New steps are being taken to ensure all content shown on City Loop screens meets the community’s expectations, following a review undertaken by Transport for Victoria.
City Loop stations are Melbourne’s busiest train stations, with around 90 million passengers using them every year.
It is therefore imperative that content shown on these screens is respectful and appropriate at all times.
Following a series of complaints regarding content shown on City Loop screens, as well as noise complaints, the Andrews Labor Government ordered a review to ensure these community standards were being met.
The review found that while there were clear guidelines in place for traditional paid advertising, these guidelines were not being applied to all forms of paid content.
These guidelines outline that content must not:
- depict any subject matter that is offensive
- condone or provoke anti-social behaviour
- promote or relate to alcohol or gambling
- use sexualised images or gender objectification
- portray images or events that may cause distress to children
- be used to promote a political party, parties or a political cause
- use offensive language
- demean any person or group on the basis of ethnicity, nationality, race, gender, age, sexual preference, religion or mental or physical disability
It also found that a stringent review process and compliance regime to monitor content was not in place for all content being aired.
To address these issues, the Government will now extend the application of the current advertising guidelines to cover all paid content on screens in the City Loop.
Metro Trains Melbourne will now work with content providers to ensure all content shown on City Loop screens complies with these changes and that a clear complaints process be put in place.
Metro Trains Melbourne has also been asked to look at initiatives, such as closed captions, to ensure content is as accessible as possible to the millions of people that use Victoria’s public transport system every year, and to minimise platform noise.
The Government believes this approach strikes the right balance, ensuring that what is shown on City Loop screens is accessible, meets community expectations and is appropriate at all times.
Reviewed 19 August 2020