Stuart Fogarty
About Stuart Fogarty
Posts by Stuart Fogarty:
42% of People Believe World Would Be Better Off Without Advertising?
Admatic comment “There was a time, when the Ads were found to be more interesting than the programmes…but not now. Because creativity is dire. It’s not ‘Advertising’ that’s disliked per se but rather, the communication. After all, if you asked people would they be prepared to pay for Facebook, Twitter, Virgin TV, Sky etc…instead of advertising, they’d say no. Nor is it the role of advertising to ‘halve carbon emissions’. Ask for this indecipherable nonsense -“People aren’t emotionally connecting to the future we need to create”….
From Adworld:
New research carried out amongst Irish consumers show that 77% of those surveyed believe that “the advertising industry should help people lead healthy, sustainable lives” while 45% believe that “the world would be better off without advertising in its current form”.
The findings are contained in a new report called Good Life 2030 Ireland, the first ‘citizen vision report’ designed to uncover insights into what Irish people believe a ‘good life’ looks like for them in the year 2030 and the role of advertising in supporting this.
The report was funded by Creative Ireland as part of the Creative Climate Action Fund, and was created by Purpose Disruptors and the Dublin-based agency Thinkhouse.
The report highlights that the modern advertising industry has played a key role in driving an emphasis on a “good life” of “more stuff, status & wealth”. For its part, the Purpose Disruptors has claimed that the industry has, so far, “taken the world in the opposite direction of where it needs to go.”
The research also shows that citizens are divided on their view of advertising and its influence. According to the report many shared negative feelings toward the industry with 45% saying that they agree that “the world would be better off without advertising in its current form” while 42% say that ‘the advertising industry promotes an image of life that is harmful for people in Ireland”. Some 39% of people were unsure, neither agreeing or disagreeing with the statement while just 19% disagreed.
When thinking about the industry’s influence on a ‘good life’, 45% of citizens disagree with the statement “the advertising industry promotes an image of life that is in line with what I want for myself” while 32% of people neither agree nor disagree with it. Overall, however, 77% agree that ‘the advertising industry should help people lead healthy, sustainable lives.” Some 19% of people neither agree nor disagree with just 3% disagreeing.
“It’s clear that people believe that there is a responsibility for the industry to play its role to facilitate the necessary culture, behaviour and system change needed to halve carbon emissions by 2030. This project aims to bring the advertising industry closer to citizen’s real needs, to create a new narrative, informed by real everyday people, that improves human and planetary wellbeing for all,” the report notes.
“It’s time for our industry to realise its true potential – to shift our focus in service of a thriving future. As architects of desire, the advertising industry shapes our cultural understanding of a life worth wanting. Science states we need to halve emissions by 2030. But 2030 has an image problem. People aren’t emotionally connecting to the future we need to create. The invitation now is for those in the marketing, advertising and media industry to embrace our unique expertise and our responsibility to rethink what’s being sold and imagine a new ‘good life’ story that serves all living systems. A 2030 Good Life is ours to create,” she adds.
Costello points to the growing awareness within the advertising industry for the need to do better. A recent IAPI survey, in support of the Good Life 2030 Ireland project, shows that 57% of Ireland’s advertising industry, don’t believe that the industry ‘is currently doing all it can to create a sustainable world,’ with just 18% of the industry believing that they are “doing all they can.” In addition, 90% of the industry recognises that Ireland’s advertising industry “has an important role in changing consumer behaviours.”
“I agree. Who better to shape a new image for 2030 than Ireland’s advertising and marketing industry?” adds Charley Stoney, CEO of IAPI. “ Supporting initiatives like this and Ad Net Zero, are an important part of our industry’s response to Ireland’s Climate Action Plan and Ireland’s Digital Creative Industries Roadmap – ensuring our industry is front and centre of Ireland’s transition to a sustainable economy. We must harness the superpower of the ad industry, generating a desire for ways of living and working that supports a good life for everyone.”
Channel 4 to invest advertising worth millions in ‘overlooked’ UK founders
From Ireland Live:
Channel 4 has announced plans to invest millions of pounds worth of advertising in business founders it views as overlooked and underrepresented, as it shrugs off concerns about a TV advertising slump.
Channel 4 Ventures, the broadcaster’s investment arm, said the launch of its new initiative Untapped is the first of its kind in the industry.
It plans to commit a significant proportion of its investment into growing companies led by entrepreneurs with more diverse profiles, including gender, education, socio-economic background, race, employment history and location.
This will be achieved by a new framework which it said will determine founders’ profiles across a range of criteria.
Founders securing significant investment have been predominantly men from top universities, analysis by Channel 4 Ventures found.
