Advertising self-regulation under scrutiny in Australia

Australia has a plethora of industry bodies applying a multiplicity of voluntary codes regulating advertising practices. Bodies exist within the advertising industry itself and within commercial media associations. Finally, the Media Council of Australia, an umbrella organization of each of the commercial media associations, has promulgated a general code of advertising ethics as well as a number of codes dealing with the advertising of specific goods and services. The Media Council's codes are enforced by the Advertising Standards Council, a private body comprising representatives of the media and the advertising industry and selected community representatives.The potentially anti-competitive consequences of advertising self-regulation in Australia have caused a number of self-regulatory schemes to fall under the scrutiny of the Australian Trade Practices Commission. This article surveys the evaluation by the commission of the extent to which the anticompetitive consequences of self-regulation in Australia are outweighed by benefits to the public resulting from the operation of the schemes falling within its purview.The accountability of advertising self-regulation to the public interest has recently been subjected to close scrutiny in Australia by the Trade Practices Commission which has the task of enforcing Australia's antitrust and fair trade laws. This article examines the structure and operation of advertising self-regulation in Australia together with its evaluation by the Trade Practices Commission.

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Australische Werbeselbstontrolle auf dem Prüfstand

Zusammenfassung Es gibt in Australien eine große Anzahl von Richtlinien zur freiwilligen Werbeselbstkontrolle, die von einer ebenfalls großen Zahl von Gremien angewendet werden, sowohl von solchen der Werbeindustrie als auch von solchen der Werbemedien-Verbände. Außerdem hat auch der australische Medienrat als Dachverband der Medienverbände zusätzliche Richtlinien sowohl für die Werbung generell als auch für die Werbung für bestimmte Produkte und Dienstleistungen entwickelt. Diese Richtlinien des Medienrates werden durch ein weiteres Gremium (Advertising Standards Council) durchgesetzt, das sich als nichtöffentliches Gremium aus Vertretern der Medien und der Werbeindustrie und einzelnen Vertretern des öffentlichen Lebens zusammensetzt.Wegen potentieller wettbewerbshemmender Wirkungen wurde eine Reihe von Richtlinien zur Selbstkontrolle einem Prüfverfahren unterzogen (durch die Australian Trade Practices Commission). Der vorliegende Beitrag berichtet darüber, inwieweit nach dem Ergebnis dieser Prüfung wettbewerbshemmende Wirkungen durch andere positive Wirkungen überwogen werden.

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Michael Blakeney is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Law, The University of New South Wales, P.O. Box 1, Kensington, New South Wales, Australia 2033.     

Consumer Awareness of the Legal Obligations of Funeral Providers

The results from a consumer survey that examined consumer knowledge of some parameters of the Funeral Rule are presented. Currently, all funeral home activities are regulated under the Funeral Industry Practices Rule of the Federal Trade Commission. The rule is premised on the assumption that it is difficult for consumers to make careful, informed purchase decisions in at‐need situations because of emotional stress, time pressure, and lack of familiarity with available goods and services. However, limited research has assessed how much consumers know about the legal obligations of funeral providers as provided for by the Funeral Rule. Implications for consumer protection and policy are discussed.     

An assessment of organic apparel,environmental beliefs and consumer preferences via fashion innovativeness

The topic of organic apparel has been widely discussed among academics and practitioners in recent years. While numerous studies have been done on the topic, few studies to date have assessed the topic of fashion innovativeness and its influence on attitudes towards organic apparel. In addition, an evaluation of consumer preferences for organic apparel from a conjoint analysis perspective has not been implemented. Thus, the purpose of the present study was to identify which organic apparel attributes are most important to high fashion innovativeness and low fashion innovativeness groups. Furthermore, the variables of environmental beliefs and attitudes towards purchasing organic apparel were assessed. An online survey was developed to measure the variables, including a full profile discrete choice design used to measure attribute preferences for t‐shirts. The data were analyzed using a multinomial logit model and desirability indices. The results indicated that the low fashion innovativeness group preferred organic and eco‐friendly apparel more than the high fashion innovativeness group. In addition, when examining high fashion innovativeness and low fashion innovativeness groups overall, the preferred t‐shirt was Dri‐Fit, Cotton Jersey Knit, Made In America, Eco‐Friendly and $25.00. However, when examining high fashion innovativeness and low fashion innovativeness groups separately for the preferred t‐shirt, differences appeared in Sustainable. The results suggest that high fashion innovativeness and low fashion innovativeness groups may desire different organic apparel attributes when considering organic apparel.     

