The Ad Standards Council (ASC) is adapting its self-regulatory system as digital platforms, artificial intelligence (AI), influencers, and e-commerce reshape how advertisements are produced and distributed, while maintaining that the industry’s basic ethical standards remain unchanged.

The shift has significantly increased the volume of advertising content, expanded the number of people and businesses able to create advertisements, and created new challenges in regulating materials released through digital platforms. As advertising becomes faster and more decentralized, the ASC is also dealing with the practical limits of screening content before it reaches consumers.

Digital creates a level playing field

ASC executive director Robbie Aligada said the advertising industry has changed substantially in the way brands communicate with consumers, particularly with the shift from traditional media to digital platforms.

In the past, advertising was concentrated mainly on television, radio, and print, allowing brands with larger budgets to take a bigger share of the available communication space.

“Whoever had the most money would be able to, how would I put it, make the most, take the lion’s share, in terms of communication,” Mr. Aligada said.

Digital technology has changed that dynamic.

“Digital actually created the level playing field,” he said. “Because if you have a lot of money, or if you only have a little, you can face the big companies,” he added.

The change has also affected how brands use people to represent them, with influencers becoming a major part of advertising.

“We now have what we call the influencers. And anyone can actually be an influencer, for that matter,” Mr. Aligada said.

Advertising content triples

Ad Standards Council incorporator, Manila Broadcasting Company president, and Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas president Ruperto S. Nicdao Jr. said technology has disrupted advertisers, advertising agencies, and media platforms.

One of the biggest changes has been the amount of content advertisers now produce.

Traditional television and radio advertisements generally had longer shelf lives, with some materials being used for months or even years.

“Now, with digital technology, the shelf life of digital ads, it’s very short,” Mr. Nicdao said. “You use a digital ad for maybe a few weeks and all that, you keep changing,” he added.

The shorter shelf life has resulted in a sharp increase in the number of advertisements being produced and submitted to the ASC.

When the ASC began 18 years ago, Mr. Nicdao said its projection was to clear about 1,500 advertisements a month. The council now clears “upwards of 5,000” advertisements a month.

“So, more than threefold. That’s driven mainly by the disruption of digital,” he said.

Mr. Nicdao also said that 60% of advertisements are now digital.

Advertisers are increasingly following audiences toward digital platforms, particularly mobile devices.

“Obviously, the advertisers follow where the audiences are,” he said.

Traditional media retains spending lead

Despite the growth of digital advertising, television and radio continue to account for a significant share of total advertising spending.

Mr. Nicdao said television still accounts for around 70% of advertising spending, while radio accounts for about 17% to 18%. Print accounts for around 1%, with the remainder going to digital.

However, he said the migration of audiences to digital has not translated into the same advertising value as television.

While audiences may have moved from watching television on the big screen to consuming the same content digitally, advertisers do not necessarily pay the same amount for those audiences.

“There are so many digital platforms. You have so many competitors on the digital space,” Mr. Nicdao said.

Traditional television, meanwhile, has a more limited supply of platforms, which affects the value of advertising space.

Digital advertising also provides greater flexibility in terms of duration.

Mr. Aligada said traditional advertising placements were generally built around fixed formats, including 5-, 10-, 15-, 30-, and 60-second advertisements. Digital advertisements can instead range from six to 10 or 12 seconds, depending on the material.

“More often than not, if you’re talking about brand ads in digital, it cannot go long,” Mr. Aligada said. “Otherwise, as [Mr. Nicdao] said earlier, with so many, they will just skip it,” he added.

Mr. Nicdao said traditional broadcast media also has commercial-load limits. For television, the limit is 21 minutes per hour, while radio has a 15-minute limit.

“In digital, it’s not like that,” he said. “There’s no limitation on time,” Mr. Nicdao added, noting that digital platforms are available 24 hours a day.

AI changes production

AI is creating another major shift in advertising and media production.

Mr. Aligada said the technology is affecting advertisers, advertising agencies, and media companies because it can be used to create both advertising and program content.

“It has a huge impact. Both from the advertiser side, advertising agency side, and even for us in media,” he said.

AI could also reduce production costs, he said.

“With AI technology, you can actually create very realistic content now using this technology,” Mr. Aligada said.

Ad Standards Council incorporator and Alaska Milk Corp. former vice president Ma. Belen M. Fernando said, however, that the growing use of AI creates questions about the accuracy of information used in advertising.

“It’s really on truthfulness of a lot of things. Truthfulness of information, of data, even research,” Ms. Fernando said.

She said the industry could eventually face a greater need for post-screening as AI-generated content becomes more widespread.

“Instead of doing pre-screening, you will now be doing post-screening,” she said.

