Latest Decisions: gambling advertising, alcohol & watersports, and more
12 August 2024
The following are the latest decisions from the ASA.
Settled Complaints: The advertiser has amended or removed the advertisement after receiving the complaint.
Complaint 24/088 DoorDash, Addressed Mail, Settled
Complaint 24/108 TAB, Television, Settled and Not Upheld
Complaint 24/114 Bee, Digital Marketing, Settled and Not Upheld
Complaint 24/121 Max, Addressed Mail, Settled
Complaint 24/131 Kenvue, Television, Settled
Complaint 24/136 Tonys Tyre Service, Addressed Mail, Settled
Complaint 24/138 Informed Investor, Digital Marketing, Settled
Not Upheld Complaints: The Complaints Board found the ad did not breach the Advertising Codes in relation to the complainant’s concerns.
Complaint 24/098 JB HI FI, Digital Marketing, Not Upheld
No Further Action: The Chair of the Complaints Board reviewed the ad and the complaint, and ruled the issues raised are not a breach of the Advertising Codes.
Complaint 24/149 Summerset Group, Television, No Further Action
Complaint 24/150 Brit Cunningham and Afterpay, Tiktok, No Further Action
Complaint 24/144 AMP NZ, Television, No Further Action
Complaint 24/130 2Degrees, Television, No Further Action
Complaint 24/132 2Degrees Mobile, Live Television, No Further Action
No Jurisdiction: The complainant’s issue or the content complained about is outside the ASA’s jurisdiction
Complaint 24/123 Dunedin City Council, Digital Marketing, No Jurisdiction
Decision Summaries
Each month we summarise two decisions from the above list
Complaints Board rules placement of TAB ad socially irresponsible
The placement of a 60-second TAB advertisement did not meet the high standard of social responsibility required in the Gambling Advertising Code. A further 15 second TAB advertisement was found not to breach the Code.
The advertisement depicted a group of friends discussing a friend’s “hunch” and included fantasy elements including a talking horse. The 15 second advertisement, “Know when not to get your bet on”, showed four friends talking about placing bets on the weekend, and one saying “Just thought I might give it a miss this time”.
The Complaints Board considered 28 complaints regarding these advertisements. Concerns included the glorification of gambling, the content of the ad appealing to children, and the timing of the advertisement when children might be watching. Further complainants were concerned it was triggering for recovering addicts to view the ad, and it was irresponsible to promote gambling during the current cost of living crisis.
The Advertiser responded to the complaints, noting they had targeted males aged 40-64 using appropriate monitoring tools to restrict the audience. The TAB said they had taken on board feedback from the complaints and revised the linear television schedule, including taking measures to avoid programmes such as The Chase, Country Calendar, and Breakfast and shows with youth theming.
The majority of the Complaints Board agreed the Hunchland advertisement had not been prepared and placed with the high standard of social responsibility. The Complaints Board said the advertisement contained fantasy elements that, while not specifically targeting children, may be of interest to them and a more conservative approach to timing, frequency, and programme content was required. The Board noted the Advertiser’s self-regulatory action in amending the schedule and ruled this part of the Complaint was Settled.
The Complaints Board ruled the 15 second “Know when not to get your bet on” ad was unlikely to appeal to children and did not breach the Gambling Advertising Code.
Our Short & Sweet Video: Gambling Advertising Code takes you through the key rules for advertisers in this area.
Bee Lemonade influencer content breached Alcohol Code
Complaint 24/114 Bee, Digital Marketing, Settled and Not Upheld
The Complaints Board assessed one website advertisement and two Instagram advertisements regarding Bee Lemonade.
The Bee website advertisement included imagery of a woman in togs and a towel holding a Bee Pink Lemonade bottle and images of the product near the ocean. Text included the use of emojis. The Bee Lemonade Instagram advertisement showed Zoe Kerr wearing a cap with “BEE” written on it. The text next to the photo said “drinkbee_@_zoekerr wearing BEE merch. Want to get your hands on a BEE cap? Tag us in our pics and BEE in to win.” Next to this text was a lemon emoji and a bee emoji. A second Instagram post by content creator Nicole Doidge tagged “drinkbee” in the same carousel as a video of a boat towing a toboggan and being followed by a jet ski.
The Complainant, Alcohol Healthwatch, was concerned the advertisements potentially featured people under the age of 25, did not use tools to target adult audiences, linked the product with swimming or other water sports, and was misleading to market the product as lemonade. Alcohol Healthwatch was also concerned the advertisements used emojis which would appeal to minors.
The Advertiser defended the website advertisement noting the Bee website is age gated, the woman pictured was 28, and the advertisement does not explicitly link alcohol and swimming or water sports. The Advertiser confirmed the Instagram post of Zoe Kerr had been removed but said the second Instagram post by Nicole Doidge was not an advertisement and they had no engagement with her.
The Complaints Board ruled the Bee website advert did not breach the Alcohol Advertising and Promotion Code as it was age-gated, targeted adult audiences, and did not clearly link alcohol consumption with swimming.
The Complaints Board considered the Bee Instagram advertisement including Zoe Kerr and said it did not target adult audiences as the woman in the advertisement did not appear to be at least 25 years old. The Board noted this element of the Complaint would have been Upheld but given the action of the Advertiser to remove the ad, it was considered Settled.
Regarding the second Instagram post from Nicole Doidge tagging Bee Lemonade in a carousel depicting water sports, the Complaints Board noted guidance regarding advertiser responsibilities regarding user-generated content tagging a brand. Advertisers must regularly monitor tagged content and untag their brand or remove the content if it does not comply with the Code. The Board noted this element of the Complaint would also have been Upheld but given the content creator had since removed the ad, it was considered Settled.
Our Quick Guide: Social Media Marketing For Alcohol provides guidance to advertisers and content creators on Code-compliant alcohol advertising.
