An advert for Orange's Home Max broadband service has been criticised by the
Advertising Standards Authority
(ASA).
The advert compared the Orange service to BT’s broadband packages. It claimed
people could "save over £190" by switching from BT.
It added: "With Home Max you get line rental included in the price so there's
no need to pay BT – worth over £10 a month wireless broadband with speeds of up
to 8Mbits/sec a home phone package with inclusive calls to UK landlines at
evenings and weekends..."
However, the ASA said this was misleading. It said
Orange's
calculation failed to consider a number of additional features included in the
BT service, such as free Wifi minutes, Norton Antivirus software and a free
cordless phone. These were either not available or available at an extra charge
to Orange customers.
It said there were "significant differences between the services" that were
"likely to influence consumers' evaluation of the comparison" if included in the
advert. It has ordered Orange to amend the advert to highlight these
differences.
When contacted by Computeractive, a representative for Orange said: “Whilst
we are disappointed with the ASA’s ruling to uphold BT's complaint, we have
confirmed that we will not be using the advertisement again."
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