About the ABAC Scheme

Overview

Australia has a quasi-regulatory system for alcohol advertising: guidelines for advertising have been negotiated with government, consumer complaints are handled independently, but all costs are borne by industry. The Alcohol Beverages Advertising Code (ABAC) Scheme is the centrepiece of Australia’s quasi-regulatory system and is administered by a Management Committee which includes industry, advertising and government representatives.

Click here to download a list of frequently asked questions.

From the consumer’s perspective
Australia has one of the most accessible complaints systems in the world, accepting complaints via email, letter or fax with no costs to the consumer. There is just one ‘doorway’ for complaints – through the Advertising Standards Bureau (ASB) – which triggers two independent but parallel processes (see Figure 1 below).

Complaints received from the ASB are all assessed by the Chief Adjudicator under The ABAC Scheme. In turn, some complaints may be referred on to the full Alcohol Beverages Advertising Adjudication Panel and in these cases complainants are informed of the referral and sent a copy of the final determination.

Complainants who request confidentiality will be granted it and members of the alcohol beverage industry are barred from adjudicating complaints.

From the companies’ perspective
There are four potential decision points for alcohol advertising, as outlined in Figure 2, below. If the Adjudication Panel decides that a complaint should be upheld, the advertiser or its agency must advise the Panel within five (5) business days as to whether the advertiser agrees to modify the advertisement or its use must be discontinued.

The ABAC Code is not the only set of rules affecting advertising in Australia. Alcohol beverage advertising must also be consistent with other applicable laws and codes, for example:

the Trade Practices Act and state fair trading legislation;
the Australian Association of National Advertisers (AANA) Code of Ethics;
the Commercial Television Industry Code of Practice;
the Commercial Radio Codes of Practice; and
the Outdoor Media Association Code of Ethics.

Figure 2: Decision points for companies