New York, Nov 29 (TIWN) The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and state attorneys general have settled lawsuits against Google and iHeartMedia to pay $9.4 million in penalties over featuring deceptive ads promoting the Pixel 4 smartphone.

"Google and iHeartMedia paid influencers to promote products they never used, showing a blatant disrespect for truth-in-advertising rules," said Samuel Levine, Bureau of Consumer Protection Director late on Monday.  According to the FTC, in 2019, Google hired iHeartMedia and 11 other radio networks in ten major markets to have on-air personalities record and broadcast endorsements of the Pixel 4 phone.