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Party foul! Ads for the Motorola Defy have been banned, after the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) declared that the rugged Android mobile isn’t as party-proof as its adverts would have you believe.
Two TV ads showed the Defy surviving being dropped on to the floor in a club, and doused at a sexy pool party. On-screen accompanying text says it’s “dance-floor proof” and “pool party proof”. More text reads, “Water resistant, scratch resistant, dust proof. It’s life proof.”
Those ads have been branded misleading, however, after three Defy users complained the screens on their phones had cracked after dropping them.
Motorola claimed the now-banned ads don’t “exaggerate the capability or performance of the product” and said that the Defy’s scratch-resistant screen had been exhaustively tested. They also pointed out that the ads in question were shot live using actual Defy phones.
It was all for naught though, as the ASA ruled that the ads must not be broadcast in their current form, and warned Motorola against exaggerating the performance of products in future ad campaigns.
We reviewed the Defy nearly a year ago, and found it to be rather rugged, with a tough exterior and design. But in this instance the complaint seems to focus on the scene where the Defy is dropped on to a dancefloor, with the ASA noting that none of the evidence submitted by Motorola in its defence “directly reflected the dropping scenario depicted in the ads”.
Next they’ll be telling us removing our jeans in a public place won’t make us look cool. On the plus side, perhaps now we can enjoy a can of Tango without having to hide under our desks in case that orange bloke shows up.
So is Motorola deceiving viewers? Or do you think the ruling is an overly literal interpretation of the adverts in question? Have you dropped your Defy on a busy dancefloor? Let us know in the comments or on our Facebook wall, and then we’ll all get back to the pool party.
