Background
Summary of Council decision:
Three issues were investigated, of which one was Upheld and two were Not upheld.
Ad description
A national press ad and TV ad for Sky:
a. The TV ad, seen in July 2018, promoted Sky Wi-Fi using characters from the film The Incredibles 2. The ad started with a Sky employee saying “Right, I’ve made some adjustments and boosted your Sky Wi-Fi throughout your house” whilst holding a tablet which showed an image of a home filling up with signal. The character Dash asked the employee “Boosted huh? So it’s even stronger?” to which the employee stated “Yeah”. Dash was shown running through the house, testing the Wi-Fi in the bathroom, where he stated “I can connect in the bathroom”. In the garage, where he stated “it’s super-strong in the car.” In the kitchen, where he stated “It’s superfast in the kitchen”. And finally, outside the house on the roof, where he stated, “The Wi-Fi even reaches the roof”. The final voice-over stated “Sky Broadband, incredible Wi-Fi around your home.”
b. The national press ad, seen on 7 July 2018, featured an image of the character Elastigirl, from the film “The Incredibles 2”, bursting through a wall and stretching her leg towards text which stated “INCREDIBLE WIFI REACHING THROUGH YOUR HOME”.
Issue
The ASA received complaints from British Telecommunications (BT) and Virgin Media:
1. BT and Virgin, who believed the ad suggested Sky had made changes to their broadband service resulting in an enhanced Wi-Fi, challenged whether the claim “Boosted your Sky Wi-Fi” in ad (a) was misleading and could be substantiated;
2. Virgin challenged whether ads (a) and (b) were misleading because they believed the ads implied that consumers could obtain consistent Wi-Fi everywhere in and around their home; and
3. Virgin challenged whether the claim “Superfast in the kitchen” in ad (a) was misleading and could be substantiated
Response
1. Sky said that the statement in ad (a), “Right, I’ve made some adjustments …” made clear that the Sky employee had altered the Sky broadband service in the house. They said consumers would understand from the term “boosted” that the service had been improved and that the comparison was between the service before and after the Sky Tech Team engineer visited. They said that there was nothing in the ads which stated or suggested that the Sky Q Hub can provide a “boosted” service without the use of additional equipment. They said that in future they would include superimposed on-screen text which stated “Additional kit may be required”.
Sky said that the ads promoted Sky’s Tech Team in conjunction with Sky Broadband, who were a dedicated team of engineers specially trained to solve issues relating to customers’ broadband service and optimise customers’ in-home wi-Fi. They said the Tech Team checked the current Wi-Fi performance in problem areas and ran line tests to determine existing Wi-Fi coverage and speeds, made adjustments and re-tested, making adjustments until the coverage was optimised.
Sky said there were a number of adjustments the engineer could have made to improve the Wi-Fi signal, including relocating the router, installing a wireless booster, ensuring existing wireless boosters were placed in optimal locations, replacing faulty equipment, upgrading the router to a newer model, relocating the master socket or fitting a phone extension socket to allow the router to be better located and optimising Sky Q TV set-up. They provided diagrams which illustrated how each of those adjustments would affect the reach of the Wi-Fi signal within the home.
Sky also provided a report with a number of case studies from real customer homes that their Tech Team had visited. The case studies showed the Wi-Fi signal before and after the Tech Team had made any changes. The report showed that in each case the reach of Wi-Fi coverage was extended.
Clearcast said Sky had assured them that the Tech Team were able to make adjustments which included improvement to customers’ Wi-Fi speed, connectivity and reliability as well as boosting the connection throughout the house by identifying gaps in Wi-Fi coverage. They said the animation and accompanying dialogue was a true reflection of what the Tech Team could reasonably achieve in the average home during a consultation.
2. Sky said the ad featured animated characters with superpowers from the popular film, The Incredibles 2, and would be viewed as fantastical and illustrative; they believed the average consumer would understand that the ads were hyperbolic. They also pointed out that the ads did not make any specific claims about the reach of their Wi-Fi signal.
Sky said the ads did not make any claims about the Wi-Fi signal being consistent throughout the home and did not imply that this was the case. They said ad (a) made explicitly clear that the strength of the Wi-Fi would differ depending on the location within the property using the claims “I can connect in the bathroom”, “It’s super-strong in the car”, “And it’s superfast in the kitchen” and “the Wi-Fi even reaches the roof”. The references to “connect” and “reaches” were particularly relevant as neither were measures of, or references to, signal strength, but instead were statements that the Wi-Fi reached that particular location.
Sky said the references to “Incredible Wi-Fi” in both ads would be interpreted by the average consumer as puffery; they said it was a deliberate play on words tying-in with the name of the film and theme. They said that the word “reaching” in ad (b) was puffery and related to Elastigirl’s superpowers, and the average consumer would understand the claim in that way, as verified by the consumer feedback Sky received prior to the ads going live. They provided a report containing consumer feedback from six focus groups. They said the feedback showed that consumers did not interpret the claims as implying that Sky provided consistent Wi-Fi everywhere in and around the home.
