easyJet's Ryanair ad banned
03.03.10
easyJet have been criticised over an advertisement attacking rival Ryanair. The advert implied Ryanair misled passengers into thinking they would fly direct to European cities, when in fact they flew to towns regularly miles away. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled the ad was not a fair representation of Ryanair flights and must not appear again in the same form. easyJet said it was ‘disappointed’ with the ruling, but would respect the ASA's decision.
The easyJet advert, run as a poster on a train, had the headline: ‘Who loves flying you to the place you actually booked?’ Beneath, using the heading ‘Ryanair’, the ad listed pairs of destinations. The first referred to the city the passenger had booked to fly to, and the second the airport easyJet said Ryanair would really take them to. Barcelona was shown next to Girona, Paris next to Beauvais, Milan next to Bergamo and Venice alongside Treviso. Then, under a title ‘easyJet’, the advert listed Barcelona / Barcelona, Paris / Paris, Milan / Milan and Venice / Venice.
However, the ASA agreed with Ryanair - who had complained - that the ad was an unfair description of their service. The regulator said that although Ryanair does fly passengers to the nearby airports listed in the ad, instead of the cities themselves, the airline made this clear to potential customers. Ryanair also pointed out that Beauvais, Bergamo and Treviso were officially designated as airports for their corresponding cities by the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
Unrepentant, Paul Simmons, easyJet UK general manager, said: ‘It's a fact that easyJet flies to main airports whereas Ryanair serves out-of-town airfields that can be a two-hour bus journey from your destination. While we're disappointed with the ruling, which is based on a technicality, we accept the ASA's verdict and will not repeat the advert in the same form.’
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