SBB asks RTS for explanation of advertisement ban

“The ban showed the height of censorship by the RTS when it refused to air advertisements from the “When You Have a Choice, You Choose SBB” campaign,” the company said.

“Besides breaking the law, the decision causes damage to the RTS and all citizens of Serbia which is why we requested an urgent reaction from the public broadcaster’s CEO and board but we still haven’t received a reply,” an SBB press release said.

SBB sent the RTS marketing department a regular media plan and advertising video and the RTS legal department came back with the comment that something should be corrected, that the font should be bigger on the text that gives the source of the company slogan and that the accompanying data relevancy document should be submitted.

“When we submitted the amended advertisement and document, the SBB advertisement was aired only on one day, September 14, and not aired again. SBB was told shortly by RTS staff that instructions came to stop airing the advertisement with no explanation for the decision,” the press release added.

SBB sent a letter to RTS CEO Dragan Bujosevic asking for an explanation of the reason why the advertisements were not being aired on RTS channels, who ordered them stopped and under what authority as well as why only SBB has been stopped from advertising on the RTS.

“Two weeks later and Dragan Bujosevic has not replied about the reason for the scandalous censorship which has obviously engulfed the advertising space of the house he manages. The people overseeing his work should be dealing with the hiding and silence of the CEO and the inflicting of business damage on the house he heads because it’s indisputable that the decision to remove the advertisement is illegal and damaging to the RTS,” SBB said.

It said that the RTS as a public broadcaster is a public assets of all the citizens of Serbia who finance it with a tax. “Despite the tax, the public broadcaster has business problems and the public has been informed about that by the RTS itself. That is why it is completely illogical, unprofessional and irresponsible that the advertisements of one of the biggest companies in Serbia has been banned without explanation and the income from that advertising abandoned,” the press release said.

“On the other hand, SBB only wants respect for its right, as with any other company, to promote the services which do not conflict with any rule of advertising and we demand an explanation as to why anyone would refuse to air and charge for advertising which is fully in line with all laws and regulations, including the Law on Advertising. Because of all that, we sent a letter to the RTS Management Board which has not replied a week later.

“Who did not like the SBB company advertisement – politicians or the competition that RTS has partnership cooperation with? Unless the RTS board explains we will go to the competent bodies for an answer,” the SBB press release said.