Virgin Media in trouble over ad that tried to poach Sky customers
Virgin has been told it must not longer run a press ad that directly addressed Sky consumers after the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said it contained ‘misleading’ price information.
The regional press ad for Virgin Media, which claimed that Sky customers could save £400 if they switched from Sky’s TV, broadband and phone Family Bundle to Virgin Media's Premiere Collection, triggered Sky to complain to the watchdog about exaggerated savings.
Sky additionally complained that the inclusion of BT Sport in the ad was misleading as the channel is not part of the Sky Family Bundle and not retailed by Sky.
Virgin Media defended the ad and claimed the intention of the comparison was to advertise its Premier Collection against the most like-for-like service from Sky. The company argued that while it knew BT Sport was supplied by BT, it was “legitimate for use” in the comparison because it was a service that was available to Sky customers on the Sky platform.
In its ruling the ASA said that Sky was “concerned” about the claim because fewer than 0.1 per cent of its current customers took out the services in the ad.
The watchdog said that the ad encouraged Sky customers to switch to Virgin, but using the comparison in the example, only a relatively small proportion of Sky customers would save to the degree claimed. On this basis, and because it incorrectly attributed services from another provider to Sky the ad breached the code.