Updates since July 2022 (slimmed)
BMW iX environmental claim ruled misleading
Ad re above is here (SW) July 2022 ruling
Environmental claims: the use of ‘Ecolabels’
Above from lawyers Vinge/ Lex October 2022
Lufthansa case (SW) November 2022
Proposed fossil fuel ad ban March 2023 (SW)
Motion linked above; Ro commentary here (SW)
Controlled advertising in Sweden. Wistrand/ Lex
Use of superlatives. Vinge/ Lex July 10, 2023
Influencer fined 1mil k by P&M court (SW)
Above from Dagens Opinion October 27, 2023
Above for 'home baking', vego and soft cheese
Marketing And Pricing Information In The Spotlight
Lindahl Dec 29, 2023 re influencers & sales
Greenwashing review. Berggren Oy Jan 24, 2024
Latest RO decisions; thin models (SW) Feb 2, 2024
Ro newsletter Mar 27, 2024. Misleading prices (SW)
Latest Ro decisions; more thin models. April 26, 2024
Ro newsletter June 17, 2024. 'Stupid' Norwegians (SW)
SNAPSHOT |
|
RO seminar March 7 re ad identification in influencer marketing (SW)
New rulings on discrimination in advertising (SW) Nov 1, 2023
Includes some new criteria for gender-discriminatory advertising
Advertising & Marketing 2023 Sweden October 17 Chambers
THE SRO’S GENERAL RULES
The Swedish Self-Regulatory Organisation (SRO) is Reklamombudsmannen (RO), more formally the Advertising Ombudsman. RO assess complaints according to rules from the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Advertising and Marketing Communications Code, which is linked here (EN 2018, updated September 2024 here) and translated here (SW 2018). Rules are available from the linked document above; the most important are spelt out in our content section B below.
THE MARKETING ACT
The other significant influence on advertising rules in Sweden is statutory: the Marketing Act 2008:486 (EN), which in Sweden provides the cornerstone of communications legislation, provides rules from the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive 2005/29/EC. The Act also transposes other European marketing/ privacy legislation such as Directive 2000/31/EC on information society services (e-Commerce), and Directive 2002/58/EC on the protection of privacy in electronic communications, meaning that a number of European marketing eggs are in a single Swedish basket. There's a helpful Q&A on misleading advertising practices in Sweden from Wistrand via Lexology here (EN; March 2023) and Prohibited and controlled advertising in Sweden from Wistrand here (EN; also March, 2023). Relevant rules are shown in our content section B and channel section C below, as applicable. The transposition of Directive 2019/2161 (the 'Omnibus Directive') introduces new rules into the Marketing Act and the Price Information Act, amongst others less relevant to this database. The government's bill here (SW) amends the Price Information act under Article 2.2 for promotional pricing rules and the Marketing Act under 2.4 for criteria in search rankings and the legitimacy of consumer reviews (sections 12b and 12c respectively). Transposition is faithful to the Directive.
APPLYING THE RULES
Day-to-day application of the rules is by RO, per the normal self-regulatory process. However, there is an additional procedure in Sweden: if the case arouses the interest of the Swedish Consumer Agency, a significant influence in marketing regulation, adjudication is via the Patent and Market Courts. A complaint can be taken to court by the Consumer Agency as well as by competitors or a group of consumers/ traders/ workers. For some perspective, here are The Market Court's decisions from 2000 to 31 August 2016; these are in Swedish, but there's a translation facility on the site which provides the gist. The Consumer Agency publishes a number of guidance papers in marketing and advertising; some of these are shown in our content and channel sections below. The general advertising and promotional environment in Sweden is somewhat restrictive and conservative.
NATIVE AND INFLUENCER
The ICC’s Guidance on Native Advertising (EN) is based on the ICC Code (EN 2018, updated September 2024 here) itself, drawing on articles 7 and 8 (Identification and Identity), B1 and C1 (Sponsorship and Digital communications respectively). Clauses from the guidance are set out in full in channel section C. The Marketing Act’s (EN) Section 9 similarly requires clarity that advertising is advertising: ‘All marketing shall be formulated and presented in such a way that it is clear that it is a matter of marketing’. In May 2016, the Nordic Consumer Ombudsmen jointly published their ‘Position on Hidden Marketing’ (SW / EN), and the Swedish representative also publishes Guidance on Marketing in Social Media (SW / EN) video here (SW), which covers influencers primarily, requiring that influencer posts are very clear that they are paid for - the likes of 'in collaboration with' don't cut it. See below and our channel section C for more.
Three key cases
The first case in Swedish courts about ad identification in social media - the ‘Kissie case’ re a well-known Swedish blogger and influencer Alexandra Nilsson - is linked here in Swedish; English commentary here from Lexology. According to RO, the court set a high standard, in line with RO's decisions. Among the rulings are that it must be clear when a post has been paid for and the identification itself must also be clear - i.e. its position within the post/ blog must be prominent. See pps 42 and 43 of the linked case, unofficially translated here. This case is likely to result in new rules being issued, probably by the Consumer Agency. A second significant case regarding Influencer posts on behalf of an eyewear company, and whether all posts versus contracted posts qualify as marketing communications, is here (EN) courtesy of AWA/ Lex. The third case, reported by Lindahl/ Mondaq December 29, 2023 here, is re Clean Eating AB and the influencer Katrin Zytomierska, recently judged to have contravened the Marketing Act.
ENVIRONMENTAL CLAIMS
Vinge on EU green claims and Swedish law
June 18, 2024 (EN)
Greenwashing review. Berggren Oy Jan 24, 2024
Proposed fossil fuel ad ban March 2023 (SW). Parliamentary motion from Social Democrats referred Dec 2022
Swedish Court forbids “net-zero” claims based on climate compensation. Bird&Bird LLP/ Lex Feb 21, 2023
Lufthansa case (SW) November 2022 re carbon offsetting
This is, as you might imagine, a high profile issue in Sweden. Guidance on environmental claims in advertising is from the Swedish Consumer Agency (link is to the relevant section in Google English; translated properly in our content section B under point 2.3); the guidance draws on the principles within Chapter D - Environmental claims in marcoms - of the ICC Code (EN 2018, updated September 2024 here). Also providing guidance is The ICC framework for responsible environmental marcoms (November 2021, in Swedish here and commentary from Ro newsletter here), which includes an environmental claims checklist under Appendix I. The Nordic Consumer Ombudsmen 'Use of Ethical and Environmental-related Claims in marketing' is here in Swedish and translated here. The definitive guidance at the EU level is the December 2021 Commission Notice on the interpretation and application of the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive; section 4.1.1 for environmental claims. The Ro newsletter of October 2021 included this brief review of 'greenwashing' (SW) together with some recent cases and in December 2021 an Innocent juice case (SW) was published: complaint upheld because of insufficient evidence of the environmental benefits shown in the commercial, an English version of which is here (the commercial is now removed; this pressure group video includes what appears to be a large part of it). There is a detailed segment on environmental claims in our following content section B. The WFA launched their Planet Pledge in April 2021 and Global Guidance on Environmental Claims April 2022. On 7 October 2021, Google launched a new monetization policy for Google advertisers, publishers and YouTube creators that will prohibit ads for, and monetization of, content that contradicts well-established scientific consensus around the existence and causes of climate change. More here. DLA Piper's August 2024 Environmental Advertising Claims Guide includes Sweden in its comprehensive coverage.
