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October 29th, 2013
iPhone Accessories Company Settles FTC Charges
A marketer of iPhone accessories and other products recently settled Federal Trade Commission charges that the company made false claims that its products are made in the United States.
The FTC alleged that E.K. Ekcessories ("E.K.") advertised that its products - marketed directly to consumers on E.K.'s website, as well as online on Amazon.com and REI.com - were "Made in the U.S.A," "Truly Made in the USA," and made in their "60,000 sq. ft. facility in Logan, Utah," even though the company allegedly imported many of its products and product components from foreign countries. Advertisers that make express or implied claims that products are made in the United States must comply with the FTC's ''Made in USA'' Standard Business Guides. These Guides require unqualified U.S. origin claims to be substantiated by evidence that a product is "all, or virtually all," made in the United States.
Under the FTC's proposed order with E.K., the company may not claim that its products - or any components thereof - were made in the United States unless those products or components were, in fact, all or virtually all made in the United States. The order also forbids E.K. from making misleading claims about the country of origin of its products and from supplying any third party retailers (including Amazon.com and REI) with deceptive promotional material.
This settlement follows other recent FTC enforcement in this area (see, e.g. FTC Letter to PetSmart and FTC Letter to Little Giant).
For more information about "Made in the USA" claims or other advertising or marketing issues, please contact Jeffrey Greenbaum at (212) 826 5525 or jgreenbaum@fkks.com, Hannah Taylor at (212) 705 4849 or htaylor@fkks.com, or any other member of the Frankfurt Kurnit Advertising Group.
Other Advertising Law Alerts
What the Advertising Industry Can Learn from Kim Kardashian’s Settlement with the SEC
On October 3, 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that it entered into a $1.26 million settlement with Kim Kardashian over her social media promotion of the EMAX token without disclosing payment she received from token issuer, EthereumMax. The matter provides important lessons for advertisers. Read more.
October 10 2022
Get Ready for California’s New “Automatic Renewal” Rules
California recently amended its Automatic Purchase Renewals law. The amended statute - effective July 1st -- require marketers to provide consumers of automatic renewal or continuous service offers with more information and easier ways to terminate. Read more.
June 22 2018
“Made in the U.S.A.” Claims Continue to be Scrutinized
In 2016, California amended Section 17533.7 of the California Business and Professions Code ("Section 17533"), liberalizing the standard for selling products labeled "Made in U.S.A" to California consumers. Read more.
June 4 2018
