This new change will allow informal hearing procedures and eliminate the current rules that are not articulated in the FTC Act—like the publication of a staff report that contains a rulemaking and recommendations record for public comment—but maintain that these updated procedures will offer extensive opportunities for public comment.

The advertising watchdog group TruthInAdvertising.org (TINA) sent a letter yesterday to the Acting Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), requesting that the FTC “implement a penalty offense program targeting the direct selling industry and its market-wide practice of utilizing deceptive earnings representations and false health claims.” The letter […]

The Direct Selling Association (DSA) released an official statement following an announcement by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the state of Arkansas that accuses Blessing Loom of being a pyramid scheme. In its statement, the DSA said the situation “highlights the value of and need for strong anti-pyramid laws and enforcement.”

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced in a Statement of Commissioner Rohit Chopra that it will begin looking for other methods to seek restitution or disgorgement from companies in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that the Commission could not do so using Section 13(b) of the FTC Act.

Companies utilizing the negative option feature should take note: the FTC has found a new avenue for obtaining monetary relief.

The Supreme Court ruled that the FTC cannot use Section 13(b) to seek monetary relief without due process. Now a new bill is seeking to unravel that decision.

In a unanimous court decision, the Supreme Court announced that Section 13(b) of the FTC Act does not authorize the FTC “to seek, or a court to award, equitable monetary relief such as restitution or disgorgement.” The ruling does affirm that the FTC can seek monetary relief, but it must first invoke “its administrative procedures […]

The Direct Selling Self-Regulatory Council (DSSRC) is now referring Bulavita, a direct selling company specializing in muscadine-based supplements, to the Federal Trade Commission. The DSSRC reached out to the company about claims that have been made concerning product efficacy and distributor earning claims, but the company failed to reply. Included in the DSSRC’s inquiry are […]

The year 2019 will go down as one of the biggest sea change years in the history of our channel. Our cover story this month will cover the events that impacted our channel the most: pressure from regulatory bodies, continued competition from alternative income opportunities, a hot new ingredient makes its debut, and finally, customer […]

In 2019 Direct Selling Faced Some Strong Headwinds Throughout this year the editors at Direct Selling News have had no shortage of topics to talk about. Never before have we seen such a year that has so dramatically impacted the future of direct selling. We began 2019 with troubling news out of China and ended […]

The recent FTC actions against Advocare and Neora underscore how critically important it is for direct selling to avoid becoming ensnared in an FTC investigation Neora’s recent lawsuit challenging the FTC’s enforcement authority is a welcome and needed response to what appears to be increasing regulatory overreach and efforts by the FTC to improperly legislate […]

The Direct Selling Association’s (DSA) Legal & Government Relations Team yesterday issued a memorandum related to last Friday’s Federal Trade Commission (FTC) action against member company Neora. The memorandum, sent to the DSA Board and executive committees, notes three areas in which FTC criteria or guidance used in the complaint have not been used in previous cases. […]