PRICING
This piece Dec 29, 2023 from Lindahl/ Mondaq reports that the Swedish Consumer Agency is "carrying out a comprehensive examination of companies' price reduction campaigns during the autumn in order to investigate retailers' compliance with the new rule on price information." This relates to the new rules shown below regarding amends to the PPD
Generic pricing rules applicable to all advertising are from the Marketing Act (EN) in Sections 10 and 12 and the Price Information Act - English translation here - which requires the trader to provide accurate and clear pricing information on products; in particular Sections 7-10 must be observed when marketing a product with a stated price, also as per Section 2, the Swedish Consumer Agency’s regulations on price information KOVFS 2012:1, guidance here (links are to the Swedish originals; details and translations where required are in our later Content Section B). The Marketing Act Section 12, which transposes the pricing elements of the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive 2005/29/EC, deals with the rules when communicating an ‘Invitation to Purchase’. Again, details in content section B. The European position provides amendments from the Directive 2019/2161, which established in the Product Pricing Directive (PPD) 98/6/EC a new article 6a which sets out provisions for reduced/ promotional pricing. Transposition in Sweden is via the government bill here (SW) under article 2.2. Commission guidance for the application of the article is here.
CHILDREN
There’s a common perception that advertising to children is entirely prohibited in Sweden. Not the case, though it is a particularly sensitive issue that should be treated with some care. Clearly, children are protected from sectors that they are not permitted to use, such as alcohol (advertising is prohibited to those under the age of 25), or gambling which may not be aimed at under 18s. Meanwhile, the rules for all product sectors are that advertising on television may not appeal to children under 12, according to The Radio and TV Act 2010:696 (EN unamended version, SW amended version here). A separate rule from the Marketing Act Section 7, applicable in all media, requires that advertising may not exhort those under the age of 18 to buy advertised products or persuade their parents or other adults to buy advertised products for them. The Swedish Consumer Agency’s Guidance on marketing aimed at children and young people is an important influence in this context. A document that shows the original Swedish with a translation is here. The rules on communicating to children are covered in depth in a separate sector available from the home page of this website.
STEREOTYPING
Gender portrayal in Sweden is highly sensitive and subject to special criteria. The ICC Code (2018) article 2 (part): ‘Marketing communications should respect human dignity and should not incite or condone any form of discrimination, including that based upon ethnic or national origin, religion, gender, age, disability or sexual orientation’ is supplemented by RO with further criteria under three topics (original Swedish here; see above under News/ Issues):
There’s an example case here (SW) re the Suit Supply company. The ad is here.
See also the Sambla loans case re 'older craftsmen' here; ad taken down
CHANNEL RULES
As well as what you can say, there are rules for where you can say it, to whom and when, and the information that must by law be included in, for example, some electronic communications. These rules apply to all products. Our channel section C sets them out by medium; this para is a brief summary with links to the regulations and guidance documents.
As above under the Children sub-head, the Radio and TV Act 2010:696 (EN) prohibits appeal to children ('Advertising ……may not aim to capture the attention of children under the age of twelve’), and sets out other rules on advertising, sponsorship and product placement in broadcasting, in line with the AVMS Directive 2010/13/EU. Directive 2018/1808 extends the scope of the AVMSD to e.g. video-sharing platforms; the Swedish transposition 2020:875 of this is here. Consent and information rules in the use of cookies and electronic communications is regulated by Sections 19-21 of the Marketing Act (EN) and the Electronic Communications Act ECA - law No. 2003:389 (EN), implementing the e-Privacy Directive 2002/58/EC. See How to be Cookie-compliant in Sweden from Bird&Bird November 17, 2023. The Act on Electronic Commerce 2002:562 (SW) implemented the e-Commerce Directive 2000/31/EC, which requires that ‘Information Society services’ provide certain information - details in our channel section C, or see the linked document. The Swedish Consumer Agency publish a number of advertising guidelines, the most significant of which in this context is their Guidance on Marketing In Social Media (SW / EN), also linked earlier. Details in channel section C with other rules on, for example, native advertising and marketers' own websites.
GDPR
Privacy issues should be reviewed with specialist advisors
Q&A: protecting privacy and confidentiality in Sweden (EN)
Advokatfirman Delphi. June 10, 2024 (exc data protection legislation)
Privacy Sandbox news and updates
1.1 Million Euro fine for Profiling. Härting Rechtsanwälte/ Lex July 4, 2023
The General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 (GDPR) applied directly in all EU member states from 25 May 2018, replacing the Data Protection Directive 95/46/EC. The European Commission page on GDPR is here. The GDPR is accompanied by Directive 2016/680, which is largely concerned with supervising procedures, and should have been transposed into member states’ legislation by 6 May 2018. Nationally, the former Personal Data Act 1998:204 is repealed, and replaced by Law 2018:218 (SW), which ’complements’ the GDPR with some supplementary provisions. Personal data processing issues occur across multiple channels, and in each case lawful processing rules from the GDPR may apply. The Swedish Authority for Privacy Protection is Integritetsskyddsmyndigheten (IMY); the article linked above suggests some flexing of muscles. See our section C for more information on rules by channel.
GENERAL RULES
1.1. The ICC Code of Advertising and Marketing Communication Practice (ICC Code)
2.1. Chapter D, ICC Code of Advertising and Marketing Communication Practice
2.2. ICC framework for responsible environmental marketing communications
2.3. Guidance from the Swedish Consumer Agency
2.4. Nordic Ombudsmen Guidance
2.5. European Commission Guidance
3.1. Marketing Act 2008:486 Sections 10 and 12
3.2. The Price Information Act
3.3. Section 2, Swedish Consumer Agency’s regulations on price information
3.4. The Competition Act (2008:579)
3.5. The ICC Code of Advertising and Marketing Communication Practice
1. GENERAL RULES
Key extracts from the ICC Code (EN) that applies in Sweden to all product categories are below
Basic Principles (Art. 1)
Social responsibility (Art. 2)
Decency (Art. 3)
Honesty (Art. 4)
Truthfulness (Art. 5)
Substantiation (Art. 6)
Identification and transparency (Art. 7)
Identity of the Marketer (Art. 8)
Comparisons (Art. 11)
Denigration (Art. 12)
Testimonials (Art.13)
Portrayal or imitation of persons and references to personal property (Art.14)
Exploitation of goodwill (Art.15)
Imitation (Art. 16)
Other main articles from the General Provisions of the Code are:
9. Use of technical/ scientific data and terminology
10. Use of free and guarantee
17. Safety and Health
18. Children and young people
19. Data protection and privacy
20. Transparency on cost of communication
21. Unsolicited products and undisclosed costs
22. Environmental behaviour
Chapters from the Code are:
Chapter A: Sales Promotion
Chapter B: Sponsorship
Chapter C: Direct Marketing and Digital Marketing Communications
Chapter D: Environmental Claims in Marketing Communications
Where the rules are channel-related, they are shown in our following Channel Section C
The translation above does not include amends to the Marketing Act brought about by the transposition of Directive 2019/2161, delivered in a government bill here under article 2.4. The key clauses, which relate to the integrity of consumer reviews and the criteria for search rankings, do not directly impact ad content, except for new pricing provisions (2.2. in the bill) which are shown below under point 3, or in this article extracted from the Directive
Misleadingness
Section 10 of the act, which is the seminal piece of marketing/ advertising legislation in Sweden, transposing the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive 2005/29/EC, covers misleading marketing as follows:
Invitation to purchase
Finally in this coverage of general rules, if your advertising or ‘commercial communication’ constitutes an ‘invitation to purchase’ Definition ‘Indicating characteristics of the product and the price in a way appropriate to the means of the commercial communication used and thereby enables the consumer to make a purchase’ Art. 2 (1) UCP Directive certain material information must be included, as transposed in the Marketing Act Section 12:
The environment is a particularly sensitive issue in Sweden, and there are a good number of guidances and frameworks that are influential. The key rules in this context, however, are those from Chapter D of the ICC Code applicable in Sweden, and its connected ‘Framework’ (November 2021; EN). Extracts from Chapter D are below; the revised framework is a significant addition to the regulatory line-up. Appendix I carries an Environmental Claims Checklist 'that marketers may find useful in evaluating their environmental claims.' It's in Swedish here.
