Alcohol beverage advertising in mainstream Australian media 2005 to 2007

Alcohol beverage advertising in mainstream Australian media

2005 to 2007: Expenditure and Exposure

Undertaken by the Victorian Department of Human Services for the Monitoring of Alcohol Advertising Committee

This report is a follow up to research published by the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing in 2005

April 2009

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List of contents

Section Contents Page Executive summary 3 1 Introduction 4 2 Methodology 5 3 Results 7 3.1 Expenditure trends 7 3.2 Young people’s exposure to alcohol advertisements 12 3.3 Alcohol advertisement placement by day of week and time of day 17 4 Discussion 19 List of figures Section Contents Page Figure 1 Expenditure on alcohol advertising by beverage category: 2003-2007

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Figure 2 Expenditure on alcohol advertising by beverage type and month: dates

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Figure 3a Expenditure on alcohol advertising by media outlet 10 Figure 3b Expenditure on alcohol advertising by media outlet, 2005 - 2007 11 Figure 4 Monthly expenditure on alcohol advertising by media outlet and quarter:

January 2005 – December 2007 12

List of tables Table Contents Page Table 1 Expenditure and exposure for the ten alcohol brands with the greatest

metropolitan television expenditure: Sydney 15

Table 2 Expenditure and exposure for the ten alcohol brands with the greatest metropolitan television expenditure: Melbourne

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Table 3 Alcohol advertisements broadcast on weekends and weekday public holidays by time of day from January 2007 to December 2007

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Table 4 Alcohol advertisements broadcast on weekdays, excluding public holidays, by time of day from January 2007 to December 2007

18

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Executive summary

This report examines:

• Expenditure on alcohol advertising in Australia across eight mainstream media

channels between January 2005 and December 2007

• The potential exposure to alcohol advertising on free-to-air television for young

people aged 13 -17 years and 18 - 29 years during 2007.

• Alcohol advertisement placement by day of week and time of day.

The key findings include:

Expenditure on alcohol advertising

• Estimated expenditure on alcohol beverage advertising rose between 2005 and

2007, as a proportion of total beverage advertising spend.

• Between 2005 and 2007 the amount spent on outdoor advertising grew

significantly as a proportion of all spend on alcohol advertising.

• A seasonal pattern of total estimated alcohol expenditure across the year was

clear and consistent. There was relatively lower expenditure in the first three

quarters of the year, followed by a large increase in expenditure in the final

quarter of the year. This trend was particularly pronounced for advertising spend

on beer.

Young people’s exposure to alcohol advertising on f ree-to-air metropolitan

television

• For the vast majority of the alcohol beverage brands with the greatest estimated

metropolitan television expenditure in 2007 a greater weight of exposure was

generated with those aged 18-29 years compared with those aged 13-17 years.

• However, in Melbourne four of the thirty top spend brands generated similar or

greater exposure with 13-17 year olds compared with those aged 18-29 years.

Three of the four were beer brands.

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Alcohol advertisement placement by day of week and time of day

• From January to December 2007 almost half (46%) of the alcohol

advertisements screened in five metropolitan television markets (Adelaide,

Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney) were shown on weekends and public

holidays.

• During this period 44% of the alcohol advertisements shown at weekends and

weekday public holidays were shown in the day i.e. between 5.01am to 8.29pm.

This reflects the impact of the exemption to the Commercial Television Industry

Code of Practice (CTICP) framework within which alcohol advertising can be

broadcast on free-to-air television which states that alcohol advertisements can

be broadcast at any time as an accompaniment to a ‘live’ sporting event.

1 Introduction

The analysis has been conducted by the Victorian Department of Human Services for

the Monitoring of Alcohol Advertising Committee (MAAC)1. It updates aspects of a 2005

Commonwealth Department of Health and Aging (DoHA) report by King et al, Australian

Alcohol Beverage Advertising in Mainstream Australian Media 2003 to 2005:

Expenditure, Exposure and Related Issues2. One key aspect of the DoHA report which is

not replicated is an assessment of the uptake of subscription television in Australia.

The MAAC commissioned this report to better understand the potential exposure of

young people to alcohol advertising – both for those aged younger (13-17 years) and

older (18-29 years) than the legal drinking age of 18 years.

