Restrictions to marketing and advertising

Advertising is regulated by, for instance, the Consumer Protection Act, the International Code of Advertising Practice, Unfair Business Practices Act and legislation concerning competition. You must also comply with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation. Rules specific to the used advertising media and industry as well as good marketing practices also guide advertising.

For example, according to the Consumer Protection Act, marketing targeted at consumers may not be

• contrary to good practice
• inappropriate
• not recognizable as marketing
• confusing
• false or misleading
• aggressive
• lacking essential information.

Restrictions also concern advertising certain products (incl. alcohol) and the advertising aimed at special groups (incl. children). The statutes may also concern the method and channels of advertising, including hidden and outdoors advertising. You must also take copyrights into account.

You must personally make sure that your company’s marketing complies with statutes and follows good practices. If you use an advertising agency, you must always draw up a written agreement that indicates the distribution of responsibilities.

The same, general rules of marketing and advertisement usually apply to all marketing channels. However, specific additional regulations and recommendations may be related to different channels.

For example, in television and radio advertising, your company must comply with the Finnish Act on Electronic Communication Services, addition to the general rules. The additional regulations and recommendations are related to issues such as the placement of advertisements, time and duration of advertising, and product placement.

In outdoor advertising, your company must take into account the fact that the advertisements are visible to everyone, including children. In the case of advertising that reaches children, you must be particularly careful that the advertisement does not violate good practice. Outdoor advertising is also restricted by the municipality’s own regulations, the act on the traffic system and highways, and the Land Use and Building Act.

In online marketing, your company must pay particular attention to the recognisability of advertising as well as copyrights and related permissions. Also pay attention to the protection of privacy and responsible freedom of expression. Social media services also have their own rules on marketing and advertising.

Find out which restrictions apply to different channels on a case-by-case basis.

The supervision of marketing and advertising is fragmented between several different administrative branches.

The Consumer Ombudsman is a general authority for consumer advertising. The Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom is responsible for the supervision of radio and television advertising. The Finnish Food Authority oversees the advertising of food, beverages and tobacco, and Fimea the advertising of drugs. Valvira supervises the alcohol and tobacco legislation. Marketing supervision also falls within the competence of the Finnish Safety and Chemicals Agency Tukes based on consumer safety legislation and cosmetics legislation.

In addition to the Consumer Ombudsman, the Regional State Administrative Agency supervises indicating prices in advertising. The Office of the Data Protection Ombudsman supervises data protection issues related to marketing.

Marketing and advertising are also guided by the decisions and solutions of, among others, the Consumer Disputes Board, Market Court, the Council of Ethics in Advertising (MEN), the Board of Business Practice of the Chamber of Commerce, and general courts of law.

You can ask the supervisory authority on the restrictions to marketing and advertising on a case-by-case basis.

First, you should directly contact the party that misused your material. The other party may not even be aware of having done something wrong, for example in cases of copyright infringement. In such cases, the other party is typically willing to cooperate and the issue is easy to solve.

If the misuse has caused damage to your company, you may demand the other party to compensate for or reimburse it. If you are unable to settle the case, it may be processed in a court of law. This allows you to demand both financial compensation and a penalty in accordance with the Copyright Act. The Tort Liability Act is also applied in cases concerning compensation for damage.

In issues concerning violations, more information and help is available from the Copyright Council, which operates under the Ministry of Education and Culture. You may also contact the Copyright Information and Anti-Piracy Centre.

Information on marketing restrictions can be found on the website of the Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority (in Finnish).Opens in a new window.