Lack of Regulations in BiH Enables Abuses in Advertising Market Regulation

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - The report "Regulation of the Advertising Market" was presented in Sarajevo.

The report provides an overview and analysis of policies related to advertising in Bosnia and Herzegovina and in other countries, in order to highlight the need for and ways in which advertising practices in BiH could be regulated.

The first part of the report presents an overview of legislation, regulation, self-regulation, and advertising practices in countries outside BiH, with an emphasis on good practices in regulating various issues related to advertising.

The second part of the publication presents an overview of policies and practices in BiH and recommendations on how various aspects of advertising can be regulated in BiH.

Some of the issues addressed by both parts of the report include market values and market conditions, the development of advertising policies, the transparency of advertising practices, especially in public sector advertising, the legitimacy and criteria in public sector advertising procedures, the legitimacy and quality of media audience measurement (viewership/listenership/readership/traffic), and the prevention of hidden advertising.

In Bosnia and Herzegovina, each of these issues remains insufficiently regulated, which allows for various abuses, and the legitimacy and transparency of advertising practices and related actions remain highly questionable.

The authors of the report are Barbara Krajnc and Selma Kadić-Maglajlić.

The research is part of the project "Media and Public Reputation", funded by the European Union in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and implemented by a consortium consisting of the BH Journalists Association, the Mediacentar Foundation, the Press and Online Media Council in BiH, and the NGO JaBiHEU.