|
|
|
ACCC Alleges Crazy John's Advertising Misleading |
|
|
|
Written by Adam Gosling
|
|
Wednesday, 23 January 2008 |
Q. When is free not really free? A. When you pay too much for it. The
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has instituted
proceedings against Mobileworld Operating Pty Ltd
(trading as Crazy John's) for a series of adverts it believes are misleading.
The allegation is that the Crazy John's adverts contravene contravene sections 52
and 53 of the Trade
Practices Act 1974 in relation to the promotion of "certain of its
mobile phone plans".
The ACCC alleges that Crazy John's has engaged in misleading or
deceptive conduct by representing that handsets on its Crazy Phone
Plans are available 'FREE' or for '$0', when in fact consumers are
required to pay for the handsets through higher call rates than those
available on comparable plans which do not include a handset.
In this way, Crazy John's is in fact recouping the cost of the
handset by charging more for phone calls without making it clear to
customers that this is what is happening.
The ACCC is seeking a range of remedies including
declarations regarding the alleged contravening conduct and corrective
advertising.
The ACCC's proceedings utilise the Fast Track List in the Victorian
registry of the Federal Court, which is intended to streamline court
procedures in matters of this nature, thereby reducing the time and
cost of litigation. A scheduling conference has been provisionally set down for 29 February 2008.
Crazy John's managing director Brendan Fleiter told The Aus: "We are
not in a position to accept or refute the claims made by the ACCC but
are happy to work with them."
Newer news items
Older news items |
|
|
