The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is set to extend its digital remit as it aims to deliver a more comprehensive consumer protection online.

The remit of the ASA online, which includes online adverts in paid-for-space and sales of non-broadcast advertising, sales promotion and direct marketing, will apply in full to marketing communications online.

This will include rules relating to misleading advertising, social responsibility and the protection of children.

The digital remit of the ASA has been extended by the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) in response to a formal recommendation from a wide cross-section of the UK industry.

The document detailing this new remit and sanctions has been published today, explaining that it will cover advertiser’s own marketing on their websites and marketing in non-paid-for-spade under their control, including social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter.

Online sanctions will including present sanctions as well as the removal of paid-for-search advertising and the ASA can also place adverts online to highlight an advertiser’s continued non-compliance.

To fund the remit, which comes into force on 1 March 2011, the industry has agreed to apply the standard 0.1 per cent levy on paid-for advertisements on search engines through media and search agencies.

This will be an extension of the current funding system.

Lord Chris Smith, chairman of the ASA, said, “This significant extension of the ASA‟s remit has the protection of children and consumers at its heart. We have received over 4,500 complaints since 2008 about marketing communications on websites that we couldn‟t deal with, but from 1 March anyone who has a concern about a marketing communication online will be able to turn to the ASA.”