At least nine civil suits have been filed against McDonald’s Corp., Oak Brook, IL, and Simon Worldwide, Los Angeles, alleging that the embezzlement of high-value gamepieces (XTRA!, Aug. 21) constituted consumer fraud and false advertising.
Complaints filed in various courts in California, Florida, Illinois, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee allege that McDonald’s and Simon engaged in unfair competition, unfair and deceptive business practices, and unjust enrichment. They seek unspecified damages and/or the restitution of profits earned during the periods in which the tainted games ran.
Simon, which expects to be named as a defendant or co-defendant in additional actions, “intends to vigorously defend against the allegations … but is unable to predict the outcome of the suits and their ultimate effect, if any, on [the company’s] financial condition,” per an agency release. McDonald’s declined comment on litigation.
The first suit, filed Aug. 22 in Chicago with two plaintiffs, seeks class-action status and repayment to consumers of the incremental money McD made during its July 2001 Monopoly promotion “since people didn’t have fair chance to win the game,” says attorney Aron Robinson, who filed the suit. While hundreds of prizes were available, “we know the hook is larger prizes.” (Robinson filed suit against M&M/Mars in 1997, charging that its Find the Gray M&M game confused consumers who found uncoated candies that looked gray. The suit was dismissed.)
The National Association of Attorneys General didn’t react to the gamepiece theft despite aggressive state-level prosecution of shady sweeps in recent years. “This doesn’t appear to be something NAAG’s Consumer Protection Committee would look at, since it’s a criminal matter for McDonald’s and its agency,” says a spokeswoman for Ohio AG and committee chair Betty Montgomery.
In related news, Simon announced the elimination of 94 positions last week, reducing its headcount in the U.S. to 142. (The company’s overseas administrative manufacturing operations overseas employ about 160 people.)
“Moving forward, we are reviewing all of our options and will continue to make decisions that are in the company’s best interest,” ceo Allan Brown said in a statement.
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