UAB STUDIO MODERNA FINED FOR MISLEADING ADVERTISING OF DR LEVINE‘S ARTICLES

On 17 July, the Competition Council (Konkurencijos taryba, KT) imposed a fine of LTL 83 700 (EUR ~ 24,241) on UAB Studio Moderna (Studio Moderna) for misleading advertising of Dr Levine‘s articles.

During the investigation the KT determined that Studio Moderna by various means of advertising (in catalogues, brochures, press publications, on the Internet and television) in different periods from January 2009 till 16 October 2012 disseminated an advertisement about Dr Levine’s magnetic knee and wrist straps and magnetic belt. In the advertisement Studio Moderna indicated that Dr Levine’s articles relieve pain, swelling, stagnation (joint flexibility), arthritis, insomnia, inflammation, radiculitis and aid muscle relaxation as well as improve blood circulation. The advertisement concerned created an impression that the aforementioned articles are therapeutic means. The KT concluded that the claims disseminated by Studio Moderna meet the description of a therapeutic mean. However, in the course of the investigation, the KT determined that the articles concerned are not registered as medical devices with the features indicated in the advertisement, and the evidence provided by Studio Moderna also failed to provide the proof for the claims in the advertisement.

Having evaluated the information gathered during the investigation, the KT acknowledged that the advertisement about the healing effect of Dr Levine’s magnetic knee and wrist straps as well as magnetic belt promoted by Studio Moderna was misleading. When imposing a fine the KT took into consideration the damaging nature of the advertisement, notably long period and scope of advertisement’s dissemination, the mitigating circumstance (Studio Moderna instantly took actions in order to terminate the dissemination of the claims in the advertisement, hence, on its own initiative, prevented the damaging outcomes of the infringement) as well as the aggravating circumstance (Studio Moderna repeatedly infringed the provisions of the Law on Advertising).

Notice

Misleading advertising means advertising which in any way, including its presentation, deceives or is likely to deceive the persons to whom it is addressed or whom it reaches and which, by reason of its deceptive nature, is likely to affect their economic behaviour or which, for those reasons, harms or is likely to harm another person’s capabilities to compete (Law on Advertising, Article 2(4)).