"Limited Time Discount" Claims Again... Eduwill and ST Unitas Penalized for False Advertising

Corrective Orders and Fines Totaling 310 Million KRW Imposed

Online lecture service providers Eduwill and ST Unitas were sanctioned by the Fair Trade Commission for deceptive advertising that misled consumers into believing they could purchase lecture products at discounted prices only within a limited time.

Although they advertised giveaways of high-priced prizes such as Apple AirPods and Samsung Electronics Galaxy Tabs, the Fair Trade Commission's investigation confirmed that the prizes were not actually distributed.

On the 10th, the Fair Trade Commission announced that it had issued corrective orders and imposed a total fine of 310 million KRW for violations of the "Act on Fair Labeling and Advertising" by Eduwill and ST Unitas.

According to the Fair Trade Commission, Eduwill sold 109 online lecture products related to certified real estate agent and public official exams on 13 online malls from June 1, 2020, to April 17, 2023, using expressions such as "limited time only, 00% special discount," advertising as if the discounted prices were available only within a limited period.

Additionally, although they advertised online lecture products in batches at one-week intervals, they did not inform consumers that the same products with essentially no differences in composition, price, or additional benefits continued to be sold even after the batch period ended.

ST Unitas was also found to have engaged in false and exaggerated advertising from January 2017 to November 2021 through its online malls Gongdangi and Gyeongdangi, promoting public official exam lecture products as if the products would no longer be available after a certain date or that the advertised day was the lowest price.

The Fair Trade Commission pointed out, "These companies advertised as if benefits such as deadlines, specific prices, discounts, and special packages were only available until the indicated dates, but after those dates passed, they repeatedly advertised essentially the same products at the same prices by only changing the deadline and some advertising phrases."

In particular, the Fair Trade Commission judged that they engaged in deceptive advertising by obscuring important information with background colors similar to the main advertisement or by using significantly small fonts, thereby hindering consumers' rational purchasing decisions.

Example of Exhibition Event Advertisement in December 2022.

Eduwill advertised on its website and social network services (SNS) such as Instagram that high-priced prizes like Apple AirPods and Samsung Electronics Galaxy Tabs would be given away by lottery during events such as the "Eduwill Success Prayer Festival" and "Summer Sale Festa," but in reality, no prizes were distributed.

The Fair Trade Commission regarded these unfair advertising practices as violations of Article 3, Paragraph 1 of the Act on Fair Labeling and Advertising and imposed corrective orders along with fines of 154 million KRW on Eduwill and 156 million KRW on ST Unitas, respectively.

The Fair Trade Commission expressed expectations that "this action will contribute to improving practices that lure consumers under the guise of prize events by strictly sanctioning limited-time advertisements repeatedly conducted in the online education market for certification and public official exam preparation, as well as false advertising claiming prize giveaways."