2.1. Chapter D, ICC Advertising and Marketing Communications Code
Scope
This chapter applies to all marketing communications containing environmental claims, i.e. any claim in which explicit or implicit reference is made to environmental or ecological aspects relating to the production, packaging, distribution, use/consumption or disposal of products. Environmental claims can be made in any medium, including labelling, package inserts, promotional and point-of-sales materials, product literature as well as via telephone or digital or electronic media such as e-mail and the internet. All are covered by this chapter. The chapter draws from national and international guidance, including, but not limited to, certain provisions of the International Standard ISO 14021 on ‘Self-declared environmental claims,’ relevant to the marketing communication context, rather than technical prescriptions. Definitions of terms are not spelt out here but available here
D1 Honest and truthful presentation
D2 Scientific research
D3 Superiority and comparative claims
D4 Product life-cycle, components and elements
D5 Signs and symbols
D6 Waste handling
D7 Responsibility
2.2. ICC Framework for Responsible Environmental Marketing Communications
http://www.g-regs.com/downloads/iccenvironmentalframework_2021.pdf
2.4. Nordic Ombudsmen guidance
Guidance of the Nordic Consumer Ombudsmen; use of ethical and environmental-related claims in marketing in Swedish here:
And translated here:
http://www.g-regs.com/downloads/SWGenNordicOmbudsmenEnvironmental_.pdf
This is a fairly lengthy document so it has not been set out below. It provides some useful guidance and references if you are uncertain about what you can and can’t do when making environmental claims or statements, though the territory it covers is based on the ICC Code and the Marketing Act. The Guidance makes the point as follows:
2.5. European Commission/ MDEC guidance
Definitive Commission guidance is from Section 4.1.1. Environmental claims from the December 2021 Commission Guidance on application of the UCPD
Developments at a European level are that Directive 2019/2161 amends to the Product Pricing Directive 98/6/EC are in the form of a new article 6a that provides rules for price reduction announcements, including those in advertising. Transpositions in Sweden are in the March 2022 government bill here (SW) under article 2.2, entry into force July 1. Commission guidance (from 2021) on the application of article 6a is here
Generic pricing rules applicable to all advertising:
3.1 Marketing Act 2008:486 Sections 10 and 12 of the Act
5. Making an invitation to purchase products at a specified price without disclosing the existence of any reasonable grounds the trader may have for believing that he will not be able to offer for supply or to procure another trader to supply, those products or equivalent products at that price for a period that is, and in quantities that are, reasonable having regard to the product, the scale of advertising of the product and the price offered ('bait advertising')
6. Making an invitation to purchase products at a specified price and then: (a) refusing to show the advertised item to consumers; or (b) refusing to take orders for it or deliver it within a reasonable time; or (c) demonstrating a defective sample of it, with the intention of promoting a different product ('bait and switch')
3. 2. The Price Information Act
English translation here; provisions require the trader to provide accurate and clear pricing information on products; in particular sections 7-10 must be observed when marketing a product with a stated price, as referenced in Section 12 (2) Marketing Act
3. 3 Section 2, Swedish Consumer Agency’s regulations on price information KOVFS 2012:1(SW). Guidance here (SW)
When a given product is marketed with a quoted price, the price information should be provided pursuant to §§ 7-10 Price Information Act 2004:347
3.4. The Competition Act (2008:579)
in the context of Anti-competitive cooperation between companies; agreements between undertakings shall be prohibited that directly or indirectly fix purchase or selling prices or any other trading conditions (Art. 1). Unofficial English translation of the act here
Article 10 (Sect. I of the Code) Use of ‘Free’ and ‘Guarantee: The term “free”, e.g. “free gift” or “free offer”, should be used only:
Where free trial, free subscription and similar offers convert to paid transactions at the end of the free period, the terms and conditions of the paid conversion should be clearly, prominently and unambiguously disclosed before the consumer accepts the offer. Likewise, where a product is to be returned by the consumer at the end of the free period it should be made clear at the outset who will bear the cost for that. The procedure for returning the product should be as simple as possible, and any time limit should be clearly disclosed. See also Article C12 Right of withdrawal.
Marketing communications should not state or imply that a “guarantee”, “warranty” or other expression having substantially the same meaning, offers the consumer rights additional to those provided by law when it does not. The terms of any guarantee or warranty, including the name and address of the guarantor, should be easily available to the consumer and limitations on consumer rights or remedies, where permitted by law, should be clear and conspicuous
Sales Promotions article A2
Direct marketing article C14. Prices and credit terms
Any information needed by the consumer to understand the cost, interest and terms of any other form of credit should be provided, either in the offer or when the credit is offered
Whether payment for the offer is on an immediate sale or instalment basis, the price and terms of payment should be clearly stated in the offer, together with the nature of any additional charges (such as postage, handling, taxes, etc.) and, whenever possible, the amount of such charges
In the case of sales by instalment, the credit terms, including the amount of any deposit or payment on account, the number, amount and periodicity of such instalments and the total price compared with the immediate selling price, if any, should be clearly shown in the offer
Unless the duration of the offer and the price are clearly stated in the offer, prices should be maintained for a reasonable period of time
Gender portrayal in Sweden is subject to special criteria. The ICC Code article 4 (‘Marketing communications should respect human dignity and should not incite or condone any form of discrimination, including that based upon ethnic or national origin, religion, gender, age, disability or sexual orientation’) is supplemented by Ro with further criteria on three topics (original Swedish here):
Day-to-day application of the rules, in this case reviewing complaints, is by RO, per the normal self-regulatory process. Ro adjudicate in two ways:
As this data is concerned with General versus sector rules, we do not set out individual cases, as there is too much ground to cover. Note, however, that there is particular sensitivity towards, and a strong lobby presence around, gender portrayal in Swedish advertising. The link below shows an example adjudication (in this case not upheld; the link is to a Swedish language website, there's a translation facility on the website which will provide the gist):
http://reklamombudsmannen.org/eng/uttalande/dominos-pizza
But in this ‘Suit Supply’ case upheld; ad here
There is an additional procedure in Sweden: if the case arouses the interest of the Swedish Consumer Agency, adjudication is via the Patent and Market Courts. For some perspective, here are The Market Court's decisions from 2000 to 31 August 2016; these are in Swedish, but there is a translation facility on the site, which should provide the gist of the decisions
STANDARD RULES
The Radio and TV Act linked above is the GRS translation of the unamended act. Directive 2018/1808, which amends the AVMS Directive to extend its scope into e.g. video-sharing platforms; extract from recital 3: 'Channels or any other audiovisual services under the editorial responsibility of a provider can constitute audiovisual media services in themselves, even if they are offered on a video-sharing platform which is characterised by the absence of editorial responsibility. In such cases, it will fall to the providers with editorial responsibility to comply with Directive 2010/13/EU'. The Radio and TV Act has been duly amended and is in Swedish here. Commercial content rules are essentially unchanged; what's changed is where they are applied
PRODUCT PLACEMENT (Ch. 6 RTVA)
SPONSORSHIP (Ch. 7 RTVA)
RADIO (Ch. 15)
Sponsorship on Radio
CINEMA
Press, magazines, promotional literature, e.g. leaflets, brochures, etc.
OUTDOOR
The international association for OOH advertising is the World Out Of Home organisation (WOO); membership here
.........................................................
