Juhui Pharmaceutical Enterprises Co., Ltd.

Case:

Key Words:

ffalse and untrue, misleading

Reference:

Fair Trade Commission Decision of December 22, 2010 (the 998th Commissioners' Meeting), Disposition Kung Ch'u Tzu No. 099146

Industry:

Retail Sale of Home Furnishings in Specialized Stores (4743)

Relevant Laws:

Article 21(1) of the Fair Trade Law

Summary:

1. In its advertisement for the "massaging pillow" on Dasi Radio, Juhui (transliteration) Pharmaceutical Enterprises Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Juhui Co.) claimed that "the pillow complies with the national patent certification criteria. People normally turn dozens of times in their sleep and the weight of the head stimulates the meridians in the head and the ears each time they do so, making it possible to fall asleep quickly and sleep peacefully for a long period of time and giving people the energy to perform well at work the next day. Sleeping well makes people healthier and healthier. If it's difficult for you to fall asleep and you don't sleep peacefully for a long enough period, let the massaging pillow help you. The ergonomically designed pillow allows you to breathe smoothly without snoring. People originally hard of hearing … It only takes a few days to get used to it and then you will find it too comfortable to leave your pillow." The advertisement was suspected to be false and untrue.
2. Findings of the FTC after investigation and grounds for disposition:
   The content of the advertisement gave consumers the impression that the said product allowed the meridians in the back of the head, the neck and the back to be massaged and stimulated each time the user turned in his or her sleep. The blood circulation in the head would thus become more active and the user could fall asleep faster and sleep better and longer. However, Juhui Co. was unable to provide any test results to support the claim. According to No. 99032 Document from the Taiwan Society of Sleep Medicine, the said claim received no scientific evidences at all. The advertisement was therefore deemed a groundless, false, untrue and misleading representation in violation of Article 21 (1) of the Fair Trade Law. The company was imposed with an administrative fine of NT$50,000.

Appendix:
Juhui Pharmaceutical Enterprises Co., Ltd.'s Uniform Invoice Number: 70589375

Summarized by: Chao, Kuo-Sheng; Supervised by:Hsu, Hung-Jen