The email we received from the Consumers Union states "I am writing to you because we have recently learned that you are calling reports on your Web site Consumer Reports". This is not correct. Our reports have never been called consumer reports. Our reports have always been titled Report #X: Whatever Supplement Did This. However, our report index was called Consumer Report Index. Upon calling the Consumers Union and informing them of this fact we were told that they still believe that we should change the title of our index.

It should be noted that we did describe NutritionalSupplements.com as the Consumer Reports of nutritional supplements in some search engine listings (we have changed this, but some search engines take several months to update) and we stated on our site that part of our goal was to become the Consumer Reports of nutritional supplements. In these instances, where we were refering to Consumer Reports directly, we fully understand and appreciate their right to prevent us from doing so. However, if an index contains reports written by consumers, shouldn't one be able to call it a Consumer Report Index?

Please find the email we received from the Consumers Union below. If there are any lawyers out there or anyone else who has a comment on this matter, please email your opinion to submit@nutritionalsupplements.com. We hope this information will help others save the time and expense required to fix such a problem.

Your commercial use of our name was done without our knowledge or consent. It is in violation of Consumers Union's longstanding policies. Misuse of our name is often inadvertent, and results from a lack of awareness of our policies and rights and the significant harm caused to both Consumers Union and the consuming public. Overwhelmingly, once they learn of Consumers Union's rights, people agree to refrain from any further use of our name. "Consumer Reports" is a federally registered trademark which is protected by the law.

Please, let me explain why Consumers Union regards such advertising with the utmost gravity. Since its founding in 1936, Consumers Union has built its hard-earned and well-deserved reputation for objectivity, accuracy, and lack of bias upon its independence from commercial interest. Consumers Union does not accept outside advertising for any of its publications nor do we accept commercial contributions. Permission is never given to anyone to use our name or Ratings for advertising or commercial purposes. These policies are stated in every issue of consumer reports, as follows:

We accept no advertising and buy all the products we test on the open market. We are not beholden to any commercial interest. Our income is derived from the sale of consumer reports and our other publications, and from nonrestrictive, noncommercial contributions, grants, and fees. Our Ratings and reports are intended solely for the use of our readers. Neither the Ratings nor the reports may be used in advertising or for any other commercial purpose. Consumers Union will take all steps open to it to prevent commercial use of its materials, its name, or the name of consumer reports.

Those who violate these policies damage Consumers Union's most precious asset--its reputation for independence and integrity. Our name is tarnished by advertising use. It creates public distrust of our findings and the perception that in someway Consumers Union is somehow affiliated with the very same commercial interests whose products are being evaluated.

Now that you are aware of Consumers Union's policies, its rights, and the important rationale supporting them, I trust that you will agree to discontinue your current advertising and to respect our rights in the future. You should confirm your agreement to remove this from your web site and refrain from using this or any other reference to CONSUMER REPORTS in your advertising whether it be in print or electronic. You should eMail this confirmation to meat the address below within the next seven days so that we may consider this matter resolved without further proceedings.

Thank you for your courtesy and cooperation. I would be pleased to answer any questions. I can be reached at (914) 378-2448.

Sincerely,
Wendy J. Wintman
Copyright Manager

Our POLICY is below:

CONSUMERS UNION OF U.S., INC.

NO-COMMERCIAL USE POLICY STATEMENT

Consumers Union's no-commercial use policy is stated in the front of every issue of consumer reports, consumer reports on health, consumer reports travel letter, zillions, our CD-ROMs, interactive telephone services, on-line services, the Internet, and every book published by Consumer Reports Special Publications. The policy is as follows:

Our Ratings and Reports are intended solely for the use of our readers. Neither the Ratings nor the Reports may be used in advertising or for any other commercial purpose.

This policy is interpreted to preclude the use of any of Consumers Union's material or title of publication by professionals and/or commercial organizations who would have a direct or indirect benefit from making use of our material, both in print and electronically, including use on the Internet. More specifically, Consumers Union does not permit the use of its material by a manufacturer of a product or a provider of a service, or a professional in the related field discussed in the work.

Our material cannot be used by a manufacturer, service provider, or professional internally with employees (for informational purposes), sales force (for training, informational, or sales purposes), dealers, distributors, retailers, or agents. It may not be used externally with existing or potential customers and clients. Mention of our material may not be included in a press release, an annual report, nor a radio or television commercial (whether initiated by the manufacturer, service provider, or by anyone else acting on their behalf).

NO MATERIAL MAY EVER BE USED FOR ANY

ADVERTISING OR PROMOTIONAL PURPOSES

Consumers Union will not sell you additional copies of the entire magazine or book containing the article of interest, nor will we sell you reprints of the specific article. We will also deny permission for you to reproduce the article, in whole or in part, or quote from the article or book.

If you believe that your intended use of our material is not commercial in nature, please resubmit your order with payment and a brief explanation of the purpose of your order directly to CU/Reprints, 101 Truman Ave., Yonkers, NY 10703-1057. For permissions requests, please resubmit your request with an explanation by mail or fax it to W. J. Wintman at 914-378-2909.

In some cases, your use of our material may violate our legal rights. All of CU's products are fully protected under the United States Copyright Laws, 17 U.S.C. §§ 1 et seq., and unauthorized copying of, or quoting from our materials is strictly prohibited. consumer reports, consumer reports on health, consumer reports travel letter, and zillions, are federally registered trademarks. Advertising that deceptively or falsely misrepresents our findings, or which creates confusion, infringes on our rights under the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C., §§1 et seq. Such advertising may also contravene our rights under state laws prohibiting false advertising and other unfair trade practices.

Under §397 of the New York State General Business Law, the use of the names or identities of nonprofit organizations for advertising or trade purposes is strictly prohibited without obtaining prior written consent. Indeed, CU is a nonprofit organization.

If Consumers Union learns that this policy has been violated, it will forward the information to its attorney, who will take all steps open to Consumers Union to prevent the misuse of any of its materials.

We hope you can understand why Consumers Union has adopted this policy. Please feel free to share this with your colleagues, clients, and others as appropriate.

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