The September edition of our quarterly Advertising | IP | Food Law news is out! Curious what the specialists at Hoogenraad & Haak have noticed in the world of advertising, intellectual property and food law? Then do read on. Please feel free to send us feedback – much appreciated! You can find our quarterly update here.
Read MoreNew European rules will be introduced for the marketing of dual quality products: products of the same brand and with the same packaging, but with a different quality per Member State. Are the rules getting stricter, or will it turn out better than expected?
Read More"Up to 30% discount on everything*", "DISCOUNT ON THE ENTIRE SITE*, be quick!". They are familiar slogans on websites, in mailboxes and on leaflets. Does the use of the words "everything" and "ENTIRE" mean that there is actually a discount on everything, or is it still possible to make exceptions?
Read MoreWhere should the packaging say that a product tastes like the depicted fruit? For a moment it seemed that taste could no longer be mentioned at all! The Advertising Code Committee had - unintentionally - clumsily written this down in the Optimel Vanilla custard case, filed by Foodwatch.
Read MoreNews from Europe: on 17 April 2019 the European Parliament voted to amend the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive. Most important change: much higher maximum fines for among others misleading advertising.
Read MoreThe recognizability of advertisements is often a point of discussion. For example, brochures on fire safety or the number of burglaries in the neighborhood turn out to be advertisement for smoke detectors and alarm systems. This kind of "informative advertising" is quite common and in the end it is often clear which company is trying to sell you a smoke detector.
Read MoreFortunately, it is now clear: when an influencer is being very positive about a product, but the producer of the product has nothing to do with that influencer (the producer did not pay for the positive post,neither is the product sampled), such a positive post falls under the freedom of speech while the strict rules on advertising do not apply. The Advertising Code for Social Media is not applicable. In cases like this, there is no need to mention something like #adv.
Read MoreEvery parent knows the situation: your child wants to buy certain cookies, with the Minions pictured on the packaging, or Dora The Explorer. The Stop Unhealthy Food Marketing to Kids Coalition could not stand it any longer and it is about to change. For a while, there has been regulations on advertising for foodstuffs: they may not be targeted at children of twelve years and younger.
Read MoreMathijs Peijnenburg was sworn in as a lawyer on 13 February 2019 at the District Court of Amsterdam and will continue his career as an associate at our firm. After a successful student internship, Mathijs Peijnenburg continued to work as a paralegal at Hoogenraad & Haak.
Read MorePlatforms such as Facebook and Instagram contain more and more advertisements. Some of these advertisements come from parties that offer counterfeit goods according to a fixed pattern. Recently, the Preliminary Judge of the District Court of Amsterdam ruled that Facebook is acting unlawfully towards Tommy Hilfiger by allowing advertisements (which meet certain specific characteristics) promoting counterfeit goods on its Facebook and Instagram platforms.
Read MoreShall we take an Uber (taxi)? That celebrity definitely used Botox (a toxin to treat facial wrinkles from Allergan Inc)! I gave my daughter a Barbie for her birthday (doll). It's so easy for these terms to creep in. You come up with a new product or service, it's a great success and, before you know it, the generic product or service comes to be designated by that brand name.
Read MoreDo you remember them? The blue and green tick marks on food packaging. These symbols have been in use since 2006 to help consumers choose healthier products. The party was over after 10 years: the tick marks were about to disappear gradually from the shelves. Products can no longer be produced with the tick marks after 18 October of this year.
Read MoreA brochure for a sustainable solar boiler contains an environmental claim. In summertime, the solar panels heat the solar boiler. For the winter months, a log fire helps to heat the water in the solar boiler, reducing gas consumption by 70%. The brochure's text is enthusiastic, with a quip: "This makes the whole Dutch environment, even the earth, happier". The complainant found this unacceptable: logs give off particulates and are therefore harmful rather than environmentally friendly. A full debate ensued.
Read MoreFollowing a successful student internship at our office, Mathijs Peijnenburg has stayed on as a legal assistant with Hoogenraad & Haak. He has quickly made himself indispensable in that position. Mathijs will continue his career as an advocaat with our firm from 2019. He will be working across the full range of our practice areas. Mathijs studied in England, the Netherlands and Australia. He worked for a number of law firms while he was studying and also gave courses in pleading at Leiden University. In his spare time, Mathijs enjoys turning out on the hockey field.
Read MoreIn the Netherlands, it is prohibited to advertise medicines to the general public. The Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport enforces strictly and imposes fines up to EUR 450.000 for each violation. A recent judgement proves that this fine cannot only be imposed on the manufacturer, but also on the PR agency that acts in the interests of the manufacturer. Agencies beware!
Read MoreIn a television commercial, a cool teenager confides that he is extremely tense about his final exams. Luckily, he has Original Clear Mind, ‘which helps me concentrate better and improves my academic performance’. The applicant considered touting this product to minors to be a grave mistake. The applicant was confusing ordinary CBD oil with the psychoactive ingredient in cannabis: THC.
Read MoreThe Shawshank Redemption without Morgan Freeman, Forrest Gump without Tom Hanks, both inconceivable. In most movies there is only one perfect man or woman for the job. However, this is different in the world of theater. It is not unusual that instead of the acclaimed Tony Award winner, you get to see a so called alternate in the lead. Not everyone is aware of this system though. And so, a visitor of the Dutch musical “Was getekend, Annie M.G. Schmidt” filed a complaint with the Dutch Advertising Code Committee (ACC).
Read MoreA video produced by Servero, an apple sauce producer, was posted on YouTube. A presenter asks passersby to take part in a taste test. Sample A is Servero’s 100% apple sauce without added sugar. Sample B is a ‘random’ leading brand with a purple lid that contains ‘no less than seven cubes of sugar’. Eight of the ten participants preferred the Servero 100% apple sauce. According to competitor HAK, it is abundantly clear that Sample B is its own HAK apple sauce.
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