RECMA releases study on agency competitiveness in pitches (01/06/2010)
UK Competition Commission rules on ITV's ad sales (31/05/2010)
Search engines criticised by EU over storing IP addresses (27/05/2010)
WFA releases media auditing guidelines (26/05/2010)
WHO adopts global strategy on alcohol (25/05/2010)
Spanish congress approves new rules for TV advertising
Date: 18/03/2010
Earlier today, the Spanish Congress approved the Ley General de la Comunicación Audiovisual revising the rules for audiovisual communication in Spain. The controversial provisions distinguishing "telepromotions" from other forms of advertising were adopted, therefore allowing for up to 20 minutes of commercial communication per hour (12 minutes of traditional advertising, 5 minutes of "self-promotion", and 3 minutes of "telepromotions").
In addition, the new Spanish law provides for several rules designed for the protection of minors:
- Between 6am-10pm advertising promoting "the cult of the body" (e.g. beauty treatments and plastic surgery) and gambling are banned.
- Audiovisual commercial communications for alcoholic beverages of more than 20% ABV shall be banned.
- Audiovisual commercial communications of alcoholic beverages of less than 20% ABV may not be broadcast from 6am-8:30pm.
These provisions were strongly opposed by the Spanish advertising industry, with the support of WFA, as they create an unacceptable amount of advertising clutter. They are also in breach of the EU Audiovisual Media Services (AMS) Directive, which caps all forms of commercial communications at a maximum of 12 minutes per hour. The Spanish Advertiser Association (AEA) led a coalition which gained considerable attention. This initiative succeeded in diluting even more unacceptable proposals in terms of the advertising minutage. The European Commission had existing infringement procedures underway, given Spain had already failed to comply with the rules of the Directive. These proceedings will continue.
The law is expected to officially come into effect as of April 1st.
For more information please contact Will Gilroy [email protected]
