On Tuesday, 20 August 2024, Meta, the social media conglomerate, that houses Facebook and Instagram, announced a significant shift in its advertising policy, allowing ads for alcohol and real-money gambling across India, Asia Pacific (APAC), and Latin America (LATAM). 

This will be effective from 27 August 2024. 

Under Meta's updated policy, alcohol ads are broadly defined to include any promotion or depiction of alcohol products or consumption. 

This encompasses ads related to venues and events where alcohol sales are central to the business model, invitations to alcohol-related venues, and the availability of alcohol for purchase. 

Additionally, ads featuring the depiction of alcohol brands or logos, consumption of alcoholic beverages, and recipes for alcoholic drinks all fall under this category. 

These wide-ranging definitions aim to regulate the promotion of alcohol across Meta’s platforms, while ensuring advertisers adhere to local laws and age restrictions.

This move comes at a time when the Indian government is poised to introduce stringent advertising regulations, including a potential ban on surrogate ads and event sponsorships.

While the platform has measures to prevent underage targeting, including a minimum age requirement of 18 years for viewing alcohol-related content, broad categories such as age and location still leave room for advertisers to target specific demographics.

The Indian government has yet to issue an official statement regarding Meta’s policy change. 

However, the timing of this announcement could further complicate ongoing discussions about tightening advertising norms in the country. 

Under Meta’s new guidelines, alcohol-related ads will be allowed in certain regions of India, subject to local age restrictions. For instance, in Maharashtra and Delhi, users must be at least 25 years old to view such ads, whereas in Karnataka and Rajasthan, the minimum age is 18. While advertising will not be allowed in the following states: Bihar, Gujarat, Lakshadweep, Manipur and Nagaland. 

Meta’s decision to permit gambling ads, which has its own set of complex regulations across the country, might also provoke scrutiny. The impact of this policy on India’s gambling landscape, which includes a mix of legal and illegal betting activities, remains uncertain.

Despite the potential for controversy, Meta insists that its policies are designed to comply with local laws and ensure that ads are responsibly targeted. 

The company has emphasised that advertisers must adhere to stringent guidelines, particularly in countries where alcohol advertising is heavily regulated or banned, in its official statement on the website. 

The absence of a government response so far leaves the industry and public in anticipation of how these new rules might align or conflict with Meta’s global advertising strategies.