Photo of Jason Howell

Jason Howell serves as co-chair of the Advertising, Marketing & Promotions practice and as a member of the Trademark, Copyright & Media practice.

To encourage transparency and compliance with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Act and address current practices and trends, the FTC first published the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (Guides) in 1980 and then amended them in 2009. The Guides reflect the FTC’s position on applying the FTC Act to endorsement-related issues.

Continue Reading FTC Proposes Updated Guidance for Influencer and Consumer Review Programs

Key Takeaways:

  • The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued two new guides for platforms and marketers to help ensure transparency in online reviews and address soliciting, moderating, and reporting reviews, and the use of third-party “reputation boosting” services.
  • The FTC has actively enforced against companies responsible for publishing deceptive reviews and blocking honest reviews, and recently announced a proposed $4.2 million settlement with online retailer Fashion Nova over the retailer’s practice of review-gating.


Continue Reading FTC Guidance for Platforms and Marketers Utilizing Online Customer Reviews

Jason Howell and Amanda Beane talk with Janis Kestenbaum, partner at Perkins Coie and former Federal Trade Commission (FTC) attorney, about the makeup and direction of the FTC as it relates to advertising and marketing law. They focus on how the aggressive tendencies of the current commission will affect marketing and advertising-related enforcement trends.

The new Self-Regulatory Guidelines for Children’s Advertising (the Guidelines) issued by the Children’s Advertising Review Unit (CARU) went into effect on January 1, 2022. The Guidelines apply to advertising that is primarily directed at children under the age of 13 in any medium. CARU will monitor child-directed advertising and media for compliance with the Guidelines

Key Takeaways:

  • The FTC’s new Enforcement Policy Statement provides a roadmap for how the FTC may enforce against allegedly unfair and deceptive practices related to automatically recurring subscriptions.
  • The Enforcement Policy Statement may indicate a more aggressive approach by the FTC toward recurring billing and subscription programs.


Continue Reading FTC Issues Enforcement Statement on Recurring Subscription Programs and Dark Patterns

For 50 years, the National Advertising Division (NAD) has been at the forefront of monitoring national advertising, enforcing high standards of truth and accuracy, and resolving advertising disputes (typically between competitors) to build consumer trust and support fair and truthful marketing. In this episode, Jason Howell and Amanda Beane talk with Vice President of the

Key Takeaways:

  • On October 4, 2021, California passed an amended automatic renewal law that will require businesses to follow stricter cancellation and notice requirements for subscription-based products and services.
  • The updated law goes into effect on July 1, 2022.


Continue Reading California Passes Updated Automatic Renewal Law