The findings will assist the MAAC in fulfilling its terms of reference, which are to:

• Monitor the implementation and impact of recommended reforms contained in a

National Committee for the Review of Alcohol Advertising (NCRAA) report

endorsed by the Ministerial Council on Drug Strategy (MCDS) in August 2003

1 The report was primarily prepared by Francesca Lace of the Mental Health and Drugs Division, Department of Human Services, Victoria. 2 King, E. et al, Australian Alcohol Beverage Advertising in Mainstream Australian Media 2003 to 2005: Expenditure, Exposure and Related Issues, Sydney, NSW, Australia : Research and Marketing Group, Department of Health and Ageing.

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• Monitor alcohol advertising and the self-regulatory system in general with

particular attention to the issues of appropriate manner/community standards and

whether alcohol products are targeting young people

• Report to the MCDS annually on the operations of the system and on issues as

they arise, including the ongoing implementation of the review recommendations.

2 Methodology

On behalf of the MAAC, in March 2008 the Victorian Department of Human Services

(DHS) purchased data from Nielsen Media Research relating to the period 2005 to 2007.

The use of the data in determining the objectives of the research is outlined below.

Expenditure on alcohol advertising

Estimates of expenditure on advertising were provided for the following eight

mainstream media sources3:

• Metropolitan free-to-air Television (MTV)

• Regional free-to-air Television (RTV)

• National and Metropolitan Newspapers (MPress)

• Regional Newspapers (RPress)

• Magazines (Mags)

• Metropolitan Radio

• Major Metropolitan Cinema

• Major Outdoor

Nielsen Media Research estimates expenditure for all media using a combination of

market rate cards, market intelligence and discount factors. This excerpt from the 2005

DoHA report explains further:

The expenditure estimates account for the different market factors that contribute

to establishing a rate for an advertisement. The market influences accounted for

include: individual client volume spend, buying strengths of the agencies and

3 Note that this does not include subscription television and the internet.

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seasonal market demand. These factors allow for a relative view of the market

place, and aims to be within +/- 10% of actual advertising expenditure.

Advertising expenditure estimates for metropolitan television are monitored using

both visual verification and station log information. All metropolitan commercial

stations are recorded on Nielsen’s proprietary electronic capture system TVPix

24 hours per day, 7 days per week. Metropolitan television station logs are cross-

verified with the TVPix recorded capture for each individual advertisement, and

then advertiser, product and agency links are created. The advertisement is then

categorised and entered into the database.

Metropolitan radio is processed from daily logs. Nielsen Media Research either

confirms or creates advertiser, product and agency links and this information is

then categorised before being entered into the database.

Young people’s exposure to alcohol advertising on f ree-to-air metropolitan

television

The data used to determine exposure trends in this report covers alcohol advertising on

free-to-air metropolitan television in Sydney and Melbourne and incorporates information

collated by Australian Television Audience Measurement (OzTAM) to estimate the

potential exposure of people aged 13-29 years to alcohol advertising.

Target Audience Rating Points (TARPs) are used in the report to express the potential

for exposure to alcohol advertising. TARPs describe the total weight delivered by a TV

schedule without regard to audience duplication. A TARP is the defined target audience

expressed as a percentage of the total potential audience. So a TARP of 10 indicates

that either:

1. 10% of the population were potentially exposed to an advertisement

2. 1% of the population were potentially exposed to an advertisement, ten times

3. ...or some 'mix' in the middle

The TARP data used in this report refers to 13-17 year olds and 18-29 year olds and

covers the 12 month period from January 2007 to December 2007. This data is based

on the ten brands with the highest television advertising expenditure in each of three

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beverage categories: beer, spirits (including pre-mix) and wine, in Sydney and in

Melbourne.


The data on alcohol advertisement placements included in this report is banded to reflect

the Commercial Television Industry Code of Practice (CTICP) framework which states

that alcohol advertisements can be broadcast:

• on weekdays (school days): from 8.30pm-5.00am and 12.00 noon-3.00pm

• on weekends, school holidays and public holidays: from 8.30pm-5.00am

• as an accompaniment to a “live” sporting event: at any time.

The data covers five metropolitan television markets: Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne,

Perth and Sydney for the 12-month period January 2007 to December 2007.

