ASCI code made compulsory for TV ads

Mumbai, Aug 10 (UNI) The chairman of the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) Mr. Ram Podar was today upbeat with regard to the government's notification making it mandatory for all TV commercials to strictly adhere to ASCI codes.

Announcing this, the ASCI's press release said the Government's notification on August 02, 2006 has asked all concerned authorities to ensure that ASCI codes are followed in case of the TV Commercials.

Reacting to the govt's decision, chairman of ASCI Ram Poddar says, ''This has been a long standing request of ASCI and I would like to place on record our grateful thanks and appreciation to the Ministry of Information&Broadcasting, of the Government of India, for helping to make the Advertising Self-Regulatory Movement in India stronger and more effective.'' The amendment made in Cable Television Networks (Amendment) Rules, 2006 now states: ''(9) No advertisement which violates the Code for Self-Regulation in Advertising, as adopted by the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), Mumbai for public exhibition in India, from time to time, shall be carried in the cable service''.

Self Regulation in advertising as practised and duly recognized in many countries including USA, UK, Australia, Japan, China and Brazil etc., has been pursued and monitored in India in an inexpensive and expeditious manner for the last 20 years by ASCI.

ASCI has urged the public to complain against advertisements which they consider to be false, misleading, offensive or unfair. For this people can visit its website www.ascionline.org.

It may be noted that ASCI is a voluntary and non-profit organization set up by a group of advertisers, advertising agencies, media etc., way back in 1985, with an objective to ensure that all advertising should be legal, decent, honest and truthful along with a sense of social responsibility to the consumer and to the rules of fair competition.

All complaints are evaluated by an independent Consumer Complaints Council (CCC) which has 21 members - 12 from civil society and 9 from advertising practitioners. The CCC has been able to decide upon the complaints within a period of 4 to 6 weeks. Recent statistics suggest that in as many as 85% of the complaints upheld against TV advertisements, the advertisers/channels have confirmed in writing to have forthwith complied with the decisions of CCC, either by withdrawing or modifying appropriately the subject advertisements.

ASCI has also sought the support of the concerned associations such as Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) to persuade TV channels to adhere to ASCI's Code as well as to implement the decisions of the CCC in this regard.

UNI SN WD SKB1917