Focus Education, LLC; Analysis of Proposed Consent Order To Aid Public Comment, 4575-4576 [2015-01516]

Download as PDF Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 18 / Wednesday, January 28, 2015 / Notices 1. Ben J. Scott, Coleman, Texas, individually and as co-trustee of Coleman Bancshares, Inc., Employee Stock Ownership Plan, Coleman, Texas; Reave Jay Scott, Abilene, Texas; and David or Amy Scott, Georgetown, Texas, collectively a group acting in concert, to retain 10 percent or more of Coleman Bancshares, Inc., Coleman, Texas, and thereby indirectly control of Coleman County State Bank, Coleman, Texas. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, January 22, 2015. Michael J. Lewandowski, Assistant Secretary of the Board. [FR Doc. 2015–01520 Filed 1–27–15; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6210–01–P FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION [File No. 122 3153] Focus Education, LLC; Analysis of Proposed Consent Order To Aid Public Comment Federal Trade Commission. Proposed Consent Agreement. AGENCY: ACTION: The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged violations of federal law prohibiting deceptive acts or practices. The attached Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations in the draft complaint and the terms of the consent order— embodied in the consent agreement— that would settle these allegations. DATES: Comments must be received on or before February 20, 2015. ADDRESSES: Interested parties may file a comment at https://ftcpublic.comment works.com/FTC/focuseduconsent/ online or on paper, by following the instructions in the Request for Comment part of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below. Write ‘‘Focus Education, LLC—Consent Agreement; File No. 122 3153’’ on your comment and file your comment online at https://ftcpublic. commentworks.com/FTC/focus educonsent/ by following the instructions on the web-based form. If you prefer to file your comment on paper, write ‘‘Focus Education, LLC— Consent Agreement; File No. 122 3153’’ on your comment and on the envelope, and mail your comment to the following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Suite CC– 5610 (Annex D), Washington, DC 20580, or deliver your comment to the following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, Constitution Center, 400 7th Street SW., 5th Floor, Suite 5610 (Annex D), Washington, DC 20024. mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES SUMMARY: VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:41 Jan 27, 2015 Jkt 235001 FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Annette Soberats, Bureau of Consumer Protection, (202–326–2921), 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20580. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to Section 6(f) of the Federal Trade Commission Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and FTC Rule 2.34, 16 CFR § 2.34, notice is hereby given that the above-captioned consent agreement containing consent order to cease and desist, having been filed with and accepted, subject to final approval, by the Commission, has been placed on the public record for a period of thirty (30) days. The following Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes the terms of the consent agreement, and the allegations in the complaint. An electronic copy of the full text of the consent agreement package can be obtained from the FTC Home Page (for January 20, 2015), on the World Wide Web, at https://www.ftc. gov/os/actions.shtm. You can file a comment online or on paper. For the Commission to consider your comment, we must receive it on or before February 20, 2015. Write ‘‘Focus Education, LLC—Consent Agreement; File No. 122 3153’’ on your comment. Your comment—including your name and your state—will be placed on the public record of this proceeding, including, to the extent practicable, on the public Commission Web site, at https://www.ftc.gov/os/public comments.shtm. As a matter of discretion, the Commission tries to remove individuals’ home contact information from comments before placing them on the Commission Web site. Because your comment will be made public, you are solely responsible for making sure that your comment does not include any sensitive personal information, like anyone’s Social Security number, date of birth, driver’s license number or other state identification number or foreign country equivalent, passport number, financial account number, or credit or debit card number. You are also solely responsible for making sure that your comment does not include any sensitive health information, like medical records or other individually identifiable health information. In addition, do not include any ‘‘[t]rade secret or any commercial or financial information which . . . is privileged or confidential,’’ as discussed in Section 6(f) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and FTC Rule 4.10(a)(2), 16 CFR § 4.10(a)(2). In particular, do not include competitively sensitive information such as costs, sales statistics, inventories, formulas, patterns, devices, PO 