Netherlands: Advertising watchdog defends gay hook-up ads at train stations

Adverts for a gay hook-up app will not be banned in the Netherlands, despite a number of complaints. Gay cruising app Squirt had put up the large signs and posters at major train stations across Rotterdam, Amsterdam Utrecht and The Hague. 

Despite a number of complaints, the Advertising Standards Board has ruled in favour of the site – and will allow the campaign to continue.  One complainant claimed that the ad was designed to entice children into visiting the website, while a third said it was “truly sickening and shocking”.
The ASB found that the ads met “the necessary precautions… in the context of good taste and public decency.”

The app’s ads were previously removed from trains in Canada – after the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) claimed they encouraged gay commuters to “break the law”. TTC spokesperson Danny Nicholson said: “The ad was taken down as it promoted sex in public places, which is against the law.” Read more via PinkNews