August 2016

FTC Targets Brand Owner Policing Search Ad Keywords

August 10, 2016 This Monday, the Federal Trade Commission (the “FTC” or “Commission”) commenced an administrative proceeding against 1-800 Contacts, Inc. (“1-800 Contacts”), alleging that the online contact lens retailer had entered into anti-competitive search ad bidding agreements with its rivals. Should sellers and advertisers be concerned about how they police their brands?

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Appeals Court Says “No” to Sports Betting in New Jersey

August 9, 2016 The U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals has issued a ruling denying New Jersey’s efforts to legalize sports betting in the State.   The ongoing league battle has pitted several professional sports associations against the State of New Jersey in a high stakes effort to undercut the federal Professional and Amateur Sports Protection

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FTC Announces Dog Food False Advertising Settlement

August 9, 2016 Last Thursday, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced that it had settled with Mars Petcare US, Inc. (“Mars Petcare”) concerning allegedly false advertising claims relating to its Eukanuba brand dog food.  Specifically, the FTC alleged that Mars Petcare falsely touted the health benefits of Eukanuba dog food by citing to a “study”

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“Dirty Dancing” Trademark Dilution Claims Reinstated

August 5, 2016 This March, we reported on a California federal court’s dismissal of Lions Gate Entertainment Inc.’s (“Lions Gate”) trademark and unfair competition claims against TD Ameritrade Holding Corporation, a number of its subsidiaries (“TD”) and ad agency Havas Worldwide New York, Inc. (“Havas”) in connection with the Defendants’ “Dirty Dancing”-themed ad campaign.  This Monday,

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Human Intervention Saves Life360 From TCPA Liability

August 3, 2016 Last week, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California dismissed a putative class-action lawsuit filed against Life360, Inc. (“Life360”), a family networking app, for alleged violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”).  At issue in the litigation was whether Life360 could be held liable for sending invitation

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Food Manufacturer Sued for Allegedly Deceptive ” Slack-Fill ”

August 2, 2016 Last Thursday, four New York City residents commenced a federal lawsuit and prospective class action against the world’s leading pasta maker, Barilla S.p.A., and its subsidiaries Barilla America, Inc. and Barilla USA (collectively, “Barilla”), alleging that Barilla engaged in deceptive “slack-fill” to deceive consumers as to the amount of pasta in its

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Massachusetts Beats Buzzer With New Fantasy Sports Law

August 1, 2016 With the State legislative session set to expire, Massachusetts lawmakers passed a bill late Sunday night to formally legalize daily fantasy sports in the Commonwealth. While other states that have recently legalized fantasy sports have employed tax and regulation schemes, Massachusetts has opted to take a different approach, at least in the

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