On September 1, 2022, Law No. 347-FZ, amending the federal law "On Advertising", came into force. These changes introduce mandatory labeling and accounting of all types of advertising placed on the Russian-language Internet, the so-called Runet. From September 1, 2023, the responsibility for violating these rules began to take effect. In this article, we provide answers to the most frequently asked questions to help you understand the main points: what is allowed, what is prohibited, and what consequences may arise if the law is violated. We will also look at how this new order will work.
What is advertising labeling?
Advertising labeling is the process of adding a special mark "Advertising" to an advertisement, as well as including information about the advertising identifier and the customer. Additionally, it includes mandatory monthly transmission of advertising reports to the Unified Register of Internet Advertising (ERIR) through the advertising data Operator (ORD). This process is mandatory for all participants of the advertising market. In order to comply with the law, advertisers, advertising distributors and intermediaries need to choose a suitable advertising data operator (ORD) and register their data with it. It is important to note that in popular systems related to advertising, the process of advertising labeling is usually performed automatically, and for this it is enough only to provide information about your company in your personal account.
What is ERIR and how Advertising Data Operators (ORDS) work
The Unified Register of Internet Advertising, or ERIR, is a central repository of information about digital advertising placed on the territory of the Russian Federation. It contains data on customers, contractors, advertising costs and statistics for each advertising creative. The information in the EPIR comes through the Application Programming Interface (API) from specialized organizations known as Advertising Data Operators (ORDS). Direct data transmission to the ERIR is not possible, since all data passes through the ORD. Advertising Data Operators (ORDS) are specialized organizations that register advertisements and collect information from advertising market participants in order to transmit it to the EPIR. The ORD issues each advertising creative with a unique identifier, known as a token or ID, which is an alphanumeric code that allows you to track and manage advertising. At the moment, there are seven Advertising Data Operators on the market: Yandex, VK (VK), Mediascout (MTS), Ozon ORD (Ozon), ORD-A (AmberData), First ORD (Vimpelcom), and ORD-Development Laboratory (Sber). Advertising Data operators automate the processes of the advertising system, provided that the necessary information is specified in the account.
How to mark advertising materials
Before placing advertisements, the advertiser or intermediary, who has the appropriate functions, provides information about them and information about the final customer to the Advertising Data Registration Authority (ORD).
Then the operator transfers this data to the Unified Registry Information System (ERIR) and assigns each creative a unique identifier, known as a "token", necessary for subsequent publication. After that, the ad is published with the assigned token and a distinct label "Advertising".
It is important to note that within 30 days after the end of each month, all participants in the chain, including advertisers, intermediaries (for example, advertising agencies) and platforms or systems engaged in advertising, must submit reports to the ORD on creatives, chain participants, contracts and acts, as well as statistics broken down by individual ads and sites. If the agreement provides, all participants in the chain can entrust the transfer of data to an intermediary, such as an agency, service or advertising system.
Why is advertising labeling important
The introduction of an advertising labeling system has its own good reasons that contribute to the renewal of the advertising market, increase its transparency and more effective control.
The creation of a Unified Register of advertisers gives the end advertiser the opportunity to look deeper into the distribution of their advertising budgets. Now he can clearly determine what exactly his funds are spent on, which increases transparency and allows him to make more informed decisions.
The Federal Antimonopoly Service also benefits from the advertising labeling system, quickly identifying and suppressing unfair advertising practices. This promotes fair competition and consumer protection.
And the department of the Federal Tax Service, in turn, acquires more precise tools for controlling taxation in the field of advertising, which contributes to compliance with tax obligations and, as a result, an increase in state budget revenues. Thus, advertising labeling carries the potential to make the advertising sphere more responsible and effective.
What types of advertising are subject to labeling requirements?
In accordance with No. 347-FZ, Article 18, paragraph 4, mandatory labeling applies to the following types of digital advertising placed on the territory of Russia:
Contextual advertising Targeted advertising Display advertising Native advertising SEO advertising Posting on blogs and media
What is considered advertising in accordance with the law?
