Advertising to children
Encyclopedia
Advertising to children is the act of marketing
or advertising
products or services to children, as defined by national legislation and advertising standards. Advertising to children is often the subject of debate, relating to the alleged influence on children’s consumption. Rules on advertising to children have largely evolved in recent years. In most countries, advertising for children is now framed by a mix of legislation and advertising self-regulation.
). Packaging, in-store advertising, event sponsorship and promotions can also be means to advertise to children.
There is no universal definition of a child (although UNESCO - the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, defines early childhood as ages 0– 8 years). Children are otherwise defined according to national jurisdictions. For the purposes of advertising law, the definition of a child varies from one jurisdiction to another. However, 12 is commonly used as a cut-off point, on the basis of the widespread academic view that by the age of 12 children have developed their behaviour as consumers, effectively recognise advertising and are able to adopt critical attitudes towards it.
There is no global data on ad spending directed at children, only data for specific sectors. According to the Federal Trade Commission, food and beverage companies (44 companies reporting to the FTC) in the US spent approximately $1.6 billion in 2006 to promote their products/services to children.
, Greece
, Denmark
, and Belgium
advertising to children is restricted and in Quebec
, Sweden
and Norway
advertising to children under the age of 12 is illegal.
The European Union also has framework legislation in place which sets down minimum provisions on advertising to children for its 27 member states. The EU Audiovisual Media Services Directive, due to replace the Television Without Frontiers Directive in all member states by the end of 2009, sets out several EU-wide rules on advertising and children:
Advertising shall not cause moral or physical detriment to minors, and shall therefore comply with the following criteria for their protection:
a. it shall not directly exhort minors to buy a product or a service by exploiting their inexperience or credulity;
b. it shall not directly encourage minors to persuade their parents or others to purchase the goods or services being advertised;
c. it shall not exploit the special trust minors place in parents, teachers or other persons;
d. it shall not unreasonably show minors in dangerous situations
In addition:
e. Children’s programmes may only be interrupted if the scheduled duration is longer than 30 minutes
f. Product placement is not allowed in children’s programmes.
g. The Member States and the Commission should encourage audiovisual media service providers to develop codes of conduct regarding the advertising of certain foods in children’s programmes.
In the United States
the Federal Trade Commission
studied the issue of advertising to children in the 1970s but decided against regulation.
, often an independent industry-funded body, responsible for drafting, amending and enforcing the code. Self-regulatory organizations for advertising are increasingly following the best practice model agreed with regulators and consumer and public health groups in Europe. At a minimum, the general aim of self-regulatory codes is to ensure that any advertising is 'legal, decent, honest and truthful', but in most countries detailed rules are in place for different advertising techniques and sectors.
Advertising self-regulation is built on different levels. On a global level, the International Chamber of Commerce
has drafted a global code on marketing communications. All forms of marketing communications worldwide must conform to the ICC Consolidated Code on Advertising and Marketing. The code includes a specific section, detailing the special care needed when communicating with children.
Since 2006, a global code of practice on food marketing communications is also in place. The Framework for Responsible Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverage Marketing Communications of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) sets down global requirements for food and beverage marketing communications on all media, including the internet
. Key provisions include: the need for substantiation for claims or health benefits; no encouragement of excess consumption; no representation of snacks as meals; no undermining of healthy lifestyle messages; no undermining of the role of parents.
These codes provide a minimum requirement for marketing communications worldwide. National self-regulatory codes, based on the ICC codes, are established, policed and enforced by local Self-Regulatory Organisations (SROs) and industry in over 100 countries and apply to a range of media, increasingly also including digital marketing communications. The ICC and national codes are reviewed regularly to ensure that they remain relevant to local, cultural and consumer concerns and that they promote best practice. The ICC Framework is applicable globally but is a minimum standard designed to be adapted and transposed into SR codes at national level. Many countries have implemented SR provisions that use the ICC Framework as a basis, but go further in several respects, depending on local considerations. Examples include Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, France, Ireland, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain, the UK and the USA.
In the United States the Children's Advertising Review Unit
(CARU) of the Council of Better Business Bureaus (CBBB) established in 1974 by the National Advertising Review Council
(NARC) runs a self-regulatory program that includes a prescreening service for advertisers to ensure they are in compliance with COPPA and the CARU guidelines.
In addition to industry-wide self-regulation, individual companies and industry sectors have introduced a wide range of additional provisions relating to marketing communications directed at children. For example, most multinational food and beverage companies have developed their own policies on food and beverage marketing communications to children and, most recently, have announced the joint implementation of these individual commitments.