Looking at the brain: Neural effects of “made in” labeling on product value and choice

International business research posits that, under certain circumstances, consumers prefer goods manufactured in their own country regardless of their country of origin image. Yet the psychological origin of such Domestic bias remains unknown. This study presents a neuroimaging experiment developed in Spain. The task combined low and high involvement goods marked with Domestic “Made in Spain” and Foreign “Made in USA” (similar culture) and “Made in China” (different culture) labels. The findings reveal that Domestic goods always convey neural rewarding sensations. Neural aversive biases toward Foreign goods occur only when the products are culturally different and high involvement. These findings help improve business retailing strategies.     

Consumer ethnocentricity and preferences for wool products by country of origin and manufacture

Labelling on apparel products usually focuses on the country where manufacturing takes place, rather than where the raw materials were obtained. A choice experiment of consumers in three southern US states was conducted to determine preferences and marginal willingness to pay (mWTP) for wool blend sweaters based on fibre origin and country of manufacture. Fibre origin choices were Australia, US and US State, with the latter to investigate consumer interest in local over simply domestic. Manufacturing had two possibilities, US and China. Survey questions were used to determine an average consumer ethnocentric tendency (CET) score for each consumer, and a median split was used to place each into a High or Low CET group. Nested logit models were analysed for both groups, and mWTP estimates were computed from the coefficients. Both CET groups were willing to pay significant premiums for State‐produced wool over US wool, and for US wool over Australian wool. However, the Low CET group exhibited lower premiums for fibre origins than their High CET counterparts. Ethnocentric consumers, unlike Low CET consumers, were additionally willing to pay significant premiums for wool blend sweaters knitted in the US vs. those knitted in China. Results suggest that labelling fibre by State or by US origin may allow producers to obtain substantial premiums for their apparel products. Promotion of domestic manufacturing though may only be effective for a smaller set of consumers.     

The liability to consumers of manufacturers of defective goods — An Australian perspective

There is an increasing tendency for consumers to regard the manufacturer as being primarily responsible for the safety and quality of consumer goods, even though in many if not most legal systems the common assumption by the consumer that the manufacturer rather than the retailer bears the primary liability for defective goods is not in fact correct. The legal position of the consumer in Australia under the general law of contract and tort is outlined as a background to the reforms made in 1978 by an important amendment to the Federal Trade Practices Act. A manufacturer (or importer) of consumer goods now is bound by statutory obligations, enforceable by the consumer, in respect of the quality of his goods. He is also bound by any express warranty given by him, and is liable where the goods require to be repaired or where replacement parts are required, but repair facilities or spare parts are not reasonably available. Except in the case of the obligations relating to the provision of spare parts and repair facilities, the manufacturer's statutory obligations cannot be excluded or limited. The Act also contains provisions limiting the time during which a consumer can commence an action against a manufacturer.Although the author considers that there are some defects in the legislation, he concludes that it represents a significant advance in the legal protection of the consumer's economic interests. There is a need for the expansion of existing mechanisms for the informal resolution of consumer claims, but the author also believes that the existence of the new legislative code setting out reasonably clearly defined rights will often in practice greatly strengthen the position of government agencies and others in attempting to negotiate a settlement on behalf of a consumer. Damages recoverable by a consumer from a manufacturer extend to consequential losses, including death or personal injury. As a result, a measure of strict liability for personal injury caused by defective products has been imposed on manufacturers. The legislation does not, however, offer a comprehensive regime of strict liability for personal injury and many anomalous situations will arise. The author considers that there is therefore a need in Australia for a review of the whole question of strict liability for personal injury caused by defective products, although even were this to occur there would still exist a strong need for a scheme such as that discussed in the article to govern the claim of a consumer for economic losses caused by the supply of defective or inferior products.

