Clearcast News

Expansion of our services

Tue, 31 Jan 12 00:00:00 +0000

Expansion of our services

On 10^th April this year, we are expanding Clearcast in four exciting areas: New Business, Campaign Planning & Training, TV Admin and Edit-to-clear.

You’ll be hearing a lot more from us in coming weeks about these new services, but in the meantime, here’s some information to whet your appetite:

New Business

A helping hand to agencies that are either new to TV advertising or work with us so irregularly that it almost feels like the first time, each time. A Senior Executive will have more time to dedicate to these agencies, so that everything can be explained in more detail and better guidance offered when making submissions online.

Campaign Planning & Training

Useful for advertisers and agencies that would like advice at the early stages of a campaign, to get the creative treatments right for contentious sectors or get a claim accepted before the creative work starts.

Our customers can also get help during the approval process, for moments when it starts to feel like it’s getting a bit complicated. The Campaign Planner will work alongside the advertiser or agency, highlight their options and save them valuable time. As a part of the Campaign Planning, we also offer bespoke training, which can be helpful for clients that are not fully familiar with the clearance process or have the full overview of what to look out for in the adverting codes.

TV Admin

Clearcast will be able to help customers that find the clearance process complicated and may not have the resources to follow the clearance. TV, VoD, radio and cinema clearances for the UK and Europe will be offered.

The Clearcast TV Admin service will help clients get a submission as complete as possible before it is sent for clearance – which will save valuable time later, if additional information is required.

The TV Admin can also arrange for delivery once the ad has been approved.

Edit-to-clear

We will now be able to offer some minor editing jobs, such as fixing legal supers that fail on duration of hold or font size. We can also do some smaller jobs on fixing ads that fail on flashing images, as well as clocking or re-clocking ads.

We can also announce we have recently recruited three internal candidates of very high calibre to work in these brand new areas and they look forward to getting started.

So…watch this space!

Online booking now open for Clearcast's 2012 Training Programme

Mon, 30 Jan 12 00:00:00 +0000

Our much anticipated 2012 Training Programme is now here

This year's programme includes our first formal qualification, The Clearcast Certificate, which represents our commitment to high standards and professionalism in the industry.

Our CPD Certified Certificate courses are supported by the IPA and are on offer to a range of audiences in differing proficiency levels:

Agency Certificate
Advertiser Certificate
Advanced Certificate
Broadcaster Certificate

All of our Certificate Courses are designed to help get ads to air and keep them there. The content of our courses provide a practical insight into the clearance process from script to screen and shares our years of experience and expertise.

This year we are also taking our Agency Certificate on-the-road and plan to visit both Scotland and Ireland so they don't miss out. We also continue to offer our popular bespoke in-house training as well as our bitesize courses.

Go to the Training Section of our website

Important changes to acceptance of Hardings Flash Test Certificate

Wed, 25 Jan 12 00:00:00 +0000

An ASA adjudication last week found a TV ad to be in breach of Ofcom guidelines for flashing images and regular patterns. As a result Cambridge Research Systems (manufacturer of the HFPA-X analyser) have issued a new version of their analysis software (v3.0.0) which incorporates a refinement to the algorithms to detect the specific type of pattern contained in the ad complained about.

Both the server used for Flash Testing in Adway and the Onlineflashtest.com website have been updated to this new version. If an ad fails flash testing in Adway, to guarantee compliance with Ofcom guidelines, Clearcast can only accept Flashing certificates created with V3.0.0 or newer of the software as proof of an ad’s compliance. Certificates clearly state the version of software used in the footer of the front page as shown below with the version number shown in red.

All post-production houses with up-to-date Harding’s machines have been alerted to this by Cambridge Research Systems and offered free upgrades to their software. Agencies are encouraged to check that their post-production houses have the recent updates, so that we know the tests have been carried out with the new software and approvals won't be given under the wrong circumstances.

Call for entries to the EACA Euro Effies

Fri, 20 Jan 12 00:00:00 +0000

We thought you might like to be reminded that the EACA Euro Effies 2012 competition is now open for entries.

