ASA Adjudication on Channel Four Television Corporation

Ad

A national press and magazine ad, for Film4, stated “We’ve been pushing the limits since the beginning. Investing in edgy, controversial scripts, nurturing up-and-coming talent, taking you to places no-one else can. The result? The most complete film channel in the world”.

Issue

British Sky Broadcasting Ltd (Sky) objected that the claim "The most complete film channel in the world" was misleading.  They believed they offered a more complete movie service than Film4 because they broadcast more films per day than Film4, they operated a 24-hour service compared to Film4's 12 hours, they did not include commercial breaks in their films but Film4 did, they offered High Definition movies and additional services which Film4 did not, and they broadcast the premiere of nine out of ten top 100 UK Box Office films, excluding pay per view services.  

CAP Code (Edition 11)

Response

Film4 said they had been pushing the boundaries of film making since they launched firstly as a production company and latterly as a channel.  They said the ad focused on the fact that they did not just broadcast films, they also made them.  They therefore believed that it was not misleading to use the words "most complete film channel in the world" because there were no other film channels that made films and also broadcast them. Film4 pointed out that they had received no complaints direct about the ad.

Assessment

Not upheld

The ASA noted Sky's arguments about why they offered a more complete film service than Film4.  We also noted Film4 made films as well as broadcasting them and that they considered that made their service the most complete in the world.

We acknowledged that the claim "the most complete film channel in the world" could be interpreted in different ways. We considered, however, that in the case of Film4, consumers would view the term "complete" in the context of the ad. We noted the sub-heading and claims preceding the challenged claim were all about film-making and groundbreaking activities and made it clear that that was the sphere in which the service was the most comprehensive.  We concluded that, in the context of the ad, the claim was unlikely to mislead.  

We investigated the ad under CAP Code clauses 3.1 (Substantiation), 7.1 (Truthfulness) and 19.1 (Fair comparison) but did not find it in breach.

Action

No further action required.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Non-broadcast)