ASC and DTI Strengthen Partnership, Commit Fight Against Unlawful Advertising

In February 2021, the Ad Standards Council and the Department of Trade and Industry renewed its Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), a partnership to fight against untruthful, indecent and unlawful advertising. This includes disseminating false, deceptive and misleading information via Philippine mail, and mass media in print, radio, television—and now, and more importantly, including via the internet.

With this MOU, the ASC continues to protect consumers by pre- and post-screening of advertising content under compliance with the law that is within the DTI’s jurisdiction and scope of responsibility, and with the ASC’s own Code of Ethics and Standards.

Recently, the Honorable Alfredo Pascual, Secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry was the inducting officer at the ASC Induction rites of its Board of Trustees, where he expressed three items on his wishlist to further strengthen the campaign against unlawful advertising means.

The list includes:  1. The inclusion of online advertisements in the pre- and post-screening of advertising materials;  2. For ASC to help push for the enactment of the Internet Consumption Act that seeks to strengthen trust in e-Commerce and online transactions and encourages online merchants to uphold the rights of consumers and practice responsible business, in return earning a badge of trust to guide consumers; and 3. For ASC to grant DTI discounts and other concessions for advertisements of players in Trustmark. [Trustmark is under the Internet Transactions Act being pushed for speedy enactment in Congress. The ITA is the law that protects consumers online.]

“Let’s join forces to construct a resilient and sustainable economy where consumer safety is power. Let us implement initiatives that bring lasting benefits to the public. I urge (the advertising) industry to collaborate actively with us to push Philippine advertising to new heights in compliance with the best in the world. Tell us how we can help you to achieve your dreams, because your success is also our country’s success. Together let us build a resilient and sustainable economy by prioritizing consumer safety,” said Sec. Pascual. *