The EACA Euro Effies are the Gold Standard in Commercial Communications Effectiveness and reward campaigns which have achieved success through proven, effective commercial communications in two or more European markets.

For enquiries email effie@eaca.be

EASA Event - Advertising: We Care! 28th March 2012

Thu, 19 Jan 12 00:00:00 +0000

We wanted to draw your attention to an upcoming event organised by the European Advertising Standards Alliance (EASA).

Advertising: We care! is a half day event in Brussels on 28th March, focusing on the critical role of responsible advertising in empowering consumer choice as well as its effect on economic growth.

Exciting discussions

Looking at different sectors such as cosmetics, alcohol and food, the panel discussions will critically review the role of being responsible in advertising.

2 Speakers, 12 panellists

Touching on subjects ranging from the general public’s view on ad content to online behavioural advertising, experts from all walks of life will be available to answer questions.

Keynote speaker - Commissioner John Dalli

To attend this event, please register in advance on www.advertisingwecare.org. Seats are limited and will be given out on a first come first serve basis.

New website helps parents report unsuitable media content

Wed, 18 Jan 12 00:00:00 +0000

ParentPort was launched in October to make it easier for parents to complain about material they have seen or heard across the media, communications and retail industries.

The website has been jointly developed by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), the Authority for Television On Demand (ATVOD), the BBC Trust, the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC), Ofcom, the Press Complaints Commission (PCC) and the Video Standards Council (VSC)/Pan-European Game Information (PEGI).

It provides straightforward information on what parents can do if they feel they have seen or heard something inappropriate for their children.

The site makes the process of making a complaint easier by directing parents to the right regulator for their specific area of concern.

Have Your Say

The website also provides a ‘Have Your Say’ section, which allows parents to provide informal feedback and comments which regulators will use as an extra gauge of parental views.

There’s also advice on how to keep children safe online and what parents can do about other products like clothing and the display of magazines in shops.

Go to ParentPort

ASA adjudication on flashing images in a Citroen ad

Wed, 18 Jan 12 00:00:00 +0000

The ASA has recently adjudicated on a TV ad for Citroen which contained photo sensitive epilepsy (PSE) triggers deemed to be in breach of the Ofcom guidelines for flashing images and regular patterns.

The ad had, before being broadcast, passed the test for flashing images – the Harding’s test – which is the most accurate test available for flashing images. The ad in question contained flashing of a kind that has not previously been seen and neither been caught by the Harding’s test. As a result of the adjudication, Cambridge Research Systems, which is responsible for the software behind the Harding’s test, has refined the algorithms used to spot this specific case.

Clearcast's clearance system, Adway as well as its www.onlineflashtest.com have both been upgraded with the new software, to help agencies avoid breaching the guidelines for flashing images.

Clearcast, the RACC and the ASA launch a panel of experts in the field of dermatology

Thu, 15 Dec 11 00:00:00 +0000

A new panel of dermatological experts advising Clearcast, RACC and the ASA starts work on 3 January 2012.

The common panel of experts will provide advice on the adequacy of evidence supporting claims in ads both before an ad appears and afterwards if the claims are challenged.

The initiative is designed to address some areas of disagreement between experts advising the different bodies. These disagreements have resulted in some, primarily TV, ads being found to be misleading by the ASA, when they had been assessed and accepted by the clearance bodies and their own experts.

The establishment of the panel of experts is also intended to:

Reduce disagreement between experts over acceptable standards of evidence.
Increase certainty for advertisers.
Increase consumer confidence in advertising claims in the beauty sector.
Provide consistency between experts through establishing protocols on how scientific evidence for advertising claims should be assessed, with new guidance on Guidance on test protocols for certain claims in cosmetic advertising.
Provide transparency by outlining the criteria and basis on which expertise is sought.

It is envisaged that all parties will seek to use this resource without bias as far as possible. However, it is recognised that there are operational reasons that may govern the choice of an expert in some circumstances.

Although the intention is to increase consistency, this new procedure will not prevent the ASA from looking into complaints it receives about ads and removing claims that it finds in breach of the Advertising Codes.

