On the 27th, Academician Zhong Nanshan said that he had never endorsed or recommended any products for any merchants, including e-commerce. At the same time, he believes that the illegal use of other people's portraits for commercial endorsements and recommendations will also mislead consumers and infringe on the legitimate rights and interests of consumers. In this regard, he hopes that platforms and merchants can actively deal with this situation as soon as possible, and also hopes that relevant departments will strengthen industry supervision to safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of consumers. The lawyer entrusted by Academician Zhong Nanshan's team said that a lawyer's letter had been sent to the platform and was defending his rights, and the platform told him that it was being processed, but it had not yet been processed.
Academician Zhong Nanshan. Xinhua News Agency data map.
Recently, consumer Mu Mu (pseudonym) reported that on December 23, when he was buying plasters for his family on an e-commerce platform, he found that the relevant products of some stores were promoted by Zhong Nanshan, Li Lanjuan and other academicians, and the products claimed to be able to **arthritis, **disease and diabetes and other diseases. According to his incomplete statistics, there are hundreds of related stores involved, and there are thousands of related **. Subsequently, he reported the relevant situation to the platform. On the morning of the 25th, a customer service staff replied that the problems he reported had been verified and dealt with, and they would be dealt with one after another.
Liu Junhai, a professor at the Law School of Chinese Minmin University, said that using other people's portraits to promote products without authorization and making false recommendations or proofs infringes on the portrait rights of others, and can easily lead consumers to believe that they are true, and at the same time infringe on consumers' rights to know, choose, citizen transactions and security guarantees, and undermine the integrity of enterprises and the order of fair competition. At the same time, when e-commerce platforms detect or notice that merchants infringe on portrait rights, they should promptly urge rectification within a time limit, or terminate the provision of relevant transaction assistance and facilitation, so as to win the respect and trust of consumers, and optimize a stable, fair, transparent, and predictable business environment based on the rule of law.
A large number of e-commerce products are promoted in the form of celebrity endorsements or recommendations Source: CCTV.
The merchant said that it was not Zhong Nanshan's endorsement, and introduced the product's ** efficacy Source: CCTV.
Reporter investigation: The business claims to only display, not celebrity endorsement
On December 24, according to the store name and product map provided by Mumu, the reporter randomly selected nearly 20 stores and products for investigation. Among them, a company called "Yipin Chinese Medicine Hall", a variety of products are displayed in the picture of Zhong Nanshan's, these products include "rhinitis patch, special effect ointment, special tinnitus patch" and other products.
Subsequently, the reporter selected a display picture of Zhong Nanshan's product, which is called the best urine protein. The reporter asked the customer service whether the product was endorsed by Zhong Nanshan, and the other party replied: "No, Zhong Lao does not endorse any drugs." In the other two shops, "McDull Beauty and Skin Care Hut" and "Inheritance Physician Chinese Medicine Hall", the reporter found that a variety of product display pictures were Zhong Nanshan**, and even one ** was accompanied by the words "invalid and severed off". The reporter asked the merchant about this, and one shop said that the product was not endorsed by Zhong Nanshan, while the customer service staff of another store said, "This is a display, you can shoot it with confidence, don't care." ”
The merchant denied that the product was endorsed by a celebrity, and introduced its health care products as urine protein Source: CCTV.
In the investigation, in the two stores named "Wang's Health Center Store" and "Baixinglin Health Hall", one showed the product promotion picture of "regulating menstruation" for Li Lanjuan, and the other showed the product promotion picture of "varicose veins special effect cream", ** on which is the centenarian Pan Qihua. The reporter asked whether the two products were endorsed or recommended by the two, and some customer service did not reply, and some customer service said "no".
Mu Mu said that after he complained to the platform, on the morning of the 25th, the platform replied: "The problems reflected and the merchant stores provided have been fed back to the relevant departments of the platform for further verification and disposal, and feedback has also been given to the relevant merchants. For store violations and product anomalies, the platform will reserve some rights for merchants to dispose of stores, including product removal from the shelves, product rectification, etc. ”
Lawyer: Violating business ethics and infringing on others' portrait rights
On the 26th, the reporter searched the above-mentioned shops again and found that some of the products involved had been taken off the shelves, but there were still a large number of Zhong Nanshan** as product promotional pictures.
