Product placement
No product placement please, we're British? Part 2
Following Andy Burnham's negative comments on liberalising UK TV product placement rules, the DCMS is now consulting on whether it should be permitted. What are the arguments and the prospects for dissuading HM Govt from its negative view? Carla Basso reports.

Regulatory
CAP Code amendments reflect Consumer Protection Regulations  With little or no fanfare, CAP introduced significant changes to the CAP Code at the end of June. See below for Nick Johnson's report as to how the changes could be more far-reaching than CAP has suggested.r

Sponsorship
Chinese recipe to combat ambush marketing  The Beijing Organising Committee has put in place some of the toughest ever measures to combat ambush marketing at the 2008 Olympics, with signs already emerging of these backfiring on official sponsors. Nick Johnson takes a hop, skip and a jump through some of the measures.

Brands
Dream it! Do it!? In your dreams, say Euro trade mark judges  The CFI has rejected an application to register as a Community Trade Mark the slogan DREAM IT! DO IT!, finding that it lacks distinctive character. But what about Nike's JUST DO IT? Emily Devlin reports.

Privacy
Junking junk mail for good?  The Walport data sharing review has now been published, but what does this mean for marketers and what's all this nonsense about local authorities no longer selling electoral register data? Phil Lee reports.

Comparative
Key implications of ECJ judgment  On 9 July 2008 Osborne Clarke held a unique workshop reporting in depth on the recent ECJ judgment in the O2/Hutchison case over using competitors' brands in ads. Speaker Nick Johnson drew seven key conclusions from the verdict.

Mobile marketing
New threat looms for Scottish viral campaigns  A new "Sexual Offences Bill" is making its way through the Scottish Parliament with new offences that could bite advertisers using flirting texts. Anna Montes reports.

Promotion marketing
Property Woman of the Year Awards breach Code  Bradford & Bingley ran a national "Property Woman of the Year" contest but a disappointed entrant queried the selection process and its consistency with ads. David Pawan reports the Advertising Standards Authority's verdict and the lessons.

Prices
Warmed over price guidance from the BERR  New Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations scrapped previous price indication laws and necessitated an update to a related pricing code. In the old code's place has appeared "Guidance" from the BERR. Are there any major changes? Omar Bucchioni reports.