Besides those in Item 17, does Coffee News place any other limitations or restrictions on my staff?
Coffee_News Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
ding the wording "Coffee News," a space, and then end with the city in which the Franchisee is located. (e.g. "Coffee News_ Maine.")
3. Compliance with laws, regulations and third-party terms
The Franchisees are obligated to comply with all laws and regulations that are applicable to the use of social media. The Franchisees are prohibited from actions including without limitation defaming or disparaging competitors, customers, employees, suppliers, subcontractors, or Coffee News; harassing employees, customers, or any other individuals or entities; using copyrighted materials, trademarks or other proprietary materials in an infringing manner; discriminating against employment applicants, violating privacy laws and policies or otherwise misusing the proprietary information of others; or violating laws or other ethical standards, such as fraud or misrepresentation. All posts by the Franchisees on the site must be truthful and not misleading. The Franchisees are not encouraged to mention their competitors on the site, but if they do, the Franchisees must follow the guidelines contained in this Policy.
4. Confidential information
The Franchisees may not use or post the confidential and/or proprietary information of Coffee News pursuant to the Coffee News Franchise Agreement, or breach any other restrictions on confidentiality or disclosure. Additionally, the Franchisees may not comment on legal matters, or private matters internal to the Coffee News franchise system. Further, the Franchisees need to carefully review the content of the site before publishing or posting and may not disclose proprietary information of their clients, customers or suppliers, or use the names of clients, customers or suppliers without permission.
5. Endorsements and testimonials
The Franchisees shall comply with all rules and regulations concerning the endorsement of products pursuant to the 2012 FTC Endorsement Guidelines, as it may be amended from time to time. If the Franchisee is in any way compensated
relating to promote and post about a product, then any post by the Franchisee on that topic must disclose such relationship.
6. Ownership of domain names, accounts and content
In consistent with the Coffee News Franchise Agreement, any goodwill generated from Coffee News Franchisees' social media account belongs to Coffee News.
Source: Item 15 — Obligation to Participate in the Actual Operation of the Franchise Business (FDD pages 24–25)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 Coffee News Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees must ensure their staff comply with all laws and regulations applicable to social media use. This includes prohibitions against defaming, disparaging, or harassing competitors, customers, employees, suppliers, or Coffee News itself. Staff must also avoid infringing on copyrights or trademarks, discriminating against employment applicants, violating privacy laws, or misusing proprietary information. All social media posts must be truthful and not misleading.
Coffee News franchisees and their staff are restricted from using or posting confidential or proprietary information belonging to Coffee News, as outlined in the Franchise Agreement. They are also prohibited from commenting on legal or private matters internal to the Coffee News franchise system. Before publishing or posting content, franchisees need to carefully review it to ensure they do not disclose proprietary information of their clients, customers, or suppliers, or use their names without permission.
Furthermore, Coffee News franchisees and their staff must adhere to all rules and regulations concerning product endorsements, as per the 2012 FTC Endorsement Guidelines. If compensated for promoting a product, any related posts must disclose this relationship. Any goodwill generated from a franchisee's social media account belongs to Coffee News, which reserves the right of ownership to these accounts, their content, and associated domain names. These guidelines ensure that franchisees and their staff operate ethically and legally while protecting the brand's reputation and proprietary information.