The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) on March 19, 2024 published a directive in reference to several liquor brands regarding advertisements published by liquor brands.
Advertisements for liquor and tobacco are banned in India. In October,2022 the CCPA had clearly stated that no advertising, or even surrogate advertising should be undertaken by liquor brands in the country. Several liquor brands flouted the CCPA directions, as a result of which, in March, 2024, the CCPA has issued a directive, seeking specific information regarding the quantum of money spent by liquor brands on advertisements, and the actual impact of the products advertised by the brands. The directive has been issued with an aim to ascertain the correlation between the actual sales of the brand extension products and the money spent on their promotion.
The CCPA further stated that all stakeholders in the industry should ensure that all brand extensions follow the broad principles of advertising only genuine extensions (i.e., turnover and distribution in proportion to advertising spends) and ensure that advertisements contain no cues of restricted categories such as tag lines or layouts and do not unduly suppress the category name and extension being advertised.
Originally published 08 May 2024
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