00000 Frm 00047 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 4575 manufacturing processes, or customer names. If you want the Commission to give your comment confidential treatment, you must file it in paper form, with a request for confidential treatment, and you have to follow the procedure explained in FTC Rule 4.9(c), 16 CFR § 4.9(c).1 Your comment will be kept confidential only if the FTC General Counsel, in his or her sole discretion, grants your request in accordance with the law and the public interest. Postal mail addressed to the Commission is subject to delay due to heightened security screening. As a result, we encourage you to submit your comments online. To make sure that the Commission considers your online comment, you must file it at https:// ftcpublic.commentworks.com/FTC/ focuseduconsent/ by following the instructions on the web-based form. If this Notice appears at https://www. regulations.gov/#!home, you also may file a comment through that Web site. If you file your comment on paper, write ‘‘Focus Education, LLC—Consent Agreement; File No. 122 3153’’ on your comment and on the envelope, and mail your comment to the following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Suite CC–5610 (Annex D), Washington, DC 20580, or deliver your comment to the following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, Constitution Center, 400 7th Street SW., 5th Floor, Suite 5610 (Annex D), Washington, DC 20024. If possible, submit your paper comment to the Commission by courier or overnight service. Visit the Commission Web site at https://www.ftc.gov to read this Notice and the news release describing it. The FTC Act and other laws that the Commission administers permit the collection of public comments to consider and use in this proceeding as appropriate. The Commission will consider all timely and responsive public comments that it receives on or before February 20, 2015. You can find more information, including routine uses permitted by the Privacy Act, in the Commission’s privacy policy, at https://www.ftc.gov/ftc/privacy.htm. Analysis of Proposed Consent Order To Aid Public Comment The Federal Trade Commission (‘‘FTC’’ or ‘‘Commission’’) has accepted, 1 In particular, the written request for confidential treatment that accompanies the comment must include the factual and legal basis for the request, and must identify the specific portions of the comment to be withheld from the public record. See FTC Rule 4.9(c), 16 CFR § 4.9(c). E:\FR\FM\28JAN1.SGM 28JAN1 mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES 4576 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 18 / Wednesday, January 28, 2015 / Notices subject to final approval, an agreement containing a consent order from Focus Education, LLC (‘‘Focus Education’’), Chief Executive Officer, Michael Apstein, and Chief Financial Officer, John Able (‘‘Respondents’’). The proposed consent order (‘‘proposed order’’) has been placed on the public record for thirty (30) days for receipt of comments by interested persons. Comments received during this period will become part of the public record. After thirty (30) days, the Commission will again review the agreement and the comments received, and will decide whether it should withdraw from the agreement or make final the agreement’s proposed order. This matter involves Focus Education’s advertising for the ifocus System, which included the Jungle Rangers computer game and comic book, and information on children’s behavior, exercise, and diet. The Commission’s complaint alleges that the Respondents violated Sections 5(a) and 12 of the Federal Trade Commission Act by making false or unsubstantiated representations that playing the ifocus System’s Jungle Rangers computer game improves children’s focus, memory, attention, behavior, and/or school performance, including in children with ADHD, and that these improvements were permanent. The complaint also alleges that Respondents violated Sections 5(a) and 12 by making false representations that scientific studies prove these claims. The proposed order includes injunctive relief that prohibits these alleged violations and fences in similar and related violations. For purposes of the order, ‘‘Covered Product’’ means any product, program, device, or service that purports to alter the brain’s structure or function, improve cognitive abilities, behavior, or academic performance, or treat or lessen the symptoms of cognitive abnormalities or disorders, including ADHD. Part I of the Order prohibits the Respondents from making any representation that the ifocus System or any substantially similar product improves children’s cognitive abilities, behavior, or academic performance, including in children with ADHD unless any such representation is nonmisleading and the Respondents possess and rely upon competent and reliable scientific evidence. For purposes of this Part, competent and reliable scientific evidence is defined as ‘‘human clinical testing of such product that is sufficient in quality and quantity, based on standards generally accepted by experts in the relevant field, when considered in light of the entire body of relevant VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:41 Jan 27, 2015 Jkt 235001 and reliable scientific evidence, to substantiate that the representation is true. Such testing shall be (1) randomized, double-blind, and adequately controlled; and (2) conducted by researchers qualified by training and experience to conduct such testing.’’ In addition, competent and reliable scientific evidence is subject to the preservation requirements set forth in Part IV. Part II is a fencing-in provision. It prohibits the Respondents from making any claim about the benefits, performance, or efficacy of any Covered Product unless the claim is nonmisleading and the Respondents possess competent and reliable scientific evidence that is sufficient in quality and quantity, when considered in light of the entire body of relevant and reliable scientific evidence, to substantiate that the representation is true. For purposes of this Part, Covered Product is defined as any product, program, device, or service that purports to alter the brain’s structure or function, improve cognitive abilities, behavior, or academic performance, or treat or lessen the symptoms of cognitive abnormalities or disorders, including ADHD. Competent and reliable scientific evidence means ‘‘tests, analyses, research, or studies (1) that have been conducted and evaluated in an objective manner by qualified persons; (2) that are generally accepted in the profession to yield accurate and reliable results; and (3) as to which, when they are human clinical tests or studies, all underlying or supporting data and documents generally accepted by experts in the field as relevant to an assessment of such testing as set forth Part IV are available for inspection and production to the Commission.’’ Part III prohibits the Respondents from misrepresenting, in relation to the advertising of any Covered Product, (1) the results of any test, study, or research; or (2) that the benefits of any such Covered Product are scientifically proven. Part IV requires the Respondents, for human clinical tests or studies, to secure and preserve all underlying or supporting data and documents generally accepted by experts in the field as relevant to an assessment of the test. There is an exception for a ‘‘Reliably Reported’’ test, defined as a test published in a peer-reviewed journal that was not conducted, controlled, or sponsored by Respondents, affiliates, or others in the manufacturing and supply chain. Also, the published report must provide sufficient information about the test for experts in the relevant field to assess the reliability of the results. PO 00000 Frm 00048 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 Part V contains recordkeeping requirements for advertisements and substantiation relevant to representations covered by Parts I through III of the order. Parts VI through IX of the proposed order require Respondents to: Deliver a copy of the order to principals, officers, directors, managers, employees, agents, and representatives having responsibilities with respect to the subject matter of the order; notify the Commission of changes in corporate structure, discontinuance of current business or employment, or affiliation with any new business or employment that might affect compliance obligations under the order; and file compliance reports with the Commission. Part X provides that the order will terminate after twenty (20) years, with certain exceptions. The purpose of this analysis is to facilitate public comment on the proposed order, and it is not intended to constitute an official interpretation of the complaint or proposed order, or to modify the proposed order’s terms in any way. By direction of the Commission. Donald S. Clark, Secretary. [FR Doc. 2015–01516 Filed 1–27–15; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6750–01–P DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics: Meeting Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announces the following advisory committee meeting. Name: National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics (NCVHS), Full Committee Meeting. Time and Date: February 24, 2015 9:00 a.m.–5:30 p.m. EST February 25, 2015 8:30 a.m.–12:00 p.m. EST Place: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, 3311 Toledo Road, Auditorium A and B, Hyattsville, Maryland 20782, (301) 458–4524. Status: Open. Purpose: The purpose of this meeting is to review the status of current NCVHS activities and to strategically plan for 2015 NCVHS objectives and deliverables. The Committee will review its ongoing efforts in coordinating Subcommittee projects. Additional topics will include implementation plans for the ACA Review Committee process and reviewing the summary from the Roundtable on Supporting E:\FR\FM\28JAN1.SGM 28JAN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 18 (Wednesday, January 28, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4575-4576]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-01516]


