ASA Adjudication on United International Pictures (UK)

Ad

An internet banner ad, for a horror film, appeared to customers logged-in to Yahoo mail. The ad showed three images which flashed up in quick succession: a pair of eyes, a screaming, distorted face and a head and shoulder shot of a hanged man with a noose around his neck.

Issue

The complainants, two of whom had known people who had hanged themselves, objected that the ad was offensive and distressing and should not appear on an e-mail homepage where it was likely to be seen by children.

CAP Code (Edition 11)

Response

United International Pictures (UIP) said the ad appeared on the Yahoo sign-out page.  They said it was highly targeted and would have been sent only to people 16 to 25 years of age.  They said no children would therefore have seen the ad unless they had signed into an adults e-mail account.  UIP said the ad replicated events from the film when the computers flicker with interference and then flash the hanged man.  They said they had no plans to use the ad again.

Yahoo said the ad was sent only  to customers logged into Yahoo mail aged 18-24 years and so children would not have been able to access it.  They said they had received between 10 and 15 e-mails of complaint from the 2,900,000 targeted customers.

Assessment

Not upheld

The ASA noted the ad was targeted at logged-in customers aged 16-25 years, and that children were therefore very unlikely to have seen it unless they had signed into an adults e-mail account. We also noted the ad stated PULSE At cinemas everywhere from 8th September; we considered that made clear the ad was for a film.  We believed consumers in the targeted age range were likely to be familiar with the horror film genre and that the other two images, of the eyes and the distorted face, were obviously stylised in keeping with this genre.  We noted the ad comprised three images flickering in quick succession and that the hanged man appeared on screen only for a fraction of a second each time.  We considered that, although the images were distasteful and startling, they reflected the nature of the advertised film.  We concluded that the ad was unlikely to cause serious or widespread offence, undue fear or distress and was not irresponsible or harmful to children.

We investigated the ad under CAP Code clauses 5.1 (Decency), 9.1 (Fear and distress) and 47.2 (Children) but did not find it in breach.

Action

No further action required.