Naked Broadband Ads Catch iiNet with Pants Down

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By Scott Coulthart, Special Counsel

The ACCC announced on 3 March 2015 that it had issued penalties of $204,000 to iiNet for failing to display its total minimum price for its Naked Broadband 250GB product prominently enough.

The ACCC contended that the Australian Consumer Law requires that the total product price not only be displayed, but that it be displayed prominently.

The offending advertisements can be found in the ACCC announcement here.

Section 48(1) of the Australian Consumer Law provides that a trader must not make a representation about an amount that is part of the total price of a product unless they also specify prominently, and as a single figure, the total price of the product.  Section 48(5) goes on to say that (with certain exceptions) the total price will not be taken to have been specified prominently unless it is at least as prominent as the most prominent of the “parts” of the price that are specified.

Does that mean the total price has to be in at least as large a font as the parts specified and set out with the same placement and highlighting?  Probably not – but you probably have to do better than iiNet did on this occasion.

For further information, please do not hesitate to contact us.

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