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Featured Update
Practical Law Canada Competition

July 18, 2016

This Featured Update discusses the recent Online Reviews and Endorsements Guidelines issued by the International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network (ICPEN). It includes a summary of key principles and guidelines for review administrators, traders and marketing professionals, and digital influencers. It also highlights how these new Guidelines reflect the Canadian Competition Bureau’s approach to online reviews and endorsements, as well as other major consumer protection agencies.

Practical Law Canada Competition

Major competition and consumer protection agencies have been increasing their focus on digital marketing, including specific issues, such as online reviews and endorsements.

For example, the Competition Bureau (Bureau) has been increasing its guidance relating to reviews and endorsements. See Competition Bureau: Bulletin, The Deceptive Marketing Practices Digest (Volume 1) (2015). The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) also recently updated its Endorsement Guides FAQs. See The FTC’s Endorsement Guides: What People Are Asking.

Both the Bureau and FTC, as well as other consumer protection bodies, have also been increasing their enforcement efforts in relation to online reviews. See, for example, Federal Trade Commission: Press Release, Warner Bros. Settles FTC Charges It Failed to Adequately Disclose It Paid Online Influencers to Post Gameplay Videos (June 11, 2016) and Competition Bureau: Announcement, Bell Canada reaches agreement with Competition Bureau over online reviews (October 14, 2015).

In the latest major development in this area, on June 30, 2016, the International Consumer Protection Enforcement Network (ICPEN) published three new Online Reviews and Endorsements Guidelines in ICPEN: Online reviews guidelines mark end of CMA’s ICPEN presidency (June 30, 2016) (Online Reviews Guidelines). ICPEN’s new guidelines are focused on review administrators (organizations or individuals that process consumer reviews), traders and marketing professionals, and digital influencers (for example, bloggers and online publications).

While the Online Reviews Guidelines reflect international best practices and are not law, the Bureau is an ICPEN member, a member of the ICPEN working group that developed the Guidelines and recently announced its support and participation in the preparation of them. For more information, see Competition Bureau: CB in Brief (June 2016).

The Online Reviews Guidelines also reflect a number of key principles set out by the Bureau in its own guidelines and enforcement matters. See The Competition Bureau’s Approach to Online Reviews and Endorsements.

Key Principles and Guidelines

ICPEN’s new Online Reviews Guidelines are organized according to three types of online marketing participants: review administrators, traders and marketing professionals, and digital influencers.

In general, the Guidelines emphasize that online reviews and endorsements should be based on genuine user experiences (for example, no fake reviews), not be biased (for example, not only display positive reviews) and include adequate disclosures (for example, whether a review or endorsement has been paid for or otherwise compensated). (…)

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For the full Featured Update, see: New International Online Reviews and Endorsements Guidelines Give Practical Guidance to Marketers, Reflect Competition Bureau Policies.

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