3 Results

3.1 Expenditure on alcohol advertising in mainstrea m media in Australia, by

beverage type and media type

In 2007, an estimated $9.1bn was spent on all advertising and across all media. This

sum rose year on year between 2005 and 2007. Within this, $251m in 2007 was

allocated to All beverages (alcoholic and non alcoholic). Total non alcoholic estimated

spend was $125m in 2007. In contrast with the upward trend for advertising spend

across all categories, expenditure on advertising for all beverages dropped during 2005-

2007.

Figure 1 shows estimated expenditure on alcohol advertising specifically, by beverage

category, from 2003 to 2007. The total estimated expenditure on alcohol advertising

represented 44% of total beverage advertising spend in 2005; by 2007 this had

increased to 50% of the total. Total spend nationally on alcohol advertising in 2007 was

$125m.

Among all alcohol beverage categories, estimated advertising expenditure was greatest

for beer. This reflects the findings of the 2005 DoHA report. Spend on the advertising of

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Expenditure on Alcohol by beverage type 2003 - 2007

0

20000

40000

60000

80000

100000

120000

140000

All Alcohol Beer Wine Spirits Pre-Mixed Cider

Beverage Type

Sp

end

($k

)

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

spirits, although low compared with beer, grew notably in 2007 and surpassed spend on

wine advertising that year. Spend on pre-mixed drinks was relatively low across the

period considered.

Figure 1 Source: Nielsen Media Research

Figure 2 shows estimated advertising expenditure for alcohol beverages by category and

by month from January 2005 to December 2007. A seasonal pattern of total alcohol

expenditure across the year is clear and consistent. There is relatively lower estimated

expenditure in the first three quarters of the year, followed by a large increase in

expenditure in the final quarter of the year. The DoHA report on 2003-2005 data

reported on a similar pattern.

This trend is particularly pronounced for advertising spend on beer; Quarter 4 (i.e.

October, November and December) accounted for 44% of total beer spend in 2005, 37%

in 2006 and 40% in 2007.

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Expenditure on alcohol advertising by beverage type and by month: January 2005 - December 2007

0

5000

10000

15000

20000

25000

J F M A M J J A S O N D J F M A M J J A S O N D J F M A M J J A S O N D

2005 2006 2007

Year

Sp

end

($k

)

Beer Wine Spirits Pre-Mixed Cider Total

Figure 2

Source: Nielsen Media Research The division of estimated spend by media outlet for all beverages is fairly stable from

2005 through to 2007. Metropolitan free-to-air television retains the biggest slice,

followed by outdoor advertising and magazines. This is also true for alcoholic beverages,

as can be seen in Figure 3, which shows estimated alcohol advertising expenditure by

media outlet.

Figure 3a

Source: Nielsen Media Research

Expenditure on Alcohol Advertising by Media Outlet January 2003 - December 2007

0

20000

40000

60000

80000

100000

120000

140000

TOTAL MTV RTV MPRESS RPRESS MAGS RADIO CINEMA OUTDOOR

Media Type

Sp

end

($M

illi

on

s)

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007

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Estimated spend on outdoor advertising is increasingly significant for alcoholic

beverages, relative to all beverages. Figures 3a and 3b demonstrate this clearly. From

2005 to 2007 spend on outdoor advertising grew from 15% of expenditure on advertising

for all beverages in 2005 to 22% in 2007. For alcoholic beverages specifically, outdoor

advertising grew in significance from 21% of all spend in 2005 to 32% in 2007.

The rise in outdoor advertising for alcoholic beverages has occurred at the expense of

metropolitan free-to-air television, estimated spend on which dropped year on year as a

proportion of all advertising spend on alcoholic beverages. In 2005 outdoor advertising

accounted for 21% of total estimated alcoholic advertising spend, against 44% for

metropolitan free-to-air television. By 2007 outdoor advertising accounted for 32% of

total alcoholic advertising spend, compared with 34% for metropolitan free-to-air

television. Estimated expenditure on magazines has also risen as a proportion of spend

on alcohol advertising overall.