Ms. Fernando also pointed to the risk of advertisements reaching consumers before questions about their accuracy are raised.

“That’s a big risk because if it’s post-screen, that means it came out already, whether it’s true or not true, it’s already out,” she said.

Same ethical standards

ASC legal counsel and Manila Broadcasting Company vice-president for legal and regulatory compliance Atty. Rudolph Steve E. Jularbal said AI does not require a separate set of ethical standards.

“The ethical considerations are still the same. These are constant ethical considerations,” Mr. Jularbal said. “The standards are still the same. The only difference is how they are made,” he added.

He said AI is simply another technology used to produce advertising materials.

“It’s just use of technology to produce advertising materials,” Mr. Jularbal said.

AI can also be used to determine which materials are appropriate for a particular target market and where advertisements should be placed, he said.

“Whether it is AI-made or human-made, you apply the same standards,” Mr. Jularbal said.

According to him, the responsibility for the advertisement remains with the brand.

“So the method may change, but the ethical practices and standards remain the same,” he added.

Digital creates regulatory gaps

The expansion of digital advertising has also created challenges for self-regulation because many businesses operating online are not members of the ASC.

Mr. Nicdao said major advertisers are generally not the industry’s biggest regulatory concern because they are members of the ASC.

“Our biggest problem right now would be those that conduct their business in e-commerce,” he said.

He said online stores often create a “gray line” between ordinary content and advertising.

“When you say, ‘I’m selling this, this is the best,’ blah, blah, blah, is that advertising?” Mr. Nicdao said. “Technically, actually, it’s advertising,” he added.

The number of e-commerce businesses also makes comprehensive regulation difficult.

“Physically, you cannot regulate all of that,” Mr. Nicdao said.

He said the ASC has discussed the issue with the Department of Trade and Industry and offered to help mitigate the problem. However, the ASC board has not decided to actively acquire jurisdiction over e-commerce businesses that are not members.

Mr. Jularbal said the existing legal framework still applies to advertising, including the Consumer Act.

“But whatever the statutes are, it all boils down to truth in advertising,” he said.

He said regulation ultimately seeks to ensure that the messages delivered to consumers are “truthful and accurate.”

Self-regulation offers speed

The industry leaders also emphasized the importance of self-regulation in resolving advertising disputes.

Mr. Nicdao said that without self-regulation, advertisers with complaints against competitors would have to resort to government agencies or the courts.

“If there is no self-regulation, if the advertisers don’t like what their competitors say, they will have to go to court,” he said.

Litigation, however, can take years.

“If you go to court, two years is short,” Mr. Nicdao said. “By that time, damage is done,” he added.

Self-regulation allows complaints and advertising clearances to be handled more quickly.

“That’s why advertisers want self-regulation because of the speed and the way we resolve issues,” Mr. Nicdao said.

Mr. Jularbal said the government could eventually take over regulatory functions in the absence of self-regulation.

“By default, the government takes over,” he said.

However, he said government regulation could take longer and potentially compromise confidentiality.

“The problem with it is the efficiency,” Mr. Jularbal said.

Gambling ads face stricter safeguards

Gambling advertisements are subject to additional safeguards, with the ASC working with the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR).

Mr. Jularbal said gambling advertisements must be screened before they are released.

“We have to make sure that certain sectors of society are protected,” he said, particularly minors and vulnerable consumers.

Mr. Nicdao said legal gambling operators must secure PAGCOR clearance before obtaining authority to advertise.

Illegal gambling operators, however, remain a challenge, particularly on digital platforms.

“If the illegal goes to digital, that’s a problem,” he said.

Traditional media platforms can require the necessary clearances before carrying gambling advertisements, while digital operators may use their own platforms.

“The ultimate gatekeeper is the medium, the media, the platform for media,” Mr. Nicdao said.

He said illegal gambling is ultimately a law-enforcement concern rather than solely an advertising self-regulation issue.

Consumer protection remains core

Despite the industry’s rapid changes, the interviewees said the fundamental purpose of self-regulation remains unchanged.

Mr. Jularbal said advertising regulation ultimately “boils down to truth in advertising.”

Mr. Aligada said the ASC continues to promote “honesty, accuracy, fairness, decency, and responsibility” among those involved in advertising.

Mr. Nicdao said self-regulation has worked for the industry for decades and should continue in the future.

“Self-regulation as a principle has worked for 50 years. There is no reason by which self-regulation cannot work for another 50 years,” he added.

For the ASC, adapting to new technologies does not mean changing the fundamental principles of advertising regulation.

“The objective, really, of self-regulation is, first and foremost, consumer protection,” Mr. Jularbal said. “More than anything else, we’re really trying to protect consumers.”

— Kaizzer Angela Marie V. Manuba