Advertising Standards Council of India

About Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI):

• It is a voluntary self-regulatory organization of the advertising industry in India. 
• Established in 1985, ASCI is registered as a non-profit company under Section 25 of the Company Act.
• ASCI is committed to the cause of self-regulation in advertising, ensuring the protection of the interests of consumers. 
• ASCI seeks to ensure that advertisements conform to its Code for Self-Regulation, which requires advertisements to be legal, decent, honest, and truthful and not hazardous or harmful while observing fairness in competition. 
• ASCI looks into complaints across all media, such as Print, TV, Radio, hoardings, SMS, Emailers, Internet/web-site, product packaging, brochures, promotional material, and point of sale material, etc.
• Structure:
  • A Board of Governors, which includes 16 members drawn from prominent businesses, media agencies, and advertisers, among others.
  • The Consumer Complaints Council (CCC), a body that investigates complaints and decides whether advertisements adhere to the Advertisement Standards Council of India Code.
  • A Secretariat, headed by the Secretary General, oversees the day-to-day operations of the organisation.
• While ASCI is not a government body, its role has been widely acknowledged, and in 2006, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting issued a mandate requiring all TV advertisements in India to follow ASCI’s codes. 
• ASCI is a part of the Executive Committee of the International Council on Ad Self-Regulation (ICAS).

Q1: What is the International Council on Ad Self-Regulation (ICAS)?

ICAS is a global platform which promotes effective advertising self-regulation. ICAS members include self-regulatory organizations (SROs) as well as regional and international organizations working to promote adverts which are legal, decent, honest and truthful.

News: Real Estate and Betting top ASCI half-yearly complaints