# Market America **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 19, 2002, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/market-america/109786 "2002-05-19T03:37:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2002, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/market-america/109786/1 "2002-05-19T03:37:16Z")
Has anyone here ever heard of Market America. My girlfriend joined it about two years ago. I truly belive it to be a pyramid scheme, but she won’t listen to me. She does sell products (I don’t know what they are, becuase I refuse to get involved). I asked her if she is supposed to recruit new people, and she said yes. I asked her if she gets a portion of the money that those recruits make, she said yes. I asked her if she has to give a portion of her money to someone else, yup. She woulnd’t answer anymore questions after that. She told me that they told her that she isn’t supposed to answer these kind of questions. When people have these questions, she’s supposed to bring them to a meeting, because otherwise people think it’s some sort of scheme. Then she went on to tell me that the bussiness is totally legit, “There’s even police officers at the meetings to prove that.” I explained to her the concept of “rent a cops” and also explained that police officers don’t decide is something is a pyramid scheme or not. That would be up to a third party attorney, secret service or and FBI agent. Up until right now, I didn’t even think to ask WHY there are officers at the meetings. Anyways, has anyone ever heard of Market America, or know where I could find out if it is a pyramid scheme or not. (I know, from the info I’ve given it is, but I could be missing something). ---
**Author:** ![Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/50afbb/32.png) [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2002, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/market-america/109786/2 "2002-05-19T03:53:41Z")
Puttering around on Google… Well, it’s Multi-Level Marketing, all right. But there’s a fine legal line between MLM and a “pyramid scheme”. [http://www.marketamerica.com/](http://www.marketamerica.com/) Facts. The short version. [http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/invest/mlm.htm](http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/invest/mlm.htm) > [@](#): > > The Federal Trade Commission cannot tell you whether a particular multilevel marketing plan is legal. Nor can it give you advice about whether to join such a plan. You must make that decision yourself. However, the FTC suggests that you use common sense, and consider these seven tips when you make your decision: > > Avoid any plan that includes commissions for recruiting additional distributors. It may be an illegal pyramid. > > Beware of plans that ask new distributors to purchase expensive inventory. These plans can collapse quickly – and also may be thinly-disguised pyramids. > > Be cautious of plans that claim you will make money through continued growth of your “downline” – the commissions on sales made by new distributors you recruit – rather than through sales of products you make yourself. > > Beware of plans that claim to sell miracle products or promise enormous earnings. Just because a promoter of a plan makes a claim doesn’t mean it’s true! Ask the promoter of the plan to substantiate claims with hard evidence. > > Beware of shills – “decoy” references paid by a plan’s promoter to describe their fictional success in earning money through the plan. > > Don’t pay or sign any contracts in an “opportunity meeting” or any other high-pressure situation. Insist on taking your time to think over a decision to join. Talk it over with your spouse, a knowledgeable friend, an accountant or lawyer. > > Do your homework! Check with your local Better Business Bureau and state Attorney General about any plan you’re considering – especially when the claims about the product or your potential earnings seem too good to be true. The much longer, more technical version. [http://www.ftc.gov/speeches/other/dvimf16.htm](http://www.ftc.gov/speeches/other/dvimf16.htm) Miscellaneous mention of Market America. [http://www.mlmlegal.com/cyberspace.html](http://www.mlmlegal.com/cyberspace.html) > [@](#): > > The case of Market America is a good example of a recent experience in which false Internet rumors spread as to the meaning of a recent federal ruling involving Market America. The Internet rumor suggested that the ruling stood for the proposition that companies could not restrict distributors from cross-sponsoring activity when in fact the ruling did not hold for this proposition at all. I can’t find the “federal ruling” offhand. Here is a ton of good general information on MLMs, by the Quackwatch guy. [http://www.mlmwatch.org/](http://www.mlmwatch.org/) ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2002, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/market-america/109786/3 "2002-05-19T04:13:26Z")
Yea, I came up with kinda the same info, lots of MLM stuff. What I was hoping I could find was a definitive Yes or No, or someone else that has expiernce with it. ---
**Author:** ![Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/50afbb/32.png) [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2002, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/market-america/109786/4 "2002-05-20T03:32:21Z")
Ask a mod to move this over to IMHO? You might get more responses.