Gatorade to Pay $300k in Settlement After ‘Inaccurately and Negatively Depicting Water as Hindering Athletic Performance’

This is a press release from the office of California Attorney General Xavier Becerra:

By Codo (Flickr: Gatorade table) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

SACRAMENTO – California Attorney General Xavier Becerra [Thursday] announced the concurrent filing of a complaint and a settlement involving allegations that The Gatorade Company violated California consumer protection laws by making misleading statements about water in a mobile videogame application it used to promote Gatorade sports drinks to teens and young adults.

The complaint filed by the Attorney General alleges that in the videogame “Bolt!”—made available free of charge on iTunes—Gatorade portrayed its products positively while inaccurately and negatively depicting water as hindering athletic performance. Specifically, users controlled a cartoon version of Olympic Gold Medalist Usain Bolt and ran an endless race to recover gold coins stolen by pirates. Upon touching a Gatorade icon, the Bolt avatar ran faster and the “fuel meter” increased; upon touching a water droplet, he slowed down and the “fuel meter” decreased. Gatorade reinforced this misleading message through the game’s tutorial, which urged users to “Keep Your Performance Level High By Avoiding Water.”

“Making misleading statements is a violation of California law. But making misleading statements aimed at our children is beyond unlawful, it’s morally wrong and a betrayal of trust. It’s what causes consumers to lose faith in the products they buy,” said Attorney General Becerra. “Today’s settlement should make clear that the California Department of Justice will pursue false advertisers and hold them accountable.”

The complaint further alleges that Gatorade promoted “Bolt!” on social media, drawing in a youthful audience of which more than 70 percent was aged 13 to 24. The app amassed more than 2.3 million downloads and 87 million games played worldwide in 2012 and 2013. The app was also made available on iTunes for a period of time in 2017. “Bolt!” was downloaded an estimated 30,000 times in California. It is no longer available for download.

As part of the settlement, Gatorade will be required to pay $300,000, of which $120,000 will be used to fund research or education on water consumption and the nutrition of children and teenagers. In addition, the settlement requires Gatorade to disclose endorser relationships in any social media posts and prohibits the company from advertising its products in media where children under age 12 comprise more than 35 percent of the audience. The settlement also prohibits the company from negatively depicting water in any form of advertisement.

So-called “advergames”—downloadable or internet-based video games that advertise a brand-name product by featuring it as part of the game—influence the behavior of consumers and especially children, who are the common targets of such games. Studies have shown that advergames can significantly impact a child’s desire for either healthy or unhealthy foods.

Sports drinks often have a high sugar content. For example, one 32-ounce bottle of a sports drink could have as much as 56 grams of sugar, which is more than double the 25 grams of added sugar that any child or teenager aged 2 to 18 should consume in an entire day, according to the American Heart Association. Despite this, consumers commonly misperceive sports drinks to be beneficial for children in connection with any amount of sports activity. The American Academy of Pediatrics has made clear that children “rarely need sports drinks” and that “water, not sports drinks, should be the principal source of hydration for children and adolescents.”

For additional resources regarding child and teenage nutrition, please see the following online resources:

A copy of the complaint and the stipulated judgment containing the terms of the settlement are attached to the electronic version of this release at oag.ca.gov/news.

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18 Comments
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shak
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shak
6 years ago

The marxist education brainwashing is so thorough, that children can’t differ between adverts and truths?
I hope Gatorade counter sues the Dept of Education for deleting the most important education of all, the power of critical thinking.
I hope parents join the Gatorade team. The parents have been forced to pay for the forced department of education that forces all children to learn the same exact indoctrination.
When a child can’t differ between an advert, a game, and a homework assignment, maybe it’s time for a revolution.

Sparklemahn
Guest
Sparklemahn
6 years ago
Reply to  shak

Typical Conservative: if you don’t like something then its “fake” or “indoctrination”. Conservatives have dumbed down society to the point where a sheister piece of shit named donnie became President. Gatorade is sugar water for losers and not a thing more.

Jaekelopterus
Guest
Jaekelopterus
6 years ago
Reply to  shak

You’re blaming Marxists for not equipping children to deal with Capitalist propaganda? If the education system was full of Marxists, isn’t that ALL they would do?

Maesteramon
Guest
Maesteramon
6 years ago
Reply to  shak

Idiocracy is all I can think of. You go ahead and accept the “facts and free market” and eventually you’ll be watering your crops with that green goo

Shak
Guest
Shak
6 years ago
Reply to  shak

The marxist moochers who depend upon the $100,000.00 retirement benefits the school system now gouges the citizens for, cries out against capitalism? Thanks! I needed that chuckle.

Dan Fuller
Guest
Dan Fuller
6 years ago

Outstanding!!!! Well Done Ca AG!!!!

Sparklemahn
Guest
Sparklemahn
6 years ago
Reply to  Dan Fuller

Yet useful pawns for the rich are already complaining.

SourTangant
Guest
SourTangant
6 years ago

$300,000 for a huge company like Gatorade isn’t even pocket change. They are laughing at the settlement. They won

hmm
Guest
hmm
6 years ago
Reply to  SourTangant

Exactly.

Gatorade is a liar
Guest
Gatorade is a liar
6 years ago

Where do we claim our share of the loot?
I have been misled and want compensation asap!

Sharpen your pencil
Guest
Sharpen your pencil
6 years ago

Just curious, did the CA AG also take Adam Sandler to court over the waterboy?

Jaekelopterus
Guest
Jaekelopterus
6 years ago

I don’t think movies fall under dept. of ag. pervue, no matter how shitty or full of product placement.

hmm
Guest
hmm
6 years ago

Why would they? The movie promoted water as healthy.

fuckwalterwhite.com
Guest
fuckwalterwhite.com
6 years ago

Idiocracy

Maesteramon
Guest
Maesteramon
6 years ago

It’s got electrolytes! Hey I bet I could convince you right wing corporate bootlicking rabble rousers to water your crops with ecto cooler! Smh

hmm
Guest
hmm
6 years ago
Reply to  Maesteramon

If it is good for the quarterly report, they’re all for it.

G-MAS
Guest
G-MAS
6 years ago

I love Gatorade!!🖒

Gatorade betrayed me
Guest
Gatorade betrayed me
6 years ago

Is there a link , i need my compensation
Plucking my fidel in town iant cutting it anymore, all these tughtwads just keep on walking not dropping dimes in my hat anymore..
Where do i go? I want my share!