On August 20, 2025, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) sued Fitness International, LLC and Fitness & Sports Club LLC – the parent companies of LA Fitness and other gym chains – for violations of Section 5 of the FTC Act and the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act (“ROSCA”) in connection with alleged practices that make it difficult for their customers to cancel their gym memberships and other add-on services. The FTC seeks a court order prohibiting the allegedly unfair and unlawful conduct and restitution to consumers harmed by the difficulty in cancelling memberships.Continue Reading FTC Sues LA Fitness Operators for Unfair Gym Cancellation Policies
FTC Takes Aim at Online Lead Generator
On August 7, 2025, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced a $45 million settlement with online lead generator MediaAlpha, Inc. and its subsidiary QuoteLab, LLC (collectively, “MediaAlpha”), resolving allegations that the companies misled consumers seeking health insurance products. According to the FTC, MediaAlpha tricked consumers into sharing sensitive personal information under the guise of offering health insurance options through their lead generation sites. MediaAlpha allegedly then used that data for abusive telemarketing, including calling numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry. The FTC also alleged that MediaAlpha auctioned off consumers’ information to third-party lead generators and telemarketers, who similarly used that data to make illegal telemarketing calls.Continue Reading FTC Takes Aim at Online Lead Generator
States Press Forward with Automatic Renewal Laws Amidst Vacating of the FTC’s Negative Option Rule
Autorenewal regulation has been a recent focus of both federal and state regulators. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently vacated the FTC’s Negative Option Rule on procedural grounds, but businesses need to remain vigilant of state regulatory requirements, including new ones that will take effect starting in September. Some of these regulations impose requirements similar to those in the FTC’s now-vacated rule. However, they also impose additional requirements, including regular subscription reminders and price increase notices. Below is a brief update on forthcoming requirements in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York that will impact subscription providers.Continue Reading States Press Forward with Automatic Renewal Laws Amidst Vacating of the FTC’s Negative Option Rule
FTC Issues Final “Click-to-Cancel” Rule
On October 16, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced a final “click-to-cancel” rule that amends the previous Negative Option Rule to “make it as easy for consumers to cancel their enrollment as it was to sign up.” The Rule also imposes extensive requirements regarding misrepresentations, disclosures, and consent, among others.
Continue Reading FTC Issues Final “Click-to-Cancel” RuleFTC Issues Final Rule on Reviews and Testimonials
On August 14, the FTC announced a final rule that, according to the FTC, is intended to “combat fake reviews and testimonials.” The rule will go into effect on October 21, 2024. This final rule is the culmination of the FTC’s issuance of an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) in November 2022 and notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) in June 2023. We previously analyzed the draft rule presented in the NPRM.
In response to public comments, the FTC made several substantive changes in the final rule. Many of these changes narrow the rule in helpful ways for businesses concerned about the breadth of the proposed rule, although a few changes arguably expand the rule. We have outlined some of the major differences between the draft and final rules below:Continue Reading FTC Issues Final Rule on Reviews and Testimonials
FTC Reaches Settlement with NGL Labs Over Children’s Privacy & AI
On July 9, 2024, the FTC and California Attorney General settled a case against NGL Labs (“NGL”) and two of its co-founders. NGL Labs’ app, “NGL: ask me anything,” allows users to receive anonymous messages from their friends and social media followers. The complaint alleged violations of the FTC Act
Continue Reading FTC Reaches Settlement with NGL Labs Over Children’s Privacy & AI