The common roof of advertising, sponsorship and product placement is the concept of commercial communication. Article 9 establishes its general principles.
The Principles with Which Commercial Communication Must Comply
Art. 9 lists the conditions with which commercial communication must comply:
| Subpara. | Principle |
|---|---|
| b | Not to contain or encourage discrimination on grounds of race, colour, language, religion, nationality, sex, philosophical belief or political thought, disability, age or any other ground |
| c | Not to be misleading and not to harm the interests of the consumer |
| ç | Not to harm the physical, mental or moral development of children; not to direct children directly to buy or rent a product or service by exploiting their inexperience or credulity; not to encourage children directly to persuade their parents or others; not to exploit the trust children feel in their parents, teachers or other persons; not without reason to show children in dangerous situations |
| d | Not to be directed at the exploitation of women |
| e | Not to encourage conduct that will harm health, the environment and safety |
Five Separate Prohibitions Directed at Children
A Special Limit in Food Advertising
A paragraph of the same article: the commercial communication of foods and drinks containing foods and substances whose excessive consumption is not recommended in general nutritional diets may not be given place together with, or within, children's programmes.
The Sound Level Rule
Surreptitious Commercial Communication
Art. 3 of the Law defines surreptitious commercial communication: the presentation, for the purpose of advertising or in a manner capable of directing the public, of the activity, trade mark, name, service and product of a producer of goods or services, within programmes and outside advertising breaks and without an explanatory sound or image indicating that advertising is being done.
We cover the detail in the definitions guide.
The Three Forms of Commercial Communication
| Form | Article | Guide |
|---|---|---|
| Advertising and teleshopping | Art. 10 | tv-advertising-time-limit-turkey and separating-ad-breaks-turkey |
| Programme sponsorship | Art. 12 | programme-sponsorship-disclosure-turkey |
| Product placement | Art. 13 | product-placement-rules-turkey |
| Commercial communication of certain products | Art. 11 | alcohol-and-tobacco-advertising-ban-turkey |
Its Relationship with Programme Content
Art. 9 applies to commercial communication and Art. 8/1 to programme content. Some principles are repeated in both:
| Issue | Programme - Art. 8/1 | Commercial communication - Art. 9 |
|---|---|---|
| Discrimination | Subparagraph (e) | Subparagraph (b) - age is listed too |
| Children | (ğ) exploitation; Art. 8/2 the time slot | (ç) - five separate prohibitions |
| Women | Subparagraph (s) | Subparagraph (d) |
| Health and the environment | Subparagraph (l) | Subparagraph (e) |
Liability
Art. 6/4: media service providers are responsible for the content and presentation of all broadcasting services broadcast, including commercial communication and those produced by third parties. Even if the advertisement was produced by someone else, the responsibility lies with the broadcaster.
The Sanction
A breach of the commercial communication provisions falls within the scope of Art. 32/2: 1-3% of the gross commercial communication revenue of the preceding month. Art. 32/5: the broadcast of an organisation breaching any of the provisions governing commercial communication more than twenty times within a year is suspended for up to five days.
Summary
Art. 9 of Law No. 6112 requires commercial communication not to be misleading and not to harm the interests of the consumer, not to contain discrimination, not to harm the development of children and not to be directed at the exploitation of women. The prohibitions directed at children are listed in five separate forms in a single subparagraph. The sound level of commercial communication broadcasts must be the same as that of the other parts.