CHOICE Voice » Bad product awards

CHOICE Shonky Awards 2008

Georgina Swan — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 01:50:37 +0000

The CHOICE 2007 Shonky Awards

Georgina Swan — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 04:26:45 +0000

The spotlight is again on bad products, with CHOICE holding its 2007 Shonky Awards in Sydney.

So what topped this year’s list? One of Australia’s leading banks, a popular spread aimed at children and a major appliance manufacturer. CHOICE gave out nine awards in all:

Teleconfusion: Mobile phone industry
Spoiling the fun: Play For Fun Flying Ring
Nasty shonkeyness: Woofaz retractable dog leash PA0087B
Warm wine and high energy: Dome 900192 and Rank Arena RAWC28
Unfair fees: Westpac
Low General Integrity (GI): Ferrero Nutella
Greenwash: LG combined steam washer/dryer WD-1248RD
Supershonkyness: Superjuices
Ain’t Shrek Beautiful: Advertising Standards Bureau (ASB)

The Shonkys are supposed to be a bit of fun, but they also give an insight into some of the misleading claims, product safety issues, self-serving behaviour and the environmentally bankrupt spin out there in Australia.

Head on over to CHOICE to vote for your favourite Shonky, or nominate one of your own. Or watch the YouTube video.

Congress presentations, photos and videos now online

Gordon Renouf — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 03:55:04 +0000

You can view speaker presentations, video interviews with delegates and speakers and congress photos online at the following places. We will be uploading speaker papers where there was no presentation as soon as we can get copies. We hope to upload audio files of all sessions in the near future. In the next few days we will post a link on this blog to a much larger number of photos in high resolution format on Flickr.com

CHOICE Congress page – links to all available content
The Consumers International YouTube page – video interviews with speakers and delegates
The slideshare.net congress page – powerpoint presentations
The Consumers International web site – links to most content.

More content is being uploaded as soon as it is available.

We will try to obtain any missing presentations and papers as soon as possible.

Cheers, the CHOICE Vod Pod Blog team.

Bad products: and the winners are…

Georgina Swan — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 06:49:06 +0000

Coco-cola, Kellogg’s, and Mattel top the list of international brands guilty of abusing consumer rights, with Takeda Pharmaceuticals winning the overall prize for taking advantage of poor US regulation and advertising sleeping pills to children, despite health warnings about paediatric use.

The International Bad Products Awards has made news worldwide. Here are just some of the stories:

Bad products named at Sydney conference – Malaysia Sun, Malaysia
Child sleeping drug world’s worst product – Herald Sun, Australia
Coke, Kellogg’s cop Bad Product Awards – ABC, Australia
Consumer rights abusers named, shamed – SMH, Australia
Drug firm tops ethical offender list – The Age, Australia
Four corporations win bad product awards – OneWorld.net, US
Japan’s Takeda wins worst product award – Digital Journal, Canada
Japan’s Takeda wins worst product award – Earthtimes, UK
Products of dubious distinction win global awards – New Indian Express, India

Japan’s Takeda wins worst product award – Monsters and Critics.com, UK
Kids’ sleeping pill is worst product – The Standard, Hong Kong
Sleeping drug ad wins ‘worst product’ – NineMSN, Australia
Sleeping pills for kids top global list of bad products – AFP, Australia
Sleeping pills for kids top global list of bad products – Brisband Times, Australia
Sleeping pills for kids top global list of bad products – France24, France
Sleeping pills for kids top global list of bad products – Economic Times, India
Sleeping pills for kids top global list of bad products – PhysOrg.com, US
Sleeping pills for kids top global list of bad products – Inquirer.net, Philippines
Sleeping tablets for kids given ‘award’ for worst product – The South African Star, South Africa
Some things are bad for you – Sowetan, South Africa
World’s worst products ‘honoured’ – News.com, Australia
Worst global product: Kids’ sleeping pills – Zee News, India
World’s worst products – 7Days, United Arab Emirates

CI Congress in the news

Georgina Swan — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 07:52:31 +0000

The 18th Consumers International World Congress is already making headlines in Australia and overseas. Junk food marketing was the big story of the day:

Consumer groups push for tighter junk food restrictions – ABC
Bad products to be named and shamed – The Age
Push to ban soft drink ads for young – SMH
Irresponsible companies in firing line – AdelaideNOW
Consumer mouse that is roaring – SMH
Call to go hard on soft drinks – The Herald Sun
Consumer council invited to congress – Fiji Village
Call to ban soft drink marketing to kids – NineMSN
Marketing ban on soft drinks – Live News
Call to ban softdrink marketing to under-16s

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