CARU Recommends Time, Inc., Modify Child-Directed Sweepstakes Advertising
New York, NY – March 19, 2014 – The Children’s Advertising Review Unit (CARU) has recommended that TIME Inc., publisher of Sports Illustrated Kids, modify sweepstakes advertising to assure that children better understand the odds of winning.
CARU is an investigative unit of the advertising industry’s system of self-regulation. It is administered by the Council of Better Business Bureaus.
An advertisement for the Sports Illustrated Kids’ “CyberHoop Sweepstakes” appeared in Sports Illustrated Kids magazine. The advertisement directed children to the Nerf website to enter the Sweepstakes.
The five-page advertisement for the “Nerf Cyber Hoop Slam Dunk” Sweepstakes provided information on a Cyber Hoop gaming app and sweepstakes eligibility and directed readers of the magazine to sikids.com/cyberhoop to enter the Sweepstakes.
CARU noted in its decision that the landing page of the website appeared similar to the final page of the print advertisement. The website also offered an electronic means of entering the sweepstakes. However, CARU noted, neither the print advertisement nor the website disclosed the odds of winning as required by CARU’s guidelines.
CARU recommended that future sweepstakes advertising provide disclosures like “Many will enter, few will win” in the ad as well as at the point of entry on the website.
The company, in its advertiser’s statement, said it accepted CARU’s decision and would modify sweepstakes advertising in future promotions.
Subscribe to the Ad Law Insights or Privacy Initiatives newsletters for an exclusive monthly analysis and insider perspectives on the latest trends and case decisions in advertising law and data privacy.
Latest Decisions
National Advertising Division Recommends Blueprint Test Preparation Discontinue Certain MCAT Score Improvement Claims
New York, NY – April 22, 2024 – The National Advertising Division recommended Blueprint Test Preparation discontinue certain express and implied claims made in connection with its four MCAT preparation courses, including claims that Blueprint students raise their MCAT scores by 15 or 13 points on average.
National Advertising Division Recommends The Princeton Review Discontinue Point Increase Claims for MCAT Test Preparation Services
New York, NY – April 18, 2024 – In a Fast-Track SWIFT challenge, the National Advertising Division recommended that The Princeton Review (TPR) discontinue claims that its students “Score a 515+ on the MCAT or add 15 points depending on your starting score. Guaranteed or your money back.”
Direct Selling Self-Regulatory Council Recommends Trades of Hope Discontinue Salesforce Member Earnings Claims
McLean, VA – April 17, 2024 – The Direct Selling Self-Regulatory Council (DSSRC) recommended that Trades of Hope discontinue certain earnings claims made by salesforce members on Facebook and YouTube.
National Advertising Division Recommends Lily of the Desert Nutraceuticals Discontinue “100% Pure Avocado Oil” Claim for Tropical Plantation Avocado Oil
New York, NY – April 15, 2024 – The National Advertising Division recommended that Lily of the Desert Nutraceuticals discontinue the claim “100% Pure Avocado Oil” for its Tropical Plantation Avocado Oil and avoid conveying the unsupported message that the product is 100% pure avocado...