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The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has confirmed it has received a complaint regarding an advert for Richard & Judy’s exclusive book club with W H Smith.
According to a report in the Times on Saturday, Amanda Ross, m.d. of Cactus TV, which launched R&J’s original book club on Channel 4 and now produces More4’s 'The TV Book Club' show, has complained to the ASA that "people need to be clear that this is not a continuation of the previous book club which is still on Channel 4".
In">http://www.tellyads.com/show_movie.php?filename=TA11655">In the television advert, Judy Finnegan says "we’re back with Britain’s biggest book club", adding "don’t forget 25 of our past favourites too", referring to the previous Channel 4 club.
Ross also commented on an apparent £25,000 charge per title being levied on the publishers of recommended titles under the WHS promotion. The newspaper reports that the retailer will also require the book be supplied at "a substantial discount" and publishers pay an additional 50p per title sold in WHS.
"We don’t ask for money," she said. "What Richard and Judy are doing now is completely different – it’s all about paid-for promotions. I think lines have been blurred and it’s not clear to the public what is happening."
But W H Smith told The Bookseller: "Over 100 books were put forward for inclusion in the 2010 Richard and Judy book club, following a very positive response from publishers. The final eight titles were chosen entirely on merit by Richard and Judy.
"The publishers of the eight titles chosen by Richard and Judy were asked to make a contribution towards the multi-million pound media campaign which WHSmith has undertaken in support of the book club. All publishers made the same contribution. This is a standard industry arrangement between retailers and publishers participating in major book promotions."
A spokesperson added, "We haven’t yet seen the details of the official complaint so couldn’t comment on that."
A spokesperson for the ASA confirmed the complaint but could not comment publicly on the identity of the complainant as it protects anonymity. He said: "We are assessing the complaint to establish under the code whether there is a problem and grounds for an investigation."
A statement to the Times from Richard and Judy said: "We are both hugely proud of our current book club and its success in propelling the first novel to be reviewed by us, a book written by a debut author into the bestseller lists. This club differs from our previous ones in that it bypasses TV and connects directly with the high street."
W H Smith recently reported nearly £1m has been spent on R&J titles since the promotion began on 8th September.
In a comment sent to The Bookseller, Amanda Ross, said: "At Cactus we have always enjoyed a great relationship with WH Smith and indeed, are working with them across our reading projects. We’re really forward to the next big event after next week’s ITV3 Specsavers Crime Thriller Awards which is, of course, The Galaxy National Book Awards."