Dou Ding Misappropriates Ni Ping and Yuan Quan's Portraits: Why Do False Advertisements Persist?

Compiled from The Paper
 
Recently, Douding Document's affiliated company, Douding Century (Beijing) Network Technology Co., Ltd., was fined by the Haidian District Market Supervision Administration of Beijing for unauthorized use of female images such as Ni Ping and Yuan Quan, violating the Advertising Law.

 

Case review
Dou Ding Century (Beijing) Network Technology Co., Ltd. published an advertisement for "Yao Bath" herbal packets on its WeChat public account "Docin Documents," claiming that the product helps improve "rheumatoid arthritis." The advertisement used the cases of Yuan Quan, Ni Ping, Annie Yi, Ruby Lin, Shen Mengchen, Ms. Zheng, and Yao ethnic women to verify the product's efficacy, and compared before-and-after facial images of Yuan Quan and Ni Ping using the product. The company was unable to provide supporting materials to prove the authenticity of the effects on the aforementioned individuals.

 

The Beijing Haidian District Market Supervision Administration pointed out that the company's above-mentioned actions violated Article 17 of the Advertising Law of the People's Republic of China (2021) and Article 28, Paragraph 2, Item (4) of the Advertising Law of the People's Republic of China (2018). In accordance with the relevant provisions of the Advertising Law of the People's Republic of China, the Beijing Haidian District Market Supervision Bureau imposed a fine of 90,000 yuan on Douding Century (Beijing) Network Technology Co., Ltd. on March 1.
 
 
"Advertising Law of the People's Republic of China"
Article 17
Except for advertisements for medical treatment, pharmaceuticals, and medical devices, any other advertisements are prohibited from mentioning disease treatment functions, and must not use medical terminology or expressions that could easily confuse the promoted products with pharmaceuticals or medical devices.
 
Article 28
An advertisement that deceives or misleads consumers with false or misleading content constitutes a false advertisement.
An advertisement falls under false advertising in any of the following circumstances:
……
(4) Fabricating the effects of using a product or receiving a service.
……

 

 
[1] The author's perspective
Docin became famous for providing a large number of academic papers for readers to access. However, possibly due to financial pressure, its WeChat public account often features product promotion articles. While it is understandable to charge advertising fees from businesses, shouldn't the content of these posts be carefully reviewed? After all, since the ads are published through Docin's official WeChat account, it naturally bears responsibility for the content it releases.
 
As for why the advertisements involve multiple female celebrities, even fabricating facts, it is essentially to attract readers' attention. Since it is difficult for readers to verify whether the celebrities actually use the products, some may believe the ad content and blindly follow the celebrity endorsement to purchase the product. Ultimately driven by profit, whether it is the copywriter, the product manufacturer or seller, or Docin pushing the ads, they should all ensure the truthfulness of their promotional methods, avoiding exaggeration or fabrication. Otherwise, they may face administrative penalties and even civil liability from the celebrities involved.