BT Infinity advert banned for misleading broadband performance claims

BT have had their knuckles rapped by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) due to an advert that made ‘misleading claims' about the speed of their fibre optic broadband service.

The ad claimed that BT Infinity was ‘eight times faster than the UK average' and depicts two students helping a housemate get a ticket by using BT Infinity broadband to upload a photograph and then buy concert tickets.

A complaint was made that the data used in the advert was not based on the latest Ofcom figures and was misleading. Another four complaints challenged the speed of the photograph upload shown and the speed with which the ticket was purchased online. Complaints said the ad ‘exaggerated the performance of BT Infinity'.

BT responded and said that when the ad was made, the claims were in fact based on the latest reports. They argued that the photograph could be uploaded at the speed they claimed.

The ASA didn't agree with BT and that they had misinformed consumers with out of date data. The advert cannot be broadcast now on any level in its current form.

Kitguru says: Many claims by UK broadband providers seem ‘optimistic to us' at best.

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