Cover STORY
Cover STORY
Summer 2017 / Issue 54
Continued from page 11
legal evolution covering this area . By the end of the 19th century , the first legal acts and decisions emerged in the world ’ s most developed markets ; Croatia has a nearly 100 year tradition , ending when it joined the European Union and its wide range of laws and bylaws were aligned with EU acquis and best practices .
Compliance with the country ’ s legislative framework in the Croatia is a must when marketing each product , service or organization . This includes all regulations with respect to market communications – particularly for products such as alcohol and cigarettes , medicine and medical services or those protecting the most vulnerable consumer groups such as children and young people – including intellectual property protection .
Croatia ’ s entire legal order is aligned with the common European legal framework , meaning that , at least on paper , the country is in step with the most developed market standards . This approach of regulated everything – forms , techniques , products , target groups – translates to an huge number of laws and other regulations ( over 67 in the Act , the Rulebook , the Decisions and the Convention ). Thus , co-regulation and self-regulation are emerging as attractive enforcement solutions .
There are a few laws and norms that are particularly important for certain industries , the community and advertising , such as those for unlawful practices , fraudulent and misleading advertising and other forms that are generally prohibited or permitted only in certain cases . Formally , consumer protection is the most complex area , both in terms of the number of provisions and its formal aspects as well as the overall protection framework ( including the National Program and Inspectorate as well as numerous organizations that represent consumer concerns with market communications ). One key feature is the regulation of media and electronic media . These define advertising conditions and unauthorized forms of practice , including in interactive digital communications . Given their nature , these media are vulnerable to “ guerilla ” advertising , thus are specifically addressed in laws that protect children , young people and other vulnerable groups .
Another important factor in the advertising industry is its creative nature , requiring intellectual property rights protection of authors ’ work on messages , ads and campaigns . This is governed by a series of laws , including the Copyright Act and the Law on Special Interest and Advertising Treaties Act .
Finally , it can be said that Croatia ’ s legislation is flooded with unclear and difficult standards , especially related to the nature of market communication . Thus , we should consider co-regulation in line with best practices as a possible solution . By deregulating , only basic issues would need to be defined by law , while all details would be determined by self-regulatory standards set by practitioners .
Croatian Self-regulatory Codes
Experiences in managing advertising and market communications have shown that the best results are achieved when practitioners – from individuals to national associations – define their own standards . Thus , there is a need for self-regulation to ensure the economic and social role of market communication on the one hand , and respect of the community ’ s ethical principles on the other .
Thus , self-regulation would address both regulatory overload and the challenges that advertising poses to authors and consumers . Self-regulation has been practiced in Croatia for almost a century and was influenced by the world ’ s leading economies .
It is common practice for companies to regulate their own behavior via ethical codes and / or professional or other associations . The International Chamber of Commerce ( ICC ) code is a set of standards and best practices at the national level in Croatia that was adopted by our national professional associations ( e . g ., HURA , HUK ), and has been implemented in many national institutions ( e . g ., Electronic Media Agency , Gender Equality Agency ). The National Association of Agencies ( HURA ) plays a particularly active role in advertising ethics enforcement ; its “ Court of Honor ” issues guidelines , interprets practice and defines sanctions , as well .
The latest harmonization of HURA ’ s Code of Ethics with 2014 international standards targeted specific problems frequently observed in practice , including the use of exaggeration , privacy violations and abuse of or inappropriate advertising aimed at children and young people . Frequent violations included abuses of intellectual property ; imitation , plagiarism and copying , as well as concealing content sponsorship , unethical applications of guerilla marketing and viral marketing . Direct marketing and especially telemarketing can always be designed to disturb privacy or be disruptive to consumers . That ’ s why it ’ s so important that ethical standards protect consumers group from practices that are aggressive or manipulative .
The accelerated growth and impact of digital technologies and mobile media change the communication paradigm , thus making new room for possible abuses , deception and inappropriate content , especially with respect to children . Privacy and other violations in interactive digital communications – especially vis-à-vis children – imply the need for better regulation and self-regulation .
Finally , the minimum ethical standards defined by codes of ethics of professional associations ( e . g ., honesty , integrity , truthfulness , libel , imitation ) and interactive digital communications help ensure companies are socially responsible with respect to employees , consumers and their community . In response , the promotion of self-regulation through professional vocational codes and ethical councils has noticeably increased .
12 AmCham Macedonia Magazine