HA3 Task 5 - Regulation

Advertising Standards Authority (ASA)

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is the UK’s independent regulator of advertising across all forms of media. Their job is to investigate that advertisements do not lie or make false claims about a product. They also check on potential breaches of any Advertising Codes and make sure everything complies with the rules.


The ASA’s mission is to make sure all advertising in all media is legal, honest and decent, which benefits customers, business and society. ASA investigate complaints made about ads, sales promotions or direct marketing. So it’s their job to decide whether the ad complies with advertising standards. 

Their values: 

  • Consistent and proportionate
  • Reliable and ethical
  • Fair and respectful to all
  • Accessible and helpful
  • Intelligent and thorough, but also timely and proportionate
  • Open and accountable, acting with integrity and never being afraid to admit when we’re wrong
  • An excellent team, inspiring excellence in each other   

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    Ofcom

    Ofcom stands for The Office of Communications. Ofcom is government approved authority that regulates the whole telecommunication industry in the UK which includes the television, radio, telecoms and postal sectors. Ofcom was established as an act of parliament in 2002 under the communications act of 2002. 

    Some of the main areas Ofcom presides over are licensing, research, codes and policies, complaints, competition and protecting the radio spectrum from abuse. They also work on protecting the public from harmful or offensive material.