Australia: No more loud ads

New regulations mean we may have seen the end to shouty ads saysMarcus Casey but what does the introduction of OP 59, the new rule governing commercial volume, mean for the production sector, advertisers and advertising delivery services?

It has long been one of the biggest bugbears for both TV viewers and networks – the loudness of television commercials.

Over the years there have been countless complaints forcing networks to explain that shouty ads are not actually their fault, that there is no centralised volume control, placing the blame firmly with the advertisers and those making the ads.

Volume levels of commercials are determined during the production process as a result of audio compression which effectively prevents networks from having any control during the broadcast process.

Harvey Norman, Joyce Mayne, McDonald’s, Lowes and Coles have been among the biggest offenders when it comes to a sudden burst of sound during an ad break.

But a new Free TV Australia regulation – which came into effect on January 1 but will be enforced in a fortnight’s time – is poised to eliminate the issue, with all ads broadcast after that date required to be the same maximum volume as the shows they air during.

The new Operational Practices 59 rule stipulates networks will have to reject an advertisement if it exceeds the algorithm limit, known in the production industry as ‘minus 24’.

Regulations were first put in place in the early 2000s under OP 48, but the ruling had loopholes which the new OP 59 guidelines tighten.