‘Hubby is mad at me, drink’: Chinese health product company and ad firm fined US$123,000 for violating ‘good social customs’ with ‘sexist’ collagen drink ads
- Health product company that manufactures drink under fire for making unfounded medical claims and fined US$56,000 for misogynistic advertising campaign
- Firm hired to make controversial ads also sanctioned by Beijing market supervision authority as scandal surrounding drink widens
A Chinese advertising firm behind a sexist publicity campaign for an “anti-ageing” drink which told women that looking younger would please an angry husband has been fined 480,000 yuan (US$67,000) for its role in promoting the product.
On July 28, the marketing supervision authority in Beijing said the Red Dates Culture Company had violated “good social customs” with the ad and had breached China’s Advertisement Law.
The agency was fined 220,000 yuan and ordered to hand over another 260,000 yuan paid to them after the ad was made.
The video ad claimed, without evidence, that a drink called Five Doctors, made by a beauty product firm of the same name, was rich in collagen peptides and had anti-ageing, anti-wrinkle and skin-whitening properties.
A slogan in the ad proclaimed: “One bottle of this drink is equal to using six skincare facial masks”.
“My husband is mad at me. Drink! Stay up late to watch TV series. Drink! I am one year older. Drink,” a series of female actors declare in different versions of the advertisement.