Belgium

[BE] Logo for Product Placement

IRIS 2011-1:1/9

Hannes Cannie

Department of Communication Sciences / Center for Journalism Studies, Ghent University

On 10 September 2010, the Flemish Government issued a decision on the use of a logo for the indication of product placement, which was made public on 6 October 2010. The decision obliges broadcasters to display the logo in a clear and contrastive way for at least five seconds at the beginning and at the end of programmes containing product placement and after every break. The decision further stipulates some requirements as to place (top or bottom, at the right side of the screen), size, colour, and transparency of the logo. The logo should be displayed in a neutral way, which means that the products or services in question can receive no attention whatsoever while indicating the presence of product placement. In addition, during a period of three months starting on 1 November 2010 the broadcasters must simultaneously display a message to inform the viewers about the product placement for at least five seconds at the beginning of the programme (“More information: teletext page ...”, or “This programme contains commercial communications in the form of product placement” (translation by the author)). Finally, the broadcasters have to provide viewers in an easy, direct and permanent way with an explanation of the logo’s meaning through teletext (if they offer this service) and through their websites.