The High Court has found that consumers can be protected even if they haven’t fully read their terms and even if they were outside of Australia when they accepted them.
Whether or not Bill C-27 moves companies away from deceptive design in apps and websites depends on how, and if, the Canadian government holds companies accountable for their actions.
Companies are allowed to track users as much as they like — as long as they spell it out in the fine print. But a ground-breaking Australian legal judgement should give them pause.
Victoria Stace, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington; Alexandra Sims, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau, and Emily Chan, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington
A new study suggests the Commerce Commission needs to get tougher with New Zealand businesses over their general terms and conditions.
Builders compete for customers by touting the features of their homes. Some builders promote ‘six-star’ home energy ratings in ways that could mislead consumers and breach Australian Consumer Law.
At the moment, buying a house with a “history” falls under the “buyer beware” provision. But changes to Victorian law shift the onus to estate agents to disclose “stigmatised” property.
A New Zealand pizza chain deceived customers by offering plant-based meat without telling them - but it did so out of concerns for the environment.
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Samuel Becher, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington and Jessica C Lai, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington
Plant-based meats are disrupting the food market and some companies.
The consumer watchdog has accused Kogan Australia of misleading customers, by touting discounts on more than 600 items it had previously raised the price of.
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Insights from behavioural (and traditional) economics help explain why discounting – both real and fake – is such an effective marketing ploy.
Amazon’s WiFi buttons enable you to instantly order specific branded products such as soft drinks, beer and condoms. You needn’t even get out of bed.
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Australian businesses will not be forced to comply with or fall foul of the new data regulation merely because they maintain websites accessible in the EU.
E-books, downloaded music and other digital products aren’t covered by Australian consumer law.
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Jenni Henderson, The Conversation; Josh Nicholas, The Conversation, and Nadia Isa, The Conversation
Business Briefing: the ‘get rich quick scheme’ influencing what you buy
The Conversation19.6 MB(download)
Even though online influencers might not be overtly endorsing a product, advertisers will still pay a lot to have something featured, even subtly, in a post.