In July 2007, 10 of these companies (now 13) announced a common pledge in the US – the Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative, mirroring a similar initiative by 15 companies in Canada – the Canadian Children’s Food & Beverage Advertising Initiative; and followed by 11 companies in Europe with the EU Pledge. Under these initiatives, participating companies will cease advertising to children under 12, other than products that meet specific nutritional guidelines, based on international scientific recommendations. A similar Pledge programme was launched by leading food companied in Thailand in May 2008 and in Australia in mid-2009.
MediaSmart is an established media literacy education programme focused on advertising. Launched in November 2002, Media Smart is a non-profit media literacy programme for school children aged 6 to 11 years old. Media Smart develops and provides, free of charge and on request, educational materials to primary schools that teach children to think critically about advertising in the context of their daily lives. MediaSmart materials use real examples of advertising to teach core media literacy skills. Media Smart is funded by the advertising business in the UK and is supported by the UK government and EU institutions. Since 2002, Mediasmart has been launched in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Finland, Sweden, Portugal and Hungary.
Marketing
Marketing is the process used to determine what products or services may be of interest to customers, and the strategy to use in sales, communications and business development. It generates the strategy that underlies sales techniques, business communication, and business developments...
or advertising
Advertising
Advertising is a form of communication used to persuade an audience to take some action with respect to products, ideas, or services. Most commonly, the desired result is to drive consumer behavior with respect to a commercial offering, although political and ideological advertising is also common...
products or services to children, as defined by national legislation and advertising standards. Advertising to children is often the subject of debate, relating to the alleged influence on children’s consumption. Rules on advertising to children have largely evolved in recent years. In most countries, advertising for children is now framed by a mix of legislation and advertising self-regulation.
Scope and Form
Advertising to children can take place on traditional media – television, radio and print – as well as new media (internet and other electronic mediaElectronic media
Electronic media are media that use electronics or electromechanical energy for the end-user to access the content. This is in contrast to static media , which today are most often created electronically, but don't require electronics to be accessed by the end-user in the printed form...
). Packaging, in-store advertising, event sponsorship and promotions can also be means to advertise to children.
There is no universal definition of a child (although UNESCO - the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, defines early childhood as ages 0– 8 years). Children are otherwise defined according to national jurisdictions. For the purposes of advertising law, the definition of a child varies from one jurisdiction to another. However, 12 is commonly used as a cut-off point, on the basis of the widespread academic view that by the age of 12 children have developed their behaviour as consumers, effectively recognise advertising and are able to adopt critical attitudes towards it.
There is no global data on ad spending directed at children, only data for specific sectors. According to the Federal Trade Commission, food and beverage companies (44 companies reporting to the FTC) in the US spent approximately $1.6 billion in 2006 to promote their products/services to children.
Advertising to children legislation
In the United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, and Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
advertising to children is restricted and in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
advertising to children under the age of 12 is illegal.
The European Union also has framework legislation in place which sets down minimum provisions on advertising to children for its 27 member states. The EU Audiovisual Media Services Directive, due to replace the Television Without Frontiers Directive in all member states by the end of 2009, sets out several EU-wide rules on advertising and children:
Advertising shall not cause moral or physical detriment to minors, and shall therefore comply with the following criteria for their protection:
a. it shall not directly exhort minors to buy a product or a service by exploiting their inexperience or credulity;
b. it shall not directly encourage minors to persuade their parents or others to purchase the goods or services being advertised;
c. it shall not exploit the special trust minors place in parents, teachers or other persons;
d. it shall not unreasonably show minors in dangerous situations
In addition:
e. Children’s programmes may only be interrupted if the scheduled duration is longer than 30 minutes
f. Product placement is not allowed in children’s programmes.
g. The Member States and the Commission should encourage audiovisual media service providers to develop codes of conduct regarding the advertising of certain foods in children’s programmes.
In the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
the Federal Trade Commission
Federal Trade Commission
The Federal Trade Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, established in 1914 by the Federal Trade Commission Act...
studied the issue of advertising to children in the 1970s but decided against regulation.
Advertising standards
In many countries worldwide, advertising is also governed by self-regulatory codes of conduct. Advertisers, advertising agencies and the media agree on a code of advertising standards – a set of ethical and behavioural rules they commit to respecting – which is enforced by a Self-regulatory organizationSelf-regulatory organization
A self-regulatory organization is an organization that exercises some degree of regulatory authority over an industry or profession. The regulatory authority could be applied in addition to some form of government regulation, or it could fill the vacuum of an absence of government oversight and...
