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Must Product Placements on Television Shows Be Disclosed?

By Bruce Carton

Last week's episode of new ABC sitcom "Modern Family" took what seemed a story line about one of its main character's love of gadgets and seemingly morphed it into a lengthy ad for Apple's iPad. The episode aired shorty before the release of the iPad last week, and it raises an interesting question: Does the Federal Communication Commission regulate product placement and, if so, are networks required to disclose placement deals to viewers? The Los Angeles Times reports that the FCC's Sponsorship Identification rule states that "when money or other consideration for the airing of program material has been received by or promised to a station, its employees or others, the station must broadcast full disclosure of that fact at the time of the airing of the material, and identify who provided or promised to provide the consideration." The rule specifies that the disclosure should allow the public to know "who is trying to persuade them with the programming being aired." After much online speculation about the episode, one of the show's co-creators told The Hollywood Reporter that there was no paid product placement. Still, it's hard to watch the episode without getting the impression that some kind of exchange...

Full post as published by Legal Blog Watch on April 05, 2010 (boomark / email).