Welcome to the October update of marketinglaw, containing the latest news and articles covering advertising and marketing.
We hope you find it interesting. If you would like to discuss any of the content in this update, please contact Nick Johnson or the author of the relevant story.
Advertising regulation
- ASA challenges Sainsbury’s use of “Participating stores only” – A consumer was unable to find a participating Sainsbury’s store to take advantage of a voucher promotion. Had Sainsbury’s adequately communicated the significant conditions for the promotion? Barney Sich reports here.
- ASA overturns anti-fracking ad on Independent Review – It took 16 months, but the ASA’s Independent Review process finally overturned the previous ruling on Greenpeace’s anti-fracking ad. George Garrard reports here.
- Competitor awarded damages for misleading medicinal claim – When a food supplement company challenged a competitor’s product name as a misleading medicine claim, was it also able to claim damages through Italian courts? Marialaura Boni reports here.
- Coral comes under fire from the ASA for misleading ads – What lessons can be learned from a string of rulings against the gambling operator for its targeted promotions and time-limited offers? Jamie Heatly reports here.
- Cost-neutral not free, says ASA – Was an advert promising businesses an upgrade of “free” low-energy LEDs genuine, or in the same mythical category as a “free lunch”? Thomas Spanyol reports the ASA’s view here.
- German Media Authorities issue updated FAQs on advertising in social media – New revised guidance on Germany labeling requirements for ad content deal specifically with social media issues. Jan Hellenbrand reports here.
- Online influencer called out for Alpro “#ad” omission – In a recent ruling against Alpro UK and TV presenter AJ Odudu, the ASA showed how it distinguishes marketing communications from editorial content and shed further light on the ‘identifier’ requirements. Jude King reports here.
- Purplebricks saving claim banned for substantiation failings – The ASA clears the online estate agent’s “You could save thousands” claim, but not their “£4,158 average customer saving”. Ben Poole investigates why here.
Data & privacy
- European Court rules website and app operators must treat dynamic IP addresses as personal data – The ECJ judgement in Breyer clarifies how dynamic IP addresses must be treated. What does this mean for the adtech sector? Nick Johnson reports here.
Online advertising
- Ticket re-seller facing legal action for offering unreleased tickets Face value? Seat number? – The CMA investigates secondary ticket websites for compliance with the law while one of the websites faces potential legal action. Chloe Deng reports here.
- Affiliate network held liable for deceptive ad content – How US CPA affiliate networks can be liable in relation to actions of third-party marketers. Stefania Grosso reports here.
- New French regulation adds disclosure requirements for online ratings – France toughens its game and imposes new disclosure obligations on consumer review websites regarding the verification of online reviews. Chloe Dumoulin-Richet reports here.
