ASA Adjudication on Creafire AG

Ad

An internet ad, on a search website, was headlined “Check new IQ game”. Text below stated “Test your intelligence! Get certificate now”.

Issue

The complainant objected that the ad misleadingly implied the results would be immediately available whereas, having completed the test, she was informed that results would be provided via two text messages, for which consumers would be charged £4 each.

CAP Code

Response

Getiq.co.uk said the ad had appeared since October 2008, during which time over 48,000 users in the UK had taken the IQ test; over 4,000 had opted to receive theie results.  They said they had received very few complaints about the test and pointed out that the ASA had received only one.  The test included 40 questions, which tested the mind of the consumer, and took an average of 20 to 25 minutes to complete.  Getiq.co.uk used the test results to compile statistics, for their use in the future, related to the intelligence of different nationalities and therefore there was a purpose to taking the test even for those consumers who did not obtain the results.  

They believed users would not feel pressured into obtaining their results.  It might be the case that consumers had taken the time to complete the test without being aware that there was a charge but they could also opt to close the website because there was a clear distinction between taking the test and obtaining the results, which was clearly intended as a separate service.  The ad was designed to promote the test and not the result; it was therefore not necessary to include information about the cost involved in obtaining the result because that information was provided on a billing page after completion of the test.  

The ad did not state that the test was free but merely invited consumers to test their intelligence, which they could benefit from without obtaining the results, and therefore it was not misleading.  It was also not misleading for the ad to appear as a sponsored search result because there was a link between consumers who were looking for free IQ tests and those who were looking for an IQ test and might be willing to pay to obtain the result.

Assessment

Upheld

The ASA noted the ad did not state that the test results were free and was not intended to promote the results service but only the test itself.  We considered however that consumers who took an advertised IQ test would reasonably expect that they could obtain the results at the end of it and would not consider obtaining those results to be a separate service.  We also noted that the ad stated "Get certificate now", which we considered would be interpreted as a reference to obtaining the results of the IQ test.  We noted that consumers could not find out how to obtain the certificate without sending two text messages, at a cost of £4 each, but the ad did not include that information.  We acknowledged that the ad did not directly state that the service was free but considered that it implied that the test results were immediately available at no cost when that was not the case.  We concluded that the ad was misleading.

The ad breached CAP Code clauses 7.1 and 7.2 (Truthfulness) and 42.2c and 42.2g (Distance selling).

Action

The ad must not appear again in its current form.  We told Creafire Ltd to include details of the price of the service in future ads.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Non-broadcast)