The Panel of experts in dermatology consists of the current Clearcast, ASA and RACC experts:

Dr Susan Mayou

Prof. Mark Birch-Machin

Dr Robin Dover

Dr Jack Ferguson

Dr Chris Gummer

Steps in the process

a) Pre-Clearance - Expert assesses evidence submission and advises accordingly.

In the event that they have queries about a specific issue that needs further consideration by the expert panel, an expert can refer questions initially to another expert or, in the event of disagreement or need for further clarity, to the whole Panel (see (d)).

b) Complaint and pre-Investigation – ASA Executive assesses complaint and where necessary, will ask clearance body for response.

For the initial consideration of a complaint, the ASA will always ask the clearance body to get confirmation from the expert who considered the initial submission that they are still content with the evidence, in light of the complaint.

It is worth noting that, whilst the ASA will always seek to resolve any issues of evidence directly, using the expert who has pre-cleared evidence for a submission, there may be possible legal difficulties in using the same expert for an investigation. It might call into question the ASA’s independence and exercise of its own judgement if it is thought to rely on an expert who had already committed themselves to a view for a clearance body, which they might be viewed as reluctant to change.

c) Investigation – If the ASA feels that there is still an issue to be resolved on the point of complaint, then they will use another expert from the panel to help resolve that issue.

Examples of potential issues might include: (a) A complaint throws new light on the data and the advice already received by the clearance body is not relevant or does not cover this point, (b) The initial expert’s advice leaves significant issues unanswered, and (c) The claims made in the ad are considered by the ASA to be “significant developments in science” (or “breakthrough” claims), but were considered to be more established claims by the clearance body.

d) Disagreement protocols – If there is no consensus between the experts during the course of the investigation, and one or other feel strongly that they disagree with the original assessment, then there is an opportunity to put the specific issue to the panel for a consensus opinion.

Please note that whilst this opinion will help inform the decision-making process of the ASA Council, on all matters, including an assessment of how the claim is likely to be interpreted by the consumer, the ASA Council is the final arbiter.

e) Panel operation including consensus voting – Issues to be put to the full panel would normally be specific and precise in nature, and would hopefully fall on specific points that can be covered and decided quickly via the use of e-mail.

We would not normally expect the panel to consider full submissions of evidence. However, it is recognised that it may be necessary to consider such submissions, in order to gain consensus on a specific point.

Decisions will be decided by a majority vote of the panel.

f) Expert representation externally – The panel will operate internally to the three organisations with no recourse for external organisations to make representations directly to the panel.

Advertisers and their agencies should not approach the panel directly for any queries they may have. These should continue to be channelled through the appropriate organisation.

To find out more about the members of the panel, please see any of the following Clearcast and ASA webpages:

http://www.clearcast.co.uk/dermatology.html

http://www.asa.org.uk/Resource-Centre/Our-experts/dermatological-experts-biographies.aspx

Guidance on test protocols for certain claims in cosmetics advertising

Thu, 15 Dec 11 00:00:00 +0000

We’ve been busy preparing for the establishment of the Panel of Experts, who from 3^rd January 2012 will provide advice on the adequacy of evidence supporting claims in ads both before an ad appears and afterwards if the claims are challenged.

Discussions have focused on providing further guidance on selected areas where Clearcast, the RACC and the ASA may have disagreed to some extent in the past.

With the improved dialogue between the experts, the panel has agreed to provide guidance on some important principles relating to the testing for cumulative moisturisation and to testing products on body parts other than that of the intended site of application (for example, testing the moisturising effect of a face cream on the arm).

Click below to read the full document

File: Guidance on test protocols for certain claims in cosmetic advertising

Clearcast develops new CARIA® Agency Link

Tue, 06 Dec 11 00:00:00 +0000

Clearcast streamlines the TV media buying process from an entire day down to forty minutes with the new CARIA® Agency Link.

Clearcast has worked with IMD Optimad to create a campaign export facility from CARIA®, which can be used to import booking information directly into agency systems, such as Donovan Data Systems (DDS). Agency users of DDS can now load campaign details directly into MediaExplorer thanks to DDS’s new CASPEX import facility, automating a previously manual process which involved time consuming and error prone re-keying of information.

Click here to be taken to the full press release.