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Written on March 25, 2008
A Better Business Bureau unit is probing several Playtex Products advertising claims that Procter & Gamble Co. has challenged in court.
The National Advertising Division (NAD) of the Council of Better Business Bureaus referred three advertising claims made by Playtex Products Inc., a unit of Energizer Holdings Inc., to the Federal Trade Commission after Playtex elected not to participate in a self-regulatory forum, the NAD announced Monday.
According to the NAD, Cincinnati-based Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) challenged certain superiority and exclusivity claims made in broadcast advertising by Playtex for its Gentle Glide tampons. Rival P&G, which manufactures Tampax tampons, challenged the following claims:
- "All new, our best 360° protection ever"
- "With a new, worry-free, anti-leak core"
- "New absorbent core locks away fluid"
An Energizer spokeswoman did not immediately return a call seeking comment.
At the beginning of the NAD inquiry, Playtex told NAD that P&G had challenged the claims in federal court and that the federal court action deprived NAD of jurisdiction. Playtex also expressed concern that evidence submitted to NAD would be used by P&G in the federal court proceeding. Thus, Playtex said NAD could not participate in the challenge http://payday-z.com.
But NAD said it had jurisdiction to review the advertising because the challenged claims are not the subject of the federal court action. NAD told Playtex that P&G agreed to abide by the procedures and that all submissions in an NAD proceeding are to be kept confidential.
Playtex said although it supports the self-regulatory process it declined to participate in the self-regulatory forum in this case, thus prompting NAD to refer the matter to the Federal Trade Commission.
The National Advertising Review Council (NARC) was formed in 1971 by the Association of National Advertisers Inc. (ANA), the American Association of Advertising Agencies Inc. (AAAA), the American Advertising Federation Inc. (AAF) and the Council of Better Business Bureaus Inc. (CBBB). Its purpose is to foster truth and accuracy in national advertising through voluntary self-regulation. The NAD is a division of NARC.
St. Louis-based Energizer Holdings Inc. (NYSE: ENR) manufactures batteries, flashlights and shaving products. Energizer acquired Playtex Products Inc., whose brands include Banana Boat, Hawaiian Tropic and Wet Ones, in a $1.9 billion deal that closed on Oct. 1.
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