Clearcast said that they felt that the term “boosted” was clearly a reference to coverage as opposed to other factors, such as speed. Ad (a) did not indicate that coverage around the home would inevitably be consistent, but that with necessary adjustments a signal could be achieved in all parts of the home. The statements made by the character Dash demonstrated that the signal might not be the same throughout the home as it was dependent on where the main router and boosters were located in each individual home.
3. Sky said the superimposed text, which stated “Superfast with Sky Fibre only”, made clear that “superfast” was applicable to Sky Fibre products only. Ofcom defined “superfast” services as those with a download speed of at least 30 Mb. They said Ofcom’s 2017 Fixed-Line Broadband Performance report measured Sky’s median average peak-time throughput speed for their entry level Fibre products (Sky Fibre and Sky Fibre Unlimited) at 36 Mb. Therefore, the claim “superfast in the kitchen” was not misleading as the ad made clear which services that claim related to. Furthermore, the claim was not “superfast in every kitchen”, and the average consumer would not understand the ad to mean that speed of 30 Mbps would be achieved in all kitchens. The average consumer would understand that signal strength varied from house to house. Sky said that if the ad were to run again, they would ensure that the superimposed text, “Superfast with Sky Fibre only”, appeared at the same time as the claim “superfast in the kitchen” was made.
Clearcast said they received confirmation from Sky that at least 50% of their Fibre customers enjoyed 30 Mbs at peak time. As such, they felt that the claim “superfast in the kitchen” with the qualification, “Superfast with Sky Fibre only”, was appropriate and therefore not misleading. Clearcast provided data regarding broadband speeds received by Sky customers.
Assessment
1. Upheld
The ASA noted that the Sky Tech Team character began ad (a) by stating “Right, I’ve made some adjustments and boosted your Sky Wi-Fi throughout your house” and the graphic showed an image of a house filling up with Wi-Fi signal. We also noted that the character Dash, was shown running to different parts of the house and saying that he could receive Wi-Fi signal in all of those different areas. We considered that the graphic of the house, in addition to the scenes of Dash receiving Wi-Fi throughout the house, implied that Wi-Fi signal could be received in all areas of the home.
We noted that the ad did not make clear what the technician had done to improve the Wi-Fi and achieve that improved coverage, and the voice-over never referenced the Sky Tech Team or the services they provided. Instead, the ad ended with the voice-over stating, “Sky Broadband. Incredible Wi-Fi around your home”, which we considered indicated to consumers that the ad was promoting Sky’s broadband products rather than the Tech Team’s signal-improvement service. We considered that those services were not sufficiently emphasised in the ad to counter the overriding impression that Sky had made changes to their broadband service (as distinct from changes made inside the property by their Tech Team service) resulting in enhanced Wi-Fi which could be received throughout the home without the need for additional equipment provided by the Tech Team service, such as boosters.
We considered that because ad (a) suggested that Sky had made changes to their broadband service resulting in enhanced Wi-Fi, when that was not the case, we concluded that ad (a) was misleading.
On that point, ad (a) breached BCAP Code rules
3.1
3.1
Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so.
3.2
3.2
Advertisements must not mislead consumers by omitting material information. They must not mislead by hiding material information or presenting it in an unclear, unintelligible, ambiguous or untimely manner.
Material information is information that consumers need in context to make informed decisions about whether or how to buy a product or service. Whether the omission or presentation of material information is likely to mislead consumers depends on the context, the medium and, if the medium of the advertisement is constrained by time or space, the measures that the advertiser takes to make that information available to consumers by other means.
(Misleading advertising),
3.9
3.9
Broadcasters must hold documentary evidence to prove claims that the audience is likely to regard as objective and that are capable of objective substantiation. The ASA may regard claims as misleading in the absence of adequate substantiation.
(Substantiation),
3.10
3.10
Advertisements must state significant limitations and qualifications. Qualifications may clarify but must not contradict the claims that they qualify.
(Qualification) and
3.12
3.12
Advertisements must not mislead by exaggerating the capability or performance of a product or service.
(Exaggeration).
2. Not upheld
In relation to ad (a), the ASA noted that Dash asked, “So it’s even stronger?” to which the technician replied, “Yeah”. Dash was then seen running around different rooms of the house, excited that he was now able to receive a Wi-Fi signal in those different parts of the house, making statements such as, “I can connect in the bathroom”, “It’s super-strong in the car” (which was parked in the garage) and “It’s superfast in the kitchen”. We considered that consumers would understand from the different ways Dash described Wi-Fi coverage in various parts of the home that although the Wi-Fi signal strength and speed may have been enhanced overall, that did not mean that the signal strength and speed would be the same everywhere and would still differ in strength in different parts of the house. In addition, we considered that consumers would generally be aware that Wi-Fi speeds on their devices would vary in different parts of the home, and would generally decrease the further they were from the router. We therefore concluded that ad (a) was not misleading on that point.
