Advertising Laws & Regulations in Content Discovery
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I got into trouble with the law after fighting it and was given a huge fine. The document discusses advertising law and regulations for content discovery platforms. It provides guidance on proper disclosures for publishers and restrictions on false and deceptive advertising claims for brands and performance marketers. Media partners are advised to avoid fake product claims and ensure any health or weight loss claims can be substantiated.
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Advertising Laws & Regulations in Content Discovery
- 1. HOW I FOUGHT THE LAW AND THE LAW GAVE ME A HUGE FINE.
- 2. NICE TO MEET YOU! Shelly Paioff Deputy General Counsel & Head of Legal, US, Taboola Adam Chen Global Policy Manager, Taboola Jason Kessler Global Content Policy, Taboola
- 3. TRADITIONAL ADVERTISING BRANDED ENTERTAINMENT CONTENT DISCOVERY How does the new space of content discovery fall under traditional advertising laws? ADVERTISING ECOSYSTEM
- 4. PUBLISHERS – Promotion of content through content discovery is a form of advertising. It needs to be disclosed to users that it is sponsored content. But we’ll get into more later… MEDIA PARTNERS (ADVERTISERS) – In the content discovery ecosystem with publishers, brands, and performance marketers, brands and performance marketers are promoting a product or service, and more laws and regulations apply to them. Publishers have more protections. We’ll get to the stuff that applies to brands and performance marketers in a bit… WHAT IS ADVERTISING? And what does advertising law cover?
- 5. NO DECEPTION THE GOLDEN RULE
- 6. Although content-discovery widgets recommend content, the widget itself is treated as a form of advertising under applicable laws and regulations. Recommended Disclosures: • Content is sponsored • Who are the sponsors WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW AS A PUBLISHER
- 9. On content discovery platforms, brands and performance marketers are treated differently than publishers. • More laws and regulations apply to brands and performance marketers. Rule for Brands and Performance Marketers: AVOID FALSE ADVERTISING WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW AS A MEDIA PARTNER
- 10. Fake Product Claims Key Question: Can the claims about the product I make be substantiated? Common Fake Product Claims: • Impossible weight claims – FTC’s “gut check” reference guide provides guidance on what claims are proper and what claims are not okay. • Impossible health claims – Claims that a product will cure, treat, or prevent a disease that is not FDA approved will run into problems. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW AS A MEDIA PARTNER
- 11. 11
- 12. Deceptive Practices Common deceptive practices: • Fake news • Not disclosing costs up front • False sense of urgency WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW AS A MEDIA PARTNER
- 14. Tips For Affiliate Advertisers • Make accurate product claims – Use only the product claims the company makes. • Use the before/after photos that are provided to you. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW AS A MEDIA PARTNER
- 15. Why is this important? • Avoid potential lawsuits and regulatory action. • Ensure high-quality content. • Publishers – Preserve consumer perception of your brand or site. • Advertisers – Keep the industry honest. WRAPPING THINGS UP
Editor's Notes
- Shelly starts.
- We are not your lawyers. Not intended to be legal advice.
- Shelly
- Shelly
- Shelly Whole point is to just say that there is a lot of laws out there, and it could be confusing, but if you want one safe rule, then the golden rule is to not deceive.
- Shelly
- Shelly
- Shelly [Make widget with Ad Choice] [Have ad title above of the image] AM: Create a mockup that has an example of "earned media" so that we can talk about it. Or have a follow up slide of advertorial. Don't understand the consequences of the issues. Prove that the FTC is looking at this. Intro: There are fines, consent agreements that FTC can force you into. Publishers can get into trouble if no proper disclosures. Advertisers should care because FTC does go after advertisers for inadequate disclosure.
- Adam Let’s talk a bit about the laws and regulations media partners need to think about. But before we begin, it is helpful to know that the law makes a distinction between two groups: The first group includes brands and performance marketers. The second group is publishers. Publishers are traditional content creators. These are sites like Bloomberg.com, the atlantic.com, and other newspaper and journalist sites. Brands and performance marketers are different from publishers: This group is seeking to promote a product or service. Brands are companies like IBM and Burberry Performance marketers are Advertisements that are measured or paid for on a performance or metric basis, such as a click. Because brands and performance marketers are seeking to promote a product or service, more laws and regulations apply to brands and performance marketers than to advertisers. Today we are focusing on brands and performance marketers. The fundamental rule for this group of advertisers is that they must avoid false advertising. Now the following slides will cover: Fake product claims Deceptive practices We will also be covering some things you can look out for as an affiliate.
