FTC Settles Over Cancellation Claims; Google Reportedly Moves Brand AI Overviews

DATAVIZPRO Editorial — Tue, 03 Nov 2026 18:39:08 GMT

The FTC and Washington settled with a payment processor over alleged buried renewal terms and hard cancellation, while Google reportedly moves brand AI Overviews to the right column. Also: TikTok search metrics, an ad strength study and Visa's 1.5% dispute threshold.

FTC and Washington settle with payment processor over alleged savings and cancellation claims

Riverside Payments, its leasing affiliate Cascade Equipment Leasing and their operators will pay $600,000 to resolve allegations from the FTC and Washington state. A judgment of $32,083,921 is suspended because the defendants say they cannot pay it. Regulators allege the firms overstated savings, buried auto-renewal terms and a $695 termination fee, made cancellation very hard, and inflated sales agent earnings. The proposed order requires clear disclosure of material terms before collecting billing details, express informed consent for negative-option billing, and a simple way to cancel.

Why it matters: The order's terms mirror what regulators keep asking of subscription sellers. Vendors may want to review how renewal terms, consent capture and cancellation paths appear in their funnels, and how any earnings claims are substantiated.

Source: U.S. Federal Trade Commission: FTC, Washington Take Action Against Payment Processor for Deceiving Small Businesses About Costs and Cancellation Terms

Reported Google brand search changes: AI Overviews in right column, PMax brand filtering

Search Engine Roundtable reported on November 2 that Google appears to be placing AI Overviews for many brand keywords in the right column of desktop results, where knowledge panels used to appear. A similar pattern was flagged as early as October 31, and the published examples showed US results.

Separately, according to PPC Land, a revised Google help page says Performance Max may leave navigational and brand queries to dedicated brand Search campaigns. Digiday reported buyers saying 10% to 30% of search budgets now face extra scrutiny.

Why it matters: Vendors bidding on their own brand may want to check that a dedicated brand Search campaign exists with adequate budget and strong ads, and watch whether Performance Max reporting or brand click volume shifts.

Source: PPC Land: Google moves brand AI Overviews aside as buyers question search budgets

TikTok Search Ads highlights impression share metrics and adds Keyword Packs

Search Engine Journal reports that TikTok's Q4 2026 product preview shows Impression Share and Top 1 Impression Share for Search Ads, available at campaign, advertiser and keyword levels in Ads Manager where eligible. TikTok also says its Keyword Suggestion Tool can now recommend curated brand and category Keyword Packs, refreshed daily using signals such as search volume, CPC and competition. TikTok does not say which markets or accounts get Keyword Packs, and availability may vary by account and rollout.

Why it matters: Media buyers testing TikTok search can check Ads Manager for the new share columns, compare low-share keywords against budget and bid, and review any suggested brand terms before adding them.

Source: Search Engine Journal: TikTok Search Ads Adds Brand And Category Keyword Packs

Study finds Google favors higher ad strength RSAs even when they convert worse

An Adalysis analysis of more than 5,900 Google Ads accounts, covered by Search Engine Journal, found that in ad groups with two responsive search ads of different ratings, the higher-rated ad got more impressions 63% of the time but had the better conversion rate only 45% of the time. Higher-rated ads showed an 11.8% higher CPA overall. The study links much of the gap to pinning. Google says ad strength is not an auction input.

Why it matters: Advertisers who pin headlines for prices or disclaimers may want to judge ad tests on CPA and conversions per impression rather than ratings, and expect lower-rated ads to receive fewer impressions.

Source: Search Engine Journal: Google Favors High Ad Strength RSAs, But Lower-Rated Ads Convert Better

Digistore24 guide outlines tighter Visa dispute threshold and chargeback prevention steps

In a seller guide, Digistore24 says Visa's Acquirer Monitoring Program set the merchant excessive threshold at 1.5%, down from 2.2%, as of April 1, 2026, and that the ratio counts fraud reports as well as disputes. The guide notes processor response deadlines are often shorter than network windows. It suggests recognizable billing descriptors, renewal reminders, easy-to-find cancellation and refund paths, and evidence matched to each reason code.

Why it matters: Vendors selling subscriptions or high-ticket upsells may want to confirm their processor's actual dispute deadlines and monitor their ratio during launches, not just raw chargeback counts.

Source: Digistore24: What Is a Chargeback? A Plain-English Guide for Online Sellers

Meta shows lookalike audience prompt when building Leads campaigns, Jon Loomer reports

Jon Loomer says he sees a message in Meta Ads Manager, only when creating a Leads campaign, claiming a lookalike audience could cut cost per quality lead by 11%. He notes Meta has otherwise made audience suggestions less prominent and that their effect is hard to prove. For lead quality problems, he suggests testing a lookalike built from qualified leads as a suggestion, without splitting ad sets by suggestion, to avoid auction overlap.

Why it matters: Lead-gen buyers, including call-center funnels, could test a qualified-lead lookalike as a suggestion within one ad set and compare lead quality, treating the 11% figure as Meta's claim rather than an expected result.

Source: Jon Loomer Digital: Lookalike Audience Suggestions for Leads Campaigns