To determine whether the information falls under the definition of advertising, you should refer to the relevant law. According to this law and the explanations of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS), advertising is considered information that:
It is distributed in various ways and means Addressed to an indefinite circle of persons Draws attention to a product or brand It is aimed at promoting the product on the market and arouses or maintains interest in it
Exceptions to labeling rules:
Social advertising on the Internet does not require labeling if it is placed through its own operator. The rules also do not apply to email newsletters and push notifications. Also, TV and radio clips broadcast on the Internet without changes compared to the original source remain outside the scope of labeling requirements.
Marking of advertising for foreign companies:
If the company is not of Russian origin, but its advertising is intended for users located in Russia, it also falls under the labeling requirements according to No. 347-FZ, Article 18, paragraph 3. If the company's advertising is not displayed on the territory of Russia, then labeling is not required.
Features of labeling for organizations from Russia:
If an organization from Russia places its advertising, for example, through Yandex, but outside the territory of Russia, it is exempt from the obligation of labeling.
Push notifications and email newsletters:
Push notifications and email newsletters do not fall under the new rules, since the FAS considers them not as digital advertising, but as messages sent over telecommunication networks.
Compliance with advertising labeling rules is an important aspect in the field of advertising in Russia, and companies should carefully monitor the compliance of their advertising activities with the established requirements.
How to register creatives in the ORD
Would you like to know if it is possible to launch an advertising campaign first and then register your creatives? It is extremely important to remember that the registration of creatives must be completed before publication, if possible. It is allowed to get a token "retroactively" only for advertising that did not exist before publication. A simple example is a blogger's live broadcast with a natural mention of the brand. In this case, the broadcast should be registered with the Advertising and Admission Authority (ORD) after its publication and following the established rules.
What if you have tens of thousands of creatives and you want to register them?
ORD provides an API that provides automated registration of a large number of ads.
What about labeling dynamic creatives?
According to Roskomnadzor's explanations, for creatives that adapt to the characteristics of a particular user during the display process, it is necessary to obtain a unique identifier for each of their components – each unique target link.
It should be borne in mind that the methods of labeling complex formats are in the process of development. It is possible that different operators will develop their own methods, so it is recommended to clarify this information with the ORD with which you plan to cooperate.
What is an identifier for advertising
An identifier, also known as a token, is a unique combined alphanumeric code designed to identify and track advertising elements. This identifier contains information about an advertising campaign (ORD) and a unique label associated with a specific advertising creativity within this campaign. The identifier is usually embedded in clickable links in the format https://site.ru/?erid=XXX or it can be placed in the adChoice menu. Any user can copy this identifier for various purposes, including filing a complaint with the Federal Antimonopoly Service.
If there are no links in advertising formats, the identifier is inserted as follows:
- in the text description.
- for advertising formats where there is no text, the identifier can be placed on top of an image or video clip or at the beginning of the video in text form following the format "erid: XXX".
At what stage should the ID be generated, and how long does it take?
The ID generation must be performed before the launch of the advertising campaign. The exception is formats that cannot be created before they are published, such as online broadcasts. To register a creative and receive the corresponding token, you must provide information about the contract with the final advertiser, that is, the person who paid for the advertisement.
Any participant in the advertising chain - an advertiser, agency or platform - can register a creative, and this can be agreed between them. Usually, this task is taken over by the site.
The process of assigning tokens should be instantaneous so as not to delay the launch of the campaign. No additional stage of moderation by Roskomnadzor is required.
Is there a need for an identifier for each creative? What should I do if I plan to make a lot of changes?
Yes, each creative needs its own token. If changes are made to the creative, you need to register it as a new one. In large online advertising systems, tokens for modified creatives are generated automatically.
