National Australian TV broadcaster Network Ten has been censured for beaming subliminal advertising banners during the telecast of last year’s record industry gala, the ARIA Awards.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) found Ten breached the commercial television code of practice by transmitting images “below or near the threshold of normal awareness” during its broadcast of the October 2007 ceremony.
In a statement issued today (Oct. 8), the ACMA said it had received several complaints about brief glimpses of unnamed corporate logos. After studying the footage at slow speed and frame-by-frame, the ACMA said it found that the rapid-cut graphics used was a “technique” that attempted to convey information to viewers “below or near the threshold of normal awareness.”
Ten had claimed the flash graphics were an attempt to stay creatively consistent with the fast-paced look of the program.
The free-to-air network has been told to issue ACMA’s report in-house to ensure the technique does not seed during other events, including the upcoming ARIA Awards, which Ten will broadcast live from Sydney’s Acer Arena on Oct. 19.
“ACMA considers this action as proportionate, given that this is the first breach of this kind by the licensee and that the network will not use this technique in the upcoming 2008 ARIA Music Awards,” said the ACMA in its statement.
The authority did not issue a fine but warned that any future breach would result in “significantly heightened compliance measures.”
