A number of big companies and the advertising industry have warned that planned restrictions on children's advertising could be unlawful and will seriously damage Irish broadcasters.
In a letter sent to the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI), groups representing advertisers and their clients warn the regulator its plans may infringe Irish and European law. A new BCI code is due to come into force in July.
In particular, the groups say restricting celebrities or sports stars from advertising food and soft drinks to children is an "unfair restriction on industry's ability to raise product awareness". They claim advertising is not the root cause of childhood obesity and banning celebrity endorsements would be disastrous.
"This clause could have severe repercussions for domestic broadcasters as any international campaign using celebrities will simply shift its expenditure to outside or 'opt-out' channels," the groups claim. "Domestic broadcasters will suffer revenue losses, children will still see celebrity campaigns and underlying purchase behaviour will not change."
The groups who have voiced the concerns are the Institute of Advertising Practitioners in Ireland (IAPI), which represents advertising agencies, and the Association of Advertisers in Ireland (AAI), which is the body representing the major advertising clients.
In response to the BCI's plan to draw up lists of products for future restriction, the groups claim the BCI is "acting outside the remit" and such an idea is in "direct contravention" of the European Convention on Human Rights.
They say article 10 of the convention expressly supports the right to forms of "commercial speech". They also point to the protection of freedom of expression in the Irish Constitution. Both groups question whether advertising is to blame for the problem of childhood obesity.
"Why should food producers be singled out for particular restrictions, especially as the case that advertising is the root cause of childhood obesity is no way proven or provable".
The letter, and an accompanying submission, was sent to the chief executive of the BCI, Mr Michael O'Keeffe in recent days. The BCI published the broad outlines of the restrictions due to come into place in July. These include a ban on "Christmas-themed advertising prior to November 1st".
The AAI and IAPI submissions state this will result in extra revenue for British channels which will not be regulated by the BCI. Some Irish broadcasters have also expressed concern that they will face BCI regulation, but British and Northern Ireland channels broadcasting into the Republic will not.