Description:
The advertiser’s website landing page offered a data plan at a discounted monthly price.
Complaint:
The complainant challenged whether the ad was misleading as this promotion was only available to new customers but did not state so in the ad itself.
Response:
The advertiser noted that offers appearing on their website are customized based on a client’s eligibility. They mentioned that a pop-up appears on the landing page, where customers would indicate whether they are a new or existing customer. The offers would then be restricted based on their selection.
Decision:
Council members reviewed the ad provided by the complainant and the pop-up provided by the advertiser. Council noted that the complainant was logged in to their account on the advertiser’s website when they said they saw the ad in question. However, Council could not determine whether logging into the website allowed the advertiser to recognize them as an existing or new client. While Council did not challenge the availability of this promotion to new customers, they considered that an existing customer should not have been able to see this offer, or that the ad should have clearly stated the exclusion if it was shown to all customers (new and existing). Therefore, a majority of Council members found that the ad breached Clause 1(b) of the Code by omitting relevant information that would have made clear this offer was available to new customers only.
Infraction:
Clause 1(b)
