New guidelines for involuntary advertising on illegal sites

Logotypes and advertisements that appear on illegal sites without the advertisers’ knowledge are increasingly common. In consultation with Rights Alliance the Association of Swedish Advertisers has therefore drawn up recommendations — in six key points — to stop involuntary advertising that may harm serious advertisers’ brands.

The Association of Swedish Advertisers is the interest organisation for this country’s advertisers. What the nearly 600 member companies have in common is that they are purchasers of advertising and media space. The Association is anxious that the members should, in their advertising, comply with current law and rules of market ethics.

Tobias Eltell, Legal Adviser at the Association, says: ‘Sometimes the logotypes, brands and advertisements of advertisers, often without their own knowledge, end up on illegal sites. These may, for instance, be sites that provide film, images, text and music without the rights holders’ consent. For serious advertisers this may be a major problem, and the Association of Swedish Advertisers has therefore drawn up recommendations that may be helpful to advertisers.’
Advertisers’ ads and brands can pop up on illegal sites in various ways. The purchase of advertising often takes place through a media or advertising agency that places the advertisements on various sites. For the illegal sites, there is a value in having serious advertisers’ brands on their sites, since to some extent this legitimises the sites.

The following six points are intended to serve as support for the avoidance of involuntary advertising and brand exposure on illegal sites:

1. The recommendation on collaboration between advertisers and media agencies states clearly that the foremost task of the media agency is to safeguard its clients’ interests, observing sound ethics and morality.
2. Do not buy advertising contacts by means of ‘bulk sales’, as they are called. In other words, a media agency’s purchase of advertising space must always take place on behalf of an individual advertiser’s order.
3. If a media agency uses real-time bidding (RTB), it is important to give the agency clear instructions on which sites you are not interested in and wish to exclude from the bidding, despite a good price. Using RTB, advertising placements can be purchased in an automated, bid-based way. When the media agency buys advertising space, it sometimes happens that space on an undesirable site may appear suitable according to certain premises, such as target group or previously visited sites. Note also the existence of display networks, i.e. arrangements whereby illegal sites may be included in a package of several advertising sites.
4. Never confine your specifications to target group and cost only. In your agreement you should impose requirements on where your advertisements and your brand may appear.
5. Regulate the media agency’s commitment in the agreement by means, for example, of a clause stating that no placement may be made on sites that do not act in accordance with current law.
6. f you find your advertisement or your brand on a site where no space has been purchased, inform the person responsible for the site of this immediately. If no responsible person can be reached, contact the site supplier or hosting company and state that brand or copyright infringement has occurred. Some larger sites provide forms on which this infringement can be reported. If you discover an infringement in an application from a third party, contact the developer of the application or the person responsible for it.

These recommendations were drawn up on consultation with Rights Alliance. For more information about illegal sites for computer games and films, email Sara Lindbäck at Rights Alliance: sara.lindback@rattighetsalliansen.se.

For more information about illegal music sites, contact the recording industry’s organisation IFPI by email: info@ifpi.se.

The recommendations are attached as a PDF file with this press release and may also be downloaded here.

Contact person at the Association of Swedish Advertisers

Tobias Eltell
Legal Adviser
+46-(0)8-545 252 42
+46-(0)766-29 12 90
tobias.eltell@annons.se

The Association of Swedish Advertisers’ member companies represent more than half of Sweden’s aggregate investments in advertising and media. As an interest organisation, we help our members to get the best possible return on their advertising and media investments and work more efficiently and responsibly with their brands. The Association has existed since 1924 and is now the largest advertiser organisation in the world, with nearly 600 member companies. By focusing on impact, contributing inspiration and know-how, and monitoring and influencing external developments, we are the market manager’s best friend. Read more at annons.se.