• About
    • History of Dallas SEO
    • SEO Expert Witness Services
  • Contact
  • Topics
    • Bing
    • Blogging
    • Branding
    • Domain Names
    • Google
    • Internet Marketing
    • Link Building
    • Local Search
    • Marketing
    • Public Relations
    • Reputation Management
    • Search Engine Marketing
    • Search Engine Optimization
    • Search Engines
    • Social Media
    • Tech
  • Advertise
  • Email Newsletter

Bill Hartzer

Bill Hartzer on Search, Marketing, Tech, and Domains.

SEMrush

Home » Social Media » Company Settles with FTC for $250,000 Over Misleading Online Reviews

Company Settles with FTC for $250,000 Over Misleading Online Reviews

Posted on March 15, 2011 Written by Bill Hartzer

A company that sells guitar-lesson DVDs online has settled with the Federal Trade Commission for a whopping $250,000 over charges that the company “deceptively advertised its products through online affiliate marketers who falsely posed as ordinary consumers or independent reviewers”. The company supposedly schemed to have fake positive reviews posted online.

According to the FTC, Legacy Learning Systems “disseminated deceptive advertisements by representing that online endorsements written by affiliates reflected the views of ordinary consumers or “independent” reviewers, without clearly disclosing that the affiliates were paid for every sale they generated.”

This is another example of why companies need to be extremely careful when it comes to online reviews and any reviews of their product or service that are supposedly “unbiased”. You can get into serious trouble–financially–if you or anyone you do business with, such as your affiliates, post false and misleading reviews online.

The Federal Trade Commission recently started cracking down on misleading and false online reviews. The FTC has revised their guidelines on endorsements and testimonials. These new guidelines were issued in 2009, and they explain in general terms when the FTC may find endorsements or testimonials unfair or deceptive.

Under the Federal Trade Commission guidelines, “a positive review by a person connected to the seller – or someone who receives cash or in-kind payment to review a product or service – should disclose the material connection between the reviewer and the seller of the product or service.”

Filed Under: Social Media

SEMrush

About Bill Hartzer

Bill Hartzer is CEO of Hartzer Consulting, an SEO Consulting firm that includes services such as search engine optimization, technical SEO audits, domain name consulting, and online reputation management. As an SEO Expert, Mr. Hartzer frequently serves as an SEO Expert Witness and Domain Name Expert Witness in legal cases worldwide. He also oversees DNAccess.com, a company that provides brand protection and monitoring, domain name background checks, and stolen domain name recovery services.

Recent Posts

  • Google Search Engine Class Action Settlement: Google Referrer Header Privacy Litigation June 5, 2023
  • I Asked Twitter for SEO Advice. Here’s What They Said June 1, 2023
  • Web.com Launches AI Domain Name Generator and AI Writer Tools May 31, 2023
  • Artlist Launches AI-Powered Footage Search Engine May 30, 2023
  • Google’s Search Generative Experience According to Google Bard May 22, 2023
  • Is AIO the New SEO? May 10, 2023
  • Google Passkey Support to Replace Built-In Security Key for Google Accounts May 3, 2023
  • WisTL Launches WisTLing App to Explore The Filming Locations of TV Series and Movies April 28, 2023
  • BrandChamp Acquires CrewFire April 12, 2023
  • Facebook Won’t Verify My Identity for Meta Verified April 4, 2023
  • ChatGPT Versus Google Bard: Which is Better? March 22, 2023
  • All Domain Names Need SSL: Parked Domains Are Losing Traffic, Revenue March 17, 2023
  • Google is Finally Sunsetting Google Glass March 16, 2023
  • Microsoft Teams Free Classic Shutting Down April 12, 2023 February 21, 2023
  • GoDaddy Customer Loses Domain Name Due to Auto Renew Fail February 9, 2023
  • dotDB is Not Shutting Down February 1, 2023
  • Someone Stole My Domain Name: Here’s What You Do January 4, 2023
  • Web Hosting Services Market to Grow to $254.86 Billion by 2029 December 13, 2022
  • This SEO Blog Post Was Written by ChatGPT December 8, 2022
  • Facebook Rolling Out Facebook Articles December 7, 2022

Hartzer Domains

US Agency Awards Judge

DFWSEM logo

Bill Hartzer is a Brand Ambassador for:



Industry Friends

I Love SEO
WTFSEO
SEO By the Sea
Jeff Lenney
Jeff Gabriel
Phil Drinkwater
Dixon Jones
Brian Hartzer
Navah Hopkins
DNAccess
SEO Dallas

Connect With Bill Hartzer

Bill Hartzer on Twitter
Bill Hartzer on Instagram
Hartzer Consulting on Facebook
Bill Hartzer on Facebook
Bill Hartzer on YouTube

Categories

  • Advertising (19)
  • AI (1)
  • Bing Search Engine (6)
  • Blogging (42)
  • Branding (12)
  • Domain Names (213)
  • Google (240)
  • Internet Marketing (25)
  • Internet Usage (85)
  • Link Building (53)
  • Local Search (39)
  • Marketing (183)
  • Marketing Foo (30)
  • Pay Per Click (3)
  • Podcast (18)
  • Public Relations (8)
  • Reputation Management (9)
  • Search Engine Marketing (44)
  • Search Engine Marketing Events (48)
  • Search Engine Marketing Firms (19)
  • Search Engine Marketing Jobs (33)
  • Search Engine Optimization (165)
  • Search Engines (205)
  • Social Media (194)
  • Tech (7)
  • Web Analytics (17)
  • Webinars (1)

Note: All product names, logos, and brands are property of their respective owners. All company, product and service names used in this website are for identification purposes only, and are mentioned only to help my readers. All other trademarks cited herein are the property of their respective owners. Use of these names, logos, and brands does not imply endorsement.




Hartzer Consulting



Website, Content, and Marketing by Hartzer Consulting, LLC.

Copyright © 2023 ·