FBI Contacts ANA for Help
We don’t want to over play the Fed’s looking into the ad biz regarding criminal activities of buying practices. Things are moving along. The latest report is, the FBI contacted the Association of National Advertisers’, outside counsel, Reed Smith LLP, for cooperation with the investigation. The ANA response? We “cannot provide help to the FBI other than to share communication and information with our members.” ANA CEO Bob Liodice, advised, “Advertisers who think they may have been defrauded to retain counsel.”
Keep this in mind if you know something or were involved: the corporate guys rarely get caught or punished. It’s the people under them who are held responsible and end up taking the fall. Don’t be that guy.
The ANA represents more than 1,100 different companies representing around 25,000 different brands that spend $400 billion in advertising and marketing yearly.
The federal action is looking into the buying practices of purchasing advertising from media sellers. Non-transparent business practices among media agencies, alleging kickbacks, unauthorized rebates and the undisclosed resale of ad inventory at higher prices media buying has been the focus.
Read more from ‘Variety‘ ⇒ FBI Contacts Influential Advertiser Group Over U.S. Ad Buying Probe
