At the end of 2004 FDA members agreed to carry BBFC consumer advice on
advertising for all films from 'U' through to '18'.
Previously
consumer advice had been required only on advertising for films
classified 'U', 'PG' and '12A'. Over the last twelve months
the
BBFC has been carefully monitoring the provision of consumer advice,
paying special attention to the use of consumer advice on advertising
for '15' and '18' films. Whilst the results have generally
been
satisfactory, it is clear that consumer advice is still not being
employed entirely consistently. In some cases it is not being
used for every film and in other cases it is not being displayed in the
most user-friendly fashion (eg it is on the wrong part of the poster or
is too small to be legible). With this in mind, the BBFC
recently
met with the FDA to discuss how we might ensure that consumer advice is
employed consistently and correctly in the future.
One issue was that the BBFC's requirement that consumer advice be
placed immediately below the film's title was not always realistic
given the implications this may have with regard to key art
work.
This still remains the BBFC's preferred positioning for consumer
advice. However, we have agreed that, in cases where this is
impossible, it may be displayed immediately adjacent to the details of
the release date and/or venues (most usually at the base of the
poster). The Board's main concern is that the information
should
not be 'lost', for example by placing it in a part of the poster that
most customers are unlikely to read (eg the credit block). We
hope that this alternative option will make it easier to ensure that
consumer advice is always displayed for all films.
The second issue was that marketing departments may not always be aware
of the requirement to display consumer advice consistently, clearly,
legibly and in the correct position. The nature of the
Board's
work means that we are more likely to have direct contact with
operations departments than with marketing departments. The
Board
has therefore requested that all FDA member companies circulate this
new advice to their marketing departments as well as to their
operations departments.
Although the agreement to carry Consumer Advice on advertising was
reached together with the FDA, the BBFC also encourages non-FDA members
to follow suit. It is clear from the Board's research that
consumer advice is welcomed by the vast majority of the public as a
means of making informed viewing choices. It may also help
avoid
offence, misunderstandings and subsequent complaints.
Click
here for CCA Guidance for Distributors (Sept 05).pdf