Kids ad regulations need monitoring

The ball was set in motion on 1 December 2003 when the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport Tessa Jowell asked Ofcom to consider proposals to strengthen rules on food and drink advertising to children. In response, Ofcom undertook a comprehensive analysis of the available scientific and audience data to assess the extent to which television advertising influenced children's food preferences.

The research included 2000 interviews with children, parents and teachers, as well as details of family eating habits drawn from a panel of 11 000 people. It demonstrated that TV advertising has a direct effect on children's dietary preferences; however, it also conceded that its impact is modest when compared to other factors such as parental influence, trends in family eating habits, school policy, public understanding of nutrition, food labelling and exercise.

As a result of its findings, in April 2007, Ofcom introduced new advertising rules in the UK which prevented ads for foods that are considered to be high in fat, salt and sugar (HFSS), in and around programmes that appeal to children under 16. In their endeavor to protect child targeted media, Ofcom phased in the ban which was initially aimed at children aged 4 - 9 years, and 4-16 year-olds from 2008.

So what has been the effect? In July 2008, over a year from the start of the regulations, Ofcom began its own review of the effects. The results have not yet been published but some effects are apparent. While Ofcom had forecast that multichannel broadcasters would lose in the region of 5 - 10% of their business, Nielsen Media Research figures show that the drop has been closer to 60%.

Channels are striving to replace the lost ad revenue with healthier eating alternatives but the number of products which can be advertised to young kids are limited - they're not going to make decisions on airlines or cars or where you shop. There are concerns for the long-term health of child-targeted TV - if there's no market for advertising, there is no market for kids programming.

Some channels have jumped right on board and embraced the spirit of the ban - Nickelodeon will not allow SpongeBob SquarePants and its other licensed characters to appear on food packaging and restaurant promotions which contain HFSS.

Some advertisers are moving their ads outside traditional kids' airtime but when there will still be a significant number of kids watching. The ultimate beneficiary has probably been the Internet, which while regulated, has lines of acceptance which are slightly more blurred.

In a media landscape which is evolving faster than it seems possible to keep up, the development of this code is one to watch for all advertisers targeting children.