Siegfried Sonneberg et al. doing business as the Sonneberg Company

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b. THE MATTER OF SIEGFRIED SONXEBERG ET AI" DOING BI;SINESS AS THE SONNEBERG COMPANY CONSENT ORDER ETC. , IN REGARD TO THE ALLEGED 'VTOLATION OF THE FEDERAL TRADE CO)(l\IISSIQ): "\CT Docket 0--37. Complaint, Aug. 1963-Decision, Aug. , 1963 Consent order requiring New York City importers and distributors of auto. motive parts which they sold primarily to manufacturers and wholesalers, to cease sellng synchronizer blocking rings manufactured in Italy with no markings indicating their foreign origin, and sellng synchronizer assemblies comprised of said Italian parts along with other parts of do. mestic manufacture without disclosing the foreign origin of substantial parts thereof and with the words "Made in imprinted on the containers.

CO)IPLAI Pllrsmwt to the provisions of the Federal Trade Commission Act and by virtue of the authority vested jn it by said Ad, the Federal Trade Commissioll j having reason to believe that Siegfried 80nneberg, :Manirec1 Sonneberg and I-fenni SOlmcberg, individually and as copartners doing busillcss as The Sonneberg Company, hereinafter referred to as respondents, have violated the provisions of said Act and it appearing to the Commission that a proceeding by it in respect thereof ,vOlIlc1 be in the public interest, hereby issues its complaint stating its charges in that respect a.s follows: PAHAGHAPH 1. Respondents, Siegfried Sonneberg, :\1anfred Sonneberg and Hennl Sonneberg, arc individuals and copartners doing business as The Sonneberg Company, with their office and prjncipal place of business located at '18 ,Yest 25th Street in the city of New York State of New York.

\lL 2. Respondent.s ate 1l0\Y, and for some time last past have been, engage(l in the import.ation, offering for sale, sale and distribution of automoti\Tc parts, including synehronizer blocking rings and synchronizer assemblies, primarily to manufacturers and t.o wholesalers who, in turn, rescH to retailers, for resale to the public. PAR. 3. In the course and conduct of their business, respondents now cause, and for some time last past have caused, their said products, when sold to be shipped from their phLce of business in the State of N eTV York to purchasers thereof located in various other States of the United States, and miLintain: and at all times mentioned herein have m Lintained, a substantial course of trade in s Licl products in C011- :

THE SO !'EBERG CO. 429 428 Complaint mcree, as "commerce: is defined in the Federal Trade Commission Act.

PAR. 4. Certain of the synchronizer blocking rings offered for sale, sold and distributed by respondents ate mflnufacturec1 in and imported from Italy. Responclents said foreign synchronizer blocking rings bear no markings indicating their manufacture in and importation from Italy. Upon importation, no additional work is performed on said synchronizer blocking rings, and a substantial percentage of the synchronizer blocking rings of foreign origin are sold and distributed in the same physical state as they ' were upon importation. The sale or said synchronizer blocking rings of foreign origin without any disclosure thereon of the,ir foreign origin, is raise misleading, and deceptive.

Other synchronizer blocking rings or foreign origin are assembled and packaged in a unit ealled a synchronizer assembly containing other parts manufactured in the United States. These synchronizer assemblies are not marked in any ma,nner to disclose the foreign origin of the synchronizer blocking rings contained in said assemblies and which comprise a substantial part of said assemblies. The sale of said synchronize!' assemblies \vithout any disclosure of the foreign origin of substantial parts t.hereof is false, misleading and deceptive. PAR. 3. Hesponclents: said synchronizer assemblies are packaged 1n boxes containing' thereon the w.ords " Ia.de in U. : without any disclosure that the synchronizer blocking rings contained in said assemblies are of foreign origin, The \words "J\Iade in U. : imprinted on said boxes constitute a,n affirmative representation that the assemblies contained in said boxes ate wholly of domestic origin. Such representation is false, misleading and deceptive as said assemblies contain substantial parts of foreign origin. AH. 6. In the absence of clear and conspicuous disclosure that a product, including synchroni7,er blocking rings and synchronizer assemblies, is of foreign origin, the public believes and understands that it is of domestic origin, a fact of which the Commisslon takes offcial notice.

As to the 1foresaic1 mticles of merchandise, a substantial portion of the purchasing. public has a preference for sa,id articles \which arc of domestic origin of \1which fact the Commission also takes offcial notice. Hespondcnts: failure clearly and conspicuously to disclose the country of origin of said articles of merchandise is therdore, to the prejudice of the purchasing public.

PAH. 7. By the aforesaid pra,ctices, respondents place in the hands of manufacturers, \\wholesalers and dist.ributors, means a,nel instrn- 430 FEDERAL TRADE C01vD.lission DECISIONS Decision and Order 63 F.

mentalities by and through "hieh they may mislead the public as to the country of origin of saiel products.

