Recently a Coinbase user has filed a class-action lawsuit against the company based on a misleading Dogecoin ad campaign. The user has claimed $5 million in damages which is quite a large amount. According to him, the company has deceived him into putting $100 into his trading account to win a $1.2 million lottery. But the same entry could have been made without making any Dogecoin purchases at all. So, it seems that the campaign was not clear, and the user is obviously not happy with the same.
Coinbase’s misleading Dogecoin ad campaign
On June 3, 2021, the app Coinbase enabled dogecoin trading on their platform after the constant request from the community. They received an overwhelming response due to the trading and conducted a campaign. This was when the company sent out a mail to its users saying, “Trade Doge, Win Doge.” The mail read that in order to enter the giveaway or lottery, the user needs to trade Dogecoin worth $100. But there was another option of entry that was hidden away in the other rules section. In there, they found that the same entry could be made by just sending Coinbase an index card that had the users name, address and phone, DOB.
On the basis of this, the user that filed the complaint said that the ad campaign was deceiving. If everyone could have just entered free of cost, why was the option hidden somewhere? And why was the focus was on trading to enter the giveaway? The user also traded $100 in order to enter the lottery. He also added that he had Dogecoin on another platform and would not have traded anything if he knew about the free option.
A stretch
As a user, I might also have been disappointed if something like this happens, but claiming $5 M in damages is too much. I don’t know what the court’s decision will be, but if I say Coinbase didn’t actually force anyone to participate in the giveaway, nor did they ask to pay them. They just asked you to trade a cryptocurrency which you can easily sell to get back your money. I always find such lawsuits against large companies a money grab attempt.
What are your thoughts on the lawsuit filed by the Coinbase user? And do you think the reason is legit, or this is just a money grab? Let us know in the comments below. Also, if you found our content informative, do like and share it with your friends.
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