Nothing new about Oprah being in the news, and lately Acai berry has also been in the news due to the hype and claims associated with it by marketers of this product. Acai is a good product provided it is the genuine thing with the right specifications, but it is not a miracle product as some people claim. There are many herbals that are as good or better. It is just that Acai has recently been promoted so heavily.

Anyway, Oprah and Dr Oz are suing around 40 internet marketers of Acai for inferring that Oprah and Dr Oz are somehow connected with their product...which they are not. Good on them. These type of operators need to be exposed. They are not part of the industry, they have no investment in the industry. Most of them just buy the product from a contract manufacturer and really have no idea whats in it.

They can operate from home or anywhere, make outlandish claims, make their money quickly and move on. They don't even need to know anything about the product they are selling.

Below is an article about this from Nutraingredients.

Oprah sues supplement firms for false endorsement claims
By Lorraine Heller, 24-Aug-2009

Fraudulent dietary supplement marketing is again in the spotlight, after Oprah Winfrey and Dr Mehmet Oz filed a lawsuit against firms that had claimed the celebrities recommended their products.

Filed last week, the trademark infringement complaint targeted 40 internet marketers of supplement products.

According to complaint, the companies are "fabricating quotes or falsely purporting to speak in Dr Oz's and/or Ms Winfrey's voice about specific brands and products that neither of them has endorsed."

Oprah: Setting the record straight

The suit, filed by Harpo Inc, producers of The Oprah Winfrey Show and The Dr Oz Show, targeted manufacturers of acai berry products among others.

“Consumers should be aware that neither Oprah Winfrey nor Dr Oz are associated with nor do they endorse any acai berry product, company or online solicitation of such products, including MonaVie juice products,” read a statement on Winfrey’s website.

Harpo attorneys are also pursuing marketers of resveratrol products, it said.

To view the complaint, click here .

Consumer complaints

Harpo also collaborated with Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan on an investigation of consumer complaints - many forwarded to Madigan's office by Harpo - that alleged deceptive practices of the companies.

“The acai berry supplement sales programs are among the most aggressive that we have seen using misleading sales tactics to scam consumers,” said Madigan.

“Consumers should always be skeptical and educate themselves instead of blindly believing any endorsement claims. Also, consumers need to be very wary of weight loss and health claims that sound too good to be true.”

Acai fraud

Madigan filed three parallel consumer fraud lawsuits last week against suppliers and marketers of acai berry products.

Filed in the Chancery Division of the Circuit Court of Cook County, the suits target firms including Advanced Wellness Research, Netalab, Crush, TMP Nevada. Charges include luring customers with free trial offers, charging customers’ credit cards prematurely, not always supplying the product, and making it “nearly impossible” to cancel.

The suits request a permanent injunction barring the firms from selling dietary supplements or continuing with misleading marketing schemes. They also request restitution payments for consumers who have lost money and civil penalties of $50,000 for violating the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act.

“We must hold these Internet scammers accountable for their role in a seedy marketing game that steers unsuspecting consumers to online schemes. We also need to send a clear message to other marketers and networks in the business of designing misleading, traffic enticing schemes,” said Madigan.