[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 230 (Thursday, December 1, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73765-73766]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-26143]


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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

[File No. 202-3092]


Google LLC and iHeartMedia, Inc.; Analysis of Proposed Consent 
Order To Aid Public Comment

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION: Proposed consent agreement; request for comment.

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SUMMARY: The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged 
violations of federal law prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts or 
practices. The attached Analysis of Proposed Consent Order 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 January 3, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties may file comments online or on paper by 
following the instructions in the Request for Comment part of the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below. Please write ``Google LLC and 
iHeartMedia, Inc.; File No. 202-3092'' on your comment, and file your 
comment online at https://www.regulations.gov by following the 
instructions on the web-based form. If you prefer to file your comment 
on paper, mail your comment to the following address: Federal Trade 
Commission, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 
CC-5610 (Annex D), Washington, DC 20580.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karen Mandel (202-326-2491), Bureau of 
Consumer Protection, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue 
NW, Washington, DC 20580.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to section 6(f) of the Federal 
Trade Commission Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and FTC Rule 2.34, 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 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 at 
https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/commission-actions.
    You can file a comment online or on paper. For the Commission to 
consider your comment, we must receive it on or before January 3, 2023. 
Write ``Google LLC and iHeartMedia, Inc.; File No. 202-3092'' 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 https://www.regulations.gov website.
    Because of the agency's heightened security screening, postal mail 
addressed to the Commission will be subject to delay. We strongly 
encourage you to submit your comments online through the https://www.regulations.gov website.
    If you prefer to file your comment on paper, write ``Google LLC and 
iHeartMedia, Inc.; File No. 202-3092'' on your comment and on the 
envelope and mail your comment to the following address: Federal Trade 
Commission, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 
CC-5610 (Annex D), Washington, DC 20580.
    Because your comment will be placed on the publicly accessible 
website at https://www.regulations.gov, you are solely responsible for 
making sure your comment does not include any sensitive or confidential 
information. In particular, your comment should not include sensitive 
personal information, such as your or anyone else'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 your comment does not include 
sensitive health information, such as medical records or other 
individually identifiable health information. In addition, your comment 
should not include any ``trade secret or any commercial or financial 
information which . . . is privileged or confidential''--as provided by 
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)--including competitively sensitive information such 
as costs, sales statistics, inventories, formulas, patterns, devices, 
manufacturing processes, or customer names.
    Comments containing material for which confidential treatment is 
requested must be filed in paper form, must be clearly labeled 
``Confidential,'' and must comply with FTC Rule 4.9(c). 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). Your comment will be kept 
confidential only if the General Counsel grants your request in 
accordance with the law and the public interest. Once your comment has 
been posted on the https://www.regulations.gov website--as legally 
required by FTC Rule 4.9(b)--we cannot redact or remove your comment 
from that website, unless you submit a confidentiality request that 
meets the requirements for such treatment under FTC Rule 4.9(c), and 
the General Counsel grants that request.
    Visit the FTC website at https://www.ftc.gov to read this document 
and the news release describing the proposed settlement. 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 January 3, 2023. For information on the 
Commission's privacy policy, including routine uses permitted by the 
Privacy Act, see https://www.ftc.gov/site-information/privacy-policy.

Analysis of Proposed Consent Order To Aid Public Comment

    The Federal Trade Commission (``Commission'') has accepted, subject 
to final approval, an agreement containing a consent order as to Google 
LLC (``Google'' or ``respondent''). The proposed consent order 
(``order'') has been placed on the public record for 30

[[Page 73766]]

days for receipt of comments by interested persons. Comments received 
during this period will become part of the public record. After 30 
days, the Commission will again review the order and the comments 
received and will decide whether it should withdraw the order or make 
it final.
    This matter involves Google's practices with respect to advertising 
for its Pixel 4 smartphone (the ``Pixel 4''). The complaint alleges 
that Google wrote, recorded, and disseminated first-person endorsements 
for the Pixel 4 by local radio personalities in several states. The 
complaint further alleges that, in the advertising, the respondent 
represented that the radio personalities owned or regularly used the 
Pixel 4, and had used it to take pictures at night, when the radio 
personalities did not own or regularly use the phone and had not used 
it to take pictures at night. The complaint alleges Google's 
representations were false and misleading, and violated section 5(a) of 
the FTC Act.
    The order includes injunctive relief that prohibits the alleged 
violations and fences in similar and related conduct for any Covered 
Product. Covered Product is defined as any: (i) Respondent consumer 
electronic product; (ii) any Respondent operating system for handheld 
devices; and (iii) any Respondent operating system or consumer-facing 
feature when marketed as part of any consumer electronic product.
    Part I prohibits misrepresenting that an endorser has owned or used 
any Covered Product or about an endorser's experience with any Covered 
Product. Part II requires the respondent to cooperate in any Commission 
investigation or case related to the conduct that is the subject of the 
complaint. Part III requires the respondent to distribute the order to 
certain persons and submit signed acknowledgments of order receipt.
    Part IV requires the respondent to file compliance reports with the 
Commission, and to notify the Commission of changes in corporate 
structure that might affect compliance obligations. Part V contains 
recordkeeping requirements for certain accounting records, personnel 
records, consumer complaints, training materials, and advertising and 
marketing materials, and all records necessary to demonstrate 
compliance with the order. Part VI contains other requirements related 
to the Commission's monitoring of the respondent's order compliance.
    Part VII provides the effective dates of the order, including that, 
with exceptions, the order will terminate in 20 years.
    The purpose of this analysis is to facilitate public comment on the 
order, and it is not intended to constitute an official interpretation 
of the complaint or order, or to modify the order's terms in any way.

    By direction of the Commission.
April J. Tabor,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2022-26143 Filed 11-30-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-P