Legal Trends in Legislators' and Watchdogs' Attitude Towards Commercial Communication Targeted to Children: Focus Europe
Author: Felix Hofer, Hofer Lösch Torricelli

During recent years advertising both specifically targeted to children as well as commercial communication able to reach a public of minors has shifted into the focus of legislators and watchdogs in many countries in Europe and throughout the World. A general and frenzy hype in drawing additional rules and establishing new restrictions could be noted in many countries during the last months of 2006.

Recently U.K. regulator Ofcom has hit the marketing industry with the decision to end junk-food advertising to all children under sixteen.

Almost at the same time in Greece the Ministry for Education has established a ban for teachers and students as to the use of mobile phones at school. The restriction is not limited to using the phones, but also covers (for students) the carrying them onto school premises (exceptions are allowed only in few and specific cases, but even then the phones will have to be switched off and to be kept inside bags). Non-compliance implies parents' notification for primary school students, but could result in expulsion from school for secondary school students in case of repeated violations. Teachers are required to switch off their phones and will undergo disciplinary sanctions in case of non-compliance.

In Italy local Regulators wanted to take an active part in an ongoing general debate and proved eager to add further limitations and restrictions on an already heavily regulated industry sector.

In November 2006 the local Communications Regulatory Authority (Agcom) required communication providers, offering audiovisual and multimedia services, made available through mobile devices, to include in their service offers technical means apt to prevent minors from accessing harmful content. Services with content apt for an adult only public must provide a specific control mode, allowing parents to block access on a constant basis (the mechanism has to be activated / disabled through a PIN code system, where the code must be handed out through reserved delivery, together with specific instructions as to proper use and users' responsibility). Providers are also invited to grant widespread notice about this new parental control system and its technical means, while users must confirm in writing to have received the respective alerts. Non-compliance will be punished by the Authority through fines or by temporary suspension from business.

A few days later the same Authority issued additional provisions, aimed at protecting minors in the context of entertainment programs. Those provisions require TV and Radio broadcasters (public as well as private) and providers of similar content to properly consider that among the audience minors of age may watch the programs aired. Therefore content has to comply with general requirements as correct language and proper behavior from participants to the programs: unjustified – physical or verbal - violence, vulgarity, bad language, sexual innuendo are to be avoided in programs likely to be accessed by an audience of minors. 

In Germany last Fall a student performed a wild shooting at a high school, killing several classmates and then committing suicide. This had an extremely shocking impact on the general public, assumptions were made – by experts as well as by journalists – as to a potential connection between the young killer's behavior and excessive promotion of video games featuring improper and violent content. Furthermore, calls for tougher control and for more restrictive regulations when promoting such videos and video games were brought to the attention of lawmakers.

All this happens while the European Union's key institutions (the Parliament, the Council and the Commission) are performing their final evaluation of the multi annual “Safer Internet Action Plan” (SIAP, launched in 1999). This action plan indicates the main objectives to pursue in order to prevent minors from uncontrolled access to harmful and dangerous content on the Internet. Therefore the EU will now focus on the concrete steps to be taken for achieving the plan's objectives.

In this context more regulation on commercial communication targeted to minors is not only most likely, but almost certain.