Misleading influencer advertising
Chiara Ferragni scandal has consequences in Italy
January 25, 2024, 6:35 p.m
Chiara Ferragni wants to collect donations for a children’s cancer ward by selling Christmas cakes. But the hospital doesn’t get a cent from the Italian influencer. The scandal is now reaching the government in Rome. Is the “Ferragni law” coming now?
The scandal surrounding Italy’s most famous influencer Chiara Ferragni is spreading further and is now also affecting politics. In view of the allegations of unfair competition in connection with alleged charity actions against Ferragni, the Italian government wants to ensure more transparency in such cases. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s cabinet agreed on stricter rules and controls for commercial activities with charitable purposes.
Since the end of last year, Ferragni has been at the center of a scandal involving misleading advertising of the products she touts. The 36-year-old is said to have enriched herself personally by selling Christmas cakes for a supposedly good cause. She said she would donate a large portion of the proceeds to a children’s cancer ward. However, the hospital didn’t get a cent from her. The public prosecutor’s office is now investigating. However, there are also doubts about the approach to other products it promotes that have a good cause.
For products whose proceeds are supposedly used for charitable purposes, the purpose of the donation and the recipient of the donation must in future be stated transparently and clearly. In addition, the exact amount or proportion intended for charitable purposes must be stated, as stated in the draft law agreed by the government in Rome. Violations will result in penalties of between 5,000 and 50,000 euros.
What is also new is that the deadline within which the amount to be donated is paid out must be communicated to the antitrust authorities. Although the Ferragni affair was never cited by government politicians as a reason for the new bill, their plan is seen as a reaction to it. The media even talks about the “Ferragni law”.