The fund uses a media-for-equity model, which means it offers start-ups advertising space on Channel 4, both on TV and its streaming platform, in return for an equity stake in the company.
At the end of 2022, it had about 20 active investments worth £45 million.
The company said it was deliberately not putting in place a specific target for working with founders from a broader range of profiles, so as to avoid a “token” approach.
But the proportion of investment could range between 10% and 60% and amount to millions of pounds worth of advertising space.
Verica Djurdjevic, Channel 4’s chief revenue officer, said TV advertising remains “very appealing” for businesses who want to grow and generate strong returns on investment.
“While audience behaviours are shifting and we’re seeing some decline, actually the mass reach available within linear TV advertising is incomparable to other media channels,” she said.
It comes after Channel 4’s chief executive Alex Mahon warned last month of a “sharp and protracted advertising slowdown that has hit the whole industry”, as it planned a new wave of job cuts.
The broadcaster said it wants to start generating more money from digital advertising revenues as part of a push to grow its streaming services.
Channel 4 Ventures has backed firms including Oddbox, Pinterest and Carwow since launching eight years ago, and re-invests the returns it makes into Channel 4.
Meanwhile, its analysis of the profiles of hundreds of entrepreneurs that have secured a valuation of more than £100 million for their business found that they are coming from a narrow section of society.
Some 94% of founders were men, despite men representing 41% of all UK graduates.
The founders were 51 times more likely to have graduated from an Oxbridge university or US equivalent than from a university outside the top 100 globally.
And they were ten times more likely to be a white university graduate than a black graduate, the analysis showed.
Vinay Solanki, head of Channel 4 Ventures, said: “The data implies that a wide range of talented founders leading attractive commercial organisations are being overlooked by the current ecosystem and we are committed to identifying and backing them.
“More broadly, Untapped can be a catalyst to grow the UK consumer investment landscape and encourage others to follow in the investment space.”
New restrictions on vape advertising to come into effect
From Irish Legal News:
New restrictions on the marketing of vapes and other nicotine products to children will come into effect in six months.
The Public Health (Tobacco Products and Nicotine Inhaling Products) Act 2023 will ban the sale of tobacco products or nicotine inhaling products at events aimed at children, and prohibit advertising for nicotine inhaling products around cinema films for children, on public service vehicles and at stops or stations and within 200 metres of a school.
There is a six-month lead-in time for these measures which will take effect from 23 September 2024.
A further provision will come into effect on Thursday when test purchasing operations carried out by the National Environmental Health Service of the Health Service Executive (HSE) on tobacco products and nicotine inhaling products will be underpinned by law.
Test purchasing operations involve a minor aged 15 or over attempting to purchase tobacco products in contravention of the ban on sales to minors.
These operations were previously approved by the High Court for tobacco and from Thursday, they will be contained in legislation for both tobacco and nicotine inhaling products. This coincides with the 20th anniversary of the introduction of the smoking ban in workplaces in Ireland.
It follows the commencement in December of section 28 of the Act which made it an offence to sell a nicotine inhaling product to a child.
Health minister Stephen Donnelly said: “The commencement will bring into operation further elements of our overall strategy to reduce the exposure of our children to smoking and vaping.
“I am particularly pleased to commence the statutory framework for test purchases as it highlights how some of our young people themselves are helping to protect other young people from tobacco and nicotine inhaling products.
“As we mark 20 years since the introduction of the smoking ban in Ireland, my department continues to introduce evidence-based policy measures that help to reduce the significant health burden that smoking places on our population.
“Second-hand smoke causes cancers, heart disease and strokes, and young people who vape are more likely to go on to smoke, so it is vital that we initiate measures to protect them from addictive products.
“We have made great strides in this area, but the work continues and I want to reaffirm my commitment to reaching our goal of a tobacco free Ireland.”
Hildegarde Naughton, the minister of state with responsibility for public health, wellbeing and the national drugs strategy, added: “I welcome these further measures to allow our children to go about their daily lives without being exposed to advertising for e-cigarettes.
“I look forward to the implementation of further measures on nicotine inhaling products that are currently being developed.
“The recent public consultation on the further regulation of vapes and tobacco will help to inform future regulation, with the aim of protecting the health of our population, and in particular, our young people.
FREE 250 euro ‘All gifts’ Voucher Monday May 6 to Friday 9pm May 10th.
That’s right. Free.
One week only from 9am May 6th 2024 on all bookings over 1,000 euro. We simply send it to your email within 10 days of booking.
All Gifts have so many voucher outlets as you’ll see on this link. No quibble, no conditions, just straightforward.