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Figure 3b

Expenditure on Alcohol Advertising by Media Outlet, 2005 - 2007


Figure 4 shows estimated monthly advertising expenditure for alcoholic beverages by

the mainstream media outlet4 from January 2005 to December 2007. DoHA reported that

in 2003-2005, metropolitan television (MTV) consistently accounted for the greatest

estimated expenditure each month. In Q4 2006 estimated expenditure on outdoor

advertising reached MTV spend and in fact surpassed it at points during the following

year, almost matching it overall in 2007. This is further illustrative proof of the increasing

relative significance of outdoor advertising for alcoholic beverages.

4 See the Methodology section for a list of the mainstream media outlets covered. Note that information relating to the internet and subscription television is not included in this analysis.

Beverages - Alcoholic - 2005

MTV44%

RTV7%MPRESS

6%

RPRESS1%

MAGS11%

RADIO5%

CINEMA5%

OUTDOOR21%


MTV40%

RTV7%MPRESS

6%

RPRESS1%

MAGS13%

RADIO3%

CINEMA4%

OUTDOOR26%


MTV34%

RTV5%

MPRESS5%

RPRESS0%

MAGS14%

RADIO5%

CINEMA5%

OUTDOOR32%

Beverages - 2005

MTV55%

RTV7%

MPRESS4%

RPRESS0%

MAGS9%

RADIO5%

CINEMA5%

OUTDOOR15%

Beverages - 2006

MTV50%

RTV6%MPRESS

4%

RPRESS0%

MAGS12%

RADIO4%

CINEMA4%

OUTDOOR20%

Beverages - 2007

MTV44%

RTV8%

MPRESS4%

RPRESS0%

MAGS12%

RADIO6%

CINEMA4%

OUTDOOR22%

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Figure 4


3.2 Exposure to alcohol advertising on metropolitan tel evision for adolescents

13-17 years and young adults 18 to 29 years from Ja nuary 2007 to December 2007

This section provides an estimate of exposure to alcohol brand advertisements on

metropolitan free-to-air television (MTV) among young people aged 13 to 17 years and

adults aged 18 to 29 years.

The data covers the period January 2007 to December 2007, and shows the Sydney

and Melbourne markets separately.

Tables 1 and 2 present the following information:

• the number of alcohol advertisements shown on MTV from January to December

2007 for the ten wine brands, ten beer brands and ten sprit brands with the

greatest MTV expenditure during this period

• number of ‘spots’ i.e. the number of times a particular advertisement was aired

• estimated advertising expenditure by brand within the MTV market

• the weight of alcohol advertising exposure (referred to as TARPs)

• the relative exposure that 13-17 year olds and 18-29 year olds have had to the

advertisement.

Expenditure on alcohol advertising by media outlet and by quarter: January 2005 - December 2007

0

5000

10000

15000

20000

25000

Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4

2005 2006 2007

Year

Sp

end

($k

)

MTV RTV MPRESS RPRESS

MAGS RADIO CINEMA OUTDOOR

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The relative exposure index is a way to compare the degree of exposure to an alcohol

beverage advertisement among 13-17 year olds with the exposure to the same

advertisement among those aged 18 to 29. A rating of more than one shows that a

greater weight of exposure was generated among those aged 13-17 years compared to

those 18-29 years.

In 2007 there was greater expenditure on advertising in the Sydney market compared

with Melbourne ($16m in Sydney versus $10m in Melbourne). Likewise, Sydney

metropolitan television market had considerably more advertisements broadcast than

Melbourne (5679 in Sydney compared to Melbourne’s 4531) and a higher weight of

exposure among young people, particularly for the beer brands.

The published analysis of relative exposure to alcohol advertising from April 2004 to

March 2005 showed that for the majority of brands a greater weight of exposure was

generated with those aged 18-29 years compared to those aged 13-17 years. However,

eight of the thirty top spend brands in Melbourne generated greater exposure with 13-17

year olds.

In 2007 the picture has improved but there is still cause for concern; four of the top

spend brands in Melbourne generated the same or greater relative exposure among 13-

17 year olds as 18-29 year olds (Boags Premium Lager Beer 1.00, Carlton Draught Beer

1.00, Carlton Pure Blonde Beer 1.01, Taylors Wines Corporate 1.03). In Sydney, all

brands generated a greater weight of exposure with the older age group compared to

those aged 13-17 years. J Boag & Son is part of the Lion Nathan group, Carlton is

owned by Foster’s Group and Taylors Wines is a family owned wine estate in the Clare

Valley.