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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

[File No. 122 3153]


Focus Education, LLC; Analysis of Proposed Consent Order To Aid 
Public Comment

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION: Proposed Consent Agreement.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged 
violations of federal law prohibiting deceptive acts or practices. The 
attached Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations 
in the draft complaint and the terms of the consent order--embodied in 
the consent agreement--that would settle these allegations.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before February 20, 2015.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties may file a comment at https://ftcpublic.commentworks.com/FTC/focuseduconsent/ online or on paper, by 
following the instructions in the Request for Comment part of the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below. Write ``Focus Education, LLC--
Consent Agreement; File No. 122 3153'' on your comment and file your 
comment online at https://ftcpublic.commentworks.com/FTC/focuseduconsent/ by following the instructions on the web-based form. 
If you prefer to file your comment on paper, write ``Focus Education, 
LLC--Consent Agreement; File No. 122 3153'' on your comment and on the 
envelope, and mail your comment to the following address: Federal Trade 
Commission, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Suite 
CC-5610 (Annex D), Washington, DC 20580, or deliver your comment to the 
following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, 
Constitution Center, 400 7th Street SW., 5th Floor, Suite 5610 (Annex 
D), Washington, DC 20024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Annette Soberats, Bureau of Consumer 
Protection, (202-326-2921), 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 
20580.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to Section 6(f) of the Federal 
Trade Commission Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and FTC Rule 2.34, 16 CFR Sec.  
2.34, notice is hereby given that the above-captioned consent agreement 
containing consent order to cease and desist, having been filed with 
and accepted, subject to final approval, by the Commission, has been 
placed on the public record for a period of thirty (30) days. The 
following Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes the terms of the 
consent agreement, and the allegations in the complaint. An electronic 
copy of the full text of the consent agreement package can be obtained 
from the FTC Home Page (for January 20, 2015), on the World Wide Web, 
at https://www.ftc.gov/os/actions.shtm.
    You can file a comment online or on paper. For the Commission to 
consider your comment, we must receive it on or before February 20, 
2015. Write ``Focus Education, LLC--Consent Agreement; File No. 122 
3153'' on your comment. Your comment--including your name and your 
state--will be placed on the public record of this proceeding, 
including, to the extent practicable, on the public Commission Web 
site, at https://www.ftc.gov/os/publiccomments.shtm. As a matter of 
discretion, the Commission tries to remove individuals' home contact 
information from comments before placing them on the Commission Web 
site.
    Because your comment will be made public, you are solely 
responsible for making sure that your comment does not include any 
sensitive personal information, like anyone's Social Security number, 
date of birth, driver's license number or other state identification 
number or foreign country equivalent, passport number, financial 
account number, or credit or debit card number. You are also solely 
responsible for making sure that your comment does not include any 
sensitive health information, like medical records or other 
individually identifiable health information. In addition, do not 
include any ``[t]rade secret or any commercial or financial information 
which . . . is privileged or confidential,'' as discussed in Section 
6(f) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and FTC Rule 4.10(a)(2), 16 CFR 
Sec.  4.10(a)(2). In particular, do not include competitively sensitive 
information such as costs, sales statistics, inventories, formulas, 
patterns, devices, manufacturing processes, or customer names.
    If you want the Commission to give your comment confidential 
treatment, you must file it in paper form, with a request for 
confidential treatment, and you have to follow the procedure explained 
in FTC Rule 4.9(c), 16 CFR Sec.  4.9(c).\1\ Your comment will be kept 
confidential only if the FTC General Counsel, in his or her sole 
discretion, grants your request in accordance with the law and the 
public interest.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ In particular, the written request for confidential 
treatment that accompanies the comment must include the factual and 
legal basis for the request, and must identify the specific portions 
of the comment to be withheld from the public record. See FTC Rule 
4.9(c), 16 CFR Sec.  4.9(c).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Postal mail addressed to the Commission is subject to delay due to 
heightened security screening. As a result, we encourage you to submit 
your comments online. To make sure that the Commission considers your 
online comment, you must file it at https://ftcpublic.commentworks.com/FTC/focuseduconsent/ by following the instructions on the web-based 
form. If this Notice appears at https://www.regulations.gov/#!home, you 
also may file a comment through that Web site.
    If you file your comment on paper, write ``Focus Education, LLC--
Consent Agreement; File No. 122 3153'' on your comment and on the 
envelope, and mail your comment to the following address: Federal Trade 
Commission, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Suite 
CC-5610 (Annex D), Washington, DC 20580, or deliver your comment to the 
following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, 
Constitution Center, 400 7th Street SW., 5th Floor, Suite 5610 (Annex 
D), Washington, DC 20024. If possible, submit your paper comment to the 
Commission by courier or overnight service.
    Visit the Commission Web site at https://www.ftc.gov to read this 
Notice and the news release describing it. The FTC Act and other laws 
that the Commission administers permit the collection of public 
comments to consider and use in this proceeding as appropriate. The 
Commission will consider all timely and responsive public comments that 
it receives on or before February 20, 2015. You can find more 
information, including routine uses permitted by the Privacy Act, in 
the Commission's privacy policy, at https://www.ftc.gov/ftc/privacy.htm.

Analysis of Proposed Consent Order To Aid Public Comment

    The Federal Trade Commission (``FTC'' or ``Commission'') has 
accepted,

[[Page 4576]]

