Nigeriaās advertising regulator, theĀ Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON), has mandated skit makers, social media influencers, and bloggers, among others to seek its approval before advertising any product or service online.Ā Ā
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In a public notice issued on Monday, ARCON said this is in line with the provisions of the Nigerian Code of Advertising Practice and the ARCON Act No. 23 of 2022.
The regulator added that anyone caught violating the Act would be sanctioned and prosecuted in a court of law.Ā
The grouse:Ā ARCON added that enforcing compliance with the Act became imperative following complaints it received regarding unregulated advertisements, advertising, and marketing communications activities of skit makers, comedians, influencers, content creators/producers, bloggers, vloggers, etc on digital/online media platforms.Ā
Explaining the issues with adverts being publicized by the digital influencers, ARCON in the notice signed by its Director-General, Olalekan Fadolapo, said:Ā Ā
- āMost of the advertisements exposed by this group are not only unethicalĀ with unverified claims and misinformation, but also in violation of theĀ Nigerian Code of Advertising Practice.Ā
- āBy this public notice, brand owners, digital agencies, secondary digitalĀ media space owners (i.e. bloggers, vloggers, influencers, comedians, skit makers, etc), and other advertising stakeholders in the digital online mediaĀ space are advised to obtain pre-exposure approval of all advertisements,Ā advertising, and marketingĀ communications in accordance with theĀ Nigerian Code of Advertising Practice and the ARCON Act No. 23 of 2022.
- āARCON will take all necessary actions including sanctions and prosecutionĀ of violators of the provisions of the Act to ensure compliance.āĀ
In case you missed it:Ā Earlier in October, ARCON had instituted a lawsuit against Meta incorporated, owners of Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, and WhatsApp, and its agent AT3 Resources Limited at the Abuja division of the Federal High Court, alleging that the social media platform has continued exposure of unvetted adverts had led to the loss of revenue to the federal government.Ā
- In the lawsuit, the apex regulatory body for Nigeriaās advertising ecosystem is seeking N30 billion in sanctions for theĀ āviolation of the advertising laws and loss of revenue as a result of Metaās continued exposure of unapproved adverts on its platforms.āĀ
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