Taiwan Fines Nike $30,000

[Punani]

TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan slapped a T$1 million (US$30,000) fine on Nike Inc. on Thursday for a 90-second appearance on stage by basketball legend Michael Jordan for what the sports gear giant had said would be a one-hour show.

The government's Fair Trade Commission said the May 22 appearance by Jordan, arranged by Nike to promote its Brand Jordan products, had misled consumers who bought Nike gear to win passes and see the former Chicago Bulls star perform at a stage show demonstrating basketball prowess.

"As Michael Jordan's time on stage was only 90 seconds, it was clearly out of proportion with (Nike's) news releases during sales promotions saying 'The Show' would last nearly one hour," the Fair Trade Commission said in a statement.

Nike declined immediate comment on the ruling, saying they had not received any notification from the commission.

The sportswear giant has apologized for the incident which had led to fans posting angry messages on Internet bulletin boards and a leading consumers' group threatening to boycott all Nike products.

Nike offered posters and first-generation Air Jordan shoes as compensation to the more than 700 people who attended the event and promised to invite them to future events.

 

[edesignuk]

eeewwwww, $30,000, Nike must have been ******** themselves

edit: er, mods, something wrong with the word filter?

 

[wowser]

eeewwwww, $30,000, Nike must have been ******* themselves
:

exactly what i was thinking. I saw an article about corporations - GM in the 70s found that it was cheaper to create dangerous cars (which they knew would cause deaths) than to fit safety features - they worked out that the amount they would pay out in law0suits would be slightly less than installing the new features.

 

[Calvinatir]

exactly what i was thinking. I saw an article about corporations - GM in the 70s found that it was cheaper to create dangerous cars (which they knew would cause deaths) than to fit safety features - they worked out that the amount they would pay out in law0suits would be slightly less than installing the new features.

::cough::cough:: Fight Club...

 

[wowser]

??? i have not seen that film. I read this in a newspaper magazine

 

[munkle]

$30,000...how will Nike survive?!!
I'm sure the NBA were fining Jordan/Nike more than that everytime he wore the original Jordan's, the ones that broke the broke some uniform rule.

Edit: edesign, maybe because it's spelt with two T's!!

 

[Mechcozmo]

Someone needs to use the built-in spell checker more often...

 

[Abstract]

Actually, it should catch the word **** even as long as there's an s, h, i, and t in succession, right?

Anyway, this fine is a joke. Seriously, if they're going to fine a large megacorporation like that, at least make it hurt. Like you guys said about GM cars, maybe it was cheaper to get Michael Jordan to come out for a 90 second appearance and pay the fine than to have MJ come out for an hour, even though he's only there to promote his own products.

 

[xgsrpg]

******** is not a censored word, **** (s | h | i | t) is but Matsushita (as in electronics manufacturer) isn't. I think they refined the filter after Matsushita kept getting their name censored.

 

[FelixDerKater]

What would Jordan have done on stage for a whole hour? There are only so many times you can watch one guy shoot a basket before it gets boring.

 

[virividox]

big whoop hehe

 

[Diatribe]

OMG! Sell your shares now, Nike will be bankrupt soon.
Those fines are so amusing, just like the fines Microsoft usually has to pay.

 

[takao]

OMG! Sell your shares now, Nike will be bankrupt soon.
Those fines are so amusing, just like the fines Microsoft usually has to pay.

microsoft wasn't very amused by the 492 Million € fine they had to pay the EU

 

[munkle]

What would Jordan have done on stage for a whole hour? There are only so many times you can watch one guy shoot a basket before it gets boring.

Not when it's Michael Jordan!

 

[whooleytoo]

exactly what i was thinking. I saw an article about corporations - GM in the 70s found that it was cheaper to create dangerous cars (which they knew would cause deaths) than to fit safety features - they worked out that the amount they would pay out in law0suits would be slightly less than installing the new features.

Wasn't Ralph Nader the guy who brought this to light and forced them to change?

 

[Diatribe]

microsoft wasn't very amused by the 492 Million € fine they had to pay the EU

Yeah, I would have protested for the sake of it too but really, would it hurt you if you'd have to pay a 10€ fine?

 

[takao]

Yeah, I would have protested for the sake of it too but really, would it hurt you if you'd have to pay a 10€ fine?

at the moment: yes i'm running out of money because of a TV-usage tax i gotta pay this week (see the community thread about the UK TV BBC thing it's similiar here)
i have exactly 10.12 € in my pocket which _has to_ be enough for 10 days of eating

i think this 30.000 fine is absolutly ridiculous...

 

[jared_kipe]

******** is not a censored word, **** (s | h | i | t) is but Matsushita (as in electronics manufacturer) isn't. I think they refined the filter after Matsushita kept getting their name censored.

But I thought Matsushita was getting censored because they made products like the matsushitter and other portable waste management.