The Metaverse is the newest way in which brands are thinking about engaging with existing and new customers. Wendy’s, for example, launched “Wendyverse” in Meta’s Horizon Worlds where users can engage virtually with the content and possibly unlock free food in real life. Given the understandable excitement that brands have about reaching their audience in new, exciting ways, brands need to remember that—similar to social media—the not-so-new rules regarding truth-in-advertising apply in the Metaverse.
Fenwick recently hosted a National Advertising Division seminar, and regulators emphasized that ads in the Metaverse must be truthful and not misleading even if the technological medium for delivery of those ads is nascent. The focus of our discussion is on three critical issues: (1) making advertising claims in the Metaverse; (2) deploying influencers to the Metaverse; and (3) avoiding user interfaces that use dark patterns to “trick” or “trap” in a way that can be perceived as deceptive. The risks of making such false claims not only invite regulatory scrutiny, but the potential for consumer class actions and competitor suits.
One unique issue about advertising in the Metaverse is the potential to make three-dimensional claims. A Metaverse application that purports to reflect how a real-life article of clothing would look could be found to make the claim that the article of clothing would fit as shown digitally if worn by the consumer in reality. This is a...
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