Masked Advertising

Student- Cioaca Andreea Roxana, Faculty of Journalism and Communication Sciences, Advertising,
Group 1

Prof. Dr. Barbara Lämmlein, Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences

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Cioaca Andreea Roxana Masked Advertising - May 2018
Introduction
Our society is expanding terrifically via social media, which is why, we have come to the point of
acknowledging that there is more to jobs than what we have been used to knowing before the
digitalization of the world. There is a growing number of bloggers and vloggers some of them
becoming the so called influencers of our days. Naturally, marketing people have all seen this as a
tremendous opportunity for placing their content. However, the question that one has to ask is
where do we draw the line, regarding the ethical aspects of the process. Masked advertising has to
be the answer.

What exactly is advertising ?

Advertising is a paid, mediated form of communication from an identifiable source, designed to
persuade the receiver to take some action, now or in the future.”

(AdAge-Principles of advertising, p.2)

We could assume it is, in fact, communication at its finest. To make it simple, communication can be
defined as meanings that pass from source to receiver.

Advertising could be called a refined strategy of communication, for it needs and has to be
persuasive.

The meaning needs to touch the receiver in a way that will make him respond positively in taking the
wanted action.

Online advertising
The Y generation has exchanged the standard information, which they took from the now so old TV,
for the modern social-media. Youngsters prefer taking their information from the online, which
grants them the liberty of choice and the chance to integrate into a shared-opinions community.
Influencers become leaders of opinion and, thus, a source of equity and credibilty.

Unfortunately, masked advertising can easily become unnoticeable.

Statistics have shown that online advertising and video advertising also, are growing rapidly
thorughout the whole Europe. (IAB-Europe, 2016).

Online sponsored content is certainly becoming the perfect spot for integrating masked
advertising.

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Cioaca Andreea Roxana Masked Advertising - May 2018
E-marketing (aka Internet marketing, i-marketing, Web marketing, and online marketing) is now the
fastest-growing marketing communications area and likely to be the dominant marketing medium in
the near future. (Barry Callen, Marketing, Advertising and Publicity, p.77)1

Internet has become the place of all the news and the first point of contact. People are used to
researching the internet before going to an interview at a company, before purchasing something or
even before choosing a certain store. They often need reviews or opinions and it has become such a
reliable source of information that it might easily make them reconsider their thoughts.

Rather than being present on the Web only in maintaining and promoting their Web sites as
destinations, companies are finding that their Web presence is ubiquitous—in online news channels,
YouTube videos, blogs, Flickr images, Facebook pages, and other social networking venues.
Managing a brand online is much more complex than ever before. (Barry Callen, Marketing,
Advertising and Publicity, p.78)2

While there are many differences between traditional media and social media, the common aspects
pertain to the revenue models. Thus far, both traditional and social media rely heavily on advertising
for survival and existence. Advertising has supported traditional media for almost 100 years and
many social media websites are hoping it would do the same for them. (Shelly Rodgers, Esther
Thorson, Advertising Theory, p. 404)3

Social media can become a serious source of revenue through subscriptions, but its most likely
source would have to be the so present advertising. Subscriptions work easily, the users do just as
they would with their TV cable or internet access. The service will require one-time fee monthly or
yearly fee to gain access to content. Advertising, on the other hand, grants the access to content for
free.

According to a recent Nielsen survey of 27,000 consumers across 52 countries, almost 85% of users
prefer content to remain free on the Internet (Nielsen, 2010). With such an overwhelming number of
people preferring not to pay for content online, social media will inevitably have to rely on

1
Callen, B 2010. Marketing, Advertising and Publicity. 77 pp
2
Callen, B 2010. Marketing, Advertising and Publicity. 78 pp
3
Rodgers, S, Esther, T 2012. Advertising Theory. 404 pp
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Cioaca Andreea Roxana Masked Advertising - May 2018
advertising for survival. Forrester predicts that ad spending on social media will reach $3.1 billion by
2014 (Ostrow, 2009a). (Shelly Rodgers, Esther Thorson, Advertising Theory, p. 404)4

Masked Advertising
Most online publishers use some form of native advertising — ads that look like news stories — to
grow revenue. It is accepted in practice to declare that this content is sponsored by a company, so
that readers can differentiate between what is and is not news.

However, a recent study conducted by Wojdynski and Nathaniel J. Evans, showed that 60% of
readers were not aware of the sponsor disclosure label placed at the top of sponsored articles.

It is also known that some publishers do not mention their sponsorship and, thus, misleading the
readers into believing deceptive news.

Laws regarding masked advertising and ethical aspects

Advertising, like all industries, operates within a legal context.

The legal system is a regular user of theories related to advertising, and legal thinking provides its
own theories affecting advertising. All of these can have profound implications for the practice of
advertising. A researcher should never discount the value of a theory, no matter from what discipline
it originates. (Shelly Rodgers, Esther Thorson, Advertising Theory, p. 488)5

According to the European Directive “Television Without Frontiers”, masked advertising, is defined
as "the representation by words or images of the goods, services, names, trade marks or activities of
a producer of goods or service providers during the programs, is prohibited, when such a
representation is introduced into the show for advertising purposes and may mislead the public
regarding its nature. "

Such representations are considered intentional, especially when they are made in return for the
payment of a sum of money or a similar form of compensation. (CJUE: Masked Advertising,
avocatnet.ro, 14.06.2011)6

However, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), in Case C-52/10, decided that the non-
payment of a sum of money does not exclude the intentional character of masked advertising.

4
Rodgers, S, Thorson, E 2012. Advertising Theory. 404 pp
5
Rodgers, S, Thorson, E 2012. Advertising Theory. 488 pp
6
CJUEE. Masked Advertising, www.avocatnet.ro, 14.06.2011. Acessed 04.05.2018
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Cioaca Andreea Roxana Masked Advertising - May 2018
The conclusion of the judgment is as follows: "The payment of a sum of money or a similar form of
compensation does not constitute a vital element to establish the intentional nature of the masked
advertising" (CJUE, C-52/10, Eftheri tileorasi and Giannikos, www.juridice.ro, 21.06.2011)7

As we can see, there’s a fine line between masked and genuine advertising. The lack of disclaimers
when promoting a certain product of service can become highly misleading, especially in the context
of social media.

All in all, masked advertising is something that the online community should be aware of, for it is
most likely spreading in social media, under the false shade of protection, which will so freely be
called liberty of choice and expressing oneself.

Bibliography
Rodgers, S, Thorson, E 2012. Advertising Theory.

Callen, B 2010. Marketing, Advertising and Publicity

www.avocatnet.ro

www.juridice.ro

7
CJUE, C-52/10, Eftheri tileorasi and Giannikos, www.juridice.ro, 21.06.2011. Acessed 04.05.2018
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Cioaca Andreea Roxana Masked Advertising - May 2018