In brief
- Coinbase’s “Everything Is Fine” ad was rejected by UK TV clearance body Clearcast for lacking evidence that crypto solves economic problems, but wasn’t actually “banned” as CEO Brian Armstrong claimed.
- The ad is now running on Channel 4’s YouTube channels, exploiting looser online advertising regulations compared to traditional TV broadcast standards.
- Politicians are calling to close this regulatory “loophole” as YouTube has become the second most-watched service on UK television behind the BBC.
A supposedly banned Coinbase ad is appearing on YouTube videos belonging to Channel 4, one of Britain’s biggest broadcasters, sources familiar with the matter told Decrypt.
The cryptocurrency exchange released its “Everything Is Fine” ad last month—a big-budget, two-minute commercial that depicts the U.K. as bleak, rat infested and dirty, with prices in supermarkets spiraling out of control.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong claimed the advert was “banned” by British TV networks, and argued this amounted to censorship.
But sources within Channel 4 have told Decrypt that no such ban of the Coinbase ad has taken place, and it’s been able to accept the commercial on its YouTube channels.
British advertising rules have been a long-running headache for crypto firms, and Coinbase has had run-ins with regulators before.
Any advert due to appear on TV or radio needs to be screened first—but Clearcast, the organization responsible, said Everything Is Fine could not be approved.
“We considered that it presented cryptocurrency as a potential solution to economic challenges, without sufficient evidence for this claim or any warnings about the potential volatility and risks,” a statement said.
Clearcast does not have the ability to ban commercials outright. That power lies with the Advertising Standards Authority, which only takes action if there are complaints after a commercial has aired. The ASA has confirmed it hasn’t banned the Coinbase advert either.
Regulations are much looser online, meaning an advert prevented from being broadcast on television could still appear on YouTube.
Some British politicians are calling for this “loophole” to be closed, and for ads on the video-sharing site to be held to the same standard.
“It’s clearly not right that a platform now more watched than almost any traditional broadcaster is still operating under a ‘lighter touch’ advertising regime,” Liberal Democrats spokesman Max Wilkinson said last week.
Figures released by the broadcasting regulator Ofcom last month revealed that YouTube is now the second most-watched service on television in Britain—behind the BBC and ahead of ITV, the main commercial channel.
Armstrong’s complaints of the Coinbase ad being banned helped drum up publicity for the advert, which has generated millions of views across social media.
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