PAn. 8. In the conduct of their business, at aJl times mentioned herein, respondents have been in substantial competition, in commerce \with corporations, firms and individuals, in t.he sale of products of t.he Stune ge,neral kind a,uel nature as those sold by respondents. PAR. 9. The use by the respondent.s 01 the aforesaid false, misleading and c1eceptin', stfltrments, representations and practices has had, Hnd now has, the capacity.y and tendency to mislead members of the purchasing public into t.he erroneous and mistaken belief that said products arc of domestic origin and into the pllrchrlse of substantial quantities of respondents' products hy re, ason of said erroneous and mistaken bel ief.

\R. 10. The aforesaid acts and practices of respondents, as herein alleged, were and are to the prejudice and injury of t.he public and of respondents: competitors, and constituted, and now constitute unfu,ir met.hods of cmnpetiticn in commerce and unfair and deceptive acts and practices in commcrc, in violation of Section;) of t,he Fedend Trade COll11nission Act.

Dr:CISIOX AXD ORDER The Federal Trade Commission having initiated an investigation of certain acts awl practices of the respondents llflmed in the caption hereof, and the respondents having b( en furnished thereafter with a copy of c1mft of complaint which the Burcau of Dcceptive Practices proposed to present to the Commission for its consideration and which: if issued by the Commission, would charge respondents with violation of the Federal Trade Commission Act; and The respondents and counsel for t.he Commission having thereafter executed an agreement containing a consent order, an admission by the respondents of all the jurisdic.iona.l facts set forth in the aforesaid draft of cornpla.int, a statement that t.he signing of said agreement, is for settlement purposes only and does not constitute an admission by the respondents that the law has been violated a.s alleged in such complaint, and ,,"waivers and provisions as required by the Commission s rules; and The Commission, ha\ ing reason to believe that ihe respondents have violated the Federal Tr8.cle Commis ion Act, anc1luLving determined that ('omplaint should isslle stating its charges in that respect hereby iSSlles its complaint, accepts said agreement: makes the following jurisdictional findings and enters the follm'lng order: THE SO:\NE,BERG CO. 431 428 Deci",i.on and Order 1. Siegfried Sonneberg, ,Manfred Sonneberg, and Henni Sonneberg, are individuals and copartners doing business as The Sonnebcrg Company, with their oilce Rnd principal place of business located at 418 ,Vest 25th Street, New York, Kew York.

2. The Federal Trade Commission has jurisdiction of the subject matter of this proceeding and of the respondents, and the proceeding is in the public interest.

ORDER It is oTdcTCd That t.he rcsponclenh" Sieg-fI'iec1 SOllneberg, l\Ianfred Sonnek rgal1d I-Ienni Sonneberg, inc1iyiclual1y flncl as copartners doing business as The Sonneberg Company, or under any other name or names, and respondents' agents, representatives and employee c1direct1y or through any corporate or other device, in connection with the offering for sale, sale or distribut.ion of autOlnotive parts, including synchronizer blocking rings, synchronizer assemblies, or any other products, in COlllnerce, as ;;commerce" is defined in the Federal Trade Commission Act, do forthwith cease nd desist from: 1. Offering for sale, selling or distributing any product which is in whole, or which contains a substantial part or parts, of foreign orjgin or fabrication without affrmatively disclosing the country or place of foreign origin or fabrication thereof on the products themselves, by marking or stamping on any exposed sur face or on a label or tag affxed thereto, of such degree of permancy as to remain thereon until consummation of consumer sale of the product, and of such conspicuousness a o be likely observed and read by purchasers and prospective purchasers making casual inspection of the product.

2. Offering for sale, selling or distributing any such product marked in the manner set out above and enclosed in a package or conta.iner, without disclosing the country or plaee of foreign origin of the product, or sUDsta,ntial part or parts thereof, on the front or face of said package or container, so positioned as to clearly have application to the product so packaged, a,nd of such degree of pe.rmanency as t.o remain thereon until consummation of the consumer sale of the product, and of such conspicuousness as to be likely observed and read by purcha,sers and prospective purchasers milking casual inspectjon of the product so packaged. 8. R,cpresenting, direct.ly or indirectly, in any manner or by any means, that their products DTC of domestic origin when said products arc in \whole or contain a substantial part of which is of foreign origin.

, 432 FBDERAL TRI .\DE COMMISSIO:\ DE CISIOXS Complnillt 63 F.

4. Placing in the hands of jobbers, retailers, dealers, ,md others, means and in trumentalities by and through which they may cle,ceivc and mislead the purchasing public c.oncerning ClllY merchandise in respect to the origin of respondents merchandise. It is further ordered That the respondents herein sha.l1 ,yjthin sixty (60) da.ys after service lI))on them of this order, file j\-ith the Commission a. report in ,,,rit.ing setting forth in detail the manller and form in \\hic.h they have complied Iyith this order.