Fake discount scheme targeting Adobe Acrobat

[John26516438w4ya]

There is a company advertising on Google on the term "Adobe Acrobat" that uses a fake discounting scheme in order to lure buyers away from Adobe.  Beyond the fake discount (which is simply renewed every 15 days), also note that there is no discount at all. The prices shown are simply the regular price. This is misleading. Screenshots and examples are shown below.

This activity started in June earlier this year and then briefly stopped in late August and early September. The ads showing the fake discounts can now be seen again (at least in the US). As of today, the "discount" ends on October 15.

Please also note the use of false pricing (the total does not total correctly, even after selecting/de-selecting the add-on) on the company's other domain. The price is initially indicated at $49.97 on Google Shopping and in various advertisements on search engines. 

[try67]

It doesn't say Adobe or Acrobat anywhere on their site. They're selling a product called "PDF Pro", which they are allowed to do, as "PDF" is not trademarked by Adobe. They paid Google to include their ad on the search results for "Adobe Acrobat" to attract people to their website, instead of to Adobe's, which is also allowed (if not entirely ethical). It's up to the consumer to be vigilant and look at what they're paying for carefully. Caveat emptor.

[John26516438w4ya]

The issue is the price/discounting scheme. 

The product is continuously advertised as being "on sale". The "sale ends" date is simply pushed backwards every 15 days. e.g. "sale ends July 15", "sale ends July 31", etc. Secondly, there is actually no sale as the price is the same as what is advertised on the home page at all other times. 

It concerns Adobe as it is difficult to compete against such schemes. Furthermore, these advertisements appear when buyers attempt to purchase Acrobat. 

[try67]

This has nothing to do with Adobe. You can report it to Google if you think it's a fraudulent/misleading site.

[John26516438w4ya]

It affects Adobe directly because users searching for its products are misled.

Usually brands (especially famous brands) will enforce rules to ensure competitors engage in fair competition. It may be worth bringing it up with your legal team. 

[try67]

I don't work for Adobe, just to clarify.

And this is something Google decides. I guess Adobe could pay them more than the current buyers to not publish this ad, if they wanted to. They are not breaking any laws, though, so I don't see how it can be "enforced".

[Dave__M]

Yep - Google will allow nearly ANYTHING - as long as the 'vender' pays them!

Dave

[John26516438w4ya]

Deceptive advertising or false advertising is against the law in all major countries. In the US, Adobe is likely to have claims unde the Lanham Act and various competition laws. 

To Dave's point, Google does not have any incentive to enforce good behavior and has been pretty lax about the quality of advertisers allowed on its platform. 

[Dave__M]

It's not just Google either.  I won't jump up on my soapbox, but it's common among online platforms.  The almighty dollar (or whatever currency is at play) is a loud voice in the crowd!

Dave

[John26516438w4ya]

Agreed - unless Adobe enforces competition law in this scenario (assuming the company's lawyers agree there is an issue), it is unlikely for third-party platforms to enforce the rules. 

[Dave__M]

To Try67's point,  this ad appears to be for a PDF viewer/editor program (PDF Pro), NOT ACROBAT PRO DC.  There are quite a few well-known (and pretty good) applications that do much of what Acrobat Pro DC can do.  I've never found one that is as competent all around, personally.  Adobe created the PDF format, and handles it better than the others (opinion), but they allow other applications by other companies to view and edit PDFs too.

Dave

[John26516438w4ya]

There is no issue advertising a competing product on the search term "Adobe Acrobat" - of course this is legal as long as there is no confusion between the two brands. 

The issue is the fake discounting scheme. This creates a false sense of urgency as customers are misled into believing that the "sale ends in xx days!" claim is true, which then diverts customers away from Adobe Acrobat. Not a lawyer, but fairly certain there is a competition law issue here. 

[Dave__M]

Agreed!

Dave