Inventor-Aid Firm Told to Repay $26 Million

A company that offered to help U.S. inventors turn ideas into profitable products was ordered to repay consumers $26 million and stop using bogus claims to recruit customers, the Federal Trade Commission said.

The FTC sued Davison & Associates Inc., accusing the firm of making false claims in ads to sign up inventors by boasting of relationships with manufacturers.

The firm claimed that its income came from sharing royalties with inventors rather than from the fees of $800 to $12,000 charged to each inventor, the FTC said.