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Russian parliamentarians want ban on ads during TV programs

MOSCOW, October 17 (Itar-Tass) - Russia’s State Duma faction of the Liberal Democratic Party suggests banning commercials during feature films and TV programs, regarding it as an invasion of personal privacy, the Izvestia daily reports Thursday with reference to amendments to the Russian law on advertising.

The draft law was drafted by State Duma's Deputy Speaker Igor Lebedev, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Public Associations and Religious Organizations Yaroslav Nilov and Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Constitutional Law and State Development Sergei Ivanov.

According to the authors of the bill, the ban on interrupting films and television programs with commercials “would allow people to use their time in a more efficient way” and reduce intrusion in their privacy.

“We are fed up with ads! It has become impossible to watch films, the news or any interesting programs, which are every ten minutes interrupted by a set of commercial! Not to mention the content of it,” Lebedev said. “Channels profiting from ads could put them at the beginning or at the end of a feature film, but not interrupt it. It bothers people very much.”

Izvestiya says the proposed initiative would only restrict advertising during TV programs at certain hours, 7 to 11 p.m. on weekdays and from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on weekends and holidays.