Asci Pulls Up Advertisements Of Reliance Communications, Idea For Misleading

[Arun 795]

Business Standard

December 28, 2009 11:59 IST

The Advertising Standards Council of India has pulled up 15 companies, including telecom ones, for running misleading ad campaigns during July to October this year.

During the said period, the Consumer Complaints Council of ASCI found 15 advertisers, including Reliance Communications and Idea Cellular, fast moving consumer goods player Dabur and Elder Pharma and coaching centre Career Launcher, violating the council's code.

Reliance Communications had to suspend a television commercial as it failed to substantiate its claim 'with comparative data of other mobile services' that the company is the 'fastest mobile broadband service in India'. The company said it was making modifications in the TVC.

"RCom has already responded to ASCI and is making necessary modifications in the TVC," a spokesperson from Reliance Communication said.

Another mobile operator, Idea Cellular, also had to modify its commercial, which showed people walking, while talking on mobile phones, as ASCI upheld complaint from consumers that it encouraged "the unsafe act of walking while talking on the mobile phone".

"Some action sequences as depicted in the TVC, shows dangerous practices and manifest a disregard for safety without justifiable reason," ASCI said.

Queries sent to Idea remained answered.

Dabur had to modify two of its TV commercials, which according to the CCC, were misleading. The two ads were that of Dabur Vatika shampoo, which claimed that the product 'eliminates dandruff from first wash' and that of Dabur Lal Oil which said massaging with the oil 'leads to doubly faster growth in babies'.

The CCC found the claims were misleading.

Coaching centre Career Launcher's campaign claiming 'four out of five IIM call-getters in CAT'08 from Delhi and NCR' were its students was suspended as it was unsubstantiated.

ASCI also found Elder Pharma's campaign of showing a woman unbuttoning a shirt in an advertisement of deodorant 'Fuel' to be vulgar and it was asked to be modified.

[Arun 795]

Looks like they have corrected it for Google ads as well...

[srk006 21]

so which is the fastest mobile broadband service in india?

[::Hitesh:: 1,763]

Gov should put huge fine on this kind of adverts,

only then they will stop fooling customers.

[KanagaDeepan 1,084]

There should be some censor board for TVCommercials also and the Ad should be shown to TV only after getting the approval from that board, by showing to them...

Most of the foreign Ads are very very vulgar especially the perfume ones and many Ads are baseless and FULL OF LIES.... For example get 2 colour shades less by applying face cream for a week... Ridiculous..

[Harshal 11]

Good move. But there should be many more to the list.

Also what about penalties? By stopping the showing of AD after the campaign is over is kind of pointless.

[santhoshavanoor 7]

Good move... But waht about "AXE"spray?

[Himanshu Singh 19]

Telecom ads are indeed very misleading for those who don't follow things as closely as we at Rimweb.

Consider these:

1. The word unlimited has been used, overused, misused and abused by all telecom and internet providers.Unlimited should mean unlimited and nothing else.

2.Surfing and downloading are so badly explained by CCs or websites that the uninitiated person would get confused for sure.

3.FTT means variety of things. For some operators it means recharge amount minus access charge and service tax while for others it means recharge amount equals balance amount.There is lot of confusion for those who are not well aware of these terminologies.

4.The practice of putting *** marks and writing terms and conditions in microscopic letters at the bottom is mischievous and it holds true across all the products and not only telecom.