In Sydney, the weight of exposure to alcohol advertising for 13-17 and 18-29 year olds

was greatest for Tooheys New Draft Beer (13-17: 1467, 18-29: 1786), which generated

over 1000 TARPS for both age groups over the 12 month period in question. Exposure

to Rosemount Estate Sauvignon Blanc was also high (13-17: 927, 18-29: 1101). Baileys

Irish Cream Liqueur was the spirit with the greatest weight of exposure (13-17: 571, 18-

29 745).

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In Melbourne, the weight of exposure to alcohol advertising for 13-17 and 18-29 year

olds was greatest for Rosemount Estate Sauvignon Blanc (13-17: 1035, 18-29: 1185).

Tooheys New Draft Beer was not one of the top spend brands in Melbourne, but

Tooheys Extra Dry beer generated the greatest number of TARPs in the beer category

(13-17: 657, 18-29: 790). As in Sydney, Baileys Irish Cream Liqueur generated the

greatest number of TARPS in the spirit category (13-17: 681, 18-29: 773). Rosemount

Estate is part of the Fosters group, Tooheys is owned by Lion Nathan and Baileys is part

of Diageo’s portfolio.

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Table 1

Sydney

Quarter 1 2007 - Quarter 4 2007

Brand advertised on MTV Sydney Spots Spend $k P13-17 P18-29

Beer

Beer Total 3713 11013 6075 8449 0.72Tooheys Extra Dry Beer 275 2144 688 932 0.74Tooheys New Draught Beer 662 2049 1467 1786 0.82Boags Premium Lager Beer 139 1238 297 383 0.78Castlemaine XXXX Gold Lager 259 871 676 849 0.80Heineken Lager Beer 231 810 464 566 0.82Victoria Bitter Beer 199 556 395 677 0.58Carlton Draught Beer 255 516 191 272 0.70Carlton Pure Blonde Beer 73 509 206 251 0.82Carlton Crown Lager 269 446 364 582 0.63Cascade Premium Lager 121 441 248 383 0.65

WineWine Total 526 1590 1374 1827 0.75Rosemount Estate Sauvgn Blanc 319 961 927 1101 0.84Taylors Wines Cabernet Sauvignon 32 156 80 105 0.76Taylors Wines Jaraman Shiraz 15 103 60 77 0.78Wolf Blass Wine-Competition 41 96 91 218 0.42Wolf Blass Wine Corporate 47 84 59 120 0.49Rosemount Estate Shiraz 16 69 93 94 0.99Taylors Wines Promised Land Shiraz Cabernet11 58 35 42 0.83Taylors Wines Corporate 6 38 25 36 0.69Orlando Jacobs Creek Reserve Shiraz 26 20 2 16 0.13Zilzie Wines Rng 9 5 2 18 0.11

Spirits

Spirits Total 1440 3598 2262 3721 0.61Baileys Irish Cream Liqueur 203 676 571 745 0.77Jim Beam Bourbon-White Label 110 639 259 440 0.59Bundaberg Rum 391 638 434 790 0.55Johnnie Walker Red Label Sctch 216 469 299 656 0.46Jack Daniels Tennessee Whiskey 204 438 200 251 0.80Cougar Bourbon/Dark Rum 87 274 184 276 0.67Johnnie Walker Black Label Scotch 38 197 103 183 0.56Bundaberg Rum-Competition 19 135 106 141 0.75Johnnie Walker-Competition 49 67 69 193 0.36Jim Beam Corporate 31 45 22 24 0.92

Weight of advertising exposure (TARP)

Relative exposure

P13-17 / P18-29

Source: Nielsen Media Research and OzTAM

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Table 2

MelbourneQuarter 1 2007 - Quarter 4 2007Brand advertised on MTV Sydney Spots Spend $k P13-17 P18-29

BeerBeer Total 2841 6171 5619 6739 0.83Tooheys Extra Dry Beer 247 1177 657 790 0.83Boags Premium Lager Beer 174 907 564 564 1.00Heineken Lager Beer 193 551 513 714 0.72Carlton Draught Beer 103 527 224 223 1.00Victoria Bitter Beer 235 464 401 743 0.54Carlton Pure Blonde Beer 80 405 325 323 1.01Boags Draught Beer 134 302 298 364 0.82Cascade Premium Lager 133 302 364 413 0.88Becks Beer 445 280 464 546 0.85Heineken Draught Keg 165 265 314 368 0.85