AllGifts Vouchers – Redemption Choice 2024
Zero-alcohol ads and sport sponsorship ‘may be breaking the law’
From The Examiner
Alcohol Action Ireland (AAI) said these products use the same logo and trademark of the parent alcohol brand and claim this breaches Irish health legislation.
The Department of Health said minister Stephen Donnelly had asked officials, as reported in May 2023, to review if advertisements for zero-alcohol products were being used to promote full-strength brands.
The department told the it was examining the evidence base “with a view to developing legislation”, but said any issue on legal enforcement of the law was up to local HSE environment health officers.
AAI said that while alcohol advertising is banned on a sports pitch during a game, communications for zero-alcohol versions were common throughout the Six Nations rugby tournament which finished at the weekend.
It said that, under the Public Health (Alcohol) Act 2018, “advertising” means any form of commercial communication with the aim, or direct or indirect effect, of promoting an alcohol product.
In a statement, the AAI said: “Sect 15 of the Public Health (Alcohol) Act 2018 bans alcohol advertising “in or on the sports field of play” during a sports event, but to watch the Six Nations rugby tournament you would not know there had been any change to the law.
“This is because the industry simply tacked a 0.0 onto its commercial communications, a move which Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly has described [in May 2023] as ‘cynical’.”
It said the alcohol industry must be challenged over its alleged “continued and egregious flouting of the law”.
The CEO of AAI, Sheila Gilheany, said: “A case must be taken to test this in court. We would be keen to find out if the HSE and/or the Department of Health is going to take action on this and if not, why not.
AAI said research showed that alcohol brand references are occurring at a rate of one in every eight seconds during high profile rugby matches — a sport, the charity claimed, which appears “to have been entirely captured by alcohol”.
It said Diageo’s alcohol brand Guinness now also sponsors the women’s Six Nations rugby tournament, which begins this week.
The HSE referred queries on the matter to the Department of Health.
UTV parent group sees drop in profits amid ‘severe decline’ in advertising
From The Irish News
ITV said its profits dropped last year as the broadcaster found it “challenging” to encourage advertisers to spend money on traditional TV commercials.
The parent company of UTV reported growth at some of its business units, but it proved a struggle to keep its advertising take up.
Profit fell from £501 million in 2022 to £193m before tax last year, ITV said.
It was what the business calls “linear” advertising – the industry’s word for the ads shown on television rather than online – which really struggled.
ITV said it had seen a “severe decline” of 15% in linear advertising, as companies that normally advertise were more cautious because of the poor global economy. However, digital revenue performed much better, increasing 19% to £490m.
ITV acquired UTV Limited in February 2016, and two years later moved its headquarters from Havelock House on Belfast’s Ormeau Road to City Quays.
The deal also saw ITV acquire the UTV pension scheme.
According to ITV’s latest financial report, the UTV pension scheme, which closed to new entrants at the end of March 2019, had assets of £91m and £88m of liabilities.
ITV told investors on Thursday: “2024 will be impacted by the 2023 US writers’ and actors’ strikes, which will delay around £80m of revenue from 2024 to 2025, as well as weaker demand from free-to-air broadcasters in Europe who are holding back spend until they see more certainty in the advertising market.”
Chief executive Carolyn McCall said: “In 2023 we saw the benefit of the actions we have taken to reposition ITV towards higher sustainable growth.
“Our Studios business recorded the highest ever revenues and profits, and in its first year ITVX delivered strong growth in viewing and digital revenue with investment on plan.
“This growth in production and streaming substantially offset the challenging linear TV advertising market conditions.”
Ad-auction body comes under GDPR – CJEU
From The Law Society:
The EU’s highest court has found that a group representing companies involved in digital advertising and marketing can be regarded as a data controller under the GDPR data-privacy rules.
The case centres on the real-time auction system in which advertisers compete to display adverts tailored to each online user’s personal profile.
It involves IAB Europe, a non-profit association established in Belgium that represents undertakings in the digital advertising and marketing sector at European level.
The association had developed a ‘transparency-and-consent string’ (TC String) that encodes and stores users’ preferences, and had presented it as bringing the auction system into line with the GDPR.
Belgium’s data-protection authority, however, found that IAB had been acting as a data controller without fully complying with the GDPR – a decision that IAB is contesting in the Brussels Court of Appeal.
Identifiable user
Answering questions from the Brussels court, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) found that the TC String contained information about an identifiable user and, therefore, constituted ‘personal data’ within the meaning of the GDPR.
“Where the information contained in a TC String is associated with an identifier, such as, inter alia, the IP address of the user’s device, that information may make it possible to create a profile of that user and to identify him or her,” the judges stated.
