The Advertising Board detected non-compliance with regulations in 131 out of 141 cases. It was decided to impose a total of 32.5 million lira in administrative fines and suspension measures on the advertisements.

According to a statement from the Ministry of Commerce, it was reported that out of the 141 cases reviewed during the Board’s meeting on March 13, 131 were found to be in violation of regulations, and a suspension decision was taken for one case. The statement mentioned that besides suspension penalties for cases found to be non-compliant, 32,481,507 lira in administrative fines were imposed, in addition to the decision to impose an administrative measure of access restriction for preventing consumer grievances in 5 files. The statement highlighted that the meeting discussed advertisements and commercial practices affecting consumers’ economic choices and interests, pointing out issues related to discounted sales in the apparel sector, promotions where the advertised products do not possess the specified features in the technology sector, or promises of zero interest made through deceptive advertisements. It was emphasized that in one case, the Board imposed an administrative fine of 4.8 million lira on the apparel sector after scrutinizing promotional campaigns for discounted sales closely.

Furthermore, it was reported that administrative fines amounting to 4.8 million lira were decided to be imposed for 8 cases where violations were identified during inspections. The statement also identified instances where a technology sector company advertised as if all mobile phone models in the same category had a special feature, even though some models in this category did not possess this feature, misleading consumers in their purchase decisions. Hence, due to not including crucial information affecting consumer purchasing decisions in the main advertising message, the mentioned advertisements were considered misleading and deceptive, leading to the decision to impose administrative sanctions.

EXAMINATION OF ZERO INTEREST CREDIT ADVERTISEMENTS

The statement drew attention to automotive companies shifting their focus towards campaigns themed with “zero percent interest” in recent times, stating: “In this context, despite there being ‘upfront interest payment’ in the automotive sector, the main message of the advertisement indicated the credit interest rate as ‘zero percent’, manipulating consumer preferences by presenting zero-interest promotions instead of upfront interest in the main message to influence consumers’ purchasing decisions. Furthermore, it was noted that annual and monthly cost rates showing the total cost of the credit, which is mandatory to be stated for consumers to choose the most suitable credit offer and ensure fair competition in the sector, were not included in advertisements containing the interest rate. The advertisements that did not reflect the reality of the main promise influencing consumers’ economic behavior, such as ‘zero percent interest’, were found to be deceptive and were decided to be temporarily halted.” The statement also underlines discrepancies in promotional materials stating the use of pig leather in product components in foreign websites for some shoes sold in Turkey, while the product descriptions on sales pages in Turkey used terms like “leather” or “natural leather”, leading to consumer misinformation about the product content. It was reported that 4 companies found to have provided inadequate information to consumers regarding product content were subject to suspension penalties and administrative fines totaling 3,457,160 lira.