Sky Incredibles Wi-Fi advert banned after BT and Virgin lodge complaints
An advert for Sky broadband has been banned after rivals BT and Virgin argued it made misleading claims about the company’s ability to boost home Wi-Fi networks.
The advert, which featured characters from the hit animated film The Incredibles 2, depicted a Sky employee boosting Wi-Fi throughout the house using just a tablet.
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But the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) today ruled the ad misled consumers about how easily the company could improve the connection.
The decision came after BT and Virgin lodged a complaint challenging whether Sky could substantiate its claim to boost Wi-Fi with such a simple action.
In response, Sky said it was clear the boosted connection came as a result of improved broadband service in the house, which would have been carried out by a Sky tech team engineer.
But the ASA upheld the complaint, saying it was not clear what the technician had done to improve the Wi-Fi.
“We considered that because the ad suggested that Sky had made changes to their broadband service resulting in enhanced Wi-Fi, when that was not the case, we concluded that the ad was misleading,” the ASA concluded.
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Two further complaints lodged by Virgin, which challenged Sky’s claims that Wi-Fi could be accessed throughout the house, were rejected by the advertising watchdog.
The ASA said the advert must not appear again in its current form and told Sky to clarify which service was being advertised.