The U.S. Federal Trade Commission said Wednesday it had charged Liberty Media Corp.'s QVC shopping channel with making false claims for weight-loss products.
The company could face millions of dollars in fines because it has already agreed to steer clear of unsubstantiated advertising, said Joni Lupovitz, FTC assistant director for enforcement.
QVC settled a previous case in June 2000 with a promise to back up its claims with scientific evidence, but the TV channel violated that order by claiming that its For Women Only "Zero Fat" pills prevent absorption of dietary fat, the FTC said.
The company also made unsubstantiated claims for a variety of other pills, drinks and bars that supposedly help weight loss or boost energy, the FTC charged.
Many of the claims made by QVC spokespersons were scientifically impossible, an FTC official said in a press release. "No pill or drink can cause anyone to lose 125 pounds," said Howard Beales, head of the FTC's consumer-protection division. "QVC didn't keep its promise to use sound science and solid evidence to back up the claims it makes for the health products it sells."
A Liberty Media spokesman was not immediately available for comment.
The FTC said it was seeking civil penalties, consumer redress, and other penalties against the Englewood, Colorado, media company. The suit was filed in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia.
The company is liable for penalties of up to $11,000 per violation, a total that could reach into the millions if every time a spokesperson said "it really works" were counted, Lupovitz said.
The FTC settled a similar case against the Home Shopping Network, a division of InterActiveCorp., in 1999 for $1.1 million, and "we'd be seeking something more substantial than that here," Lupovitz said.
