Advertising ban on Sunday TV to go

Television advertising should be allowed on some Sunday mornings, but only during ‘‘special events’’, the Government has decided.

The proposal is a compromise on an issue that has divided television companies and church groups.

Broadcasters will be allowed to play adverts on Sunday mornings during ‘‘events of major significance’’ such as the Rugby World Cup, under a proposed law change that will also expand the role of the Broadcasting Standards Authority to cover online television services. There is currently a blanket ban on commercials between 6am and noon on Sundays.

A television and radio ad-ban on Christmas Day, Good Friday, Easter Sunday and Anzac Day morning will remain.

The theory behind the Sunday morning ad-ban has been that it encourages broadcasters to show ‘‘special interest’’ programming – such as religious programmes – without concern that they may be missing out on larger audiences that would be of interest to advertisers, to whom they would otherwise cater.

Green Party MP Gareth Hughes opposed lifting the Sunday morning adban when the idea was first discussed a year ago, saying it was ‘‘important there is a little bit of peace and quiet in our hectic modern world’’.

But Broadcasting Minister Amy Adams said then that she wanted to make the rules governing ‘‘traditional’’ and new online media more consistent. The new rules would be fairer, she said.

The Government will introduce a Digital Convergence Bill giving effect to the changes, which will also extend the Broadcasting Act to cover on-demand content.

That will have implications for the way services such as Spark internet television service Lightbox and Netflix classify their programmes.

The classification of broadcast and ondemand content would be handled the same way under the Broadcasting Act, with complaints handled by the Broadcasting Standards Authority (BSA), Adams said.

‘‘As a trusted public sector agency, I consider the BSA is well placed to take on this expanded role,’’ Adams said.

The approach – which will not extend to news and current affairs or to usergenerated content such as videos uploaded by the public – is expected to please Lightbox.

Lightbox and chief censor Andrew Jack fell out late last year after Lightbox stopped submitting its programming to the Film and Video Labelling Board for classification under a separate regime administered by the censor, following a period of confusion over labelling rules.