Reporting online advert constraints

What is your view on current regulation applicable to online newspaper advertising?

The Circular on Advertising regulates ‘Online newspapers get the right to advertise like printed versions’. That is unreasonable since online newspapers and print differ in technology.

For instance, forbidding putting advertisements on prints’ front pages and front covers does not work with online newspapers since online newspapers only have homepage and inner pages. All sorts of information, including advertisements, are seen in the homepage.

Alongside traditional types of information provision as radio, television and prints, media organisations are increasingly using online newspapers. In fact, several hundred existing online newspapers have not established a specific page for advertising as nobody will enjoy watching advertisements without reading any news. Hence, opening a specialised page for advertising in online newspapers as in printed versions is impractical.

The draft Law on Advertising submitted to the National Assembly’s previous session spelled out the need to control online newspaper advertising. Is this the case?

This draft Advertising Law regulated the area for advertisements must not exceed 25 per cent of each page area. That regulation does not match actual situation as out of the several hundred online newspapers, only a few run at a profit. Restricting advertising would lead to many online newspapers facing capital distress in paying for technology infrastructure and operating cots.
Besides, controlling advertising for online newspapers is not feasible.

Will the manner in which the draft Advertising Law regulates decide media growth, particularly that of online newspapers?

To make it fit media development practice, the draft Advertising Law, submitted to National Assembly’s ongoing third session in late May, just regulates online newspapers must not let advertising session mix with information; for advertisements not placed in fixed areas it must ensure readers can easily turn on or off the advertisements and the time for switching on/off must not exceed 1.5 seconds.

What can we expect if these contents got the go-ahead?

Over 30 million Vietnamese people are using the Internet to surf online newspapers and websites. Most online newspapers and websites operate advertising which accounts for merely 3 per cent of total costs from advertising by diverse communications channels whereas online advertising has a promising development prospect particularly to young customers.

Hence, easing regulations on online advertising will not only help media organisations raise additional incomes to improve service quality, innovate technology and better worker incomes but also help consumers get full access to products and services information, from there boosting sales in domestic market.