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Die Haftung des Warenherstellers bei Mängeln der Sache — eine australische Position zum Verbraucherschutz

Zusammenfassung Konsumenten gehen in immer stärkerem Maße davon aus, daß primär der Hersteller für die Güte und Sicherheit von Bedarfsgegenständen verantwortlich ist. Dem steht bislang die Rechtstradition der meisten Länder entgegen, wonach der Verkäufer und nicht der Hersteller primär für Fehler und Mängel verantwortlich ist.Der Aufsatz stellt die rechtliche Stellung des Konsumenten in Australien vor dem Hintergrund allgemeiner vertrags- und deliktsrechtlicher Regelungen dar. 1978 ist durch eine Novelle des Federal Trade Practices Act eine wichtige Reform eingeführt worden. Der Hersteller oder Importeur von Verbrauchsgütern (consumer goods) ist jetzt kraft Gesetzes, das vom Verbraucher im Klagewege durchgesetzt werden kann, einstandspflichtig für die Qualität seiner Waren. Er ist gleichermaßen unter einer Garantieerklärung haftbar. Er hat auch dafür einzustehen, daß Güter, die Wartung, Reparatur oder Ersatzteile benötigen, ordnungsgemäß und zu vernünftigen Bedingungen gewartet werden können. Die Pflichten des Herstellers können durch vertragliche Abrede nicht ausgeschlossen oder eingeschränkt werden, mit der Ausnahme der Wartungsverpflichtung. Die Novelle enthält schließlich Bestimmungen über Ausschluß- und Verjährungsfristen für die Ansprüche des Verbrauchers, wobei sie sich an den EG-Richtlinienentwurf zur Produkthaftung anlehnt.Auch wenn der Autor einige Vorschriften der Novelle kritisch würdigt, so geht er davon aus, daß sie einen wichtigen Fortschritt im rechtlichen Schutz der wirtschaftlichen Interessen des Verbrauchers darstellt. Daneben besteht weiterhin ein Bedarf zur Verbesserung der Rechtsdurchsetzung, aber die Existenz der Novelle und der dort enthaltenen klar definierten Pflichten des Herstellers erleichtert staatlichen Behörden und anderen den Schutz der Rechte des Konsumenten. Die vom Hersteller zu liquidierenden Schäden betreffen auch Folgeschäden einschließlich Tod und Personenschäden. Im Ergebnis haftet der Hersteller ohne Verschulden für Produktfehler. Allerdings ist die Gesetzeslage nicht vollständig befriedigend; es fehlt ein umfassendes System der Gefährdungshaftung für Produktfehler, etwa gegenüber Dritten, die das fehlerhafte Produkt lediglich benutzen, ohne es selbst gekauft zu haben. Nach Auffassung des Autors muß deshalb in Australien die Produkthaftung für Personenschäden neu überdacht werden. Daneben bleibt die — durch die Novelle befriedigte — Notwendigkeit, den Verbraucher gegenüber Vermögensschäden bei Lieferung eines mangelhaften Produktes dadurch zu schützen, daß man ihm einen Direktanspruch gegen den Hersteller zuerkennt.

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David Harland is Professor of Law, University of Sydney Law School, 173–175 Phillip Street, Sydney, N.S.W. 2000, Australia.     

进口中间品质量对企业生产率的影响——基于影响渠道的分析

通过使用2000~2013年中国工业企业数据库和海关数据库测算出企业进口产品的质量,分析进口产品质量对企业生产率的影响以及影响渠道,结果显示:企业进口高质量的资本品、中间品以及消费品能够提升企业生产率;企业进口高质量产品能够通过加剧行业竞争,促进企业提升生产率,提高竞争力;企业进口高质量产品的技术创新效应不同,资本品和消费品的技术创新效应为正,中间品为负;中间品技术创新效应为负的原因是加工贸易中的来料加工占据中国中间品进口的大部分且其技术创新效应为负。     

Canadian Perspectives on the Challenges of Consumer Bankruptcies

Consumer bankruptcies in Canada have become a major legal, economic and social phenomenon. The number of consumer bankruptcies almost tripled between 1985 and 1995 and exceeded 75,000 in 1996. The author examines the causes of the rapidly escalating number of bankruptcies and shows that there is a strong correlation between the number of consumer bankruptcies and the equally rapid growth in the volume of consumer credit. The paper rejects the argument of credit grantors and federal bankruptcy officials that going bankrupt and obtaining a discharge from one's debts has become too easy and that a high percentage of consumer bankrupts could have made a consumer proposal involving a substantial repayment of their debts.The paper also joins issue with the provisions in Bill C-5, a bill amending the federal Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act currently before the Canadian Parliament, and criticizes the proposed amendments involving consumer bankruptcies on the ground that they ignore or misinterpret the available data, much of them generated by the Canadian Government itself.     

