The Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON) says it has the responsibility to control the advertising space in Nigeria.

The Director-General (D-G) of ARCON, Dr Olalekan Fadolapo, disclosed this at a media briefing on Monday in Lagos.

Fadolapo said that the new advertising Act 2022 enacted the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON)  as the apex regulatory authority for advertising, advertisements and marketing communications.

He said that the law enabled ARCON as the apex regulatory authority for the Nigerian advertising industry to make provision for the regulation and control of advertising in Nigeria.

According to him, the Act ensures the protection of the general public and consumers, promote local content and entrench international best practices.

The D-G said that the remit of the new law stipulates that notwithstanding the provisions in any other Act, ARCON have exclusive powers to:

“Determine, pronounce upon, administer, monitor, and enforce compliance by persons and organizations on matters relating to advertisements, advertising, and marketing communication in Nigeria, whether of a general or specific nature.

“The provisions of this Act apply to individuals, organization, body corporate or agency of the Federal Government, State, or Local Government.

“Which engages in, regulate,  sponsors or takes benefit of advertising services, advertisements, and marketing communications services.

“And any person who sponsors or takes benefit of an advertising, advertisement, or marketing communications services within the provisions of this Act.

Fadolapo said that the Act defined ‘Advertisement’ to mean a notice, announcement, exposure, publication, broadcast, statement, announcorial, informercial, commercial, hype, and display.

It also includes town cry, show, event, logo, payoff, or trademark to promote, advocate, solicit, showcase, endorse, vote or support a product, service, cause, idea, person or organization.

He said that advertisement have the intention to influence, sway, actuate, impress, arouse, patronize, entice or attract a person, people or organization by an identified sponsor irrespective of media, medium or platform;

“Advertising means any act, action, activity, construct, or undertaking directly, or indirectly, intentionally, or unintentionally.

“Advertising must be aimed at creating, planning, strategizing, managing, and developing, producing, propagating, servicing, or facilitating an advertisement, brand, or marketing communications ideas.

He said that the Act also defined Marketing Communications as any act, gesture, endeavor, execution, performance tactics, or effort aimed.

He said that marketing communication is aimed at sharing promotional information, evoking emotion, creating awareness, or encouraging demand for a product, service, cause, idea, person, or organization.

He added that marketing communication achieves this through the use of public media, mass media, or any medium capable of disseminating information to the public directly, or indirectly, intentionally, or unintentionally.

The D-G noted that the new law also had statutory roles for an advertiser, advertisement agency and the media.

He said it was important that every player in the advertising space in the country got acquainted with the new law to avoid infringing on the provisions of the law.

He said that the new law opens up a wider horizon for regulation and monitoring by the council.

Fadolapo explained that additional 17 offices had been created by the agency to make it more responsive to achieving the task before it.

He added that building the capacity of the staff in the area of technology was important in the discharge of its regulatory functions. (NAN)