, often an independent industry-funded body, responsible for drafting, amending and enforcing the code. Self-regulatory organizations for advertising are increasingly following the best practice model agreed with regulators and consumer and public health groups in Europe. At a minimum, the general aim of self-regulatory codes is to ensure that any advertising is 'legal, decent, honest and truthful', but in most countries detailed rules are in place for different advertising techniques and sectors.
Advertising self-regulation is built on different levels. On a global level, the International Chamber of Commerce
International Chamber of Commerce
The International Chamber of Commerce is the largest, most representative business organization in the world. Its hundreds of thousands of member companies in over 130 countries have interests spanning every sector of private enterprise....
has drafted a global code on marketing communications. All forms of marketing communications worldwide must conform to the ICC Consolidated Code on Advertising and Marketing. The code includes a specific section, detailing the special care needed when communicating with children.
Since 2006, a global code of practice on food marketing communications is also in place. The Framework for Responsible Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverage Marketing Communications of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) sets down global requirements for food and beverage marketing communications on all media, including the internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
. Key provisions include: the need for substantiation for claims or health benefits; no encouragement of excess consumption; no representation of snacks as meals; no undermining of healthy lifestyle messages; no undermining of the role of parents.
These codes provide a minimum requirement for marketing communications worldwide. National self-regulatory codes, based on the ICC codes, are established, policed and enforced by local Self-Regulatory Organisations (SROs) and industry in over 100 countries and apply to a range of media, increasingly also including digital marketing communications. The ICC and national codes are reviewed regularly to ensure that they remain relevant to local, cultural and consumer concerns and that they promote best practice. The ICC Framework is applicable globally but is a minimum standard designed to be adapted and transposed into SR codes at national level. Many countries have implemented SR provisions that use the ICC Framework as a basis, but go further in several respects, depending on local considerations. Examples include Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, France, Ireland, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain, the UK and the USA.
In the United States the Children's Advertising Review Unit
Children's Advertising Review Unit
The Children’s Advertising Review Unit of the Council of Better Business Bureaus is a U.S. self-regulatory organization that was established in 1974 by the National Advertising Review Council . It is an independent self-regulatory agency for the promotion of responsible advertising to children...
(CARU) of the Council of Better Business Bureaus (CBBB) established in 1974 by the National Advertising Review Council
National Advertising Review Council
The National Advertising Review Council is the American advertising industry's self-regulatory body. NARC was established in 1971 by the American Advertising Federation , the American Association of Advertising Agencies , the Association of National Advertisers and the Council of Better Business...
(NARC) runs a self-regulatory program that includes a prescreening service for advertisers to ensure they are in compliance with COPPA and the CARU guidelines.
In addition to industry-wide self-regulation, individual companies and industry sectors have introduced a wide range of additional provisions relating to marketing communications directed at children. For example, most multinational food and beverage companies have developed their own policies on food and beverage marketing communications to children and, most recently, have announced the joint implementation of these individual commitments.
In July 2007, 10 of these companies (now 13) announced a common pledge in the US – the Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative, mirroring a similar initiative by 15 companies in Canada – the Canadian Children’s Food & Beverage Advertising Initiative; and followed by 11 companies in Europe with the EU Pledge. Under these initiatives, participating companies will cease advertising to children under 12, other than products that meet specific nutritional guidelines, based on international scientific recommendations. A similar Pledge programme was launched by leading food companied in Thailand in May 2008 and in Australia in mid-2009.
Media Literacy
Media literacy is a relatively new discipline, aimed at teaching individuals and children in particular to understand and use the media to their advantage. Media literacy is increasingly recognised by governments and international organisations such as the European Union and the World Health Organisation as a key tool to help children understand and deal with today’s complex media environment. Media literacy programs are based around the need to “make children engage in media rather than solely consume it”.MediaSmart is an established media literacy education programme focused on advertising. Launched in November 2002, Media Smart is a non-profit media literacy programme for school children aged 6 to 11 years old. Media Smart develops and provides, free of charge and on request, educational materials to primary schools that teach children to think critically about advertising in the context of their daily lives. MediaSmart materials use real examples of advertising to teach core media literacy skills. Media Smart is funded by the advertising business in the UK and is supported by the UK government and EU institutions. Since 2002, Mediasmart has been launched in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Finland, Sweden, Portugal and Hungary.