Endorsement guidelines issued for celebs and social media influencers

‘Endorsements Know-hows!’: Disclosures must be prominently and clearly displayed, says guide issued in accordance with the Consumer Protection Act of 2019

GN Bureau | January 20, 2023


#Consumer Protection Act   #consumer affairs   #advertisement   #media   #social media  


The department of consumer affairs under the ministry of consumer affairs, food and public distribution released a guide, ‘Endorsements Know-hows!’, for celebrities, influencers and virtual influencers on social media platforms here on Friday. The guide aims to ensure that individuals do not mislead their audiences when endorsing products or services and that they are in compliance with the Consumer Protection Act and any associated rules or guidelines.

Rohit Kumar Singh, secretary, department of consumer affairs, released the guide in response to the rapidly growing digital world at a time when advertisements are no longer limited to traditional media like print, television, or radio. With the increasing reach of digital platforms and social media, such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, there has been a rise in the influence of virtual influencers, in addition to celebrities and social media influencers. This has led to an increased risk of consumers being misled by advertisements and unfair trade practices by these individuals on social media platforms.

The ‘Endorsement Know-hows!’ specifies that disclosures must be prominently and clearly displayed in the endorsement, making them extremely hard to miss. Any celebrity, influencer or virtual influencer who has access to an audience and can influence their purchasing decisions or opinions about a product, service, brand, or experience must disclose any material connection with the advertiser. This includes not only benefits and incentives, but also monetary or other compensation, trips or hotel stays, media barters, coverage and awards, free products with or without conditions, discounts, gifts and any family or personal or employment relationship.

Endorsements must be made in simple, clear language and terms such as "advertisement," "sponsored," or "paid promotion" can be used. They should not endorse any product or service and service in which due diligence has been done by them or that they have not personally used or experienced.

The guide is released in alignment with the guidelines set by the Consumer Protection Act of 2019. The Act established guidelines for protecting consumers from unfair trade practices and misleading advertisements. The Department of Consumer Affairs has published Guidelines for prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements, 2022 on June 9, 2022.

These guidelines outline the criteria for valid advertisements and the responsibilities of manufacturers, service providers, advertisers, and advertising agencies. These guidelines also touched upon the celebrities and endorsers. It states that misleading advertisement in any form, format or medium is prohibited by law.

Multiple social media influencers and agencies participated via video conferencing in the press conference to release of the guidelines. The industry appreciated and supported the release of these guidelines. They stated that this will further strengthen the industry and protect consumer interests.

Comments

 

Other News

‘Gandhi’s Spiritual Politics: Austerity, Fasting and Secularism’

On the occasion of the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, renowned academic publishers Sage have opened access to many notable articles and essays on the Father of the Nation. Here we reproduce an excerpt from one of them, well-known historian Amar Farooqui’s highly original and detailed article in

Bharatiya Bhasha Utsav, Technology & Bharatiya Bhasha Summit launched

Union Minister for Education and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship Dharmendra Pradhan Saturday launched the Bharatiya Bhasha Utsav and inaugurated the two-day Technology & Bharatiya Bhasha Summit in New Delhi. The summit aims to facilitate a seamless transition from the current education ecosyst

India retains 40th rank in the Global Innovation Index 2023

India has retained the 40th rank out of 132 economies in the Global Innovation Index 2023 rankings published by the World Intellectual Property Organization. India has been on a rising trajectory, over the past several years in the Global Innovation Index (GII), from a rank of 81 in 2015 to 40 in 2023. Inn

Vibrant Gujarat not just about branding, also an event of bonding: Modi

Prime minister Narendra Modi addressed the programme marking 20 years celebration of the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit at Science City in Ahmedabad on Wednesday. The Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit was started 20 years ago, on September 28, 2003, under the leadership of Modi, then chief minis

AI in education: How to embrace the change (and why)

It is often said that industry is at 4.0 and education is at 2.0. To transform education in line with artificial intelligence (AI), it is imperative to adopt what companies like Google are doing. We must learn to grow along with AI as AI is going to grow. There is a need to evolve the mindsets of educators

Diamonds are Forever: A Saturday story

Saturday Stories By Rashmi Bansal HarperCollins, 176 pages, Rs 250 From the bestselling author of ‘Stay Hu

Visionary Talk: Amitabh Gupta, Pune Police Commissioner with Kailashnath Adhikari, MD, Governance Now


Archives

Current Issue

Opinion

Facebook Twitter Google Plus Linkedin Subscribe Newsletter

Twitter