After earning mixed reactions on its new slogan Love the Philippines, the Department of Tourism (DOT) is facing yet another setback after allegations surfaced the audio video presentation (AVP) released at the launch of the campaign contained at least six stock footages of scenes from abroad.
The DOT said the video released by advertising agency DDB Philippines was not part of the contract as this was produced on account by the firm.
The DOT said it is currently conducting an exhaustive investigation to determine the veracity of, and to gather the full faculty of facts on, the allegations and “will not hesitate to exact accountability and take the necessary action.”
“The DOT did not pay and will not pay for this material,” said Ina Zara-Loyola, the agency’s spokesperson, in a text message.
In a statement, DDB Philippines apologized for the use of the foreign stock footage in the AVP and said it was produced at its own expense at its own initiative.
DDB is the agency on record for the launch of the Love the Philippines campaign.
It said the AVP was uploaded on social media as a mood video to excite internal stockholders about the campaign.
“The use of foreign stock footage was an unfortunate oversight on our agency’s part. Proper screening and approval processes should have been strictly followed. The use of foreign stock footage in a campaign promoting the Philippines is highly inappropriate, and contradictory to the DOT’s objectives,” DDB Philippines said.
According to the DOT, it was repeatedly assured by DDB of the originality and ownership of all materials contained in the AVPs and key visuals. – Irma Isip
