Clearcast, owned by UK commercial broadcasters, ITV, Channel 4, Sky and Warner Media, is the clearance body in position to ensure that advertising is not misleading, harmful or offensive and that it conforms to the UK Codes of Advertising.
UK advertisers face additional requirements when considering audio description (AD) for their advertising campaigns. The AD voice over is, in fact, recognised as an integral part of the advertising campaign and is, therefore, subject to approval from Clearcast to ensure assets conform to advertising standards. After submitting a draft version to Clearcast, if no amendments are required, advertisers can submit a final “clocked” version of their ad with AD for approval. Each step can take several days and, while advertisers may submit the final version with AD directly to Clearcast, they run the risk of having to go back to make amendments to the final version.
Captions, however, are not subject to approval from Clearcast. Yet, advertisers or agencies often delay the production of captions until they secure Clearcast approval for the ad to avoid needing to re-adapt the captions amendments are required. The production of captions is, therefore, often done at the last minute to avoid additional costs. The time and financial constraints may explain the low uptake of AD and captions from advertisers.
Clearcast launched a solution with the aim to centralise the production of captions, gaining an overview of the number of subtitled ads delivered in the UK and closing the gap between the approval and the delivery of subtitled ads. Clearcast’s newest system, The Library, which now forms part of the clearance process, was developed with a built-in subtitle marketplace allowing users to choose from a number of caption providers, effectively streamlining and speeding up the process. As a result of this, if an ad for which captions are requested is not approved, any required amendments to the captions will be done at no additional cost. To give users even more options, Clearcast now offer their own in-house subtitling service for those who chose to use them for delivery. They are hoping that the increase in options, as well as the more user-friendly workflow, will help to change the culture around captioning ads, encouraging more advertisers and agencies to include them, so that subtitled TV ads become the norm.