They added that IAB Europe must also be regarded as a ‘joint controller’ within the meaning of the GDPR, as it appeared to “exert influence over data-processing operations when the consent preferences of users are recorded in a TC String, and to determine, jointly with its members, both the purposes of those operations and the means behind them”.
‘Highly sensitive data’
The court added, however, that IAB could not be regarded as a data controller in relation to operations occurring after the consent preferences of users were recorded in a TC String.
The Irish Council of Civil Liberties (ICCL) has welcomed the ruling, saying that it showed just how broad the protection of people’s personal data was in Europe.
“The online tracking and advertising industry is surreptitiously collecting and broadcasting highly sensitive data about everyone who uses the internet. Today’s decision will force the industry to change profoundly,” it stated.
Bauer Media Audio acquires southeast radio station Beat 102-103
From Irish Times
The Irish Times has been a 75% shareholder in Beat for the past six years
Germany’s Bauer Media Audio, the owner of Today FM and Newstalk, has expanded its radio interests in Ireland once more by agreeing to buy youth-targeting regional station Beat 102-103 for an undisclosed sum, subject to regulatory approval.
The Irish Times, which became a 75 per cent shareholder in Beat when it acquired Landmark Media Group in 2018, said the sale of the Waterford-based station was consistent with its strategy to “prioritise and invest in our publishing titles to enhance our digital services for readers and subscribers, and to pursue new opportunities to develop our digital offering”.
Beat 102-103 is the most-listened to radio station among the 15-34 age group in Carlow, Kilkenny, Waterford, Wexford and south Tipperary with 158,000 people tuning in every week.
Bauer Media Audio Ireland is also the owner of 98FM, Spin 1038 and Spin SouthWest, all of which it bought alongside its two national stations from Denis O’Brien’s Communicorp in 2021.
Since then, it has been on the acquisition trail, last year adding Cork’s Red FM, in which The Irish Times also had a stake, and iRadio, a youth music station serving listeners in the northeast, midlands and northwest.
Its Irish portfolio also includes digital sports brand Off the Ball, listening platform GoLoud, digital audio advertising exchange audioXi and media sales house Media Central. Beat, which launched in July 2003, already had a business relationship with Bauer as it was represented to advertisers by Media Central.
“We’re confident that Beat and its staff will have a bright future as a valued part of the dynamic Bauer Media Group,” said Deirdre Veldon, The Irish Times group managing director and chairwoman of Beat.
The deal, when completed, means that Bauer Media Audio Ireland will own eight of the 34 commercial radio services licensed by Coimisiún na Meán and extend its total weekly reach in the market to 2.24 million listeners.
“We are delighted to have Beat 102-103 join Bauer. This provides advertisers and partners with access to a quality station with an engaged audience in the southeast,” said Chris Doyle, Bauer Media Audio Ireland’s interim chief executive.
The company, which operates radio businesses in nine European markets, is part of Bauer Media Group, a privately owned, Hamburg-headquartered multimedia company led by Yvonne Bauer.
Advertising Standards Authority Gets a Brand Makeover
From Adworld:
The Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland (ASAI) has rebranded as the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) while it has also introduced a new brand identity as well as a new website and updated social channels.
According to Miriam Hughes, chair of the ASA: “Following on from the announcement of our new strategy last year, we are today celebrating not only the visual transformation of the brand but our unwavering commitment to trust, transparency and integrity in the media landscape. This is a particularly important time, not only for the organisation but for the wider advertising industry, and we are well prepared to embark on this new chapter with our robust corporate strategy and new identity. The Advertising Standards Authority has over forty years’ experience navigating the complexities of the advertising industry and we will continue to uphold the highest standards of marketing communications, working with stakeholders to continually position the organisation as an innovative organisation that fosters trust in advertising for all.”
“We are delighted to unveil our new look and shortened name, reaffirming our commitment to fostering a culture of trust and integrity within the Irish advertising Industry,” says Orla Twomey, CEO of the Advertising Standards Authority. “ This brand refresh highlights our core values and our vision for the future. As the advertising and media landscape continues to progress and change, it is crucial that we evolve with it, ensuring that our identity and messaging accurately reflect the importance of our role within Irish advertising.
The organisation will continue to operate at the forefront of both self-regulatory and co-regulatory solutions and has the crucial knowledge to ensure the best solutions are achieved to address the challenges posed by the significant changes to the overall regulatory framework. This is a significant accomplishment in our strategy goal to encourage engagement and position the Advertising Standards Authority as leaders in advertising self-regulation.”