Fu Jian, director of Henan Zejin Law Firm, said that Zhong Nanshan, as a well-known medical expert and public figure, has a certain degree of influence and trust among consumers. If a store uses its likeness without authorization, it may mislead consumers and harm their rights. This kind of behavior not only violates business ethics, but also undermines social credibility and integrity system.
In addition, Fu Jian also said that the unauthorized use of celebrity portraits by merchants for publicity is also an infringement. According to the Advertising Law of the People's Republic of China and the General Provisions of the Civil Law of the People's Republic of China, merchants need to bear corresponding legal liabilities and economic compensation. At the same time, the platform party also has the responsibility to deal with and remove violations from the shelves to maintain market order and consumer rights and interests. Article 120 of the Civil Code stipulates that if a citizen's right to name or portrait is infringed, he or she has the right to demand that the infringement be stopped, that his reputation be restored, that the impact be eliminated, that he or she make a formal apology, and that he or she may demand compensation for losses. Therefore, e-commerce platforms should strengthen the supervision and crackdown on merchants' violations to protect the legitimate rights and interests of consumers.
Chen Yinjiang, vice president of the China Consumers Association, said that without the consent of the portrait rights holder, no one may make, use or disclose the portrait of the portrait rights holder. Whether it constitutes an infringement of portrait rights usually considers two conditions, one is that it is without the consent of the person in question, and the other is that it is for profit. In the above case, the merchant used the portrait of others for commercial advertising without the consent of the person and for the purpose of profit, and used it as a ** page to promote or display the sale of products, which is a typical infringement of portrait rights and constitutes a civil infringement. The victim may demand that the other party cease the infringement and pay compensation for the damage caused.
Health products can claim the best efficacy
Expert: Violation of the Advertising Law of the People's Republic of China
In the investigation, the reporter found that most of the products sold by these merchants are health care products. Randomly selected more than a dozen stores, the reporter saw that many product promotional pictures will be accompanied by some common disease keywords, such as rhinitis, gastric ulcer, Tourette's, varicose veins, urine protein, high blood pressure, gallbladder, etc.
The reporter inquired about the effect of the product, and some e-commerce customer service staff said that these products are health care products and not medicines, but they can ** the above diseases, "the effect is very good".
Fu Jian said that according to Article 16 of the "Advertising Law of the People's Republic of China", advertisements for medical treatment, drugs and medical devices shall not contain assertions or guarantees indicating efficacy and safety;Indicate the rate or effective rate;Comparison with the efficacy and safety of other drugs, medical devices, or other medical institutions;Use advertising spokespersons to make recommendations, testimonials, etc. Article 18 of the Advertising Law of the People's Republic of China stipulates that advertisements for health foods shall not contain assertions or guarantees of efficacy or safetyIt involves disease prevention, ** function;Claims or implies that the advertised product is necessary for the protection of health;Comparison with pharmaceuticals and other health foods;The use of advertising spokespersons for recommendations, testimonials, and other content prohibited by laws and administrative regulations.
Chen Yinjiang said that health care products cannot be advertised as having the best effect, nor can they use misleading language to make consumers mistakenly believe that they have the best effect. In addition, in accordance with article 46 of the "Advertising Law of the People's Republic of China", the publication of advertisements for medical treatment, medicines, medical devices, pesticides, veterinary drugs and health foods, as well as other advertisements that laws and administrative regulations provide shall be reviewed, shall be reviewed by the relevant departments before publication;It may not be published without review.
He also said that the platform should also take corresponding measures to prevent and stop the merchants who publish the above information and infringe on the legitimate rights and interests of consumers, and report to the relevant departments, and the platform and the merchants should also cooperate with the relevant departments to investigate and collect evidence. If the platform ignores violations of laws and regulations, it will also bear corresponding responsibilities, and the regulatory authorities may impose penalties on the platforms and merchants in accordance with the Advertising Law of the People's Republic of China, and consumers can also pursue the responsibility of the platform in accordance with the corresponding laws.
*: CNR.
Editor: Cui Taoran.