CONTEXT
This section sets out the rules for the commercial online environment. Below this, specific channels such as email, marketers’ own websites, and OBA are covered. As the boundaries online can be less clear, and as space online is often advertiser-owned, the identification of what is advertising is significant, as advertising is subject to the rules in Owned and (some) Earned space as well as Paid. The definition of advertising is therefore important: ‘any communications produced directly by or on behalf of marketers intended primarily to promote products or to influence consumer behaviour’ Is from the applicable ICC Advertising and Marketing Communications Code (EN 2018, 2024 code here)
KEY RULES
SOCIAL MEDIA
The EASA Best Practice Recommendation on Influencer Marketing 2023 is not binding, but it is helpful guidance on how European regulators should approach this rapidly developing marketing technique
E-COMMERCE
Q&A: protecting privacy & confidentiality (EN)
Advokatfirman Delphi June 30, 2023
Privacy issues should be reviewed with specialist advisors
European Union: Targeted advertising on social networks: Is consent mandatory? (EN)
Haas Avocats 19 September 2023
CJEU Landmark Data Protection Ruling for Online and Behavioural Advertising
William Fry/ Lex September 8, 2023
Privacy rules for targeted advertising in the UK and EU. Reed Smith/ Lex August 2023
From the ICC Code (2018, 2024 code here) Chapter C, Direct Marketing and Digital Marketing Communications, article C22 provisions for OBA; extracts only
https://www.g-regs.com/downloads/ICCCode2018OBAbrefFN9.pdf
Application of notice and choice provisions
C22.1 Notice
C22.2 User control
C22.6 Children
Segments specifically designed to target children for IBA purposes should not be created
STANDARD RULES
The self-regulatory code on the basis of which RO make rulings is the ICC Advertising and Marketing Communications Code (EN 2018, 2024 code here), which applies to commercial communications online
LEGISLATION
1. The natural person has not objected to the use of the electronic address for the purpose of marketing via electronic mail
2. The marketing relates to the trader’s own similar products and
3. The natural person is clearly and explicitly given the opportunity to object, simply and without charge, to the use of such details for marketing purposes, when they are collected and in conjunction with each subsequent marketing communication.’
The above ‘soft opt-in’ does not apply to SMS/MMS
The 'Blacklist'
Invitation to Purchase
Defined in UCPD 2005/29/EC as ‘a commercial communication that indicates characteristics of the product and the price in a way appropriate to the means of the commercial communication used and thereby enables the consumer to make a purchase.’ From Section 12 of the Marketing Act (Implementing UCPD):
1. The product’s distinguishing characteristics to the extent appropriate to the media and product
2. Price and unit price stated as stipulated in Sections 7-10 of the Price Information Act (2004:347)
3. The identity and geographical address of the trader
4. Terms and conditions of payment, delivery, performance and processing of complaints if these deviate from normal practice in the industry or for the product in question
5. Information concerning the right of withdrawal or the right to cancel a purchase, which must be supplied to the consumer by law
SELF-REGULATION: ICC Code (EN 2018, 2024 code here)
From Chapter C, Direct Marketing and Digital Marketing Communications, key extracts only; the full set of articles from the chapter is here
Article C1. Identification and transparency
Article C4. Presentation
Article C8. Respecting consumer wishes
National
The Self-Regulatory Organisation RO apply the ICC Advertising and Marketing Communication Code in Sweden, as above. From a more local source, The Swedish Direct Marketing Association (SWEDMA) publishes a series of Codes for different aspects of Direct Marketing
CONTEXT
The same principle that applies in paid space also applies in non-paid such as marketers’ own websites and SNS spaces: if the communication from the owner is advertising, it’s covered. Advertising is defined by the ICC Code (EN 2018, 2024 code here), which is applicable as the general advertising code in Sweden, as ‘any communications produced directly by or on behalf of marketers intended primarily to promote products or to influence consumer behaviour.’ This section also includes commentary/ guidance on social media and blogging/ influencers specifically, as well as some e-Commerce rules. See our earlier section A Overview for recent case law relating to Influencers and identification
STANDARD RULES
e-COMMERCE
From the Law 2002: 562 (SW) on electronic commerce and other information society services which implemented Directive 2000/31/EC, the e-Commerce Directive. Key requirements in an e-commerce context here (EN)
We have been unable to trace where the additional clauses from the directive in the linked document (under 'here' above) are specifically implemented in Swedish law. RO advise us that they are ‘covered’ under Sections 12 Material information and 10 Misleading omission respectively of the Marketing Act. The linked MA document is a translation, within which the links to the original MA in Swedish are volatile. This worked at the time of writing
SOCIAL MEDIA/ BLOGS
Nordic Consumer Ombudsmen guidance
The Nordic Consumer Ombudsmen's position on marketing via social media; in Swedish. Translated here
The Nordic Consumer agency’s position on covert marketing; in Swedish. Translated here
LEGISLATION AND SELF-REGULATION: IDENTIFICATION
Section 9 of The Marketing Act:
Article 7 of the ICC Code (EN 2018, 2024 code here). Identification and transparency
Article 8. Identity of the marketer
Swedish Advertisers' Guide to Successful Influencer Marketing; January 2019
The document sets out a checklist of how to work with Influencers. It includes some guidance on the regulatory issues; key clause in this context is the first bullet point:
CONTEXT
Native advertising is online and offline advertising designed to fit in with its ‘habitat’, to give consumers a visually consistent experience. The key issue is obviously that of advertising Identifiability, covered extensively in self-regulation and legislation set out below
Article 7 of the ICC Code (2018). Identification and transparency
Article 8. Identity of the Marketer
The ICC’s Guidance on Native Advertising includes:
1. Consumers should be able to recognise when something is an ad. This principle is covered in Articles 9 (of the main ICC Code; article shown above), B1, and D1 as follows:
Article B1 (in part): Sponsorship should be recognisable as such. Article D1 (in part): The commercial nature of product endorsements or reviews created by marketers should be clearly indicated and not be listed as being from an individual consumer or independent body.
2. The identity of the advertiser should be easily ascertainable. This principle is covered by Articles 10 (of the main ICC Code; article shown above) and 12, as follows: Article B12: Media Sponsorship (in part): Sponsored media properties should be identified as such by presentation of the sponsor’s name and/ or logo at the beginning, during and/ or at the end of the programme or publication content. This also applies to online material.
3. Disclosures should be prominent and understandable to consumers. This principle is covered in section 3 as follows: Article 3: Honesty: Marketing communications should be so framed as not to abuse the trust of consumers or exploit their lack of experience or knowledge. Relevant factors likely to affect consumers’ decisions should be communicated in such a way and at such a time that consumers can take them into account
LEGISLATION
OTHER GUIDANCE
RULING
One of Sweden’s major newspapers teamed up with a telecom operator who finances a particular section of the newspaper under the title ‘The Digital Life’. This section and all of its material, including promotions of products which the telecom operator was about to launch, appear as the newspaper’s editorial content; the only disclosure of the commercial nature of the presented material is the discrete appearance of the text ‘in collaboration with’ followed by the telecom operator's trademark. The Swedish Consumer Agency assessed that the practice was in breach of Point 11 of Annex I UCPD. Case reference: Ärenden 2016/53 and 2015/1000:
http://diabasweb.kov.se/arenlist.asp
................................................................
Following feedback, we no longer cover Telemarketing
OVERVIEW
LEGISLATION
Invitation to purchase
Defined in EU legislation UCPD 2005/29/EC as ‘a commercial communication that indicates characteristics of the product and the price in a way appropriate to the means of the commercial communication used and thereby enables the consumer to make a purchase.’ DM can include this kind of advertising, hence the rules below. From Section 12 of the Marketing Act, which implements the UCPD, among others:
1. The product’s distinguishing characteristics to the extent appropriate to the media and product
2. Price and unit price stated as stipulated in Sections 7-10 of the Price Information Act (2004:347)
3. The identity and geographical address of the trader
4. Terms and conditions of payment, delivery, performance and processing of complaints if these deviate from normal practice in the industry or for the product in question
5. Information concerning the right of withdrawal or the right to cancel a purchase, which must be supplied to the consumer by law
SELF-REGULATION
The ICC Code
Rules applicable to 'Direct Marketing and Digital Marketing Communications' (scope includes non-digital) from Chapter C of the ICC Advertising and Marketing Communications Code (EN 2018; 2024 code here) are here. Key extracts (there are 22 articles in 2018 Chapter C) are:
Article C1. Identification and transparency
Article C4. Presentation
Article C8. Respecting consumer wishes
SWEDMA
The Swedish Direct Marketing Association is a well-established and respected trade association, publishing a number of codes that reflect accurately relevant legislation. Some of those codes can be found here (SW)
Ambush marketing: the European summer of sport
Taylor Wessing May 16, 2024
GUIDE: The Olympic Games 2024 - Beating around le ambush
Lewis Silkin 25 January, 2024 (EN)
...................................................
