The Federal Trade Commission has regulated product reviews by bloggers as well as user and celebrity testimonials. Do the new regulations affect you? Bloggers must disclose freebies or payments and be sure testimonials reflect typical results. "Celebrities" also must disclose their relationship.
The Federal Trade Commission has regulated product reviews by bloggers as well as user and celebrity testimonials. Do the new regulations affect you? Bloggers must disclose freebies or payments and be sure testimonials reflect typical results. "Celebrities" also must disclose their relationship.
Is a pro staffer a celebrity?
The revised (FTC) Guides specify that while decisions will be reached on a case-by-case basis, the post of a blogger who receives cash or in-kind payment to review a product is considered an endorsement. Thus, bloggers who make an endorsement must disclose the material connections they share with the seller of the product or service.
The Guides also make it clear that celebrities have a duty to disclose their relationships with advertisers when making endorsements outside the context of traditional ads, such as on talk shows or in social media.
Under the revised Guides, advertisements that feature a consumer and convey his or her experience with a product or service as typical when that is not the case will be required to clearly disclose the results that consumers can generally expect.
Federal Trade Commission Final Rules
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