On December 13, a new piece of legislation intended to prevent obnoxiously loud TV advertising from ruining your nap will take effect. But the cable industry is making a last-minute move to get an exemption for “promotional” ads (aren’t all ads supposed to be promotional?). Their reasoning? They just want the same leeway given to that ad-bloated TV powerhouse C-SPAN. [More]
badvertising
Cable Industry Says It Shouldn't Have To Adjust Volume On Ads Because C-SPAN Doesn't Have To
By 9.11.12
Have You Finished Buying All Your 'National HP Toner Month' Gifts Yet?
By 9.10.12
With so many things going on in this crazy world, it’s easy to lose track of the holidays. Luckily, Consumerist reader Mike recently received an e-mail from Office Depot reminding him that September is indeed National HP Toner Month, that time when families gather together by a bonfire to roast marshmallows, sip cider and swap tales of past National HP Toner Months. [More]
McDonald's Learns It Shouldn't Trust Free Web Translators When It Comes To Its Billboards
By 9.5.12
So far as the needs of an average person who say, needs an approximate translation of a YouTube video summary that’s in another language, turning to the free Internet tools is just fine and dandy. But McDonald’s is learning the hard way that it maybe should’ve coughed up the dough to hire a real professional after biffing two billboards aimed at the Hmong population in St. Paul, Minn. [More]
Which Type Of Ad-Skipper Are You?
By 9.5.12
While we sift through the mountain of nominations for this year’s Worst Ad In America Awards, one thing has become very clear — y’all hate TV commercials and are doing whatever you can to avoid them. [More]
'Your Baby Can Read' Charged With False Advertising Because It Didn't Prove Your Baby Can Actually Read
By 8.28.12
Since 2008, the makers of the Your Baby Can Read! learning system have made $185 million from parents who hoped that the product could indeed help their infant get a head start on becoming a voracious reader. Now the company has to forfeit all that money (well, sort of) after the FTC filed false advertising charges against it, its former CEO and its creator. [More]
Keep Those Worst Ad In America Nominations Coming!
By 8.27.12
Last week, we asked you to start nominating the baddest badvertisers around for Consumerist’s Third Annual Worst Ad In America Awards, and you quickly responded with hundreds of comments and e-mails. But even if you missed that post, there are still four days left to vent your hatred. [More]
Ab Circle Pro Hit With $15-25 Million Settlement Because 3 Minutes A Day Won't Give You A Six Pack
By 8.23.12
Have you ever seen those ads for the Ab Circle Pro and said to yourself, “Maybe it will help be get rock hard abs with only a few minutes of workout a day”? Well, it apparently doesn’t, as the company behind the device has agreed to pay up to $25 million in a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission over allegations of deceptive advertising. [More]
E-Trade's Creepy Spokes-Babies Aren't Going Away
By 8.20.12
Online stock trading platform E-Trade has had a turbulent few months, with its stock sinking and the quick exit of its CEO earlier this month. When companies experience changes at the top during troubled times, it’s standard operating procedure to scrap old advertising and marketing campaigns in favor of something new. But not E-Trade, which apparently has no plans to get rid of the creepy, day-trading, talking babies that have been the face of the company for years. [More]
Nominate Your Most-Hated Commercials For Worst Ad In America 2012!
By 8.20.12
With the exception of a handful of arguably entertaining commercials — and even those tend to grate over time — TV commercials are the bane of a TV watcher’s time in front of the boob tube. This is why we invent technology to skip over ads, or mute buttons to quiet them, or sudoku games to play while they are on. It’s also why Consumerist is announcing its third-annual Worst Ad In America awards! [More]
Facebook Takes Big Step Backward Toward Traditional Advertising
By 8.15.12
As we predicted back in its pre-IPO days in May, Facebook would need to give up on its current model of minimal and oddly placed ad units if it wanted to survive as a publicly traded company with a value anywhere near what it wants the stock market to think it’s worth. And as that stock price continues to hover at half of the IPO value, the company appears to have taken the first big step toward more traditional advertising, by testing a way for businesses to pay for ads that pop up in the streams of users who did not necessarily “like” that particular advertiser. [More]
Mountain Dew Debacle Shows Why You Can't Let The Internet Play Mad Libs With Your Product
By 8.15.12
UPDATE: Reps for Mountain Dew have sent a statement to Consumerist clarifying its involvement (or apparent lack thereof) in the disastrous promotion. [More]
Should NBC Leave Schmaltzy Olympic Profiles To The Advertisers?
By 8.7.12
Long before anyone could get mad at NBC for its glitchy Olympic webcasts, the network was padding out its tape-delayed broadcasts with overlong pre-taped video profiles of various competitors from the U.S. and around the world. But here’s an idea — rather than irritate viewers by interrupting the diving competition for a 10-minute bio of a 16-year-old and then going to commercial, why not just leave these stories to the people who specialize in heartstring-tugging schmatltz: advertisers. [More]
Reebok EasyTone Refund Checks Are In The Mail
By 8.7.12
Almost a year after Reebok settled with the Federal Trade Commission for $25 million over allegations that it had deceptively advertised its EasyTone sneakers, those checks are finally going out to around 315,000 consumers who registered for refunds. [More]
NBA Opens The Door To Ads On Jerseys
By 7.20.12
While fans of sports like soccer, golf, tennis and NASCAR are used to the sight of corporate logos on competitors’ uniforms, the major professional team sports in the U.S. — baseball, football, hockey, and basketball — have generally resisted allowing sponsors to slap their brand on a players’ uniform. But that could all change with a decision announced last night by the NBA. [More]
Lands’ End Reminds Females They Are Supposed To Be Bad At Math
By 7.19.12
If you’re a school-age female who is breezing through your math lessons, the folks at the Lands’ End catalog would like to remind you that your lack of a Y chromosome apparently means you should be struggling to keep up in the class. [More]
At What Age Is It Appropriate To Market Professional Waxing To Girls?
By 7.6.12
A salon with locations in Florida and New York has a great promotion — waxing for half-off the price of a normal treatment, with one stipulation: You’ve got to be 15 or younger. Say what now? The reasoning goes, according to the salon, that “girls get bored when they go out with their Moms to do errands.” Nothing less boring than getting hair ripped off. [More]
Study: Nearly Half Of Consumers Fooled By “Up To” Claims In Advertisements
By 6.29.12
When you see an ad that promises to save you “up to 30%,” do you assume that means that you will see a savings of 30%? You’re reading Consumerist, so you’re probably thinking “Duh, of course not.” But a new study shows that a large number of consumers are not discerning between conditional “up to” promises and unconditional performance statements. [More]
What Are The Most Inane Ad Slogans Ever?
By 6.29.12
It’s hot as heck-fire here in the Mid-Atlantic, so we’ve been spending a lot of time inside with the air-conditioning, watching all the great summer TV offerings — and rolling our eyes at the ads that are constantly hurled in our direction. [More]
