Tele communications giants BT as well as two other companies were quick to question the term which got the national press, poster and TV commercials banned, yet TalkTalk are seemingly delighted with the outcome. After trying to defend their case for using the term, arguing that it was based on them being the only home UK broadband provider that supplies network level security features, they were overruled by the ASA who feel the term refers to ‘the safest online experience’ rather than the highest network security.

To everyone’s surprise however the company has come out gleaming as they believe the ASA has done them a favor and confirmed ‘once and for all, that TalkTalk offers the UK’s safest broadband connection.’ They claim that all they have to do in future advertising is emphasize the network aspect to avoid them being in the wrong. This is why the company views the ruling as a victory.

Of course BT had nothing further to argue as they had actually won their case against TalkTalk and got the adverts banned, although the confirmation that the company does provide the safest broadband could not have been foreseen and may in fact have worked against them. Check out the Guardian for more details on the ban.

What do you think of this ruling? Is it a victory for BT or TalkTalk?

The Advertising Standards Authority who is responsible for adverts on the TV has told the smartphone manufacturer to pull the ads. The Register is reporting the ad in question showed the Defy getting tossed around without getting any damage. The ads also claimed the handset was “pool party proof” and “dance floor proof”.

It showed careless owners dropping the handset without damaging the device and getting soaked at the pool party. The company used the line “water resistant, scratch resistant, dust proof – its life proof“, but trouble is owners have been reporting cracked screens after accidently dropping their handset.

Motorola responded by saying that the ads wasn’t misleading as the display on the device had been “exhaustively impact tested“, and the ads feature the same device. They claimed the handset was dropped on a number of occasions when the ads were being filmed, and no enhancements or computer imagery were used.

They continued that the ads “were an honest depiction of the product”, but didn’t know about the incidents were owners experienced damage to their handsets. ASA were not impressed by Motorola’s arguments and banned the ads.

This follows reports over on BBC Watchdog back in September where owners were complaining of damage to their devices. One reported that her Defy fell from the sofa onto a laminate floor with it smashing and told it would cost £69 to repair.

Do you have the Motorola Defy?

The Advertising Standards action began after a couple of viewers claimed the Samsung Galaxy S II has a speedier processor making it technically more powerful than the Atrix, meaning Motorola’s claim was a little farfetched to say the least. The company tried arguing in their ad’s defense claiming the various devices it can be partnered with, like the cloud and dock, makes it the ‘most powerful.’

According to PCR, Motorola also said that the Atrix was capable of providing cloud-based computing support, powering a full virtual Windows desktop with Citrix account and a full desktop browser, when plugged into the LapdockTM or their unique HD dock. The ASA were still inclined to disagree that these arguments justified their ‘world’s most powerful smartphone’ statement however.

The ASA came to the conclusion that most people that would have watched the advert would have understood the statement as being about the smartphone itself and therefore was a false claim which was in breach of several BCAP rules and should not be aired anymore. These rules that were breached are as follows; Comparisons, Exaggeration, Substantiation and Misleading Advertising.

Are you pleased to see that the Motorola Atrix Advert has been discontinued?