Matters of Definition

The same week that the powerful steel and cement industries bowed to the Federal Trade Commission (see above), two lesser adversaries gave the agency an old-fashioned nose-thumbing.

Rayon or Estron? The issue in one case was the word rayon, a word used for years to describe the synthetic fabrics made from a cellulose base, chiefly by the viscose process. In the last 15 years, manufacturers have popularized another fabric which also has a cellulose base (cellulose acetate) but which differs from cellulose viscose -- it doesn't iron as well, but resists shrinking better. To keep customers from getting mixed up, the manufacturers thought it should have a distinguishing name. FTC argued that this would only confuse the public, insisted that both fabrics be labeled rayon.

Celanese Corp. of America, No. 1 maker of the acetate fabric, balked (by advertising it as "Celanese"), and was called on the carpet. Other producers put up as best they could with the growing complaints of buyers.

Finally, last month, the American Society for Testing Materials (6,300 members representing producers, sellers, users) recommended a new name -- estron -- for the acetate fabric. FTC said nothing doing. Fed up, Tennessee Eastman Corp., No. 2 in the industry, last week announced that it would use the word estron anyway--and FTC could go to court about it.

Free or Strings? The second skirmish was over the word free, which FTC six months ago ruled out of ads if there were any strings at all to the offer. Last fortnight, FTC accused the Book-of-the-Month Club, the Literary Guild of America and four other book publishers of "false, misleading and deceptive" advertising because they offered "free" books to anyone who subscribed. Also wrong, charged FTC, were such terms as "bonus books'" and ''book dividends."

The National Better Business Bureau, Inc. and the Association of National Advertisers had already objected to the FTC ruling, on the grounds that most "free" offers clearly stated the conditions in un-deceptive terms. The book men, given 20 days to answer the charges in court, lost no time in speaking their minds out of court. Said one book club official: "Perfect nonsense." In the Literary Guild's full-page ads this week, the most prominent word in the copy, in black, inch-high capitals, was FREE.

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