Regulation of Advertising
The regulation of advertising activities plays a fundamental role in ensuring that market operation and dynamics remain balanced and transparent. For businesses, the publication of advertisements is one of the most important tools for reaching consumers. Online platforms provide an excellent environment for this purpose, particularly in today’s landscape, where influencers possess significant audience-reaching power. For this very reason, the proper regulation of advertising appearing in this context is essential, as it establishes a framework for market participants and is capable of preventing abuses.
A substantial portion of influencers’ income derives from advertising activities, within the framework of which they promote products, brands, or events. Accordingly, it is clear that such activities fall within the scope of Act XLVIII of 2008 on the Basic Conditions and Certain Restrictions of Economic Advertising Activities (hereinafter: the Advertising Act or Grtv.).
For the purposes of this Act, economic advertising means any communication, information, or form of presentation aimed at promoting a product or commodity, where:
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product means a “movable item capable of possession and commercial circulation,”
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commodity means a “service, real estate, or proprietary right,” and
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advertising means the promotion of the sale or other utilisation of a product or commodity, or, in connection with this purpose, the promotion of a business’s name, designation or activity, or the increase of awareness of a product or product identifier.
Accordingly, the statutory concept of economic advertising is extremely broad and effectively encompasses all forms of communication aimed at promoting a product, service, or business. Any message, presentation, content, or visual element that encourages the purchase or use of a product or increases the recognition of a company or brand may qualify as advertising.
Under the Advertising Act, influencers are primarily considered publishers of advertisements, defined as “persons who have access to means suitable for publishing advertisements and make the advertisement accessible through such means,” as they disseminate promotional content to the public via their own platforms. If the influencer themselves create the advertisement, they may also qualify as an advertising service provider, meaning “a person who creates or produces advertisements in the course of an independent economic activity.” Furthermore, many successful influencers eventually operate their own businesses, companies, or brands, which they also promote through advertising. In such cases, in addition to being publishers and advertising service providers, they may also qualify as advertisers within the meaning of the Advertising Act, defined as “the person in whose interest the advertisement is published or who commissions the advertisement.”
The publisher of an advertisement must ensure that all paid or sponsored content is clearly and transparently identified as such, so that consumers can unmistakably recognise when they are encountering advertising. The paid or unpaid nature of content must be indicated in a manner that is easily recognisable and ensures that consumers are informed of its commercial nature throughout the consumption of the content. The publication of paid content is lawful only if it clearly and conspicuously indicates that it is backed by an economic interest. Where content is created or promoted in exchange for financial or other consideration—such as gifted products, free services, or monetary support—it qualifies as sponsored content.
It must be emphasised that where a business accepting sponsorship advertises goods that are restricted or prohibited under the Advertising Act, or where statutory provisions are otherwise breached, both the sponsoring party and the sponsored business are jointly liable for the damage caused by the infringement. In addition, care must be taken during publication to ensure that advertisements do not contain misleading or exaggerated claims, do not omit material information, and respect the dignity and good reputation of competitors in the market.
The Hungarian Competition Authority
The Hungarian Competition Authority (hereinafter: GVH) is an autonomous public administrative body responsible primarily for maintaining fair market competition and protecting consumers in Hungary. Its tasks include the detection and sanctioning of anti-competitive conduct, abuses of market power, and misleading or unfair commercial practices.
The GVH plays a key role in the regulation of influencer marketing and digital advertising, as the advertising activities described above fall within its supervisory competence, particularly in the field of consumer protection.
Since 2016, the GVH has pursued a guidance-oriented and educational approach, aiming to raise awareness and encourage legal compliance. In 2017, the Authority published a guideline summarising how influencer activities should be carried out lawfully. The primary reason for issuing this guideline was the Authority’s repeated observation that content creators failed to properly label paid content. In 2022, the GVH published an additional information notice based on this guideline to further promote compliance, as it continued to find that the majority of influencers were either insufficiently aware of the applicable legal framework or did not comply with it adequately.
In November 2023, the GVH participated in a coordinated Europe-wide investigation, during which it examined the activities of 28 Hungarian influencers. The investigation revealed that only 20% of the examined influencers consistently labelled advertising content, while the majority (54%) did so only occasionally.
In recent years, the Authority has taken increasingly strict action against unlawful influencer marketing practices. Compliance with the law is clearly expected in connection with the publications described above, and influencers, their principals, and intermediary agencies must all be aware of the applicable legal requirements, as ignorance of the law does not exempt anyone from liability.
Competition Supervision Proceedings Involving Influencers
For the audience of influencers, it is essential to receive a clear and unambiguous indication when content constitutes advertising. To prevent excessive influence on consumers—thereby distorting market competition—the GVH initiates competition supervision proceedings to examine whether content creators comply with statutory transparency requirements, particularly the clear identification of advertising content, and whether the communication was capable of misleading consumers or unfairly influencing their decisions. The GVH has also classified the promotion of influencers’ own companies without advertising labels as an infringement.
One of the more widely known proceedings conducted by the GVH concerned the examination of content published on the social media platforms of Réka Rubint, where the Authority investigated whether paid and unpaid content had been properly identified. Although the Authority initially acted leniently—taking into account, among other factors, that its guideline had not yet been published at the time—and did not establish an infringement, the companies concerned failed to comply with their commitments. Consequently, the GVH subsequently imposed fines in the amounts of HUF 2,000,000 and HUF 3,000,000.
During investigations conducted in spring 2024, the GVH identified unfair commercial practices carried out by Roland Kása, operator of the “Rolix” YouTube channel with more than 280,000 subscribers, and his commercial partner, ViharFlotta Kft. Roland Kása promoted Rolix-branded products on his YouTube channel and advertised audience events organised by the company. The advertising nature of the content was not clearly indicated to consumers in any written, visual, or audio form. At the conclusion of the proceedings, the GVH imposed a fine of HUF 920,000 on ViharFlotta Kft., while refraining from imposing a fine on Roland Kása, taking into account that he had only been operating as an entrepreneur for a few years.
