VIDEO LABELLING REGULATIONS 1995 - UNIQUE TITLE

New statutory labelling regulations came into force on 1st November 1995, in accordance with amendments to the Video Recordings Act approved by Parliament. 

The new legal requirements are as follows:

1. All videos must carry on the label the 'unique title' of the video work featured on the recording. 
   
   'Unique title' means the title as classified plus the BBFC Registration Number.  There is no requirement to carry the Registration Number on the packaging, only on the label affixed to the cassette, disc or cartridge.  This label can be either the face label or the spine label.  The choice is yours.
   
   The Board understands that some clients have been working under the assumption that it is only the Registration Number that must appear on the label.  This is not the case.   It is the combination of the title and the number which now form what is called the "unique title".
   
   The title printed on the label must be the title of the work as classified, that is, as it appears on the screen, the interim clearance form, and the classification certificate.   Any other title will be invalid.
   
   The BBFC Registration Number is the number (consisting of three letters and five digits) that has always been printed on the classification certificate.   It will continue to appear there, but since many companies need to print their labels as early as possible, the Board has, since November 1995, been supplying this unique number on the interim clearance form as well.  Clients should remember, however, that the interim clearance form is not an official classification certificate, and it is illegal to publish the video on the basis of this form alone.  If it is found that companies are supplying videos to the shops before receiving a classification certificate, the Home Office has agreed that the Board should withdraw that company's right to be given the number on the interim clearance form.
   
   It is illegal to publish a new release without a unique title on the cassette or disc.  Re-releases of old titles should also begin to carry the unique title, so that eventually all recordings being supplied to the public will be so labelled.
   
   The above is applicable not only to British laser discs and CDs, but to imported ones as well, which must from now on display on the face label the unique title of the main work, which includes the BBFC Registration Number.   This number is the property of the UK video rights holder, so distributors without access to this number will be unable to label their videos legally, even if they are identical in every way with the classified version.
   
2. As other works may also appear on the recording, discussions have been taking place with the Home Office about the precise extent of these requirements.  Since the law was intended to apply only to the main work on the recording, that is, to any work whose title would normally appear on the label, it was agreed that the following rules would apply:
1. Where a trailer or DVD extra is the most restrictive work on a VHS or DVD, the unique title (screen title & VFC number) of said trailer or DVD extra AND the unique title (screen title & VFC number) of the lesser classified main feature should appear on the face label, along with the single most restrictive category symbol.
2. Where two or more works of equal importance appear on the recording, the label should carry the unique title of the work most prominently advertised on the front of the case or cover, on the understanding that this work will also carry the most restrictive classification.  (It is an offence under the Trade Descriptions Act to display a category symbol on the label or packaging which does not apply to the title most prominently carried near it, since this constitutes a misleading trade description.)
3. In the case of anthologies, where no work is more prominently advertised on the cover than any other, the unique title of any work on the cover may be displayed on the label provided that this work carries the most restrictive classification.
4. If no individual work in an anthology is advertised on the front cover, the anthology must display on the label the unique title of at least one work with the most restrictive classification.

It is important to repeat that the Registration Number is being provided on the interim clearance form on a voluntary basis only, so that companies can design their labels in good time.  It will still be a criminal offence to supply copies of the recording before the classification certificate has been issued, and if any client ignores this legal requirement, the Board reserves the right to withhold the number until the classification certificate is issued.

SOME OTHER INFORMATION REGARDING TITLE REQUIREMENTS

CARTOON COLLECTIONS

Where a submission is made of a number of short cartoons as composite work, the overall generic title followed by the first episode name, will be used for classification purposes in order to identify a particular collection. In this way, the first episode name will differentiate cartoon collections in the same generic series, for example;

CARTOON CLASSICS LIMITED GOLD - MICKEY
or, CARTOON CLASSICS LIMITED GOLD - MINNIE

If the individual episodes in the compilation are untitled, then the overall generic title on the tape must be followed by a volume number - both must appear at the beginning of the tape. Similarly, if the client wishes to identify the compilation by volume number, this must be specified on the submission form and, again, appear at the beginning of the tape.

Since works submitted to the Board in compilation form are treated as a whole, clients should note that if the content of any of the collections changes in the future this will invalidate the classification certificate and they will need to be submitted as new works.

SERIALS

A Video submission of a work which, by reason of its length, is likely to be distributed on more than one tape, but which cannot be viewed in part must be viewed as a whole, is always awarded one certificate, for example a TV serial like "Brideshead Revisited".

TV/CARTOON SERIES

Where there is a series, cartoons or live action which cannot be treated as a compilation, the same practice applies in that generic title must be followed by the episode name, for example;

DR. WHO - THE PYRAMIDS OF MARS

In these cases separate submissions are required per episode as the Board is unable to award composite certificates on works of this nature. However, having been awarded separate certificates for each episode, clients can have more than one episode on a tape if they so wish. Moreover, it means that they can rearrange the order of these or in fact substitute other certificated episodes in the future without having to resubmit them for classification.

Adhering to this practice will not only minimise delays as far as the clients are concerned, but will improve the classification process as a whole, since any enquiries the Board receives will be more specific and may thus be dealt with more promptly.