Advertising on the BBC

[The Don of Croy]

Watching 'Master Chef' it amuses me to see the Kitchen Aid Artisan mixers with bits of tape over the names, and some packaging obscured or turned 'back to camera' etc. Takes me back to Blue Peter making things out of "cereal boxes" when we all knew they were Kelloggs Cornflakes.

Anyhow, during a recent episode of the 'Archers' on R4 (a long standing illness I'm afraid) I was surprised to hear both Facebook and Twitter namechecked - as in scripted. That's two big commercial enterprises getting mentioned in one sub 15 minute soap opera...

And yet I still hear them referring to 'internet search engines' when it seems Google has become the de facto reference in the real world.

As I'm not a Facebook or Twitter user I'd assumed they were just the best known of their particular service, but not unique and most certainly commercial - so how do the Beeb reconcile 'using' them when advertising is still explicitly verboten? Any one out there know?

[Eric Mc]

These days, many BBC programmes (TV or radio) are not actually made by the BBC - so what gets shown or mentioned may not be down to the BBC any more and more to do with what arrangements the production companies may have come to with outside commercial operations.

[P-Jay]

I don't think they're forbidden from using brand names, but they're not allowed to be paid for it.

As for the FB and twitter mentions, I've never really listened to the Archers, but "Generic Social Media Site" doesn't really flow does it?