How to distinguish advertising for agencies, freelancers and individuals
The issue of advertising labeling may arise both from agencies and freelancers, as well as individuals who wish to promote their products or services. In this article, we will look at how to correctly determine the way to mark ads depending on your status. For individuals: If you place ads for your own needs, you will need to specify your individual tax number (TIN) as a taxpayer. If you do not have an INN, for example, if you are not a citizen of Russia, you can use your phone number instead of an INN. For freelancers and agencies: If you provide freelance services or work through an agency, and your clients top up their own balances or accounts, and you fulfill orders regardless of financial transactions, then you do not need to provide your TIN. However, it is important to help your client fill out the data correctly in his personal account, or according to a preliminary written agreement, fill out the account on his behalf. For freelancers: If you are a freelancer and work without an official legal structure, and your clients themselves carry out financial transactions, it is important to create separate accounts in advertising systems. In each of these accounts, it is necessary to provide information about the final customer, who is the advertiser. In this case, you will not need to be financially responsible to customers. Your main task is to assist clients in providing the necessary information and in making sure that everything is observed in accordance with the law.
For agencies that make payments on behalf of clients through their legal entities, there are several important stages of advertising labeling:
Transfer of information about the final advertiser and his agreement with the counterparty (if there are several intermediaries in the chain). All participants in the chain should be aware of this data, since for the correct labeling of advertising, it is necessary to allocate expenses according to the contracts of the final advertisers.
Providing their details, as well as the details of their clients and information about the acts with them.
The information is collected in the context of accounts of advertising systems or campaigns. This means that if the advertisement is placed both in Yandex Direct and VK Advertising, data on the acts must be collected and provided separately for each of the platforms. At the same time, at each stage of the advertising labeling chain, it should be clearly visible how much was spent in Yandex Direct and how much in VK Advertising.
Before starting the implementation of advertising campaigns, it is necessary to provide your contact details and information about the initial contract with the advertiser to the Advertising Actions Department (ORD). Monthly after the launch of campaigns, it is required to provide reports with acts related to the original contract in the context of specific accounts. More detailed information about the process of implementing these actions in the Yandex advertising system can be found in [instructions from Yandex] (https://yandex.ru/adv/ad-labeling/agencies#a1 ) to manage complex placement chains.
What should I do if several advertisers or advertising objects are interested in the same advertising material?
In such cases, it is necessary to apply appropriate approaches:
Co-branding: if the advertising material is a joint collaboration of several brands, it is recommended to conclude separate contracts with each of them. This will clearly define the responsibilities and rights of each advertiser.
Sponsorship: In case of sponsorship, only the main sponsor should be considered and appropriate agreements should be established. This will provide clarity in the allocation of resources and responsibilities.
How to properly document the payment of advertising if the client makes payments on behalf of different legal entities?
If various legal entities of the client pay for advertising, such a situation can be considered as co-sponsorship. In this case, the following recommendations should be followed:
Budget splitting: Place impressions and expenses on different legal entities. This will help to clearly reflect which resources are used by each of them.
Compliance with the subject: make sure that all legal entities participating in the co-sponsorship have a similar subject of activity. This will help to avoid unnecessary questions from regulators.
Necessary agreements: Enter into all necessary agreements between the participants of the co-sponsorship to resolve issues of joint participation and responsibility.
If advertising is paid for by different clients, such as individual entrepreneurs, individuals and legal entities, it is recommended to create separate accounts for each client. This will help to avoid confusion and questions from the tax authorities.
Let's summarize:
Compliance with laws and regulations in the field of advertising is a prerequisite for a successful and legal business. Regardless of whether you are a large corporation or a small entrepreneur, violating the rules can lead to serious consequences, including fines and loss of trust on the part of customers.
Advertising professionals have the knowledge and experience necessary to create effective and legally correct advertising materials. They can help you avoid misunderstandings related to labeling and make sure that your advertising meets the expectations of the audience.
Compliance with advertising labeling laws contributes to building a positive image of your company and long-term relationships with customers. Professionals can help you create honest and transparent advertising that will strengthen your reputation.
Finally, in the modern world, where regulations and standards are constantly changing, contacting advertising professionals becomes a necessity to be aware of changes and compliance with laws.
As a result, cooperation with qualified specialists will help you avoid legal problems and make your advertising more effective, which, ultimately, will lead to an increase in the success of your business.