FTC and seven states sue Google over misleading Pixel 4 ads

The FTC sued Google and iHeartMedia for misleading ads for the Google Pixel 4 in 2019 and 2020.

The FTC and seven US states are suing Google and iHeartMedia over allegedly “misleading”Pixel 4 ads. These promos aired between 2019 and 2020 and showed influencers touting the features of phones that apparently didn’t belong to them. According to several officials, Google didn’t even deliver the Pixel before most of the announcements were made.

FTC sues Google and iHeartMedia over misleading ads

iHeartMedia and 11 other radio networks aired this Pixel 4 ad in 10 different major markets. They would have been broadcast about 29,000 times. It is difficult to say how many people could listen to these pubs.

The Federal Trade Commission wants to prevent Google and iHeartMedia from making similar misleading ownership claims in the future. It also asks two companies to confirm their compliance with this requirement through reports. The states – Arizona, California, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York and Texas – also ordered the companies to pay a $9.4 million fine.

Google spokesman Jose Castañeda told Engadget that the company is “glad”to fix the problem and is “serious”about the marketing laws. He added that Google does not see this as a lawsuit and that the tech giant has only reached agreements with six of the seven states.

around Google Pixel 4 in 2019 and 2020

These distortions in smartphone advertising are far from new. Both Huawei and Samsung have previously been noted for using DSLR photos as pictures of their phones. There are also celebrities who advertise phones without showing they are using them. Gal Gadot had to defend herself against accusations that she promoted Huawei phones by tweeting from her iPhone, such as when the post came from her advertiser.

However, the accusations here are more serious. The FTC and member states allege that Google knowingly used false testimony. According to FTC director of consumer advocacy Samuel Levine, she showed “blatant disrespect”for truth in advertising laws. While this penalty is negligible compared to the antitrust sanctions Google has already faced, it could undermine the credibility of new ad campaigns for future Pixels and other products.