Which broadband company has the blah blah blah fastest blah blah? Virtually all of them claim to be the best and speediest, using various surveys and statistics to justify their numbers, and subtly couching their boasts in language that best suits their goal. However, a private ad industry watchdog says that Comcast has a justifiable gripe about the way Verizon has advertised FiOS internet speeds. [More]
truth in badvertising
John Oliver Rewrites Apple Ads To Make Them More Honest About Encryption
By 3.14.16
On Sunday’s Last Week Tonight, host John Oliver looked at length at the ongoing, complicated legal battle between Apple and the FBI, which has asked a court to compel the tech company to rewrite its software to allow authorities to search crime suspects’ locked iPhones. And while Oliver ultimately came down in defense of Apple’s position in the matter, he also believes the company could be more direct about presenting the reality of the situation. [More]
Verizon’s New Ads Are Apparently Unfamiliar With Verizon’s Own Business Practices
By 10.12.15
Verizon recently began airing an ad where the telecom titan declares that, “A better network doesn’t mess with your data.” Whoever made this Verizon commercial has apparently never heard of this company called Verizon and the ways it has — and wants to — mess with your data. [More]
NY Asks Stores To Halt Herbal Supplements After Tests Show Advertised Herbs Not Present
By 2.3.15
When you buy an herbal supplement that says “echinacea” or “ginko boloba” on the label, you may expect that it contains some additional ingredients beyond the advertised herbs, but you should be confident that those herbs are present. However, DNA tests commissioned by the New York state Attorney General found evidence that many herbal products may not contain what they advertise. [More]
Feds Tell Nissan Dealer To Stop Saying Buyers Can Get Out Of Current Lease For Only $1
By 12.23.14
Have you been looking to get a new car but you’re stuck in the lease on your current vehicle? A Nissan dealership in Texas has been advertising that it will get you out of your present lease for only one dollar, but the Federal Trade Commission says the fine print tells a very different story. [More]
Frontier Customers Sue, Alleging They Don’t Get Advertised Internet Speeds
By 10.21.14
In a recently filed class-action suit, Frontier Communications customers in West Virginia allege the cable/Internet company advertised high-speed broadband packages but then failed to deliver, only providing a fraction of what customers were promised. [More]
Feds Warn Advertisers Against Trying To Hide The Truth
By 9.23.14
Most of us accept the fact that advertisers have to massage the truth to put their products in the best possible light. You’re likely to sell more widgets saying “The fastest widget on the market!” and doing your best to hide the disclosure that you really mean it’s the fastest widget you can buy at one particular market in rural Alberta. But some advertisers have apparently been getting too fine with their fine print and have been put on notice by federal regulators to just stop it already. [More]
T-Mobile, Where Being #1 Means Being Newest Item On A List
By 9.22.14
Once again, T-Mobile is tooting its own horn, declaring a victory when there wasn’t even a fight to begin with. [More]
You Can’t Sell “Made In The USA” Seals Without Checking That Products Live Up To That Label
By 7.22.14
As we’ve talked about in previous stories, while there are federal guidelines about what constitutes a “Made In America” product, manufacturers are operating on an honor system because it would be too onerous a task for the government to actually investigate every product claiming to be American-made. But if a company charges thousands of dollars for seals that indicate that a product’s Made In USA bona fides have been verified, it should actually be doing something to check those claims. [More]
Definitely Don’t Print Out These Fake Labels And Put Them On Real Products
By 4.28.14
As Coca-Cola recently argued before the Supreme Court, you should be able to call your product anything you want so long as it embodies the essential character of that product… even if that means calling a beverage “pomegranate” juice when an entire bottle contains barely an eye-dropper’s worth of that ingredient. So what’s good for the goose is good for the consumer, right? [More]
More Businesses Should Under-Promise & Over-Deliver
By 2.24.12
There’s a tendency on the part of many businesses to sell their product or service based on a price, time frame or level of service that sounds great in marketing materials but which often requires an asterisk because it only tells part of the story. But these companies are playing a short con game that consumers will eventually figure out. [More]
Treat Your Baby's Mom Nice If You Live Near This Pawn Shop
By 9.21.11
Getting revenge on an ex can be tempting, and this pawn shop in Albany, NY, seems to be tapping into that desire for comeuppance in its new storefront marketing campaign. [More]
Real Estate Ad: Fancy Apartments Lead To Sex With A "Better Quality Of Woman"
By 8.3.11
It’s not a shock that some people find a luxury home — especially something like a tricked-out, multi-million dollar NYC apartment — to be a bit of an aphrodisiac, perhaps to the point of overlooking the other person’s less attractive qualities. But a NYC real estate broker has decided to do more than just hint at this behavior in its new ad. [More]
