ValueVision, operator of home-shopping network ShopNBC, will pay $213,000 to settle charges that it violated the terms of a previous settlement by making unsubstantiated claims about a diet supplement, the Federal Trade Commission said yesterday.
The charges stem from claims made about Physician's RX, a product containing vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, the FTC said.
In July 2001, the company first ran afoul of the FTC with its marketing of weight-loss, cellulite-treatment and hair-loss products and promised to provide refunds to dissatisfied consumers and back up its claims with scientific evidence.
However, in television response ads featuring testimonials for Physician's RX, ValueVision claimed that the product reduced fatigue associated with the taking of certain medicines and illnesses as well as provided relief of arthritis symptoms, the FTC said. ValueVision, Eden Prairie, MN, failed to substantiate the claims with scientific evidence, thus violating the 2001 order, according to the FTC.
ValueVision is partly owned by the television network NBC. In addition to a home-shopping channel, the company also operates ShopNBC.com
