According to a announcement on the official website of the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) on June 26th, the ASA has issued a ruling on Apollo Future Technology Ltd.
On January 17, 2024, the UK company Apollo Vapes displayed a page titled "Affiliate Program" on one of their e-cigarette brand websites, www.apolloecigs.co.uk. The page states: "1. Online Affiliate- If you have a website (or other online marketing channel) that can help promote Apollo products and drive traffic to our website, you can generate sales indirectly through your site. You will receive a unique URL that automatically tracks all sales generated from your website. We even provide banner ads and text links for you to select, copy, and paste." The text below reads: "Click here to create an Apollo affiliate account."
The Advertising Standards Authority has raised concerns about whether the advertisement violates advertising guidelines, as it promotes the promotion of e-cigarettes and their related components through online media, which are unlicensed and contain nicotine-containing e-liquids and components.
Apollo Future Technology Ltd, also known as Apollo Vapes UK, has announced that they have removed the affiliate program page from their website.
They explained that their British Alliance program collaborates with product review websites that target adult e-cigarette users to conduct product evaluations and rankings. They believe that allowing these websites to review their products does not violate UK regulations, but if it does, they will stop working with these websites.
Article 22.12 of the CAP Code reflects the legislative ban on advertising unlicensed nicotine-containing e-cigarettes in certain media outlined in the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016 (TRPR). This rule states that marketing communications promoting the direct or indirect promotion of nicotine-containing e-cigarettes and their components, unless specifically addressed to the trade, and these products are not licensed as medicines, are not permitted in newspapers, magazines and periodicals, online media, and certain other forms of electronic media.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) stated that they had previously found that advertisements promoting nicotine e-cigarettes on public social media accounts such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Discord, and TikTok violated section 22.12 of the CAP Code.
The ASA concluded that the advertisement on the Apollo Vapes UK website was not specifically promoting any particular e-cigarette or e-cigarette product. Therefore, the ASA determined whether the advertisement indirectly promoted unauthorized nicotine-containing e-cigarettes.
The Apollo Alliance website features a link where users can enter their details to become online members of the alliance. The website also outlines the benefits of becoming a member, including the ability to earn money, receive a unique URL for tracking sales, and access banners and images provided by Apollo to add to their affiliate website. The website states, "If you have a website (or other online marketing channel) that can help promote Apollo products and drive traffic to our site, you can generate sales indirectly through your website.
The ASA believes that references to "other online marketing channels" include social media. Therefore, this advertisement encourages people to become affiliates of Apollo, who will represent advertisers in promoting the sale of e-cigarettes and their components on social media. Consequently, Rule 22.12, which applies to restrictions on online media, is applicable.
The ASA therefore believes that this means the advertisement indirectly promotes the sale of nicotine-containing e-cigarettes and their components through affiliate programs, even though these products are not authorized as medications in online media. Additionally, they state that by encouraging people to promote these products on social media, the advertisement incites potential affiliate members to violate advertising regulations and legislative bans in the TRPR.
The ASA has concluded that the advertisement violates sections 1.3 (social responsibility), 1.10 (legality), and 22.12 (e-cigarettes) of the CAP Code (12th edition) because it indirectly promotes nicotine-containing e-cigarettes and their components without permission, and irresponsibly encourages people to break the law.
The organization emphasized that the advertisement should not reappear in the form of an investigation.
ASA has informed Apollo Future Technology Ltd (trading as Apollo Vapes UK) that they must ensure that their future marketing communications do not directly or indirectly promote unlicensed nicotine-containing e-cigarettes and their components as medicinal products. This includes ensuring that they do not incite individuals to engage in illegal behavior, such as through affiliate program advertising.
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