The staff of the Federal Trade Commission will extend the public comment period for “Dot Com Disclosures: Information About Online Advertising,” the business education publication that discusses how federal advertising law applies to advertising and sales on the Internet. Last month, the FTC staff announced that it was seeking public comment to assist it in […]
Monthly Archives: June 2011
FTC Approves Final Order Settling Charges that Firm Used Misleading Online Reviews
Following a public comment period, the Federal Trade Commission finalized the Order settling charges that Legacy Learning Systems Inc. and its owner, Lester Gabriel Smith, deceptively advertised the “Learn and Master Guitar” program through online affiliate marketers who falsely posed as ordinary consumers or independent reviewers without clearly disclosing they were paid substantial commissions for […]
FTC Combats Immigration Services Scams
At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a federal judge has shut down an operation in Baltimore, Maryland for allegedly misrepresenting that it was authorized to provide immigration services. The judge ordered a halt to the allegedly deceptive tactics of Manuel Alban and his wife Lola Alban. Under federal regulations, except for attorneys, only […]
FTC Settlement Bans Online U.S. Electronics Retailer from Deceiving Consumers with Foreign Website Names
The Federal Trade Commission reached a settlement putting a stop to the deceptive tactics of a California Internet marketer that allegedly tricked British consumers into believing it was based in the United Kingdom by using foreign websites ending in “.co.uk.” Under the settlement, the company also is banned from charging consumers for goods until they […]
FTC Staff Says Proposed Connecticut Legislation Would Likely Increase Health Care Costs and Decrease Access to Care
Federal Trade Commission staff, in response to a request from Connecticut state legislators Eric D. Coleman, John A. Kissel, Gerald Fox III and John W. Hetherington, stated that the state’s health care consumers are likely to be harmed by a state legislative proposal that would exempt health care providers in state-certified “cooperative arrangements” from state […]
FTC Approves Final Order Settling Charges that Hikma Pharmaceuticals PLC’s Acquisition of Baxter Healthcare Assets was Anticompetitive
Following a public comment period, the Federal Trade Commission approved a final order settling charges that Hikma Pharmaceuticals PLC’s acquisition of certain Baxter Healthcare assets was anticompetitive. Specifically, the FTC complaint alleged that the transaction as proposed likely would have resulted in reduced competition and higher prices for two generic injectable drugs – phenytoin and […]
FTC Approves Universal Health Services’ and Psychiatric Solutions’ Application to Sell the Delaware Behavioral Health Assets
Following a public comment period, the Federal Trade Commission has approved an application submitted by Universal Health Services, Inc.’s (UHS) and Psychiatric Solutions, Inc.’s to sell what are known as the Delaware Assets, including MeadowWood Behavioral Health, to PHC, Inc., which does business as Pioneer Behavioral Health. The companies are required to sell the assets […]
FTC Staff Submits Comment to FERC on Assessing the Effects of Proposed Horizontal Mergers on Market Power
The Federal Trade Commission’s staff submitted a comment to the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission providing views on how energy regulators should apply the revised Horizontal Merger Guidelines. The revised Guidelines, which the FTC and the Department of Justice updated last year, outline how the federal antitrust agencies evaluate the likely competitive impact of mergers […]
Federal Agencies Combat Immigration Services Scams
WASHINGTON—The U.S. government will unveil a national initiative to combat immigration services scams on June 9 at 1 p.m. The Departments of Homeland Security (DHS) and Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) are leading this historic effort. DHS’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the lead agency responsible for administering the U.S. legal […]
FTC Issues Agenda for Workshop to Explore the Role of Patented Technology in Collaborative Industry Standards
The Federal Trade Commission today released the agenda for a public workshop addressing legal and policy issues surrounding the inclusion of patented technology in collaboratively set industry standards. The workshop will be held on June 21, 2011, starting at 9:30 a.m., at the FTC’s Conference Center at 601 New Jersey Avenue, NW, Washington, DC. Commissioner […]