ASA Adjudication on Wm Magners Ltd

Ad

A TV ad for Magners cider showed a man walking into a pub and a pint of Magners being poured. The voice-over stated "Magners Draught Cider. It's the perfect ice breaker. Making sure the conversation flows, in the time it takes to create a cool, crisp pint. No ice, just pure, premium taste. Magners Draught Cider, time dedicated to you". At the end of the ad, the man picked up the pint and turned to talk to a group of friends.

Issue

A viewer objected that the ad breached the Code by suggesting Magners would boost confidence and lead to the success of a social occasion.

BCAP TV Code

Response

Wm Magners (Magners) believed the ad did not portray Magners as boosting a person's confidence or leading to any success in a social situation.  They believed the scene portrayed was typical of any ad where the product was used in a social setting.  They said there was no sexual innuendo and there were no changes in behaviour.  They believed the setting was relaxed, consistently slowly paced, and not excitable in any way.

Magners asserted that "It's the perfect ice breaker" was a play on words used to reference the fact that the draught variant of Magners had no ice, unlike the normal pint bottle serving of Magners.  They said the 'no ice' proposition was something that was important for them to communicate in order to address any confusion about it for their consumers.  They argued that the line "Making sure the conversation flows" was a visual pun on the word 'flows' as the apples were shown flowing.  They said the viewer would hear the voice and see the picture as working together.  They argued that, in most alcohol ads, as with any bar in real life, it was natural to see conversation between friends in a social setting.  They believed that did not contravene the Code provided there was no sexual innuendo or reward.

Magners pointed out that they had included the text "Enjoy Magners sensibly" which they always included to encourage responsible drinking.

Clearcast also believed the ad was compliant with the Code.  They considered that both the reference to Magners being a "perfect ice breaker" and "making sure the conversation flows" were respective metaphors for communicating that the draft cider was served without ice, unlike the bottled variant, and the visual reference to the apples flowing.  They also considered that the visuals did not imply that the character was either lacking confidence or needed to succeed at the featured social occasion.   They said the man was shown as a confident individual and the social setting was neither created, nor improved, by the cider.   They said the atmosphere remained constant and was not improved either by the central character or by him consuming the alcohol.

Assessment

Upheld

The ASA noted Magners' comments that the claims were a play on words. We considered, however, that although the visual images did not show excessive drinking,  the claims "It's the perfect ice breaker" and "Making sure the conversation flows" in the voice-over, at the moment the man entered the room and moved to join the group, were likely to be understood by viewers to carry the clear implication that drinking Magners could help start a conversation in a social setting and help the conversation flow, thereby leading to the success of a social occasion. We concluded that the ad breached the Code by suggesting alcohol would boost confidence and lead to the success of a social occasion.

The ad breached CAP (Broadcast) TV Advertising Standards Code rules 11.8.1(a) and 11.8.1(e) (Alcoholic drinks).

Action

The ad must not be broadcast again in its current form.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Broadcast)