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Paying celebrities to tweet, without disclosure, does not necessarily break consumer law

By  |  May 27, 2012

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has determined that when celebrities do not disclose that they were paid to tweet, they do not break any consumer laws. The ACCC examined tweets by celebrity chef Matt Moran and singer Shannon Noll. They had been paid $750 to tweet about Kangaroo Island, endorsing it as a travel destination, but did not disclose the compensation received. However, since the celebrities had only tweeted that they heard Kangaroo Island was a good place to visit, without claiming to have actually been there, the ACCC felt that the actions amounted to less than the misrepresentation necessary to be a consumer violation.

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    Full content: Sydney Morning Herald

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    Related content: Behavioral Economics, Consumer Protection, and Antitrust (Michael Salinger, Boston University School of Management)

     

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