A U.S. judge said parts of a false advertising lawsuit can proceed against online coupon distributor Groupon.
Groupon allegedly buys tour-related keywords on Google’s AdWords service, but often does not actually offer tour coupons when customers arrive at the site, the lawsuit alleges.
The practice drives up the cost of keywords for the tour company while the prominence of its ads in Google searches declines, the lawsuit states.
Groupon is aiming for a mid- to late- September IPO, despite recent market tumult that has shelved some flotations. Groupon asked a federal judge in Oakland, California to dismiss the lawsuit. At a hearing on Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Phyllis Hamilton ruled from the bench that certain allegations against Groupon can proceed.
Other claims against Groupon were dismissed, with a chance for the plaintiffs to refashion their allegations.
The case in U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, is San Francisco Comprehensive Tours LLC on behalf of itself and all others similarly situated v. Groupon et al., No. 11-cv-1300.
If you have had any similar problems with Groupon, let us know and we’ll contact the Class Action attorneys.
Thanks to Dan Levine and Reuters, and
thanks for “listening”
Howard
The Neu Facebook
