Fears that the Commission’s Communication following up the Green paper on Commercial Communications might have been derailed by the Consumer Affairs Council have proved to be exaggerated. The Consumer Affairs Council last week took note of the Communication, with further work being remitted to the responsibility of those preparing for the Internal Market Council, which… Continue reading EU: Follow-up Communication unscathed
American citizens are now able to get free long-distance telephone calls; the only ‘catch’ is that they must listen to advertising during the call. The scheme, called FreeWay, has been launched in Pittsburgh and entails the phone-caller building up a bank of free telephone time according to the amount of advertising they have listened to;… Continue reading US: Free phone calls
The EC’s discussion document for a draft white paper on commerce has been debated by the Committee on Distribution and Commerce. The document appears largely to ignore the impact or role of commercial communications.
Barbara Roche, UK minister for telecoms, has said that Britain’s Data Protection Registrar is working on a proposal to prevent people receiving unsolicited e-mails through the insertion of suppression markers in their Internet addresses – a technique generally known amongst Internet users as “spamming” – and that the Direct Marketing Association is working on ideas… Continue reading UK: Government studies ‘spamming’
The EC Infringements Committee has again failed to endorse the complaint by European alcohol manufacturers against the French government’s ban on alcohol advertising, the Loi Evin. The Committee, again pressurised by the President of the Commission and the French Commissioners, has bizarrely asked for further information on the case, which is now comprehensively detailed and… Continue reading FR: Loi Evin safe for the World Cup?
Classic FM has signed a new sponsorship deal with coffee maker Douwe Egberts. Throughout the Summer, from mid-May to September, Douwe Egberts will sponsor on-air promotion of the Classic FM Douwe Egberts Summer Music Festival – a series of outdoor concerts held at stately homes around the country.The deal includes sponsorship five times a day… Continue reading Classic FM In Sponsorship Deal
Alcohol Concern, the major lobby against alcohol abuse in the UK, has started a project to draw up proposals for a national alcohol strategy for England. It will be seeking opinions from several individuals and bodies. The proposals “will encompass a broad range of policy areas, including the control of supply and demand, changing perceptions… Continue reading UK: Alcohol investigation
Andrew Chowns believes that the launch of ITV2, ITV’s digital terrestrial channel, will be an opportunity for advertisers to reach an audience ITV would die for – young, predominantly upmarket male light viewers who are interested in sport, music and light entertainment.The question is, however, will the channel merely end up as a barely-watched, poor… Continue reading Interview – Andrew Chowns, ITV2 Project Director
A DGXV working document entitled “Judging Self-Regulation: When does it make a meaningful contribution to the level of data protection in a third country” has been circulated to interested parties. The document proceeds from Article 25(2) of the data protection directive which requires the level of protection afforded by a third country to be assessed… Continue reading EU: EC considers data protection
Southern Newspapers has added a new free title to its portfolio in the shape of The Extra. It will appear in Romsey and is part of the Winchester Extra Series , initially having a 9,300 print-run.The publisher has also relaunched the paid-for Marlborough Times as a 24-page free tabloid.Southern Newspapers: 01703 424424
