Obligations and responsibilities for Agency-Advertiser Agreements

On 7 May, EACA participated in the webinar “International Perspectives on Key Issues in Agency-Advertiser Agreements” organised by the Global Advertising Lawyers Alliance (GALA). The webinar explained the obligations and responsibilities between agencies and advertisers when entering into agreements.

There are some common basic principles to be considered when agencies and advertisers enter into an agreement, such as:

  1. Duration and termination of the contract: depending on the size and capabilities of the agency, it is typical for staff to be hired to work on a particular campaign or client. In addition, agencies often commit to a client in a specific sector (i.e., they do not act for competitors), so certainty over its medium to long-term client base becomes essential. Consequently, a minimum term and, ideally, a substantial notice period (at least 90 days) for termination should be specified.
  2. Services: the contract should be comprehensive in defining the services that are routinely performed by an advertising agency in managing a client’s advertising, including:
  • the products and brands covered by the campaign.
  • The planning and development of strategies, concepts, and advertising
  • creating, producing, and organising the production of advertisements
  • the possible monitoring of advertising once it has been published.
  • How the contact between the client and the agency will operate during the provision of these services.
  1. Fees: the fees paid under the contract are obviously of commercial importance and should be set out unambiguously in the agency’s or client’s contract.
  2. Resolution of disputes: agency or client contracts should contain a dispute resolution clause setting out what will happen if the rights and obligations of the parties come into conflict.
  3. Confidentiality: the relationship between client and agency will invariably involve disclosing confidential information by the client to the agency, for example, the disclosure of market-sensitive and personal information about a client’s new product.