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We give guidelines in this infographic on the rules regarding what to do and what not to do in Italy in advertising alcoholic beverages, which is a highly regulated sector.
We have analyzed the problem of alcoholic beverage advertising in Italy in the infographic below in legal design style and as part of the rest of the article.
Among the various issues that are the subject of attention in the field of advertising, the dissemination of promotional messages concerning alcoholic beverages is certainly one of the most relevant and of greatest interest for both operators in the sector and consumers, who are increasingly sensitive to social issues such as alcohol consumption.
In Italy, there are various provisions in regulatory texts and in codes of self-discipline that regulate the possibility and the concrete methods of promoting alcoholic beverages, with particular attention not only to the content of advertising messages but also to the final recipients and the methods of presentation.
The general principle that must inform commercial communication on the subject of alcoholic beverages is, in fact, that of protecting the primary interest of the community that all people, and in particular children and adolescents, have a family and social life protected from the consequences linked to the abuse of alcoholic beverages.
In confirmation of the above, concerning the most easily suggestible segment of the population, the legislator has provided for rules to protect their exposure to potentially harmful messages.
Direct or indirect advertising of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages is expressly forbidden in places frequented mainly by minors under 18 years of age and radio and television advertising of non-alcoholic beverages during the period from 4 pm to 7 pm.
On the other hand, according to the Italian Code of Self-discipline for Commercial Communication, commercial communications must be avoided which encourage excessive and uncontrolled use of alcoholic beverages, which induce the public to disregard the different methods of consumption that need to be considered about the products or the personal conditions of the consumer, or which associate the driving of vehicles with the use of alcoholic beverages.
The rules of our legal system regarding misleading and comparative advertising also apply to advertisements for alcoholic beverages.
To supervise the observance of some of the provisions mentioned above, an authority such as the Jury has been placed in charge, which with its decisions has offered particular hints to interpreters and provided, to experts and operators in the sector, concrete points of reference about the material implementation of the principles contained in the advertising rules.
For example, a glaring case of advertising which does not comply with the principles of our legal system is represented by the decision of the Jury regarding a message conveyed by a well-known beer producer.
The advertisement depicted the bestowal of beer first offered in spurts, then with a “fountain” jet and again, in crescendo, in a “cascade”. In this case, the Jury considered that the images and the message were not compatible with the picture because of the conveyance of a message contrary to the principles of moderation and responsibility in drinking.
On a similar topic, you can see our series of infographics relating to advertising regulation in various sectors HERE.
