Lee Jun-seok, the presidential candidate of the Reform Party, pledged on the 26th to abolish regulations that fully ban broadcasting advertisements for specific items such as powdered milk and marriage brokerage, as well as to correct the regulatory discrimination between broadcasting and digital media.
Currently, the advertising of powdered milk is completely banned due to recommendations for breastfeeding, and marriage brokerage and heterosexual dating services are prohibited due to the possibility of confusion with similar industries.
However, advertisements for the same items through YouTube, social services (SNS), and other platforms are being advertised without any restrictions, leading to structural disadvantages solely affecting broadcasting companies. These regulations are often based on subordinate regulations such as the 'Broadcast Advertising Review Regulations' and the 'Enforcement Rules of the Act on Labeling and Advertising of Food and Other Products', raising ongoing controversies over violations of the principle of legal reservation and the principle of excess prohibition.
In response, the Reform Party plans to fundamentally abolish the advertising regulations that impose a full ban and promote a transition to a 'content-based review system' that expands the scope of advertising based on criteria such as falsity and harmfulness. Additionally, they aim to implement 'unification of advertising regulations' applying the same standards across platforms such as broadcasting, online video services (OTT), and SNS to rectify the regulatory discrimination between media.
A spokesperson for the Reform Party's election campaign stated, 'It is an unacceptable double regulation that products advertised on YouTube are completely blocked from broadcasting.' They noted, 'We will rationalize broadcasting advertisement regulations to ensure consumer rights and guarantee fair competition for broadcasting companies.'