ASA extends its digital remit to include social media communications

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is set to extend its digital remit as it aims to deliver a more comprehensive consumer protection online.

The current remit includes online adverts in paid-for-space and sales promotions wherever they appear, but from March 2011 the rules in the UK Code of Non-Broadcast Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing (CAP code) will apply in full to marketing communications online.  This will include rules relating to misleading advertising, social responsibility and the protection of children.

CAP has extended the remit in response to a formal recommendation from a wide cross-section of UK industry. Today CAP has published a document detailing the new remit and sanctions, explaining that it will cover advertiser’s own marketing on their websites and marketing in non-paid-for-space under their control, including social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter.

In addition to the ASA’s present sanctions, new sanctions have been agreed including the removal of non-compliant paid-for search advertising and ASA paid-for search advertisements to highlight an advertiser’s continued non-compliance.

To fund the remit the industry has agreed to apply the standard 0.1 per cent levy on paid-for advertisements on search engines through media and search agencies.

ASA Chairman Lord Chris Smith said, “This significant extension of the ASA’s remit has the protection of children and consumers at its heart. We have received over 4,500 complaints since 2008 about marketing communications on websites that we couldn’t deal with, but from 1 March anyone who has a concern about a marketing communication online will be able to turn to the ASA.”