Ireland

[IE] Broadcast Authority to Permit Product Placement

IRIS 2011-5:1/27

Aodh Ó Coileáin

School of Law, National University of Ireland, Galway

The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) is to permit paid product placement on Irish television. Authorization of product placement will extend to all television services: community, commercial, and public service broadcasters. The decision follows a public consultation process, which was completed in January this year and carried out by the BAI pursuant to s.44 of the Broadcasting Act 2009 (see IRIS 2009-10/18).

Product placement is to be included in the BAI’s revised General and Children’s Commercial Communications Codes, which will be published shortly and will take effect from Monday, 2 May 2011.

The BAI has decided to permit paid product placement in films made for cinema and television, sport, drama and light entertainment programmes. However children’s programmes, docudramas and chat shows that regularly contain more than 20% of news and current affairs content will be excluded.

Under the BAI’s current General Commercial Communications Code, published in 2010, the inclusion in television programmes of products and services in return for payment is prohibited except where there is no payment. Broadcasters are required to display a logo containing the letters PP on television screens before and during such programmes if the provision of products and services free of charge is of significant value, as defined by the BAI. Also, the product placement must not influence the responsibility and editorial independence of the broadcaster and the placement shall be editorially justified. There must be no direct encouragement to purchase or rent products or services, no advertising of them, and undue prominence must not be given to the products or services in question. Also, the names of companies whose products and services have been included in a programme must be listed at the start of programmes, after breaks and in the end credits.

In the revised codes, broadcasters will also be required to include a written announcement before programmes that contain product placement and to promote to audiences on- and off-air the measures used to notify audiences that a programme contains product placement.