and marketing mechanisms available on the internet.

The operators of a scheme that falsely promised participants could earn large sums of money from memberships sold to other participants will be permanently prohibited from engaging in any future business and investment opportunity as part of a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission. In a complaint first announced in November 2020 as part of the Operation Income Illusion crackdown on work-from-home and employment scams, the FTC alleged that Digital Income System, Inc., and five individual defendants falsely told consumers they could earn commissions from the sale of memberships in the defendants’ programs. For example, the website stated, “Consumers will earn between $500 and $12,500 per sale,” and “Every time one of our professionals closes a sale on your behalf, we will send you a huge commission check right to your doorstep.” The defendants allegedly charged consumers between $1,000 and $25,000 for Digital Income System’s memberships, which gave consumers access to their

Today, the Federal Trade Commission will hold a virtual open Commission meeting followed by live comments from the public. This will be the first of a series of monthly meetings that will open the work of the Commission to the public. WHO: Chair Lina M. Khan, Commissioner Noah Joshua Phillips, Commissioner Rohit Chopra, Commissioner Rebecca Kelly Slaughter, Commissioner Christine S. Wilson, members of the public WHAT: The meeting will follow the agenda announced on June 24 th WHEN: Today, July 1, 2021 12 p.m. ET WHERE: The meeting will be livestreamed to FTC.gov The event will be recorded, and the webcast and any related comments will be available on the Commission’s website after the meeting.  The Commission retains discretion to make public comments available following the event on ftc.gov. Due to challenges related to the ongoing COVID-19 public health crisis, open meetings will be held virtually until further notice. The FTC’s futu