A survey of YouTube has found that some videos with bad content no longer display ads about Vietnamese brands. On a YouTube channel with unhealthy content for children, where some ads of Shopee and Lazada once appeared, no ads can be found.

On another channel which had content violating Vietnamese laws, the ads of L’Oréal, Mirinda and Boss Coffee brands that appeared on videos have been removed. 

Agencies have imposed sanctions on MMS Vietnam, a media firm which placed the ads found in violation.

More businesses have affirmed they will say ‘no’ to invitations to advertise on channels with toxic content.

A representative of Masan said the company has many brands and runs ads on many social networks. The company has a marketing team that tightly controls content and measures the efficiency of ad campaigns.

Vu Viet Duc from Message Coffee, applauding MIC’s move to release a While List and Black List, said the lists serve as the basis for companies and product owners to negotiate with ad agencies to choose clean ad channels before signing contracts.

“Placing ads on clean channels will be a provision of the contracts we sign with ad agencies. We will only agree to display ads on websites and channels allowed by the appropriate agencies,” Duc said.

“This will help protect the image of enterprises, and consumers will know about enterprises via authentic media channels,” Duc added.

The White List and Black List provided by the watchdog agency will help enterprises choose the right channels to place ads. This not only helps protect the brand but also the prestige and fame of enterprises.

Right way to follow

Nguyen Quang Tuan, CEO of Dong Chay Phuong Nam Corporation, said the release of the White List will cut off the budget for advertisements on illegal websites with ‘dirty content’, and help enterprises improve their reputation when choosing websites on the White List.

Meanwhile, ad agents in Vietnam can easily choose websites with good content which are ‘verified’. 

Previously, ad agents placed ads on the web with high page-views but contained bad content. This cost a lot of money for enterprises.

Unlicensed websites are mostly ones outside Vietnamese territories. Placing ads on unlicensed websites can cause mass media to lose a big amount of money. 

The websites of this kind have not been licensed, but still have not been sanctioned.

Nguyen Hue, the founder of Sahi Agency, said advertisements with uncontrolled videos pose serious risks for enterprises, because this inadvertently puts brands in the fine line between ‘clean’ and ‘dirty’ ads. 

If advertising on channels with bad content, enterprises will fall into a trap and become victims.

The White List and Black List play a very important role, which gives media units and businesses choices in the digital information era. 

Moreover, using the domestic mainstream media will help bring revenue to Vietnamese companies.

Le Quang Tu Do of the Authority of Broadcasting and Electronic Information (ABEI) said enterprises have used the Black List. As for the White List, it will take more time to see the effects, as it needs time to book ads. Ad agencies have promised that they will use the list in the time to come.

Van Anh