Commercial advertising.
INTRODUCTION
Advertising is an important and legitimate means for the seller to awaken interest in his goods and services. The success of advertising depends on public confidence. Hence no practice should be permitted which tends to impair this confidence. The standards laid down here should be taken as minimum standards of acceptability which would be liable to be reviewed from time to time in relation to the prevailing norms of viewer’s susceptibilities.
Definition –
In this code, unless the context otherwise requires: –
- “Government” means, Government of India.
- “Director General” means, the Director General, Doordarshan or any officer duly authorized by him on his behalf and includes the Director, Doordarshan Kendra.
- “Advertiser” means any individual or organization including a commercial concern which has offered any advertisement to telecast over television.
- “Advertising Agency” means any organization which is accreditation to or registered with Doordarshan as such.
- “Advertisement” includes any item of publicity for goods or services inserted in the programme telecast by Doordarshan with a view to increase sales.
- “Spot Advertisement” means any direct advertisement mentioning products/ services, their merits and other related details.
- “Advertising Association” means an Association or Society or any other body of whose constituent members are advertising agencies registered or accredited to Doordarshan.
SCOPE: –
(a) The Director General, Doordarshan shall be the sole judge of the suitability or otherwise of an advertisement for telecast and his/her decision in this regard shall be final.
(b) Doordarshan time shall be sold to the Advertisers/ Advertising Agencies at the sole discretion of the Director General, Doordarshan according to the prescribed rate.
(c) The advertisement should be clearly distinguishable from the programme by using suitable wipes/blank, in order to avoid the message of the programme getting mixed up with the content and images of the advertisement.
The following standards of conduct are laid down in order to develop and promote healthy advertising practices in Doordarshan. Responsibility for the observance of these rules rests equally upon the Advertiser and the Advertising Agency.
All those engaged in advertising are strongly recommended to familiarize themselves with the legislation affecting advertising in this country, particularly the following Acts and the Rules framed under them:-
(1) Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940.
(2) Drugs Control Act, 1950.
(3) Drugs and Magic Remedies (objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954.
(4) Copyright Act, 1957.
(5) Trade and Merchandise Marks Act, 1958.
(6) Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954.
(7) Pharmacy Act, 1948.
(8) Prize Competition Act, 1955.
(9) Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act, 1950.
(10) Consumer Protection Act, 1986.
(11) Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986.
(12) AIR/ Doordarshan Code.
(13) Code of Ethics for advertising in India issued by the Advertising Standards Council of India.
THE CODE
General Rules of Conduct in Advertising
1. Advertising shall be so designed as to conform to the laws of the country and should not offend morality, decency and religious susceptibilities of the people.
2. No Advertisement shall be permitted which-
(i) derides any race, caste, colour, creed and nationality;
(ii) is against any of the directive principles, or any other provision of the Constitution of India;
(iii) tends to incite people to crime, cause disorder or violence, or breach of law or glorifies violence or obscenity in any way;
(iv) presents criminality as desirable;
(v) adversely affects friendly relations with foreign States;
(vi) exploits the national emblem, or any part of the constitution or respected leaders, state dignitaries, Gods and Prophets belonging to various religions
(vii) relates to or promotes cigarettes and tobacco products, liquor, wines and other intoxicants either directly or indirectly.
(viii) shows institutions like Armed Forces, Paramilitary Forces, Police, Traffic Police etc. in poor light.
Advertisement for services concerned with the following shall not be accepted. (i) Unlicensed employment services; (ii) Sooth-Sayers etc. and those with claims of hypnotism; (iii) Betting tips and guide books etc. relating to horse-racing or other games of chance.
6. Doordarshan accepts the advertisements of educational institutions/colleges. However, it must be ensured that the institutions/colleges are genuine so as to ensure that students do not get misled.
Doordarshan will also accept advertisements relating to holiday resorts and hotels.
Doordarshan also accepts the advertisements relating to real estate including sale of flats/land, flats for rent both commercial and residential.
Doordarshan has also allowed the telecast of:
(i) Foreign products and foreign banks including financial services;
(ii) Jewellery and precious stones;
(iii)Mutual funds approved by SEBI; (iv) Hair dyes; (v)Matrimonial agencies.
“VIEWERS ARE ADVISED TO CHECK THE GENUINENESS OF THE CLAIMS MADE”
7. The items advertised shall not suffer from any defect or deficiency as mentioned in Consumer Protection Act, 1986.
8. No advertisement shall contain references which are likely to lead the public to infer that the product advertised or any of its ingredients has some special or miraculous or super-natural property or quality which is difficult of being proved.
9. Scientific or statistical excerpts from technical literature etc., may be used only with a proper sense of responsibility to the ordinary viewer. Irrelevant data and scientific jargon shall not be used to make claims appear to have a scientific basis they do not possess. Statistics of limited validity should not be presented in a way as to make it appear that they are universally true.
10. Advertisements shall not contain disparaging or derogatory references to another product or service.
11. Visual and verbal representation of actual and comparative prices and costs shall be accurate and shall not mislead on account of undue emphasis or distortion.
12. The picture and the audible matter of the advertisement shall not be excessively „loud‟. This is to ensure that between the programme and the advertisement there is a smooth change-over avoiding jerkiness or shock to the viewers.
13. Information to consumer in matters of weight, quality or prices of products where given shall be accurate.
14. Advertisements indicating price comparisons or reductions must comply with relevant laws.
15. No advertisement shall be accepted which violates AIR and TV Broadcast Code which is reproduced below: –
General AIR/TV Code
(1) criticism friendly countries;
(2) attack on religions or communities;
(3) anything obscene or defamatory;
(4) incitement to violence or anything against maintenance of law and order;
(5) anything amounting to contempt of court;
(6) aspersions against the integrity of the President and Judiciary;
(7) anything affecting the integrity of the Nation; and
(8) criticism by name of any person.
16. No advertisement for a product or service shall be accepted if it suggests in any way that unless the children themselves buy or encourage other people to buy the products or services, they will be failing in their duty or lacking in loyalty to any person or organisation.
17. No advertisement shall be accepted which leads children to belief that if they do not own or use the product advertised they will be inferior in some way to other children or that they are liable to be condemned or ridiculed for not owning or using it.
18. Any advertisement which endangers the safety of the children or creates in them any interest in unhealthy practices, shall not be accepted.
19. Children shall not be shown begging or in undignified or indecent manner.
20. No advertisement likely to being advertising into contempt or disrepute shall be permitted. Advertising shall not take advantage of the superstition or ignorance of the general public.
21. No advertisements of talismans, charms and character reading from photographs or such other matter as well as those which trade on the superstition of general public shall be permitted.
22. Advertisements relating to or promoting astrology, numerology, palmistry and similar other forms of predictions shall not be permitted on Doordarshan.
23. Advertising shall be truthful, avoid distorting facts and misleading the public by means of implications and omissions. For instance, it shall not mislead the consumer by false statements, as to: (i) the character of the merchandise, i.e. its utility, materials, ingredients, origin etc.
(ii) the price of the merchandise, its value, its suitability or terms of purchase.
24. No advertisement shall be permitted to contain any claim exaggerated as to lead inevitably to disappointment in the minds of the public.
25. Methods of advertising designed to create confusion in the mind of the consumer as between goods by one maker and another maker are unfair and shall not be used. Such methods may consist in:
(i) the imitation of the trademark or name of competition or the packaging or labelling of goods; or
(ii) the imitation of advertising devices, copy, layout Or slogans.
26. Indecent, vulgar, suggestive, repulsive or offensive themes or treatment shall be avoided in all advertisements. This also applies to such advertisements which in themselves are not objectionable as defined above, but which advertise objectionable books, photographs or other matter and thereby lead to their sale and circulation.
27. Advertisements shall not portray animals or birds in a cruel, insensitive, disturbing or obnoxious manner. Such advertisements shall conform to the prevention of Cruelty to Animal Act, 1960.
28. No advertisement which promotes directly or indirectly production, sale or consumption of infant milk substitutes, feeding bottle or infant foods shall be permitted.
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