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  Government says bloggers must disclose payments from ad companies and celebrities will be held to account for promotions.

By David Goldman, CNNMoney.com staff writer

October 6, 2009: 9:06 AM ET

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  NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The Federal Trade Commission is going after bloggers, celebrities and tall tales in the first revision of its rules for endorsements and product reviews in nearly 30 years.

 The new guidelines, which go into effect Dec. 1, are designed to adapt to a new world in which blogs and social media Web sites such as Facebook and Twitter have quickly become go-to destinations for consumers to get an opinion about a product.

 One existing FTC rule, which states that product reviewers must reveal any connection they have with advertisers, was extended to bloggers. Companies will often distribute free products to bloggers for their review, and sometimes advertisers offer payment for a product endorsement. The FTC said that endorsements on blogs appear to be "word of mouth," but that is not always the case.

 The new rules also make clear that celebrity endorsers of products must reveal their relationships with advertisers when making endorsements if they are pushing a product on a blog, social network or television talk show.

 The FTC also targeted testimonials in ads that aren't typical results for a product. For instance, many weight loss supplement ads will show people who have used the product and have lost large amounts of weight, with a disclaimer at the bottom that reads "results not typical." Under the new rules, the company must disclose the results that consumers should usually expect.

The existing rules carry a fine as high as $11,000 if product endorsers and reviewers don't comply. 

http://money.cnn.com/2009/10/06/news/companies/ftc_blogger_advertising_rules/?postversion=2009100609

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