- Adam Following the golden rule of “No Deception”, brands and performance marketers should be aware that it is illegal for you to make fake product claims. The general rule is that advertisers must have proof for the claims that they make in advertising, before those claims are published on a website or the internet. So the key question is “Can the claims I make about the product be substantiated?” This, of course, brings up the question, what does it mean for a claim to be “substantiated”? A substantiated claim is a claim that can be proven as true. Take, for example, a claim that “tests show that exercise is likely to lower your blood pressure.” There are many studies that have proven this statement to be true, so this would be a substantiated claim. On the other hand, saying that “tests show that eating unlimited amounts of candy and bacon will add 10 years to your life” has not been verified by any valid scientific studies that we know of, and this is an unsubstantiated claim. Now all claims have a baseline level of substantiation that is required, but health and safety claims require a higher level of substantiation. And advertisers should have have evidence for the claims that they make. Advertisers are responsible for more than the actual literal words on a page; they are also responsible for all reasonable interpretations of their claims. An advertiser will be liable for all misleading messages that are conveyed, even if non-misleading interpretations are possible. It is also important to not view statements in isolation, but to view the advertising as a whole. Some common fake claims are: Impossible weight claims Impossible health claims. Impossible weight claims The FTC provided a “gut check” reference guide for publishers, which gives some examples of some claims that are so obviously fake that one should check to see if the claims are true. This guide is also helpful for advertisers to get a sense of what the FTC considers to be problematic claims. Some noted claims include: A product causes substantial weight loss no matter what or how much the consumer eats; Causes weight loss of two pounds or more a week for a month or more without dieting or exercise Impossible health claims These claims are often sweeping claims that a non-FDA approved product will cure, treat, or prevent a disease. These will often run into problems. Some examples include claims that a non-regulated product can cure for diabetes.
- Adam Here we created a page with some fake claims. Some of these claims are extremely outrageous and fake, and we know they are fake because we created them. Some of the issues with this page include: The headline promises that the product will take 20 years off your life in just 1 month. Now this could mean that you will look younger with this product, or the product is actually killing you. But the rest of the page supports the suggestion that this claim relates to looking younger, and this claim is problematic as it is extremely unrealistic. The ad copy at the bottom of the slide contains claims that the product made this quote-unquote “celebrity” look 20 years younger after only weeks. Another problematic claims are the before-and-after photos on the right rail. Many times these sort of ads will show before-and-after photos where the photos are actually photoshops and are not actual before and after photos of a person when they use a product. This is considered a fake product claim. The right rail also talks about a “Striking photograph in a recent New England Journal of Medicine” article. We know that there was no such article or picture in the New England Journal of Medicine. The “Featured in 500+ magazines” copy is also problematic. If the product was featured in 500+ magazines, then that copy makes sense. But if it was not the copy, and it was actually the celebrity who was “featured in” all of those magazines, then that statement is a problem.
- Adam Now not only are fake claims a concern, but brands and performance marketers also need to be aware that they cannot engage in deceptive practices. Some common deceptive practices include Sites that look like fake news – We will go into that in a little bit. No disclosing costs up front is also an issue. For example, claiming that a product or service is “free” when it actually is not. For example, there may be: Hidden shipping and handling costs. Hidden rebilling or subscription services. These practices should be avoided. False sense of urgency is also another common deceptive practice: A site should not have content or script on a site that suggests that a person has limited time or opportunity to purchase a product if this is not true. Countdown timers or exploding deals are not allowed if a person can just refresh and get the deal again.
- Jason
- Jason Make a point about how exciting this is for being in this space, but also why it is important to keep the space clean. Overall comments: Talk a bit more about Taboola. Talk about things we have seen in the past. Talk about how our network grew rapidly in the last 2 years, so we knew that we had to make sure of what rules applies to us. We work with our pubs and advertisers, so good for all of us. As content discovery becomes more prominent as it is a powerful form of media, there are things to make note of
- Shelly