Laptop Shop Advertisement judgement from the Advertising Standards Authority

Remember this ad for the Laptop Shop?

The Advertising Standards Authority came out with their judgement on the ad after receiving many complaints (note: I didn’t make any representation to the ASAI as I felt the issue was reasonably explained in the end – as you can see in the comments on the original post).

The Complaints Committee considered the detail of the complaints and the advertisers’ response. The Complaints Committee noted the level of complaints received which indicated that the advertisement had caused grave and widespread offence.

The Complaints Committee also noted that the advertiser had not approved the advertisement which had caused offence and that the advertisement he had approved, had not led to any complaints being made to ASAI. They also noted that the advertisers had taken steps to withdraw the advertisement and prevent a reoccurrence.

The Complaints Committee decided that taking account of all the circumstances it would not be appropriate to make a finding in this case. They considered nevertheless that it was important that the seriousness of the complaints received be acknowledged through publication.

Action Required:
No further action was required.