PUBLIC MEASURES AFFECTING SMALL BUSINESS IN AUSTRALIA

Certain institutional arrangements in Australia seem to operate to the disadvantage of small business particularly in the fields of finance, taxation and access to specialized services. But the Australian Trade Practices Act is based upon two value judgements–the acceptance of competitive capitalism as a socio-economic system and the need to curb the misuse of economic power. This second aim, in particular has benefitted small businesses through the restriction of arrangements in restraint of trade (Section 45), through regulating monopolization (Sec. 46), through forbidding exclusive dealing (Sec. 47), through banning resale price maintenance (Sec. 48), through regulating price discrimination (Sec. 49) and through regulating mergers (Sec. 50). The misuse of economic power may be related to the concept of ‘public benefit’ or ‘social efficiency’ as contrasted to ‘economic efficiency’ and it is on these grounds that arguments for assistance to small business can be most convincingly made.     

International retail format transfer: A comparison study of Australian and U.S. warehouse club members

Costco successfully transferred its Warehouse Membership Club (WMC) format to Australia. This research: 1) develops a conceptual framework to examine the role of consumer perception of format-specific core attributes in shaping the hedonic shopping experience and customer loyalty; and 2) compares Australian consumers' responses to the novel WMC format with U.S. consumers' responses to the familiar, mature format. We collected survey data from Australian and U.S. Costco members after Costco's entry into Australia's retail market and we tested the proposed model with a multiple-group structural equation modelling technique. Our findings suggest that value and hedonic shopping experience contribute to consumer loyalty in both countries. However, value is perceived as more important in shaping hedonic shopping experience, but less important in building loyalty in Australia than in U.S. When transferring a retail format that is novel to host country consumers, global retailers should factor in the novelty effect and emphasize the management of core format attributes that embrace the differences and carry particular importance in building customer loyalty.     

Transforming Australian business attitudes to competition: Responses to the Trade Practices Act 1965

When the Australian Trade Practices Act 1965 came into force on 1 September 1967 it was vehemently opposed by business as it threatened to reveal the extent of their anti-competitive arrangements. Yet by the time the Act was replaced by stronger legislation in 1974, most firms had accepted that collusion and price fixing were undesirable and that they had to compete. Using newspapers, parliamentary debates, archival records, and the Secret Register of trade agreements introduced by the 1965 Act, this paper examines the transformation of attitudes to competition in the Australian business community.     

Relative prices and wage inequality: evidence from Mexico

This paper examines the link between relative goods prices and relative wages during two periods of Mexico's trade liberalization. The relative price of skill-intensive goods rose following Mexico's entrance to the General Agreement and Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in 1986, but fell after Mexico entered the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994. This paper adds a band pass filter to two established techniques to compare the relationship between prices and wages. Results from all three approaches are consistent with a positive long-run relationship between relative output prices and relative wages. The band pass filter results suggest that the relevant time frame for the relationship begins after 3-5 years.     

The economics of taxes with equivalent effects to tariffs

Developing countries are faced with the issue of tariff replacement at an early stage of their development, due to their increased commitments through Free Trade Arrangements with developed countries. As tariff replacement through VAT, or more sophisticated tools such as income tax, is neither practically nor economically desirable in these economies, this paper investigates the effects of an alternative replacement tax that only affects categories of goods not produced locally. This tax, denominated tax with equivalent effects to tariffs (TEET), is indeed a consumption tax as it concerns all goods, whether imported or potentially produced in the country. Based on a simple diagrammatic approach, the study shows that this tool tends to generate more welfare than tariffs if final prices of goods are left unchanged. It shows that a government can continue to maintain its revenues and increase the welfare of consumers through this fiscal replacement. Additionally, the political and economic reserves associated with this tool are discussed. The TEET are therefore useful mainly for small and non-diversified economies. It also remains that the use of this tool is, in practice, conditioned by the level of tolerance of developed countries, which tend to prohibit it in bilateral agreements with developing countries.     

