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Pouring Over the Law: Navigating Alcohol Advertising & Packaging Regulations in India – Part 1

CAM Comment: Part 1 of this blog post series aims to shed light on the multi-layered regulatory framework surrounding the advertisement and promotion of alcoholic beverages in India.

Introduction

India presents a uniquely complex regulatory environment for the alcoholic beverages industry. Unlike many sectors governed primarily by central legislation, alcohol falls under the purview of states, creating a fragmented landscape of laws governing production, sale, advertising, and consumption. This complexity stems from the Indian Constitution, which places production,  possession, transport, purchase and sale of intoxicating liquors on the State List, granting states legislative power. This contrasts with the Directive Principle in Article 47, which encourages states to prohibit intoxicating drinks, highlighting an intrinsic conflict between public health objectives and the significant state revenue generated from alcohol excise duties.Continue Reading Pouring Over the Law: Navigating Alcohol Advertising & Packaging Regulations in India – Part 1

Understanding regulatory safeguards for influencer marketing of nutraceuticals in India

Introduction

The last decade witnessed an increasing number of nutraceuticals — in the form of teas, protein powders, or hair-growth gummies — being marketed by influencers and celebrities on social media platforms. The Indian nutraceutical market is experiencing significant growth, mirrored by the meteoric rise in influencer marketing as a potent channel to reach health-conscious consumers. Reports suggest that the Indian nutraceutical market is projected to touch $10.19 billion by 2026. While collaborations between nutraceutical brands and social media influencers offer compelling opportunities for engagement and sales, this intersection operates within a complex and strictly regulated legal environment. Navigating this landscape requires adherence to a multi-layered framework, encompassing inter alia the regulations laid down by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (“FSSAI”), the code set out by Advertising Standards Council of India (“ASCI”), and the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 (“CP Act”). In this article, we outline the key regulatory considerations and underscore the necessity of ensuring compliant nutraceutical marketing campaigns in India.Continue Reading Understanding regulatory safeguards for influencer marketing of nutraceuticals in India

The year 2024 has seen significant advancements in advertising laws in India, with the introduction of various new guidelines aimed at regulating mis-advertising. This is understandable, considering that the Indian advertising market is projected to become a $19.2 billion industry by 2028.[1]Continue Reading Legal Spotlight on Ads: Changing Flavor of Ad-Laws in India

Greenwashing - Drawing A Line Between Green Marketing or Green Misrepresentations

Greenwashing, inspired by the term “whitewashing,” is the practice of engaging in “unsubstantiated, false, deceptive, misleading environmental claims about products, services, processes, brands or operations as a whole, or claims that omit or hide information, to give the impression that they are less harmful or more beneficial to the environment than they actually are.”[1]Continue Reading Greenwashing – Drawing A Line Between Green Marketing or Green Misrepresentations

From Likes to Licenses: Regulating Finfluencers Amidst Stricter Norms

A distinct subset of social media influencers called “finfluencers” (short for “financial influencers”) has emerged in the recent past. According to the Advertising Standards Council of India (“ASCI”), “finfluencers” are individuals who disseminate information and advice on various financial topics, ranging from securities investment to personal finance and insurance, via social and digital media platforms.Continue Reading From Likes to Licenses: Regulating Finfluencers Amidst Stricter Norms

End of the Party for Sin (Fin) Fluencers? SEBI’s Regulatory Crackdown on Finfluencers

Introduction

Social media platforms have become an essential communication tool in the post pandemic world. The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic led to a sustained rise of retail investors on the D-Street, in an eager attempt to profit from the great COVID bull run. Ever more, retail investors are looking at influencers on social media platforms for financial advice instead of approaching registered advisors (without evaluating the life alerting consequences it may have).Continue Reading End of the Party for Sin (Fin) Fluencers? SEBI’s Regulatory Crackdown on Finfluencers

Of Gambling and Gaming

India’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (“MIB”), on June 13, 2022, issued an advisory (“Gambling Advisory”)1 to the media, including newspapers, private satellite television channels and publishers of news and current affairs on digital media, which has been the subject of much discussion and reporting.Continue Reading Of Gambling and Gaming: A Tale of two Advisories