ADVERTISING

STANDARDS COUNCIL OF
INDIA (ASCI)

2/7/2012

Presented By:
Neeti
Nikhath
Renu
Riddhi
Swati

2/7/2012

INTRODUCTION
Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) is a self-regulatory
voluntary organization of the advertising industry.
Formation:
The three main constituents of advertising industry viz advertisers,
advertising agencies and media came together to form this
independent NGO in 1985.
Members of ASCI:
ASCIs team consists of the Board of Governors (comprising 12
members), the Consumer Complaints Council (CCC) and its
Secretariat.
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OBJECTIVES
To maintain and enhance public's confidence in advertising
To ensure truthfulness and honesty of representations and
claims
To safeguard against misleading advertisements
To ensure generally accepted norms and standards of public
decency in advertisements
To safeguard against promotion of hazardous products or
services to society
To ensure fair competition and ethics in advertising
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CASES HANDLED BY ASCI

ASCI has withdrawn advertisements which were not suitable to be viewed along
with family for e.g case filed against Zoom TV, Sahara, Zee TV, Aaj Tak and
various TV Channels; following is the process to file a complaint.

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Need for ASCI

When an advertiser is creating an ad, the consumer is his
audience. The feedback from a consumer is important to the
advertiser so he can be assured if his message has been
correctly conveyed.
If a consumer feels that a particular advertisement is in bad
taste or is false in its claims, they need a body or council to
whom they can air their grievances and who will take any
appropriate action, if necessary.
ASCI as a self regulatory body governing advertising content
is the ideal medium as its purpose is to serve both the
advertisers as well as the consumers.
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Role & Functions Of ASCI

ASCI

a voluntary self-regulatory council,

registered as a not-for-profit Company under
section 25 of the Indian Companies Act.

ASCI is not a government body & does not

formulate rules for the public or for the relevant

industries.
Deals with Complaints received from Consumers

and Industry, against Ads considered as False,

Misleading, Indecent, Illegal, leading to Unsafe
practices, or Unfair to competition.
Receives and processes complaints against Ads

& takes necessary action.

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Filing a Complaint
A clearly readable copy or clipping of the Ad under

complaint, along with a hard copy of the complete

complaint preferably signed by the complainant is
required.
To review the ad, the ASCI conveys substantial issues to
the advertiser.
Identity of the complainant is not disclosed to the
advertiser.
The CCC of ASCI then deliberates on the issues & arrives
at a conclusion.

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CASE STUDY :
CLINIC PLUS SHAMPOO

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Hindustan Unilever Ltd

(Clinic Plus Strong & Long Shampoo)
TVC claims: By using Clinic Plus Strong & Long shampoo the

hair will grow 3 cms longer in 3 months.

Complaint: Hair growth is a function of various things like
age, health, diet and genetics, and hair grows mainly due to
cell division at the root which happens under the surface of the
scalp. It has almost nothing to do with the shampoo usage.
This is a false and misleading claim. Further, in addition, the
Advertiser should provide supporting technical submission.
ASCI Code/CCC Decision: Whilst Clinic Plus shampoo does
make the hair stronger, the shampoo does not increase or
stimulate hair growth from the root. Hence the claim is false
and misleading.
Result: TVC modified. (February 2011)
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Conclusion
Thus ASCI is a self-regulatory authority

which checks for puffery or fraudulation,

unethical or deceptive advertising and
also offensive or advertisements bad in
tastes.
It also plays a major role in encouraging

truthful, ethical, and responsible

advertising.
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THANK YOU

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