Category Archive for: ‘Marketing and advertising’
E-tail & the details: consumer guarantees & overseas e-tailers
There wouldn’t be many people left who haven’t purchased something from overseas. E-commerce is booming here and overseas. But while it’s great for consumers and opens up new markets for businesses, it isn’t without its legal issues. For example, do the rules preventing companies from misleading and deceiving consumers in Australia apply to statements made by overseas companies over the …
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8 things you need to do now that Facebook has banned “like-gating”
“Like our page!” is a phrase you see a lot on Facebook. But following a change to Facebook’s Platform Policy last week, you may not see it as much. Great news for users, but maybe not-so-great news for those businesses relying on like-gates to gain traction on Facebook. Here are 8 things that all businesses on Facebook will want to think about now …
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US Food and Drug Administration releases draft guidances about social media and online communications
On 17 June 2014, the United States’ Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released two draft guidances relating to the promotion of prescription drugs or medical devices online or on social media. Designed with patients in mind, the FDA is aware that patients and health care providers often get information about FDA-regulated products through social media and other online sources, and …
Read MoreLift Shop v Easy Living Home Elevators: trade mark infringement and search engine optimisation
Can you infringe a competitor’s trade mark using “search engine optimisation” methods (“SEO” in industry-speak)? In Australia, the answer will depend largely on whether your use of that trade mark amounts to use “as a trade mark” within the meaning of the Trade Marks Act 1995 (Cth). In a recent decision of the Full Court of the Federal Court of …
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Major sporting events & a few hundred million reasons to protect sponsorship rights
The FIFA World Cup is upon us. We’ve already been bombarded with an extensive range of marketing campaigns, such as McDonald’s new range of World Cup burgers, and Coke’s specially designed World Cup bottles. These companies have paid a premium to be associated with the event. But what about those companies who use more stealth methods to get their name …
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What’s your flavour? Cadbury’s “Black Forest” chocolate unsuccessful in trade mark opposition to Whittaker’s “Berry Forest” mark
You might want to grab a cup of tea and a block of Cadbury’s “Black Forest” chocolate to settle in and read this blog post -or, if you prefer, a block of Whittaker’s “Berry Forest” chocolate. While Australians have had a choice between the two for several years now, New Zealanders will also be able to have an option soon, …
Read More15 minutes of fame: keeping “in-app” purchases in-check
The days of unauthorized in-app purchases are well and truly numbered, following a spate of private and regulatory enforcement action in the United States, and the issue being firmly on the agenda of regulators in the UK, EU and Australia. Our friends at our sister blog In Competition have written a post about this issue. For more, see here.
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Nappy Land is not happy land: no love on Valentine’s Day for National Australian Nappies
Valentine’s Day and nappies don’t usually appear in the same sentence. However, in a decision handed down by the Federal Court on 14 February 2014 (CI JI Family Pty Limited v National Australian Nappies (NAN) Pty Limited [2014] FCA 79) the Federal Court has reminded trade mark owners that they cannot view their marks as an ace-in-the-hole when it comes …
Read MoreCourt finds Optus misled consumers on network coverage
If you heard the following sentence in an advertisement, what would you think it means? “When it comes to the percentage of Australians the Optus mobile network reaches, there isn’t much difference between us and Telstra. In fact, it’s less than 1%.” What about if, as the voiceover was playing, the advertisement moved through images that showed a map of …
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