BT hit by ASA ruling after Sky complains about unclear pricing
BT has been hit by a ruling from the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) over an ad for its BT Sports subscription service after BSKYB complained it had unclear information about a rise in cost.
The ad, which ran on the BT Sport website, included an offer for free access to BT Sport via the Sky Digital Satellite Platform for those customers with a £12 BT Broadband package. However on scrolling down the ad and clicking a link, BT provided information that the cost of BT Broadband package would be rising to £13.50 per month.
BSKYB argued that the information was not clear enough for consumers reading the ad.
BT said that as BT Sport is available with a one-month term, the change in price did not require the same prominence that a product with a longer minimum term, such as 12 months, would need.
However the ASA said despite consumers being able to cancel a contract within a 30-day period, the price rise should have been made clearer in the ads to ensure that consumers were aware of all the information they needed to make a decision about taking up a subscription.
BT was told ensure that future ads promoting BT Sport subscription services give sufficient prominence to any confirmed forthcoming price rise.