The ASA, the UK's advertising watchdog, has published a new guidance note which focuses on advertising of (and within) video games. Whilst the note does not change the status quo, or any of the existing rules, it is a useful summary of some of the issues that have cropped up in recent months.

The guidance focuses on three risk areas: 

(i) content in ads which is likely to cause fear or distress, particularly if it appears in untargeted media; 

(ii) third party in-game ads, which in some cases are poorly targeted and served to the wrong audience, and 

iii) misleadingness, particularly in relation to features of the game which are likely to affect a consumer's purchasing decision.

If you can tolerate the hackneyed gaming references, the note is short, accessible and worth a read.

It can be found here.