WineTotal 497 1108 1751 2091 0.84Rosemount Estate Sauvgn Blanc 277 634 1035 1185 0.87Wolf Blass Wine Corporate 72 95 133 216 0.62Wolf Blass Wine-Competition 42 84 154 223 0.69Rosemount Estate Shiraz 23 76 155 175 0.89Taylors Wines Cabernet Sauvignon 23 74 98 101 0.97Taylors Wines Promised Land Shiraz Cabernet14 62 75 77 0.97Taylors Wines Jaraman Shiraz 10 47 46 48 0.96Taylors Wines Corporate 5 20 33 32 1.03Orlando Jacobs Creek Reserve Shiraz 27 17 22 34 0.65

SpiritsSpirits Total 1193 2440 2524 3627Jim Beam Bourbon-White Label 145 574 466 711 0.66Johnnie Walker Red Label Sctch 244 438 352 816 0.43Baileys Irish Cream Liqueur 142 389 681 773 0.88Jack Daniels Tennessee Whiskey 190 320 205 316 0.65Bundaberg Rum 215 249 244 268 0.91Cougar Bourbon/Dark Rum 48 215 238 309 0.77Johnnie Walker Black Label Scotch 36 138 113 150 0.75Johnnie Walker-Competition 58 83 189 228 0.83Jim Beam Corporate 15 18 13 35 0.37Jack Daniels Tennessee Whiskey-Competition13 12 9 14 0.64

Weight of advertising exposure (TARP)

Relative exposure P13-17 /

Source: Nielsen Media Research and OzTAM

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3.3 Alcohol advertisement placement by day of week and time of day

The second method used to measure the potential for exposure to alcohol

advertising determines the proportion of alcohol advertisements shown on

metropolitan free-to-air television in particular time slots on weekdays and weekends.

It is important to remember that this does not include subscription television.

In Australia alcohol advertisements can be broadcast on free-to-air television on

weekdays (school days) from 8:30pm to 5am and from 12noon to 3pm, and on

weekends, school holidays and public holidays from 8:30pm to 5am. Alcohol

advertisements can also be broadcast at any time of day on any day of the week as

an accompaniment to a “live” sporting event, providing certain criteria outlined in the

Commercial Television Industry Code of Practice (CTICP) are met.

From January to December 2007, 28338 alcohol advertisements were screened in

five metropolitan television markets (i.e. Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth,

Sydney). Almost half, 12905 (46%) were shown on weekends and public holidays.

This has not changed significantly from the period that DOHA reported on i.e. April

2004 to March 2005, when 42% of the alcohol advertisements broadcast were shown

on weekends and public holidays.

Table 3: Alcohol advertisements broadcast on weekends and weekday public

holidays, by time of day from January 2007 to December 2007

Spots % Spots % Spots % Spots %5:01am to 8:29pm 1261 55% 1108 35% 1320 43% 1980 45%8:30pm to 5:00am 1039 45% 2032 65% 1728 57% 2437 55%Total 2300 100% 3140 100% 3048 100% 4417 100%

Jan-Mar Apr-Jun Jul-Sep Oct-Dec2007Weekend and Public Holiday

alcohol advertising placements

The data on Table 3 shows that in 2007, 44% of the alcohol advertisements shown at

weekends and weekday public holidays were shown in the ‘day-time’ period i.e.

5.01am to 8.29pm. This is 5669 adverts and reflects the impact of live sports

programming. It is more significant that DoHA’s finding that between April 2004 to

March 2005 38% of the alcohol beverage advertisements shown on weekends and

public holidays were placed in the day time period.

During the first quarter of 2007 i.e. January, February and March over half (55%) of

all alcohol advertisements shown were aired during the day. Again, this is an

increase from the 42% reported by DoHA for the same period in 2005.

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Of the 12905 alcohol advertisements shown on weekends and public holidays over

the period January to December 2007, the most alcohol advertisements were shown

during the final quarter (4417 ads). This is almost twice as much as the first quarter

(2300 ads). The ‘middle’ two quarters had a similar number of alcohol advertisements

shown (Q2 2007: 3140 ads, Q3 2004: 3048 ads). This reflects the information on

expenditure in Figure 2, confirming a seasonal trend in alcohol advertising.