The European Sponsorship Association (ESA) may also be able to help/ inform
CONTEXT
This website was created to provide international rules on marketing communications; it does not claim authority on specific Sales Promotions (SP) regulation, especially retail legislation. However, in the course of extensive research in marketing, relevant rules will be included. National self-regulatory codes and consumer protection legislation, for example, are checked for any provisions that affect SP and included below
LEGISLATION
Pricing is obviously relevant to Sales Promotions. In March 2022, in force July 1,the Swedish government published a bill here (SW) transposing the 'Omnibus Directive' 2019/2161, which inter alia amended the Product Price Directive. Provisions from that include new promotional pricing rules, set out in the article extracted from the Directive here and transposed under article 2.2 of the Swedish bill
MORE LEGISLATION
The e-Commerce Directive 2000/31/EC is part-implemented in Sweden by the Law 2002: 562 (SW) on electronic commerce and other information society services
The directive carries two additional requirements, not shown in the Swedish law linked above and not explicit in the Marketing Act, under article 6 of the directive:
C) Promotional offers, such as discounts, premiums and gifts, where permitted in the Member State where the service provider is established, shall be clearly identifiable as such, and the conditions which are to be met to qualify for them shall be easily accessible and be presented clearly and unambiguously
D) Promotional competitions or games, where permitted in the member state where the service provider is established, shall be clearly identifiable as such, and the conditions for participation shall be easily accessible and be presented clearly and unambiguously
We have been unable to trace where these clauses are specifically implemented in Swedish law. RO advise us that they are ‘covered’ under sections 12 (Material information) and 10 (Misleading omission) respectively of the Marketing Act (EN). The Information requirements under the self-regulatory ICC Code Chapter A below are more specific:
SELF-REGULATION
From Chapter A, Sales Promotion, of the ICC Advertising and Marketing Communications Code (EN 2018; 2024 code here). Extracts (from the 2018 code):
In particular:
Information should include, where relevant:
Promotions claiming to support a charitable cause should not exaggerate the contribution derived from the campaign; before purchasing the promoted product consumers should be informed of how much of the price will be set aside for the cause
The remaining articles are
The Advertising Ombudsman can be reached via e-mail ro@reklamombudsmannen.org; their website in English can be found at http://www.reklamombudsmannen.org/eng/
Specific copy advice is recently available in Sweden. RO does not pre-clear
Direct to broadcaster
Allow 3-5 days TV/VOD
For help contact the Traffic Bureau administration@trafficbureau.net
GDPR
Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of The European Parliament and of The Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation). The GDPR came into force May 25 2018. The GDPR is accompanied by Directive 2016/680, which is largely concerned with supervising procedures, and which should have been transposed into member states’ legislation by 6th May 2018.
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2016/679/oj
European Data Protection Authority
Article 29 Working Party/ EDPB
The Article 29 Working Party was established under article 29 (hence the name) of Directive 95/46/EC, the Personal Data Protection Directive. The arrival of the GDPR heralded the demise/ re-working of A29WP, and its replacement by the European Data Protection Board:
All documents from the former Article 29 Working Party remain available on this newsroom
Article 29 Working Party archives from 1997 to November 2016:
http://ec.europa.eu/justice/article-29/documentation/index_en.htm.
Five more recent, significant documents:
Opinion 5/2019 on the interplay between the ePrivacy Directive and the GDPR. Adopted on 12 March 2019
Commercial practices: UCPD
Directive 2005/29/EC of The European Parliament and of The Council of 11 May 2005 concerning unfair business-to-consumer commercial practices in the internal market and amending Council Directive 84/450/EEC, Directives 97/7/EC, 98/27/EC and 2002/65/EC and Regulation (EC) No. 2006/2004 (the ‘Unfair Commercial Practices Directive’ UCPD). This is the legislation that most impacts marketing and advertising in Europe and whose origins form the foundations of Self-Regulatory regimes. The core provisions relate to unfair commercial practices, defined as ‘likely to materially distort the economic behaviour with regard to the product of the average consumer.’ In turn, unfair commercial practices are those that:
Annex I (known as ‘the blacklist’) contains the list of those commercial practices which ‘shall in all circumstances be regarded as unfair’. These are the only commercial practices which can be deemed to be unfair without a case-by-case test (i.e. assessing the likely impact of the practice on the average consumer's economic behaviour). The list includes e.g. encouragement to children to ‘pester’ (28), clear identification of commercial source in advertorial (11) and making ‘persistent and unwanted solicitations’ (26). The UCPD includes several provisions on promotional practices e.g. Article 6 (d) on the existence of a specific price advantage, Annex I point 5 on bait advertising, point 7 on special offers, points 19 and 31 on competitions and prize promotion, and point 20 on free offers. Some amendments to Directive 2005/29/EC are provided in Directive 2019/2161 linked below; these are supposed to be transposed by November 2021 and in force in member states by May 2022.
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2005/29/oj
Guidance: On 17 December 2021, the European Commission adopted Commission Notice on the interpretation and application of the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (‘the UCPD Guidance’), updating the 2016 version.
The Omnibus Directive
Directive (EU) 2019/2161 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019 amending Council Directive 93/13/EEC and Directives 98/6/EC, 2005/29/EC and 2011/83/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards the better enforcement and modernisation of Union consumer protection rules. This directive, which 'aims to strengthen consumer rights through enhanced enforcement measures and increased transparency requirements', sets out some new information requirements related to search rankings and consumer reviews under the UCPD 2005/29/EC and pricing information under Directive 2011/83/EU in the context of automated decision-making and profiling of consumer behaviour, and price reduction information under the Product Pricing Directive 98/6/EC. More directly related to this database, and potentially significant for multinational advertisers, is the clause that amends article 6 (misleading actions) of the UCPD adding ‘(c) any marketing of a good, in one Member State, as being identical to a good marketed in other Member States, while that good has significantly different composition or characteristics, unless justified by legitimate and objective factors’. Recitals related to this clause, which provide some context, are here. Helpful explanatory piece on the Omnibus Directive 2019/2161 from A&L Goodbody via Lexology here. Provisions are supposed to be transposed by November 2021 and in force in member states by May 2022.
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2019/2161/oj
Pricing
Directive 98/6/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 1998 on consumer protection in the indication of the prices of products offered to consumers. The purpose of this Directive is to stipulate indication of the selling price and the price per unit of measurement of products offered by traders to consumers in order to improve consumer information and to facilitate comparison of prices (Article 1). For the purposes of this Directive, selling price shall mean the final price for a unit of the product, or a given quantity of the product, including VAT and all other taxes (Article 2a). While this legislation seems prima facie most suited to ‘goods on shelves’ as it requires unit prices (the final price, including VAT and all other taxes, for one kilogramme, one litre, one metre, one square metre or one cubic metre of the product), the Directive was used as the basis for a significant ECJ judgement on car pricing in advertising. Some amendments to Directive 98/6/EC related to price reduction information are provided in Directive 2019/2161 linked above; these are supposed to be transposed by November 2021 and in force in member states by May 28, 2022. The article concerned, 6a, is extracted here. Commission guidance on its application is below this entry.
