Monthly commercial law update: Top 5 developments in March

How the months come and go! It's April already. How did that happen*?

Anyhow, here's this month's top 5 commercial law developments taken from our March LexisPSL Commercial monthly round-up.

*As helpful as it may be, please refrain from writing to us here at Comet to explain how the calendar works. We are going to try to work it out for ourselves on this occasion. Thanks :-)

Advertising and marketing: ASA and CAP issue guidance for bloggers and new guidance on price comparisons

The Committee on Advertising Practice has published answers to FAQs that it provided to bloggers following the Advertising Standards Authority's publication of guidance on blogging in late 2013.

In summary, the ASA requires bloggers who are paid (directly or in kind) by a third-party to write reviews or comments about a product or service and who cede editorial control of the blog to that third party to be up-front with their followers by making clear that it is advertising.

Following that announcement, the ASA and CAP received a significant volume of queries from bloggers and brands asking for further information about the rules that are in place and how they can stick to them. These rules also apply to companies; so, any business or PR agency looking to promote products and services by entering into commercial relationships with bloggers should also be aware of them.

The guidance makes clear that bloggers and brands should also be mindful of fair trading laws under which companies are required to disclose* commercial relationships beyond what is required under the The UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing (CAP Code).

As well as the guidance on blogging, CAP has also issued guidance on comparing prices with your competitors, which highlights the rules 3.33 to 3.40 in the CAP Code. The guidance provides