United Kingdom

[GB] Adjudication by the Advertising Standards Authority on Complaints against BSkyB

IRIS 1995-2:1/20

David Goldberg

deeJgee Research/Consultancy

The Advertising Standards Authority received 167 complaints nationwide concerning a poster for the film Indecent Proposal to be broadcast by BSkyB. This featured a photograph of a woman's body between waist and thighs clad only in briefs with the headline ' The Price is Right So They Come On Down' (an adaptation of the title and catchphrase of a popular game show); the complaints considered the poster to be tasteless and offensive. The film in question concerned the payment of $1 million to a husband for a night with his wife.

The complaints were upheld. The Authority noted that the advertisement had attracted a large number of complaints from members of the public who had been deeply offensed, and considered that the advertisers had seriously misjudged the reaction to this treatment of a delicate subject. The Advertising Company was asked to take greater care with any similar approach in future and was advised to consult the Authority about other potentially controversial advertisements.