Study set to revive battle over ban on toy adverts

Date: 03/09/1998

By Peter Chapman

INTERNAL market officials plan to unveil the results of a study into the effects of advertising on children within weeks.

The study was ordered after European Commissioners voted in June to delay legal action against Greece over its controversial ban on toy advertisements on television, citing the need for a closer investigation of the issue in general.

Commission President Jacques Santer led opposition to calls for legal action against Athens, even though internal market officials and toy firms have long argued that Greek regulations breach single market rules.

They say the ban discriminates against foreign firms which need to advertise their goods on television in order to make inroads into the Greek market, and favours established local toy companies which rely less on such marketing.

They also argue that the measure is not proportionate to its stated objective of protecting children from coercive media, since other adverts targeted at children are allowed.

"We are trying to come up with a synthesis of the academic research on the issue," said a single market source, who added that the institution would use the results of the study to help Commissioners make an informed decision when they revisit the Greek issue.

"The sooner we can put together a decent study, the sooner we can put the Greek case back on the Commission's agenda. We hope to get a formal decision on that before the end of the year," he said.

"The research will be broader than just the Greek toy case, but the outcome of the study will be very important. It is hoped that most Commissioners will decide on the basis of it."

Toy industry sources doubt whether the study will have any impact on the views of those Commissioners opposed to taking action against Athens, many of whom are reluctant to attack member states' social or health policies in the aftermath of the BSE crisis.

Stephan Luiten, policy adviser for Toy Industries of Europe, said the Commission study was likely to reflect current research which shows that children's consumption patterns are influenced by many different factors, such as peer pressure and parental influence, and not just by advertising.

"But I don't see how the study will make any difference. At the end of the day it comes back to personal beliefs of the various Commissioners," he said.

"This is more to do with politics. The study was a very convenient thing to allow the Commission to delay taking action."