Table 4: Alcohol advertisements broadcast on weekdays, excluding public

holidays, by time of day from January 2007 to December 2007

Spots % Spots % Spots % Spots %5:01am to 11:59am 34 1% 44 1% 40 1% 191 4%12 noon to 3:00pm 159 5% 55 1% 6 0% 449 9%3:01pm to 8:29pm 134 5% 77 2% 65 2% 134 3%8:30pm to 5:00am 2583 89% 4148 96% 3116 97% 4198 84%Total 2910 100% 4324 100% 3227 100% 4972 100%

Weekday alcohol advertising Weekday alcohol advertising

Jan-Mar Apr-Jun Jul-Sep Oct-Dec

Table 4 shows the number and the proportion of alcohol advertisements shown on

weekdays, excluding public holidays, by time of day and by year quarter. Between

January and December 2007 15433 alcohol advertisements were shown on

weekdays. Interestingly, this is considerably less than the 12 month period

considered in the 2005 DoHA report; it found that on weekdays from April 2004 to

March 2005 20,137 alcohol advertisements were shown. In 2007 there was a small

seasonal peak, with 4972 advertisements shown during the final quarter of the year.

Again however, this is considerably lower than the 7,486 alcohol advertisements

shown in the final quarter of 2004.

Across the year, 14045 alcohol beverage advertisements broadcast were placed in

the weekday evening time slot of 8:30pm to 5am and 4% in the daytime slot of 12

noon to 3.00pm. The remaining alcohol advertisements were shown outside the

times ordinarily sanctioned by the CITICP so presumably reflect the impact of live

sports programming. For instance, 3% of weekday alcohol adverts were broadcast

between 3.01pm and 8.29pm.

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4 Discussion

Expenditure on alcohol advertising in Australia between 2005 and 2007

Much of what has been identified in this report on expenditure is consistent with the

findings of the 2005 Commonwealth report. For example, among all alcohol beverage

categories, estimated advertising expenditure continues to be greatest for beer. Also,

there is a clear seasonal pattern of total alcohol expenditure year on year. Relative

lower estimated expenditure is seen in the first three quarters of the year, followed by

a large increase in expenditure in the final quarter of the year.

One significant finding from this analysis is that in 2005-2007 estimated spend on

outdoor advertising increased in significance for alcoholic beverages, relative to all

beverages. Magazine advertising of alcohol also increased in significance5. This is a

concern because there is evidence to suggest that the exposure to outdoor alcohol

advertising by young people is linked to consumption. A 2008 systematic review of

international evidence found consistent evidence that exposure to outdoor

advertising, or advertisements in magazines and newspapers may increase the

likelihood of young people starting to drink, the amount they drink, and the amount

they drink on any one occasion.

Evidence about the link between outdoor alcohol advertisements near schools and

students’ reported intention to drink alcohol was presented to the Senate Community

Affairs Committee Inquiry into Alcohol Toll Reduction Bill 2007. In its submission the

NSW Centre for Overweight and Obesity based at the University of Sydney cited

American research which examined the effect of outdoor alcohol advertising. The

study identified significant positive associations between young people’s exposure to

outdoor alcohol advertisements near schools and their alcohol beliefs and intention to

consume6. This effect remained significant after controlling for other confounding

factors, including exposure to other forms of alcohol advertising7.

5 The current ABAC system does not cover ‘one off’ promotions. Magazine advertisements could fall into this ‘one off’ category. 6 The authors of the University of Sheffield review concluded that further research is required to determine whether what young people say they are going to do at a particular point in time translates into actual subsequent behaviour6. 7 6. Pasch K.E, Komro K.A, Perry C.L, Hearst M.O, Farbakhsh K. Outdoor alcohol advertising near schools: what does it advertise and how is it related to intentions and use of alcohol among young adolescents? Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs 2007; 68:587-596.

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This report does not investigate why outdoor channels (for example street furniture,

bus/tram shelters and billboards) are increasingly being favoured as a form of alcohol

advertising. Further investigations may suggest explanations. It is possible that as

the costs of traditional media increase companies must look to newer, less expensive

ways of getting their message across to potential consumers. This includes outdoor

advertising and other methods such as sponsorship and product placements,

interactive media e.g. Internet/viral marketing and SMS, digital television.

