Despite the fact that Schering-Plough, as the maker of Coppertone, back in April, originally sued J&J's Neutrogena, for Lanham Act false advertising -- overnight, it was Neutrogena that filed a motion for a preliminary injunction against Coppertone's ads (that's a full-text PDF file of motion; the briefs on it are "under seal" in the US District courthouse, in Delaware) -- averring that the same are "literally false" and misleading:
. . . .123. Finally, the commercial as a whole conveys the false and misleading message that Coppertone Sport sprays provide better sun protection compared to Neutrogena Ultimate Sport sprays. That claim is false even according to Schering. Schering’s papers filed in this action contend only that Coppertone Sport’s highest SPF products provide at most parity protection compared to Neutrogena’s Ultimate Sport products. And on average, Neutrogena’s Ultimate Sport products, including the spray products, provide better sun protection than do Coppertone’s Sport products.
124. The Coppertone Sport commercial is being aired during the very first selling season for the Neutrogena Ultimate Sport line. Neutrogena has invested in Ultimate Sport years of research and development, significant advertising expenditures, and the time and effort of many Neutrogena employees and executives. A significant portion of that investment could be lost if Schering is not barred from making its false and misleading claims about the Neutrogena Ultimate Sport line. . . .
I am put in mind of two fifth-grade boys, each with a magnifying glass, on a cloudless summer's day, hunched over an ant-hill. . . doing cruel things. But this time, it is to one another, rather than the ants.
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