[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 179 (Thursday, September 15, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57041-57043]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-23594]


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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

[File No. 102 3205]


Kobe Brown and Gregory W. Pearson, dba DERMAPPS; Analysis of 
Proposed Consent Order To Aid Public Comment

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION: Proposed Consent Agreement.

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SUMMARY: The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged 
violations of federal law prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts or 
practices or unfair methods of competition. The attached Analysis to 
Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations in the draft 
complaint and the terms of the consent order--embodied in the consent 
agreement--that would settle these allegations.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before October 10, 2011.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties may file a comment online or on paper, by 
following the instructions in the Request for Comment part of the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below. Write ``DERMAPPS, File No. 102 
3205'' on your comment, and file your comment online at https://
ftcpublic.commentworks.com/ftc/

[[Page 57042]]

acneappconsent, by following the instructions on the web-based form. If 
you prefer to file your comment on paper, mail or deliver your comment 
to the following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the 
Secretary, Room H-113 (Annex D), 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20580.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stacey Ferguson (202-326-2361) or 
James A. Prunty (202-326-2438), FTC, Bureau of Consumer Protection, 600 
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20580.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to section 6(f) of the Federal 
Trade Commission Act, 38 Stat. 721, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and Sec. 2.34 the 
Commission Rules of Practice, 16 CFR 2.34, notice is hereby given that 
the above-captioned consent agreement containing a consent order to 
cease and desist, having been filed with and accepted, subject to final 
approval, by the Commission, has been placed on the public record for a 
period of thirty (30) days. The following Analysis to Aid Public 
Comment describes the terms of the consent agreement, and the 
allegations in the complaint. An electronic copy of the full text of 
the consent agreement package can be obtained from the FTC Home Page 
(for September 8, 2011), on the World Wide Web, at http://www.ftc.gov/os/actions.shtm. A paper copy can be obtained from the FTC Public 
Reference Room, Room 130-H, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, 
DC 20580, either in person or by calling (202) 326-2222.
    You can file a comment online or on paper. For the Commission to 
consider your comment, we must receive it on or before October 10, 
2011. Write ``DERMAPPS, File No. 102 3205'' on your comment. Your 
comment--including your name and your state--will be placed on the 
public record of this proceeding, including, to the extent practicable, 
on the public Commission Web site, at http://www.ftc.gov/os/publiccomments.shtm. As a matter of discretion, the Commission tries to 
remove individuals' home contact information from comments before 
placing them on the Commission Web site.
    Because your comment will be made public, you are solely 
responsible for making sure that your comment does not include any 
sensitive personal information, like anyone's Social Security number, 
date of birth, driver's license number or other state identification 
number or foreign country equivalent, passport number, financial 
account number, or credit or debit card number. You are also solely 
responsible for making sure that your comment does not include any 
sensitive health information, like medical records or other 
individually identifiable health information. In addition, do not 
include any ``[t]rade secret or any commercial or financial information 
which is obtained from any person and which is privileged or 
confidential,'' as provided in Section 6(f) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. 
46(f), and FTC Rule 4.10(a)(2), 16 CFR 4.10(a)(2). In particular, do 
not include competitively sensitive information such as costs, sales 
statistics, inventories, formulas, patterns, devices, manufacturing 
processes, or customer names.
    If you want the Commission to give your comment confidential 
treatment, you must file it in paper form, with a request for 
confidential treatment, and you have to follow the procedure explained 
in FTC Rule 4.9(c), 16 CFR 4.9(c).\1\ Your comment will be kept 
confidential only if the FTC General Counsel, in his or her sole 
discretion, grants your request in accordance with the law and the 
public interest.
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    \1\ In particular, the written request for confidential 
treatment that accompanies the comment must include the factual and 
legal basis for the request, and must identify the specific portions 
of the comment to be withheld from the public record. See FTC Rule 
4.9(c), 16 CFR 4.9(c).
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    Postal mail addressed to the Commission is subject to delay due to 
heightened security screening. As a result, we encourage you to submit 
your comments online. To make sure that the Commission considers your 
online comment, you must file it at https://ftcpublic.commentworks.com/ftc/acneappconsent by following the instructions on the web-based form. 
If this Notice appears at http://www.regulations.gov/#!home, you also 
may file a comment through that website.
    If you file your comment on paper, write ``DERMAPPS, File No. 102 
3205'' on your comment and on the envelope, and mail or deliver it to 
the following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the 
Secretary, Room H-113 (Annex D), 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20580. If possible, submit your paper comment to the 
Commission by courier or overnight service.
    Visit the Commission Web site at http://www.ftc.gov to read this 
Notice and the news release describing it. The FTC Act and other laws 
that the Commission administers permit the collection of public 
comments to consider and use in this proceeding as appropriate. The 
Commission will consider all timely and responsive public comments that 
it receives on or before October 10, 2011. You can find more 
information, including routine uses permitted by the Privacy Act, in 
the Commission's privacy policy, at http://www.ftc.gov/ftc/privacy.htm.

Analysis of Agreement Containing Consent Order To Aid Public Comment

    The Federal Trade Commission (``FTC'' or ``Commission'') has 
accepted, subject to final approval, an agreement containing a consent 
order from Kobe Brown and Gregory W. Pearson, dba DERMAPPS 
(``respondents'').
    The proposed consent order (``proposed order'') has been placed on 
the public record for thirty (30) days for receipt of comments by 
interested persons. Comments received during this period will become 
part of the public record. After thirty (30) days, the Commission will 
again review the agreement and the comments received, and will decide 
whether it should withdraw from the agreement and take appropriate 
action or make final the agreement's proposed order.
    This matter involves the advertising of a mobile software 
application (``app'') called AcneApp which respondents developed and 
sold in Apple's iTunes Store. Respondents claimed that AcneApp 
effectively treats acne. The instructions for this app directed 
consumers to hold the light-emitting display screen next to the area of 
skin to be treated for several minutes each day.
    The Commission's complaint alleges that respondents violated 
Sections 5 and 12 of the FTC Act by claiming, without substantiation, 
that the app provided an effective treatment for acne. The complaint 
also alleges that the respondents falsely represented that a study 
published in the British Journal of Dermatology proves that blue and 
red light therapy, such as that provided by AcneApp, is an effective 
treatment for acne.
    The proposed consent order contains provisions designed to prevent 
respondents from engaging in similar practices in the future. Part I of 
the order prohibits respondents from making any representation that 
AcneApp, or any other device, as defined by Section 15 of the FTC Act, 
provides effective treatment for acne, unless respondents have 
competent and reliable scientific evidence to substantiate that claim.
    Part II of the order requires respondents to have competent and 
reliable scientific evidence before making any safety, performance, 
benefits, or efficacy claim about any device.

[[Page 57043]]

    Part III of the order is a standard order provision relating to 
establishment claims, prohibiting the misrepresentation of any 
research, tests, or studies.
    Part IV of the order requires respondents, within 15 days of the 
order, to pay the Commission $14,294.
    The remaining parts of the proposed order are standard provisions 
regarding record-keeping, dissemination of the order to officers and 
employees, prior notification to the Commission of corporate changes, 
notification of new employment, filing compliance of reports, and 
sunsetting of the order.
    The purpose of this analysis is to facilitate public comment on the 
proposed order, and it is not intended to constitute an official 
interpretation of the agreement and proposed order or to modify in any 
way their terms.

    By direction of the Commission.
Donald S. Clark,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011-23594 Filed 9-14-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-P