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2019/2161/oj
Commission notice: Guidance on the interpretation and application of Article 6a of Directive 98/6/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on consumer protection in the indication of the prices of products offered to consumers:
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52021XC1229(06)&from=EN
Comparative advertising
Directive 2006/114/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 concerning misleading and comparative advertising. Article 4 of the MCAD provides that comparative advertising is permitted when eight conditions are met. The most significant of those for our purposes are a) it is not misleading within the meaning of Articles 2 (b), 3 and 8 (1) of this Directive or articles 6 and 7 of Directive 2005/29/EC (see above) and b) it compares goods or services meeting the same needs or intended for the same purpose. There are other significant conditions related to denigration of trademarks and designation of origin, imitation and the creation of confusion. Codified version:
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex%3A32006L0114
Audiovisual media
Directive 2010/13/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 March 2010 on the coordination of certain provisions laid down by law, regulation or administrative action in Member States concerning the provision of audiovisual media services: the Audiovisual Media Services Directive, or AVMSD. This is the codified version of the much-amended Directive 89/552/EEC and represents the core European broadcast legislation, providing significant structural and content rules, applied largely consistently across member states. From a marcoms perspective, the core articles are 9 (Discrimination, safety, the environment, minors and some prohibitions), 10 (Sponsorship), 11 (Product Placement) and 22 (Alcoholic beverages rules).
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=CELEX%3A32010L0013
AVMSD amendment
Directive (EU) 2018/1808 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 November 2018 amending Directive 2010/13/EU on the coordination of certain provisions laid down by law, regulation or administrative action in Member States concerning the provision of audiovisual media services (Audiovisual Media Services Directive) in view of changing market realities. The background to this significant development of the AVMSD is here. In broad terms, the Directive addresses the changes in media consumption in recent years and pays particular attention to the protection of minors in that context, extending rules to e.g. shared content on SNS. There are ‘strengthened provisions to protect children from inappropriate audiovisual commercial communications for foods high in fat, salt and sodium and sugars, including by encouraging codes of conduct at EU level, where necessary’. See article 4a. Rules for alcoholic beverages are extended to on-demand audiovisual media services, but those provisions (social/ sexual success etc.) are not amended.
Article 28b addresses video- sharing platform providers (VSPS), containing requirements to prevent violent, criminal, or otherwise offensive material and bringing the 'general' AV commercial communication rules such as those for the environment, human dignity. discrimination, minors etc. into these platforms. VSPS must also provide a functionality for users who upload user-generated videos to declare whether they contain commercial communications as far as they know or can be reasonably expected to know; VSPS must accordingly inform users. There has been some debate as to whether vloggers/ influencers are in scope, i.e. they or their output constitute an audiovisual media service. Definitive opinion/ recommendation is from the European Regulators Group for Audiovisual Media Services (ERGA) paper 'Analysis and recommendations concerning the regulation of vloggers.' The annex of the paper contains national examples. The Directive entered into force 18th December 2018; member states are required to have transposed into national law by 19th September 2020.
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2018/1808/oj
e-Privacy
Directive 2002/58/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 July 2002 concerning the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy in the electronic communications sector (Directive on privacy and electronic communications, the ‘E-privacy Directive’). This Directive ‘provides for the harmonisation of the national provisions required to ensure an equivalent level of protection of fundamental rights and freedoms, and in particular the right to privacy and confidentiality, with respect to the processing of personal data in the electronic communication sector.’ The directive was amended by Directive 2009/136/EC; the ‘Cookie directive’, provisions found under article 5.3 of the E-Privacy Directive. Article 13 for Consent and ‘soft opt-in’ requirements
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2002/58
The ‘Cookie Directive’ 2009/136/EC amending Directive 2002/58/EC concerning the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy in the electronic communications sector. Article 2 provides amends to the E-privacy Directive above
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:32009L0136
e-Privacy Regulation draft (10 February 2021)
Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning the respect for private life and the protection of personal data in electronic communications and repealing Directive 2002/58/EC (Regulation on Privacy and Electronic Communications):
https://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-6087-2021-INIT/en/pdf
Statement on the ePrivacy Regulation and the future role of Supervisory Authorities and the EDPB. Adopted on 19 November 2020:
https://edpb.europa.eu/sites/default/files/files/file1/edpb_statement_20201119_eprivacy_regulation_en.pdf
February 2022 Clifford Chance/ Lex E-Privacy check-in: where we are, and where we're headed
March 2022 Härting Rechtsanwälte/ Lex ePrivacy Regulation: EU Council agrees on the draft
e-Commerce
Directive 2000/31/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2000 on certain legal aspects of information society services, in particular electronic commerce, in the Internal Market ('Directive on electronic commerce'). ‘information society services’ are defined as ‘any service normally provided for remuneration, at a distance, by electronic means and at the individual request of a recipient of services.’ Article 5 covers general information such as contact details from the ‘service provider’, which information should be made ‘easily, directly and permanently accessible to the recipients of the service’. The Directive also sets out under article 6 more specific information requirements for commercial communications which are part of, or constitute, an information society service. These include identifiability requirements and accessibility to conditions for promotions.
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=CELEX:32000L0031
The Digital Services Act
Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 October 2022 on a Single Market For Digital Services and amending Directive 2000/31/EC (Digital Services Act). European Commission pages on the DSA are here. Wikipedia entry is here. Helpful legal commentary, which also addresses the Digital Markets Act, is from DLA Piper/ Lex February 2023: Online advertising: A regulatory patchwork under construction. Key marcoms issues for advertisers/ platforms are the identification of advertising material and parameters used for its targeting and the prohibition of advertising based on profiling that uses using special data categories such as religious belief, health data sexual orientation etc. (art.26), or if the platform has reason to believe the recipient is a minor (art. 28). The Regulation applies from February 2024.
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex%3A32022R2065
The Digital Markets Act
Regulation (EU) 2022/1925 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 September 2022 on contestable and fair markets in the digital sector and amending Directives (EU) 2019/1937 and (EU) 2020/1828 (Digital Markets Act). European Commission pages are here; from those: 'Some large online platforms act as "gatekeepers" in digital markets. The Digital Markets Act aims to ensure that these platforms behave in a fair way online. Together with the Digital Services Act, the Digital Markets Act is one of the centrepieces of the European digital strategy.' Wikipedia entry is here. Article 2a prohibits the processing, for the purpose of providing online advertising services, personal data of end users using services of third parties that make use of core platform services of the gatekeeper, unless the end user has been presented with the specific choice and has given consent within the meaning of Article 4, point (11), and Article 7 of Regulation (EU) 2016/679. The Regulation entered into force on 1st November 2022 and applied on 2nd May, 2023. Gatekeepers will be identified and they will have to comply by 6th March 2024 at the latest.
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2022/1925
The Marketing Act
The Marketing Act SFS 2008:486 (Marknadsföringslagen - MFL); entry into force 01/07/2008. This act, highly influential in marketing/ advertising in Sweden, implements the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive 2005/29/EC and some provisions of the ePrivacy Directive, and aims to prevent marketing that is unfair to consumers and traders (Section 1). It incorporates rules from Misleading and Comparative Advertising Directive (MCAD) 84/450/EEC now codified in the form of 2006/114/EC, sets out general rules on commercial communications and ‘invitations to purchase’ and covers B2C and B2B relationships. Relevant sections are 9, 19, 20, 20a, 21 which incorporate provisions of Article 13 E-Privacy Directive (as amended by 2009/136/EC) concerning the use of unsolicited advertising via email. Consolidated text, including the amends referenced in the italicised para below introduced by 2022:656 and effective September 1, 2022:
English version of 2008:486 (not up to date; last updated 03/01/2011)
http://www.government.se/content/1/c6/05/03/14/6c7aa374.pdf
Updated, but not including amends related to the 2019/2161 Directive:
http://www.g-regs.com/downloads/SWMktingActTransupdate.pdf
In March 2022, the Swedish government published a bill 2021/22:174 linked here (SW) Ett moderniserat konsumentskydd (Modernised consumer protection) which established the transposition of the 'Omnibus' Directive 2019/2161. The Marketing Act is the recipient for the amends the Directive made to the UCPD which for our purposes were three, essentially: the requirement to make available search ranking criteria, that traders ensure that consumer reviews originate from consumers who have actually used or purchased the product and the prohibition of 'any marketing of a good, in one Member State, as being identical to a good marketed in other Member States, while that good has significantly different composition or characteristics, unless justified by legitimate and objective factors.’ (from the Directive). The government bill sets out these amends under article 2.4. with detail thereafter.