Consumer Perceptions of the United States and Japan as Countries of Origin

Country of origin cues ofien trigger global evalua- tions by which consumers infer the presence of quality, performance levels or product attributes that they are unable or unwilling to evalu- ate directly. This premise is used as a basis for this study in which the perceptions held by Malaysian, Taiwanese and Australian consumer samples regarding U.S. and Japanese-produced consumer goods were compared and contrasted. Across each market, Japanese imports were perceived as significantly more desirable along a number of perceptual dimensions. Implications for the strategic promotion and competitive repositioning of U.S. consumer goods within each mar- ket are developed.     

The effect of country of origin on purchase behaviour: an intercept study

In the present study, consumers were intercepted and surveyed at point of purchase to measure the influence of country of origin on apparel purchase behaviour. In addition, actual consumer awareness of the country of origin of the garment purchased was measured. The findings offer an indication of the relationship between consumer attitudes and purchase behaviour with regard to country of origin. This information may prove useful to retailers involved in or considering involvement in ‘American made’ promotions. Results also offer the residual benefit of gauging the impact of the Crafted With Pride ‘Made in the U.S.A.’ campaign 6 months after the introduction of intense promotion.     

技术性贸易壁垒分析及对策研究

在世界经济一体化成为不可逆转的趋势下，各国之间的贸易往来不断加深。近年来贸易保护主义抬头．以技术性贸易壁垒为主的新兴贸易保护手段日益盛行。超出合理范围的技术性贸易壁垒，人为地给商品的进出口制造障碍，违背了WID自由贸易的宗旨，给广大发展中国家造成了严重的不利影响。本文分析了技术性贸易壁垒产生和发展的背景以及我国遭受技术性贸易壁垒限制的主要原因，并在此基础上探讨了应对措施和方法。     

WHY ARE GOODS CHEAPER IN RICH EUROPEAN COUNTRIES? BEYOND THE BALASSA–SAMUELSON EFFECT

In wealthy European countries consumer goods tend to be cheaper than consumer services. Usually explained in terms of cost developments and/or foreign‐trade considerations, this trend could also be a reflection of demand‐side regularities. Estimation of a cross‐country demand system indicates that goods are ‘necessities’ whereas services are ‘luxuries’. The relative price of goods responds negatively to the rising supply of goods and positively to the rising supply of services, with the former response being much stronger. If the supplies of both items were to rise at the same speed, the relative price of goods would have to fall.     

Restraining Unions' industrial action: A new consumer right

This paper discusses the revolutionary new right introduced by the Trade Union Reform and Employment Rights Act 1993 for consumers to seek a court order to halt unlawful industrial action which disrupts the supply of goods or services, regardless of whether they have any enforceable right to the goods or services in question. Even more unusually, public funding is available to conduct these proceedings irrespective of the applicant's means where the industrial action is organised by a trade union. The paper analyses the nature of the right, locates it within the broader framework of remedies for the non-provision or inadequate provision of goods or services, and assesses the wider implications of the right for consumer policy.     

Consumer Preference and Willingness to Pay for a Local Label Attribute in Western Australian Fresh and Processed Food Products

This study investigates Western Australia’s consumer attitudes toward and preferences for locally produced food products signified by a state-funded campaign logo, Buy West Eat Best (BWEB). A choice experiment using both a fresh and a processed food product (skinless chicken breast and fruit yogurt) is conducted to assess willingness to pay for a local production attribute and other label claims. We find that consumer awareness and preference for local foods is high. However, this high preference is not because the product is locally produced but because of the local attributes associated with high-quality products. The study highlights the importance of successfully differentiating products through credible labeling schemes in order to capture market premium.     

建立中国和澳大利亚自由贸易区的经济影响分析及政策建议

加入世贸组织后,中国逐渐重视双边自由贸易协定的积极作用,继中国-东盟(“10+1”)自由贸易区之后,中国和澳大利亚的自由贸易协定正在协商之中。本文目的是研究中国和澳大利亚建立自由贸易区后对中澳两国和其他国家的经济影响。本文采用全球贸易分析模型,对自由化方案作了分析,研究结果表明:中澳两国间存在明显的经济互补性,建立自由贸易区将改进两国和世界总福利,澳大利亚的农业和工业都将受益,农业部门所得利益大于工业部门,中国所得利益全部来自劳动力密集型的工业部门,而农业部门会受到一定的冲击。最后,基于模拟分析结果,提出应对措施和政策建议。