For iHeartMedia, A Sliver Of A Huge Fine Will Settle Deceptive Pixel 4 Ads

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By Matthew Keys, with additional reporting by Adam R Jacobson


In late January, the Attorney General of the State of Texas, Ken Paxton, took action in response to what he perceived was a violation of § 17.46 of the Texas Deceptive Trade
Practices—Consumer Protection Act (DTPA). It involves Google, and its Pixel 4 smartphone. And, it involves iHeartMedia.

Six other states followed suit, and the Federal Trade Commission got involved, too.

Now, Google and the nation’s biggest owner of broadcast radio stations are settling with the U.S. government.

As first reported by Streamline Publishing’s Radio Ink, The Federal Trade Commission and seven state attorneys general, including Paxton, reached a settlement of their lawsuits against Google LLC and iHeartMedia, Inc. for airing nearly 29,000 “deceptive” endorsements by radio personalities promoting their use of and experience with Google’s Pixel 4 phone in 2019 and 2020.

The proposed FTC orders and the state judgments settling the allegations bar Google and iHeartMedia from similar misrepresentations. But, the state judgments also require iHeartMedia and Google to pay a combined $9.4 million in penalties.

It marks the conclusion of a year-long matter that put a cloud on live reads for products endorsed by air personalities and social influencers who didn’t really use the good or service as described. As such, even though some air personalities at iHeartMedia balked over prepared scripts they were required to read when promoting the Pixel 4, the company and Google were charged with “false, misleading, and deceptive acts and practices” by the FTC and attorneys general.

As RBR+TVBR reported in January, the matter centers on how Google hired local media personalities — including those employed by iHeartMedia — to record and broadcast advertisements that promoted the Pixel 4 smartphone sold by Google. In Texas, iHeartMedia personalities in the Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston markets were asked to participate in the promotion.

Here’s the problem: “Google knew that the Pixel 4 was not yet on the market and so the radio personalities could not provide an honest endorsement,” Paxton’s office said in January. The Texas AG also claimed that Google provided a script for the Pixel 4 advertisements and “demanded” that the radio personalities recording the advertisements give a first-hand endorsement of the product.

That claim appears to be correct, and was replicated in six other states, including Arizona, California, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, and New York. As the FTC sees it, Google three years ago hired iHeartMedia “and 11 other radio networks” in 10 major markets to have on-air personalities record and broadcast endorsements of the Pixel 4 phone. Google provided iHeartMedia with scripts that included lines about the Pixel 4 phone like, “It’s my favorite phone camera out there, especially in low light, thanks to Night Sight Mode,” “I’ve been taking studio-like photos of everything,” and “It’s also great at helping me get stuff done, thanks to the new voice activated Google Assistant that can handle multiple tasks at once.”

Talent were even told to say that they took photos inside radio studios, captured family events and even photographed a “rare spotted owl that landed in my backyard.”

“Pics or it didn’t happen, am I right?” the script read.

However, as RBR+TVBR reported in January, the on-air personalities were not provided with Pixel 4s before recording and airing the majority of the ads and therefore did not own or regularly use the phones.

At least one iHeartMedia employee expressed concerns about having radio personalities offer anecdotal testimony on the phone’s photography features that they never actually used. When the employee asked Google if it would be possible to give radio talent devices, a Google staffer reportedly wrote back that “this is not feasible…as the product is not on shelves yet,” the complaint alleged.

The Lone Star State iHeartMedia-voiced advertisements aired exactly 2,405 times between October 28, 2019, and December 2, 2019, the State of Texas says. However, the Pixel 4 was not released until October 24, 2019, and iHeartMedia began recording the Pixel 4 advertisements the week of October 21, 2019.

While Google is headquartered in Mountain View, Calif., it was served through its Austin offices.

Google’s media buying agent for the iHeartMedia campaign is PHD Media.

“Google and iHeartMedia paid influencers to promote products they never used, showing a blatant disrespect for truth-in-advertising rules,” Bureau of Consumer Protection Director Samuel Levine said. “The FTC will not stop working with our partners in the states to crack down on deceptive ads and ensure firms that break the rules pay a price.”

Maura Healey, the Massachusetts Attorney General, added, “It is common sense that people put more stock in first-hand experiences. Consumers expect radio advertisements to be truthful and transparent about products, not misleading with fake endorsements. [This] settlement holds Google and iHeart accountable for this deceptive ad campaign and ensures compliance with state and federal law moving forward.”

Officially, proposed orders settling the FTC’s charges have been drafted, and are expected to be approved given Google and iHeartMedia’s willingness to settle.

Terms call for the prohibition of Google from misrepresenting that an endorser has owned or used, or about their experience with, certain products; bar iHeartMedia from misrepresenting that an endorser has owned or used, or about their experience with, any consumer product or service; and require Google and iHeartMedia to distribute the order to certain people, file compliance reports with the Commission, and keep records to allow the FTC to ensure compliance.

An official in the office of California’s attorney general tells Radio Ink that Google will bear the brunt of the fine, while iHeartMedia will be on the hook for $400,000.

According to an administrative complaint reviewed by Radio Ink, Google paid iHeartMedia more than $2.6 million to record and broadcast the commercial spots, many of which included their radio personalities. Separately, Google spent another $2 million for commercial spots that were produced and aired by the smaller radio networks, who were not named by the FTC.

A spokesperson for iHeartMedia told Radio Ink the company had no comment on the FTC settlement. A spokesperson for Google told technology website The Verge that the company was “pleased to resolve the issue.”