Price
The Price Information Act (SFS 2004:347 Prisinformationslag). This act requires that consumers be given accurate and clear pricing information on products. The Marketing Act states in Section 12 (2) that where a product is marketed with a stated price, the price and unit price must be expressed as stipulated in Articles 7-10 of the Price Information Act. This provision has been confirmed by the regulatory authority – the Swedish Consumer Agency – whose guidance on price information is in the form of Regulation KOVFS 2012:1 (Section 2). In March 2022, the Swedish government published a bill 2021/22:174 linked here (SW) Ett moderniserat konsumentskydd (Modernised consumer protection) which established the transposition of the 'Omnibus' Directive 2019/2161. That Directive amended the Product Price Directive 98/6/EC to introduce new promotional pricing rules in article 6a here which require that 'Any announcement of a price reduction shall indicate the prior price applied by the trader for a determined period of time prior to the application of the price reduction.' (from the Directive; extract only). The Price Information Act is amended accordingly, under article 2.2. of the government bill. The link below includes the amends under section 7a, in force September 1, 2022.
Unofficial, non-binding English translation here; does not include 2022 amends
TV and radio
Radio and Television Act (SFS 2010:696). This Act implements the Audiovisual Media Service (AVMS) Directive 2010/13/EU. It applies to Broadcasters established in Sweden (Sect. 3 (1)). Specific provisions are for product placement (Ch. 6), sponsorship (Ch. 7) and commercial communications (Ch. 8). Provisions for radio advertising are covered in Chapter 15; the Act also covers on-demand TV. Provisions exceed the AVMS Directive in as much as advertising ‘may not aim to appeal to children under the age of twelve’; programmes primarily aimed at children U12 may not be surrounded or interrupted by advertising (Ch. 7, 8 (3) & Ch. 6 (2)). Consolidated text (Swedish):
GRS translation of key provisions:
http://www.g-regs.com/downloads/SERadio_TVActTSc.pdf
This act was amended effective November 2020 by SFS 2020:875 in order to address the amends to the AVMSD by Directive 2018/1808 (see above, or the linked file). Amended act here in Swedish:
Broadcast authority
The Swedish Broadcasting Authority (Myndigheten för Radio och TV). Formed 1 Aug 2010 by merging the previous agencies the Broadcasting Commission and the Swedish Radio and TV Authority. The Authority make decisions regarding licenses, fees and registration for radio and television, as well as supervising radio and television broadcasts, on-demand services and teletext.
http://www.radioochtv.se/Tillstand-och-registrering/Regler-om-tillstand/
Data processing
Data Protection pre-GDPR (see above) was primarily the domain of the Personal Data Act 1998:204, which was repealed and replaced by the new Data Protection Act 2018:218 (SW). In force 25 May 2018. Lag (2018:218) med kompletterande bestämmelser till EU:s dataskyddsförordning. The Data Protection Authority Datainspektionen makes it clear that the new law complements GDPR but does not replace any of its aspects. The new law has not been translated; original Swedish here:
Data authority
National regulatory authority: Datainspektionen. The Data Protection Authority (DPA) is a public authority, a central government agency which reports to the Ministry of Justice. Its principal task is to protect the individual's privacy in the information society.
http://www.datainspektionen.se/ and in English:
http://www.datainspektionen.se/in-english/
..................................................
Electronic communications
The Electronic Communications Act 2003:389 (Lag om elektronisk kommunikation - LEK) Issue 12/06/2003. Entry into force 25/07/2003. The ECA applies to electronic communication services and networks, including internet and telecommunication services and networks. The Act implements the E-Privacy Directive 2002/58/EC; an amendment in the form of Act 2011:590, implemented the Citizens Rights Directive 2009/136/EC, also known as the Cookie Directive. Entry into force 01/07/2011 (transitional provisions). Section 18 transposes Article 5 (3) E-Privacy Directive, courtesy of 2009/136/EC amendment. Consolidated text:
e-Commerce
Act on electronic commerce and other information society services SFS 2002:562 (E-handelslagen) Issued 06/06/2002. Entry into force 01/07/2002. The law implements the Electronic Commerce Directive 2000/31/EC, laying down a minimum level of information required from Information Service providers. Relevant articles 8 and 9:
There’s a summary of requirements of the E-commerce act from the Swedish Consumer Agency here:
The Nordic Consumer Ombudsmen position on trade and marketing on the internet; October 2015 (SW):
Distance selling
Act 2005:59 on Distance and Off-Premises Contracts (Lag (2005:59) om distansavtal och avtal utanför affärslokaler). This law implements Directive 2002/65/EC concerning the distance marketing of consumer financial services. Amendment 2014:14 in part implements the Consumer Rights Directive 2011/83/EC by changing the name of the Act (Distance and Doorstep Sales Act) to its current title and replacing Chapter 2 (Distance contracts for goods and non-financial services) as well as repealing Chapters 4 (Doorstep Contracts) and 5 (Common Provisions).
