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ARTICLE · 17 NOVEMBER 2016

Sponsorship vs Advertisement – The Law

MacRoberts
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In recent years the ASA has received numerous complaints about advertisements not being properly identified as such, particularly when it comes to the more subtle methods of advertising...

United KingdomMedia, Telecoms, IT, Entertainment
David Gourlay
David Gourlay
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In recent years the Advertising Standards Authority (the "ASA") has received numerous complaints about advertisements not being properly identified as such, particularly when it comes to the more subtle methods of advertising via social media, online videos and blog posts.

Vloggers, bloggers and various other online influencers are connecting with audiences of millions on a daily basis and it does not come as a surprise that companies want to, and indeed could, benefit from that. However, advertising to an established group of "followers" is not without its issues: obvious advertising may cause people to "tune out" while the competition for an individual's attention in an online environment is fierce since it is incredibly easy to unsubscribe, fast forward and skip.

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