With regard to ad (b), we noted that the claim “Incredible Wi-Fi reaching through your home” was accompanied by an image of the character Elastigirl, and considered that consumers were likely to associate the character and branding of the film with the claim “Incredible”. There were no other creative elements or claims within the ad that related to Wi-Fi performance. In that context, therefore, we did not consider that consumers would understand the claim to be an objective one about the power and reach of Sky’s Wi-Fi signal strength and speed. We considered that consumers would be unlikely to attribute greater meaning to the claim “Incredible Wi-Fi reaching through your home” than being able to receive Wi-Fi service within the home, and we therefore concluded that ad (b) was not misleading.
On that point, we investigated ad (a) under BCAP Code rules
3.1
3.1
Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so.
3.2
3.2
Advertisements must not mislead consumers by omitting material information. They must not mislead by hiding material information or presenting it in an unclear, unintelligible, ambiguous or untimely manner.
Material information is information that consumers need in context to make informed decisions about whether or how to buy a product or service. Whether the omission or presentation of material information is likely to mislead consumers depends on the context, the medium and, if the medium of the advertisement is constrained by time or space, the measures that the advertiser takes to make that information available to consumers by other means.
(Misleading advertising),
3.9
3.9
Broadcasters must hold documentary evidence to prove claims that the audience is likely to regard as objective and that are capable of objective substantiation. The ASA may regard claims as misleading in the absence of adequate substantiation.
(Substantiation),
3.10
3.10
Advertisements must state significant limitations and qualifications. Qualifications may clarify but must not contradict the claims that they qualify.
(Qualification) and
3.12
3.12
Advertisements must not mislead by exaggerating the capability or performance of a product or service.
(Exaggeration) but did not find it in breach.
We investigated ad (b) under CAP Code rules 3.1 3.1 Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so. 3.7 3.7 Before distributing or submitting a marketing communication for publication, marketers must hold documentary evidence to prove claims that consumers are likely to regard as objective and that are capable of objective substantiation. The ASA may regard claims as misleading in the absence of adequate substantiation. (Substantiation), 3.9 3.9 Broadcasters must hold documentary evidence to prove claims that the audience is likely to regard as objective and that are capable of objective substantiation. The ASA may regard claims as misleading in the absence of adequate substantiation. (Qualification) and 3.1 3.1 Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so. (Exaggeration), but did not find it in breach.
3. Not upheld
We noted that ad (a) stated that the Wi-Fi signal was “superfast in the kitchen”.
We considered that consumers would understand from the claim “superfast” in general terms to mean speeds which were faster than ADSL (‘standard’) broadband.
We considered that consumers would understand that while they could expect to receive superfast speeds at the router, Wi-Fi speeds on their devices could not be guaranteed and would generally reduce the further they were from the router.
In relation to the specific claim in the ad, we considered that consumers would understand from the claim “superfast in the kitchen” that Sky offered a broadband service which provided superfast speeds and that while they might be able to receive such speeds in their kitchen, those speeds would be dependent on how far the kitchen was from the router. It was not in dispute that Sky’s Fibre services provided superfast speeds, and we considered consumers would be unlikely to interpret the claim “superfast in the kitchen” to mean that their device would definitely receive superfast speeds in their kitchen at all times, or that every Sky customer would receive such speeds in their kitchen, and that they would understand that Wi-Fi signal strength varied from house to house.
Because we considered consumers were unlikely to interpret the claim “superfast in the kitchen” to mean that they were guaranteed superfast Wi-Fi speeds on their devices in their kitchen, we concluded that the claim was unlikely to mislead.
On that point, we investigated ad (a) under BCAP Code rules
3.1
3.1
Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so.
3.2
3.2
Advertisements must not mislead consumers by omitting material information. They must not mislead by hiding material information or presenting it in an unclear, unintelligible, ambiguous or untimely manner.
Material information is information that consumers need in context to make informed decisions about whether or how to buy a product or service. Whether the omission or presentation of material information is likely to mislead consumers depends on the context, the medium and, if the medium of the advertisement is constrained by time or space, the measures that the advertiser takes to make that information available to consumers by other means.
(Misleading advertising),
3.9
3.9
Broadcasters must hold documentary evidence to prove claims that the audience is likely to regard as objective and that are capable of objective substantiation. The ASA may regard claims as misleading in the absence of adequate substantiation.
(Substantiation),
3.10
3.10
Advertisements must state significant limitations and qualifications. Qualifications may clarify but must not contradict the claims that they qualify.
(Qualification) and
3.12
3.12
Advertisements must not mislead by exaggerating the capability or performance of a product or service.
(Exaggeration), but did not find it in breach.
Action
Ad (a) must not appear again in its current form. We told Sky to make clear which service was being advertised and not to imply that they had made changes to their broadband service (as distinct from changes made inside the property by their Tech Team service) resulting in enhanced Wi-Fi if that was not the case.
