'Not sufficient grounds for us to intervene' says Advertising Standards Authority
The Advertising Standards Authority will not uphold complaints against charity-backed ads which implied video games are a health risk, MCV understands.
Last week, MCV broke the news that the Government's Change4Life campaign had put together a print campaign backed by the British Heart Foundation, Diabetes UK and Cancer Research, which said young gamers were risking an 'early death' through inactive lifestyles.
The news and subsequent industry concerns sparked coverage across the media. The trade rejected the implication that games are solely to blame for obesity and other health issues and many in the industry, including MCV, filed complaints with the ASA to have the ads withdrawn.
However the ASA says there are 'not sufficient grounds for us to intervene on this occasion'.
A full statement provided by the ASA said:
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"Whilst the ASA Council understood the concerns of Tiga and those complainants who worked in the video games industry, it noted that the ad did not claim that playing computer or console games alone would lead to illness or premature death."
The reply that the ASA is sending to those who filed objections to the ad reads as follows:
The ASA Council [...] didn’t think there were sufficient grounds for us to intervene on this occasion.
Our Code says that ads should contain nothing that is likely to cause serious or widespread offence. The ASA bases its judgments on the content of the ad and the medium, audience, product type and prevailing standards in society.
Complaints about offence often require difficult judgements but we don’t intervene where advertising is simply criticised for being in poor taste. Apart from freedom of speech considerations, even well-intentioned and thoughtful people will have different and sometimes contradictory opinions about what constitutes ‘bad taste’ or should be prohibited. We can only act if the ad, in our judgement, offends against widely accepted moral, social or cultural standards.
Whilst the ASA Council understood the concerns of Tiga and those complainants who worked in the video games industry, it noted that the ad did not claim that playing computer or console games alone would lead to illness or premature death. The Council considered that most readers would understand that the ad was discouraging a sedentary lifestyle and used the example of playing a console game as an illustration of the type of behaviour which might lead to long-term health problems if no exercise were taken alongside more sedentary activities. The Council considered it unlikely that most readers would infer from the ad that playing video games was the sole contributory factor in the development of the health problems mentioned in the ad. The Council concluded that the ad was unlikely to cause serious or widespread offence or mislead for those reasons, or likely to be seen as unfairly targeting or denigrating the video games industry.
The Council also noted that the ad did not imply that children should not play video games at all, or that some games would not be beneficial for educational or cognitive development. We also noted that the ad advised parents to ensure their children were physically active for at least one hour every day. The Council considered that most readers were unlikely to interpret the ad to mean that video games could not be played or enjoyed as part of a healthy lifestyle. The Council did not consider the ad likely to mislead readers about the benefits of some video games towards fitness and cognitive development in children or to cause offence for that reason.
One parent objected that the ad was offensive and harmful because it frightened her young child who became scared that she would die if she played video games. The ASA Council sympathised with those concerns and understood that the reference to future health might, for some, be upsetting. However, it considered that the ad was unlikely to cause undue fear or distress to parents or children.
Comments
I know this is moot, but...
Would the ASA have had the same reaction if the child in the poster was doing his homework? Or, as many people have said, reading a book?
Perhaps they would. And if that is the case, then their conclusion can be seen as fair. I can't help but suspect that the outcome would have been very different, though...
Joke for today
Q: What's the difference between "..in poor taste" and "inappropriate"?
A: A lawyer
Sony
Personally I disagree, the 'target' audience here has already proved they can't read fine print, i'm referring to the "I'm outraged that this violence is available to my 13 year old" when suitable texts are added to packaging. So they simply concentrate on the picture. Nuff said on this.
On a side note here, I don't think it's going to in anyway stop Sony from thier unauthorised use of a controller in the capaign.
Working for the industry we are all aware about the ramifications of displaying ANY of thier peripherals even when used legitimately for thier own products.
I see a big court case on the horizon.
ASA
ASA = Any Standard Anytime, if ever there was an organisation to sit on the fence its the ASA, they should advertise Cuprinol products.
Government puppets.
ASA got it wrong...
As a student studying advertising and marketing I have been left speechless by the ASA’s assessment of the advert. What the ASA should have understood is that there are two routes by which people are persuaded.
They assume that the recipient of the advert will absorb all the information from the material. They will then think about the issue, analysing and processing all the information given.
Are the majority of the population going to be concerned about the effects of gaming to the extent that they will read all available information?
No.
Change4life is completely aware that people won’t read the whole advert. That’s why they have created an advert with a big bold headline overlaying a powerful image.
They know that the recipient of this advert will make mental shortcuts when viewing the advert because it is unlikely that the recipient is actively searching out information on this topic.
Our brains make mental shortcuts through relying on pictures, powerful and emotional vocabulary...bingo.
If you analyse this advert as if you were someone who goes around reading ALL the content on adverts, then yes, you will understand the message.
However, as assume that most of the population don’t spend their entire day reading adverts, they see it as a kid with a games controller and the word death. In this case, a picture is worth 1,000 words and the recipient of the advert links gaming with an early grave.
I can't believe the ASA and business4life has got away with this?!
ASA got it wrong
Agreed. If the ASA applied the same criteria to everything else that they investigate they'd never uphold any complaint. How come every enquiry into the activities of or complaint against this government ends like this? Bah, doublethink, double standards and double dealing.
In translation...
I think we can translate that to mean...
"The ASA consulted with the government and ad campaigners decided that another attack on the games industry was fully warranted, therefore we have concocted a long-winded excuse to dodge the bullet."
This is blatant discrimination no matter how they try and cover it up. Obviously, discrimination now depends on who the target is, not the fact that it is discriminatory.
I hope Sony take the campaigners to the cleaners over the use of the controller.
A double standard
You can be sure had the product placement been a tall glass of black fizzy drink, Coca-Cola would of been all over the ad stating how it vilifies their product and links it as the sole reason for child obesity. You could also count on the ASA taking action had it been Coca-Cola's lawyers leaning on them.
The Change4life campaign, (and indeed the Government), needed a scapegoat for the rise of child obesity in the UK and so the games industry, (already vilified in the tabloid press), was an easy target. The ASA just made sure it happened.
Get a grip
Look at all you maniacs in here. Take a long, hard look at yourselves and stop this madness now. You're all idiots, all of you, and you give the games industry a terrible name.
profit
.may be they dont have an idea abt gaming that cures some diseases
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