On Walt Disney's homepage the borderline between commercials and entertainment is fluid. The Danish Consumer Ombudsman warns against the methods of the company.
Prize competitions, games, quizzes and colouring books mixed with product information. In this way Walt Disney's characters and products enter the consciousness of children and young persons through the Internet and that concerns the Consumer Ombudsman Hagen Joergensen. He finds it very problematic that a company with such an impact uses interactive marketing.
"Walt Disney is aware of the fact that interactive marketing can entertain children and young persons for hours so that they forget time and place and therefore are not aware of the fact that it is a commercial", says Hagen Joergensen. He continues:
"The Internet is a strong media indeed and the marketing may be very difficult to find out. The commercials are not well-defined as we know it from for instance newspapers and magazines and I see a great demand for common, international guidelines concerning marketing on the Internet - especially when the commercials are aimed at children and young persons."
Out of tune with good marketing practices
Through a long period of time the Consumer Ombudsman has tried to enter into a dialogue with Walt Disney. He has notified the company that according to him the homepage is problematic in relation to the Danish principles of good marketing practices.
Moreover Hagen Joergensen has stated that the marketing is not in accordance with the International Chamber of Commerce's codex about good marketing practives. According to this codex commercials are not allowed to take advantage of the natural credulity or lack of experience from children and young persons. Moreover it says that commercials must be marked with for instance "advertisement", when it is aimed at children.
Moreover the Consumer Ombudsman has drawn the attention of Walt Disney to an extensive inquiry made by the European Consumer Organization (BEUC) and the Dutch Consumentenbond. This shows that marketing which is aimed at children becomes more and more sophisticated and difficult to look through and that it is difficult to distinguish between commercials and other forms of communication.
Warning to Walt Disney
Walt Disney has not been willing to discuss the problems with the Consumer Ombudsman. The company is of the opinion that its activities do not conflict with the principles of good marketing practices and the Walt Disney is not to comply with the Danish law but only the American law.
"It should be an acknowledged principle, however, that business must comply with the laws in the country where the marketing is taking place. The Internet is a global media which means that Disney's commercials are not only aimed at the American market but at many others also - including the Danish market", Hagen Joergensen says.
He has informed Walt Disney that he finds himself compelled to take the marketing on the Internet into consideration in case of future complaints about Disney's marketing.
See the Wall Street interview about children and marketing with Hagen Joergensen.