TV ad clutter in the Middle East is reaching “dangerous” levels, according to the Advertisers’ Business Group.
The ABG, formerly the GCC Advertisers’ Association, says there has been a significant increase in clutter on pan-Arab TV stations.
This poses a major problem for advertisers, programmers and viewers, the group claims.
Jan Zijderveld (pictured), chairman of both the ABG and Unilever North Africa & Middle East, led the criticism.
He said: “When local practices fall short of global best practice standards, we need to voice the collective concern of member advertisers.
“The issue of TV clutter is impacting the effectiveness of our ad spend.
“Commercialisation is far in excess of what is acceptable in international markets and detracting to the advertiser and viewer alike.”
ABG members identified four key areas of concern at a recent meeting in Dubai:
• The number of channel promotions
• Mintage in the peak clock hours
• The level of sponsors within a programme
• “Crawlers” / SMS promos
The region is home to more than 370 free-to-air TV channels, including 120 new channels this year alone.
And the medium is suffering from over-commercialisation, according to the ABG.
A statement issued by the group said: “The oversupply of channels, combined with research showing that almost half the population uses more than one medium at a time, suggests that marketers may be wasting ad dollars on people who aren’t fully engaged in one medium.
“On top of that, TV, which remains the most important medium, is suffering from over-commercialisation that is alienating consumers and advertisers.”
The ABG called channel and cross-channel promotions a “serious concern.”
Mintage levels are exceeding the agreed 12 minutes per hour by up to 40%, and extended breaks are becoming the norm – reaching an excess of 20 minutes during Ramadan.
It adds that up to five sponsors are connected to certain programmes.
This, it is claimed, leads to “diminished value” for conventional advertisers when coupled with programme promos and excessive mintage.
Finally, so-called crawlers “seriously detract” from programming, says the ABG.
