Our history

Today ISBA, the voice of British advertisers, dedicates itself to protecting responsible advertising and to enhancing the effectiveness of its members.

But in one form or another ISBA has been working for advertisers since 1891 when seven advertisers protesting about dubious newspaper circulation figures got together. They needed to know how effective their advertising was and how many people were actually seeing the ads they paid for. Our forerunner – the Advertisers’ Protection Society – was founded nine years later.

The APS took it upon itself to work out the number of newspapers being sold and ended up in court charged with libel for having the audacity to publish figures the papers didn’t want made public. It won its battle, putting down a marker for the future battles it would fight.

Winning the arguments 

Two decades later in 1920 the APS, steadily gaining both members and influence, became the Incorporated Society of British Advertisers. We have been looking out for our members and winning the arguments on their behalf ever since.

It is worth recalling that it was ISBA that founded the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) in 1931.

We helped launch the ICC Advertising Code of Standards in 1939.

In 1947 we persuaded persuaded Chancellor of the Exchequer Hugh Dalton to drop a tax on advertising from his Budget plans.

It was ISBA that in 1948 secured for the first time the screening of advertising in cinemas with the houselights down.

And we once operated an industry “anti-clutter” code which throughout the 1960s helped give Britain a spring clean by re-siting or removing over half a million poorly placed outdoor advertisements.

Together with the other bodies that made up the Advertising Association, ISBA helped form the Advertising Standards Authority in 1966 to make self-regulation of the industry a reality.

Since that time, we have been a staunch supporter and defender of the self-regulatory system and were instrumental in encouraging the Government to extend it to the broadcast arena in 2002.

The need for a strong voice for British advertisers is as crucial today as it was at our foundation all those years ago. With the collective help and support of our members, we remain right in the thick of the action.

Your company too can be a part of the ISBA success story. Contact us today to find out how.