UK government considers allowing TV product placements

The UK government is considering allowing product placement on television, as well as allowing channels to show more advertisements between programmes.

TV characters could soon be having conversations about their favorite branded products.
The proposal comes due to necessity. There is a currently an advertising downturn that is affecting commercial TV companies. Product placement would help alleviate this downturn.

British broadcasters are currently prohibited from accepting money from companies for product placement opportunities. Many have criticized the government for banning product placement, because it is a practice that is common to most networks in other countries.

Now that networks like ITV are suffering from a financial strain, the party is considering allowing a subtle degree of product placement for TV programmes.

Analysts say that the move can bring as much as ?50 million for ITV and other commercial broadcasters. In the United States (US), the product placement industry is worth $2 billion annually.
Labour is against the plans to allow product placement. Culture secretary Andy Burnham has publicly voiced his opinions concerning the issue.

?’Britain is known around the world for the high quality of its broadcasting output,? said Burnham. ?We need to continue to preserve editorial integrity as technology advances.?

However, reports now claim that the Conservatives need to reverse the decision if they want to win the next election.

?’The advertising downturn is having a serious impact on broadcasters, but the whole situation is made much worse by an out-of-date regulatory regime,? said Ed Vaizey, culture minister. ?’As we have always said, the Conservative party is considering a number of options that would shore up the commercial television industry during these difficult times.?

Source: DailyMail