Commercial speech

Commercial speech is a US legal term relating to speech done on behalf of a company or individual for the intent of making a profit. It is economic in nature and usually has the intent of convincing the audience to partake in a particular action, often purchasing a specific product. Generally, the United States Supreme Court defines commercial speech as speech that "proposes a commercial transaction." The Court developed a three factor inquiry in determining whether speech is commercial in the 1983 case Bolger v. Youngs Drug Products namely, (1) is the material meant to be an advertisement, (2) does the material reference a particular product, and (3) is there is an economic motivation for disseminating the material? If all of these attributes are present, then it is protected under the First Amendment. These factors have yet to be utilized in other Supreme Court cases dealing with commercial speech.