Ads’ Superimposed Text Must Be Clearly Legible, Says ITC

For the first time the Independent Television Commission (ITC) has set a minimum size for superimposed text which explains or qualifies offers in television advertisements.

It says that, “text must be clearly legible and held long enough for the full message to be read by the average viewer on a standard domestic television set.”

The Commission says that broadcasters had requested more specific guidance in this area. Text must now measure 14 ‘television lines’; a picture is made up of 625 lines.

The code will become mandatory on 1 September 1998.

Independent Television Commission: 0171 306 7743