The self regulatory system for alcohol advertising in Australia has been criticised for

being overly focussed on ‘traditional’ media such as television, print and radio, at the

expense of less conventional and ‘new’ media, which are harder to monitor. The

2006 ABAC Annual report states that the ABAC Scheme is not the only set of rules

affecting advertising in Australia and alcohol beverage advertising must also be

consistent with other applicable laws and codes, including the Outdoor Advertising

Code of Ethics. It is therefore important to note an announcement made by the

Outdoor Media Association on 24 September 2008 that from 31 March 2009 media

owners should only accept copy for alcohol advertising that has been pre-vetted

under the Alcohol Beverages Advertising Code. Also, outdoor media companies ‘will

limit alcohol advertising on fixed signs near primary and secondary schools as part of

the industry’s commitment to responsible advertising’.

In terms of how much the alcohol industry spends each year on reaching potential

consumers, the findings from in this report do not constitute the full picture. Estimates

of spend on point of sale marketing campaigns and are not included, for example.

Moreover, estimates of spend on emerging and innovative methods are not

incorporated. These include interactive technologies such as internet promotions and

mobile phones which, it can be argued, are particularly attractive to young people.

The true amount spent on all alcohol advertising is likely to be considerably greater

than the amount captured by Nielsen Media Research.

The exposure of young people to alcohol advertising on metropolitan free-to-

air television in 2007

In this report, the exposure of young people to alcohol advertising is estimated

through data that relate to free-to-air television only. Information relating to the

internet and subscription television is not included in this analysis and we cannot

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quantify the exposure to alcohol advertising among young people related to these

forms of communication8.

It is still an important finding however that adolescents and young adults are exposed

to significant levels of alcohol advertising from free-to-air television. There is

consistent evidence that exposure to TV and other broadcast media is associated

with inception of and levels of drinking9. Looking at the weight of exposure to alcohol

advertising in the Sydney and Melbourne metropolitan television markets shows us

that for the majority of the alcohol beverage brands with the greatest estimated

metropolitan television expenditure in 2007 a greater weight of exposure was

generated with young adults i.e. those aged 18-29 years compared with adolescents

i.e. those aged 13-17 years. However, several of the top brands did have similar

levels of exposure among the younger group; indeed in Melbourne four of the thirty

top spend brands generated the same or greater exposure with 13-17 year olds

compared with those aged 18-29 years. Three of the four were beer brands.


The content of free-to-air commercial television is regulated under the Commercial

Television Industry Code of Practice (CTICP). Alcohol advertisements can be

broadcast on weekdays (school days) from 8:30pm to 5am and from 12noon to 3pm,

and on weekends, school holidays and public holidays from 8:30pm to 5am. An

exemption to this involves the broadcast of sporting events; alcohol advertisements

can be broadcast at any time of day on any day of the week as an accompaniment to

a “live” sporting event, providing certain criteria outlined in the CTICP are met.

The impact of this exemption is seen in the analysis of data from January to

December 2007 which shows that almost half (44%) of the alcohol advertisements

screened at weekends and weekday public holidays in the five metropolitan

television markets of Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney were shown

8 It was not within the remit of this report to make an assessment of the media consumption habits of young people. However, in an effort to determine the influence of free-to-air television versus other forms of television this information is significant. The Australian Communications and Media Authority produced an analysis of trends in the television viewing patterns of Australian children since 2001. See: http://www.acma.gov.au/WEB/STANDARD/pc=PC_311396 9 Booth, A., et al, 2008, The independent review of the effects of alcohol pricing and promotion, Summary of evidence to accompany Report on Phase 1: Systematic Reviews, University of Sheffield, UK.

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the ‘day-time’ between i.e. 5.01am and 8.29pm. As a proportion, this has risen;

DoHA reported that during the period April 2004 to March 2005 38% of the alcohol

advertisements shown on weekends and public holidays were placed in the day.

From the criteria outlined in the CTICP it is evident that this reflects the impact of live

sports programming.

Alcohol beverage advertising in mainstream Australian media 2005 to 2007

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