Communication channels under scrutiny

The association, established last October, is also looking for a company it hopes will audit the research submitted to it by its present international media-research company.

President Paichit Thienthong said the association now had 20 media-agency members for a combined 80-per-cent share of Thailand's media-agency industry, as well as 30 other members.

The code of ethics will seek to regulate the ethical considerations involved in selecting media channels for advertisers that will benefit all related parties: consumers, advertisers and media channels. All issues involved in the process will be considered in preparing the code of ethics, Paichit said.

The association is also selecting a company to audit the work of one of the world's leading media-research companies: AGB Nielsen Media Research, which sends regular research findings to MAAT on television-audience measurements, or ratings.

Wisarn Sirijantanon, the MAAT's vice president for finance and academic affairs, said the audit company would check to learn whether there were any problems with Nielsen's research, to ensure that all such information released by the association was totally correct and suitable for sharing with its members.

Paichit said the association's work would not duplicate that currently conducted by the Advertising Association of Thailand (AAT). The AAT mainly oversees advertising, while the MAAT oversees the work of media agencies in selecting the correct media channels for different forms of communication. The two associations will cooperate regularly.

"The MAAT is prepared to work with all parties involved in communication through media channels, including the AAT, advertisers, media agencies and government agencies, in order to create better understanding," she said.