BSkyB continues product disagreement with Virgin as ASA bans another Virgin Media ad
Virgin Media has been hit by a ruling from the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) for containing misleading information in its ads, after BSkyB lodged a further complaint with the advertising watchdog.
BskyB challenged whether savings claims made by Virgin Media, which specifically targeted Sky customers, were misleading and said the TV and press ads misleading implied that Sky Sports was included in the advertised price.
Virgin Media commented that the ad, starring actor David Tennant referred to the Virgin Media network as a whole, and at the time Sky Sports content was shown, the ad included on-screen text that made clear that there was an additional charge for the content.
It added that there was an ongoing offer on the Virgin Media website for free installation, which was available to any new customer. Virgin Media also said the price comparison in the ad was between the monthly cost of the services and the reference to "Monthly total" at the foot of the comparison tables made that clear.
The ASA however disagreed and ruled that consumers would understand Sky Sports to be included in the advertised offer and failed to give sufficient prominence to information around pricing and installation.
The ads must not appear again in their current form.
In August Virgin Media was rapped by the ASA for a similar ad, which triggered Sky to complain to the watchdog about exaggerated savings.