Translation of relevant sections in Chapter 3 here:
http://www.g-regs.com/downloads/SWActDistandOPContracts.pdf
The Swedish Consumer Agency provides E-commerce guidance here:
https://www.konsumentverket.se/for-foretag/olika-saljkanaler/regler-nar-du-saljer-pa-internet/
A Government Agency which answers to the Ministry of Finance. Its Director-General is also the Consumer Ombudsman (Konsumentombudsmannen, KO). The Agency, along with others, is tasked with implementing the Government's consumer policy. It is responsible for reviewing marketing and advertising for whether it is misleading or unfair. Consumer law is from the Consumer Agency’s Statute Book Konsumentverkets författningssamling KOVFS. The KOVFS consists of regulations and general guidelines; the regulations are binding whilst the guidelines only guide. The Agency can take those to court who do not meet requirements, and can take measures against misleading advertising and other forms of marketing; unfair contract terms; incorrect price information; dangerous products and services etc.:
http://www.konsumentverket.se/
Children
The Swedish Consumer Agency’s Guidance on marketing aimed at children and young people. A document with the original Swedish together with an English translation is here:
http://www.g-regs.com/downloads/SWChConsAgGuidelinesChildren.pdf
The original Swedish document is here:
Social Media/ Infuencers
The Swedish Consumer Agency Guidelines on marketing in social media:
http://www.g-regs.com/downloads/SWConsAgencySocMediaGuidelines2020.pdf
Environmental claims
Guidance of the Nordic Consumer Ombudsmen, of which the Swedish Consumer Agency is a member; use of ethical and environmental-related claims in marketing. In Swedish here:
And translated here:
http://www.g-regs.com/downloads/SWGenNordicOmbudsmenEnvironmental_.pdf
Covert marketing
From the introduction: ‘It is important that consumers are not exposed to hidden marketing. Therefore, this is an area that is strongly prioritised by the Nordic Consumer Ombudsmen. Over the next few years, the Nordic Consumer Ombudsmen will share experiences and discuss developments in this area at Consumer Ombudsmen meetings that take place every six months. This position, which expresses the Nordic Consumer Ombudsmen's opinion of advertising identification rules, has been developed to inform companies about how to act in order not to contravene the ban on hidden advertising’. Translation from the Finnish website here:
Translation showing the original Swedish document together with an English translation:
http://www.g-regs.com/downloads/SWGenNordicHiddenMarketingB.pdf
Social media
The Nordic Consumer Ombudsmen's position on marketing through social media. From the Introduction: ‘The position is technology neutral and applies regardless of how the social media is made available. When business people are marketing through social media, the general marketing rules should be followed. The following sections deal with the rules that traders should be especially aware of when marketing through social media.’in Swedish:
Translated here:
http://www.g-regs.com/downloads/SWGenNordicOmbudsmenSocialMedia.pdf
Environment
From the introduction: ‘In recent years, focus has been directed towards additional societal considerations and values, as well as those environmental impacts associated with production, sales and marketing. Environmental issues can take in child labour, working environment, the relationship between rich and poor countries, support for charity purposes etc. The Nordic Consumer Ombudsmen have therefore considered that there is a need for new guidance about environmental issues in marketing, which includes ethical claims or statements such as those used in the marketing of companies or products.’ Translation including the original Swedish:
http://www.g-regs.com/downloads/SWGenNordicOmbudsmenEnvironmental_.pdf
e-Commerce
The position of the Nordic Consumer Ombudsmen on trading and marketing on the Internet; October 2015. This document has not yet been translated:
Industry guidance and codes: RO
The Self-Regulatory Organisation in Sweden is Reklamombudsmannen (RO). From RO: ‘The main task of RO is to review commercial advertising and make sure advertising standards are kept high by Self-Regulating the industry. RO also inform and educate the public, the industry and the authorities about marketing ethics. RO uses the guidance of the Advertising and Marketing Communications Code from the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC Code) when assessing advertising'. Specific copy advice is available; RO does not pre-clear advertising. Individuals, companies and other organisations may file a complaint against commercial advertising that might be in breach. RO and their Jury/ Opinion Board (RON) review the advertising against the Code. Only commercial advertising aimed at the Swedish market can be assessed and not older than six months. Decisions are published on the RO website (English translation facility), as well as in newsletters and press releases, many of which receive significant attention. The 2018 ICC Code in Swedish is here:
https://iccwbo.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/06/2019-Marketing-Code_Swe-Final.pdf
ICC
ICC Advertising and Marketing Communications Code 2018 (EN):
ICC Advertising and Marketing Communications Code 2024 (EN):
https://iccwbo.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/09/ICC_2024_MarketingCode_2024.pdf
General Principles
Chapter A. Sales Promotion
Chapter B. Sponsorship
Chapter C. Direct Marketing and Digital Marketing Communications
Chapter D. Environmental Claims in Marketing Communications
Additional ICC guidance and frameworks
(non-exhaustive)
The ICC Framework for Responsible Environmental Marketing Communications 2021. 'The updated 2021 Environmental Framework provides added guidance on some established environmental claims and additional guidance on some emerging claims' and 'a summary of the principles of the ICC Code including those outlined in Chapter D on environmental claims and supplements them with additional commentary and guidance to aid practitioners in applying the principles to environmental advertising.' Appendix I carries an Environmental Claims Checklist 'that marketers may find useful in evaluating their environmental claims.'
http://www.g-regs.com/downloads/iccenvironmentalframework_2021.pdf
In Swedish:
ICC Resource Guide for Self-Regulation of Online Behavioural Advertising: It’s a ‘Resource Guide’, rather than rules per se, showing: explanation of global framework available for OBA self-regulation, checklist from existing OBA self-regulatory mechanisms on how to implement the global principles and links to further resources. The ICC's OBA rules are under C22 of their General Code; we have extracted the rules here
Mobile Supplement to the ICC Resource Guide for Self-Regulation of Interest-based Advertising
ICC Guide for Responsible Mobile Marketing Communications
The ICC’s Guidance on Native Advertising
https://iccwbo.org/news-publications/policies-reports/icc-guidance-on-native-advertising/
EASA
European Advertising Standards Alliance. ‘EASA has a network of forty-one organisations representing twenty-seven advertising standards bodies (aka Self-Regulatory Organisations) from Europe and 14 organisations representing the advertising ecosystem (the advertisers, agencies and the media). EASA's role is to set out high operational standards for advertising self-regulatory systems, as set out in the Best Practice Model and EASA's Charter.’
Membership
http://www.easa-alliance.org/members
EASA’s Best Practice recommendations
Digital Marketing Communications (2023)
Online Behavioural Advertising (2021)
Influencer Marketing (2023)
Swedish Advertisers’ Association
https://www.annons.se/swedish-association-for-marketing-and-advertising
This advertiser trade body is a member of the WFA (see below). It appears to have placed guidelines etc. behind a membership wall
Environmental claims: ISO
ISO 14021: 1999 Environmental labels and declarations. Self-declared environmental claims. Published in 1999 to provide guidelines for the use of self-declared claims. ISO 14021 covers environmental claims about products made under the sole responsibility of the businesses concerned, i.e. self-declared environmental claims. It establishes general requirements for any environmental claims and seeks to ensure the relevance and sincerity of such claims. It also defines the requirements for the 12 most common self-declared environmental claims In addition to the twelve selected claims, the standard provides general requirements for all self-declared environmental claims (18 in total such as - a self-declared environmental claim shall be accurate and not misleading, be substantiated and verifiable, be relevant to that particular product etc.). A specific symbol selected in the standard is the Mobius Loop which applies to the product or packaging and is used with claims of recyclable and recycled content. The ISO Standard 14021 document can be purchased on the www.iso.org site:
http://www.iso.org/iso/catalogue_detail?csnumber=23146
SWEDMA
Swedish Direct Marketing Association (in Swedish): SWEDMA is the trade association for companies engaged in direct or interactive marketing in Sweden. Swedma also manages the Opt-out registers NIX-Adresserat and NIX-Telefon, in addition to the Ethics Board for Direct Marketing
Direct postal mail
Addressed Direct Mail rules; updated August 2012:
http://media.swedma.se/etiska_regler_adr_rev201208.pdf (SW)
Translation of the above:
http://www.g-regs.com/downloads/SWAddressedDMCodeEN.pdf
Unaddressed Direct Mail rules (not translated):
http://media.swedma.se/etiska_regler_odr_rev201208.pdf (SW)
An agreement between the National Consumer Agency and Swedma establishes that the distribution of unaddressed direct commercial mail does not include households that have made it clear that they do not wish to receive advertising, by the sign on the door or otherwise; material must be clearly identifiable as advertising, as must its source.
Consumer email rules; updated August 2013
http://media.swedma.se/etiska_regler_epost_b2c_2013.pdf (SW)
English translation:
http://www.g-regs.com/downloads/SWEDMAemailb2cEN.pdf
Marketing to businesses by email (B2B) rules; updated April 2013
http://media.swedma.se/etiska_regler_epost_b2b_2013.pdf (SW)
English translation:
http://www.g-regs.com/downloads/SWEDMAEmailb2bEN.pdf
IAB Sweden
IAB Sweden is ‘the networking and knowledge platform for interactive advertising and digital marketing in Sweden’:
Mina cookies website (administered by IAB Sweden):
IAB TCF Framework and GDPR from GALA/ Mondaq February 2022. News story here (EN)
WFA
This is the GDPR Guide for Marketers from the WFA (World Federation of Advertisers):
http://info.wfa.be/WFA-GDPR-guide-for-marketers.pdf
The WFA launched their Planet Pledge in April 2021
And Global Guidance on Environmental Claims April 2022
ESA
The European Sponsorship Association is at: