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Raymond Ma

A social concern group has criticised a high-profile advertising campaign for a sexual lubricant, saying it could be misunderstood by young people and is unsuitable for prominent display in MTR stations.

Advertisements for condom-maker Durex's Play brand of lubricants feature  the words 'for blow' - a phrase some say is a racy allusion to oral sex.

Choi Chi-sum, general secretary of the social group Society for Truth and Light, said  Durex had crossed the line by intentionally associating the product with oral sex.

'The advertisement will also give youngsters the misconception that things like this are for everybody,' he said. 'It gives no idea that it is meant to be used only by adults. That is unacceptable.'

Mr Choi said the advertisement was not suitable for display  in places easily accessible by children.

According to the Durex website, Play is meant to be squeezed onto the fingers for application to the desired areas of the body.

A spokeswoman said the reference to 'blow' was meant to highlight the fact that the lubricant warmed up when air was blown onto the applied surface. Elaine Ng, marketing manager for distributor SSL Healthcare Asia, denied that the allusion to oral sex was intentional.

'We agree that we may have overlooked this,' she said. 'We will scrutinise the wording of our advertisements in the future for things that may be deemed insensitive or indecent.'

Ms Ng said the same wording was used in overseas advertisements but  Asian audiences may be more sensitive.

Neither the government nor the MTR Corporation said it believed the advertisements were indecent.

MTRC spokesman Kenrick Ko said no complaints have been received from passengers.



Condom firm's ad stretches good taste