subject to final approval, an agreement containing a consent order from 
Focus Education, LLC (``Focus Education''), Chief Executive Officer, 
Michael Apstein, and Chief Financial Officer, John Able 
(``Respondents'').
    The proposed consent order (``proposed order'') has been placed on 
the public record for thirty (30) days for receipt of comments by 
interested persons. Comments received during this period will become 
part of the public record. After thirty (30) days, the Commission will 
again review the agreement and the comments received, and will decide 
whether it should withdraw from the agreement or make final the 
agreement's proposed order.
    This matter involves Focus Education's advertising for the ifocus 
System, which included the Jungle Rangers computer game and comic book, 
and information on children's behavior, exercise, and diet. The 
Commission's complaint alleges that the Respondents violated Sections 
5(a) and 12 of the Federal Trade Commission Act by making false or 
unsubstantiated representations that playing the ifocus System's Jungle 
Rangers computer game improves children's focus, memory, attention, 
behavior, and/or school performance, including in children with ADHD, 
and that these improvements were permanent. The complaint also alleges 
that Respondents violated Sections 5(a) and 12 by making false 
representations that scientific studies prove these claims.
    The proposed order includes injunctive relief that prohibits these 
alleged violations and fences in similar and related violations. For 
purposes of the order, ``Covered Product'' means any product, program, 
device, or service that purports to alter the brain's structure or 
function, improve cognitive abilities, behavior, or academic 
performance, or treat or lessen the symptoms of cognitive abnormalities 
or disorders, including ADHD.
    Part I of the Order prohibits the Respondents from making any 
representation that the ifocus System or any substantially similar 
product improves children's cognitive abilities, behavior, or academic 
performance, including in children with ADHD unless any such 
representation is non-misleading and the Respondents possess and rely 
upon competent and reliable scientific evidence. For purposes of this 
Part, competent and reliable scientific evidence is defined as ``human 
clinical testing of such product that is sufficient in quality and 
quantity, based on standards generally accepted by experts in the 
relevant field, when considered in light of the entire body of relevant 
and reliable scientific evidence, to substantiate that the 
representation is true. Such testing shall be (1) randomized, double-
blind, and adequately controlled; and (2) conducted by researchers 
qualified by training and experience to conduct such testing.'' In 
addition, competent and reliable scientific evidence is subject to the 
preservation requirements set forth in Part IV.
    Part II is a fencing-in provision. It prohibits the Respondents 
from making any claim about the benefits, performance, or efficacy of 
any Covered Product unless the claim is non-misleading and the 
Respondents possess competent and reliable scientific evidence that is 
sufficient in quality and quantity, when considered in light of the 
entire body of relevant and reliable scientific evidence, to 
substantiate that the representation is true. For purposes of this 
Part, Covered Product is defined as any product, program, device, or 
service that purports to alter the brain's structure or function, 
improve cognitive abilities, behavior, or academic performance, or 
treat or lessen the symptoms of cognitive abnormalities or disorders, 
including ADHD. Competent and reliable scientific evidence means 
``tests, analyses, research, or studies (1) that have been conducted 
and evaluated in an objective manner by qualified persons; (2) that are 
generally accepted in the profession to yield accurate and reliable 
results; and (3) as to which, when they are human clinical tests or 
studies, all underlying or supporting data and documents generally 
accepted by experts in the field as relevant to an assessment of such 
testing as set forth Part IV are available for inspection and 
production to the Commission.''
    Part III prohibits the Respondents from misrepresenting, in 
relation to the advertising of any Covered Product, (1) the results of 
any test, study, or research; or (2) that the benefits of any such 
Covered Product are scientifically proven.
    Part IV requires the Respondents, for human clinical tests or 
studies, to secure and preserve all underlying or supporting data and 
documents generally accepted by experts in the field as relevant to an 
assessment of the test. There is an exception for a ``Reliably 
Reported'' test, defined as a test published in a peer-reviewed journal 
that was not conducted, controlled, or sponsored by Respondents, 
affiliates, or others in the manufacturing and supply chain. Also, the 
published report must provide sufficient information about the test for 
experts in the relevant field to assess the reliability of the results.
    Part V contains recordkeeping requirements for advertisements and 
substantiation relevant to representations covered by Parts I through 
III of the order.
    Parts VI through IX of the proposed order require Respondents to: 
Deliver a copy of the order to principals, officers, directors, 
managers, employees, agents, and representatives having 
responsibilities with respect to the subject matter of the order; 
notify the Commission of changes in corporate structure, discontinuance 
of current business or employment, or affiliation with any new business 
or employment that might affect compliance obligations under the order; 
and file compliance reports with the Commission.
    Part X provides that the order will terminate after twenty (20) 
years, with certain exceptions.
    The purpose of this analysis is to facilitate public comment on the 
proposed order, and it is not intended to constitute an official 
interpretation of the complaint or proposed order, or to modify the 
proposed order's terms in any way.

    By direction of the Commission.
Donald S. Clark,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2015-01516 Filed 1-27-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-P
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