Blog: 'Patronising' product placement ban

Medwyn Jones

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Media law expert Medwyn Jones describes the proposed decision rule out product placement on television as "short-sighted and disappointing".

Simply to look at the apparent excesses of the use of product placement in US programming, and reject any relaxation of the rules in the UK is both to patronise the viewing public and to put the British production industry at a significant competitive disadvantage. 

Whilst most interested parties would want product placement to be closely regulated, there is no reason why Ofcom should not be able to come up with rules which maintain a balance between being able to associate a product or service with a particular programme, and programme integrity. 

 When the programme codes were developed decades ago by the ITC and it's predecessors, audiences - particularly younger and more 'impressionable' audiences - were much less aware of branding and marketing techniques. Considerable research has shown that young people in particular are now far more aware of the use of brands and marketing techniques, and are more likely to realise that such exposure was effectively a form of "paid for" advertising. 

Exposure to an increasing amount of US  programming, as well as fully sponsored dramas on social networking sites such as Kate Modern" on Bebo has only increased the level of awareness amongst this audience. Therefore, to try and overly protect them is both damaging to the UK production and advertising industries, but also rather patronising to an increasingly sophisticated audience.
 
Ofcom's current Broadcasting Code is drafted in broad 'purposive' language, allowing Ofcom a high degree a flexibility in interpreting the code, as well as making easy to implement. This approach enables Ofcom to keep a close eye on the broadcasting sector, and adapt to trends (or moves to undermine the purpose behind the code), whilst at the same time having a sensible framework for producers, broadcasters and advertisers to work within. 

I cannot believe that Ofcom is incapable of drawing up rules that allows a limited form of product placement, whilst at the same time ensuring that audiences are not mislead, and the integrity of the programmes maintained.
 
The decline of traditional broadcast advertising, the fragmentation of the media landscape and the increasing pressure on programming budgets means that new and innovative financing and advertising models must be developed. The challenge is to embrace these new models, and harness their possibilities, rather than ignoring them. In this way, the UK can continue to play a major role in the ever-changing audio-visual industries.
 
Mr Burnham; don't throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Medwyn Jones is a partner at Harbottle and Lewis, a London law firm for media and entertainment