Short answer: yes, it can. A sentence delivered on stage, a brochure handed out at the door or a video posted by a guest falls under Turkey's advertising rules the moment it reaches consumers. The Regulation on Commercial Advertising and Unfair Commercial Practices was amended by the text published in Official Gazette no. 33297 on 1 July 2026, and the new provisions took effect on 1 August 2026. The article that matters most for event teams is 23/A: when a social media creator receives a benefit for attending a brand's event and then posts about it, the content must carry either Reklam (advertisement) or Tanıtım (promotion) along with the advertiser's name. The familiar #işbirliği tag no longer satisfies that on its own. The burden of proof has not moved; Article 9 puts it on the advertiser. On the penalty side, a breach that happens online draws a 2026 fine of 1,083,706 to 10,837,065 lira.
When does something said at an event become commercial advertising?
The test is not the size of the room, it is who receives the message. Article 2 of the Regulation on Commercial Advertising and Unfair Commercial Practices sets the scope plainly: it covers every kind of commercial advertising and unfair commercial practice directed at consumers. The definition of a medium in Article 4 is the part event teams should read twice, because it describes a medium as the place and environment where the people receiving the advertising or promotional message come together, and it lists the internet, outdoor media and printed material in the same breath. In practice the line falls here. A targets and pricing presentation given to dealers behind closed doors is not aimed at consumers. The moment a video of that same presentation is published on social media, or the invitation and brochure reach a consumer, the content sits inside the advertising rules. Press coverage has its own limit: Article 22 bans surreptitious advertising in any communication medium, and Article 6 requires that an advertisement be recognisable as an advertisement regardless of its form or medium.
What does an influencer invited to your launch have to write?
Since 1 August 2026, one of two words is mandatory: Reklam or Tanıtım. The rule lives in Article 23/A, added to the regulation by the amendment published in Official Gazette no. 33297 on 1 July 2026. The second paragraph lists the situations that trigger disclosure, and one of them points straight at events: posting after obtaining a benefit in return for attending an event organised by the advertiser. The same paragraph also covers free or discounted goods and services received from the advertiser, which captures the creator who arrives at your launch on a paid flight, with a hotel room booked and a gift box waiting on the seat. The third paragraph fixes the wording too. The post has to carry Reklam or Tanıtım, and next to it either the advertiser's name or trade name, or a statement along the lines of provided by @brand. The #işbirliği and #sponsor tags used since the Ministry of Trade published its 2021 guideline no longer meet the requirement on their own.
Where exactly does the label have to sit?
The regulation does not stop at requiring a label, it also governs how visible that label is. Under the fourth paragraph of Article 23/A, the label must stand out from the colours and background of the post and be easy to read; the consumer has to see it at first contact, without scrolling the visible screen and without being sent anywhere else; where other tags are used, it must come before them and be clearly distinguishable from them; and it cannot overlap with text or an icon. If the content runs across several posts, the label belongs on each one, and it has to survive when a piece is quoted from one post format into another. For audio-only content such as a podcast episode, the disclosure is spoken at the start of the broadcast and again before the advertisement itself. The mistake we see most often on site is mundane: the label slides to the end of the caption, below the more link. In stories, it should not end up underneath a sticker or a poll box either.
What do you need before you call something the best in Turkey?
Documentation. Article 9 places the burden of proof on the advertiser and requires claims about verifiable facts to be backed by scientifically valid information and documents; where needed, the authorities ask for reports from the relevant university departments or from accredited or independent research, testing and evaluation bodies. The fourth paragraph of the same article is the one people skip: the report has to support the claim for the period in which the advertisement runs, so a test from three years ago may not carry today's sentence. Article 7 looks at presentation, banning distorted research findings and statistics shown in a way that produces a different result from reality. For a launch, that translates into a single document: every numerical claim in the stage script, the press release, the LED screen artwork and the brochure, listed with its source and the date it was measured. If a phrase like market leader, first or most preferred is missing from that sheet, it should not reach the stage either.
Can you name a competitor from the stage?
No. Article 8 allows comparative advertising, but subparagraph (a) of its first paragraph requires that no competitor's product name, brand, logo, trade name, business name or other distinguishing element appears. A brand that wants to compare therefore does it without naming anyone, while meeting the rest of the article: the goods or services compared must meet the same need, the comparison must cover a benefit that matters to the consumer and a verifiable feature assessed objectively, and claims resting on measurable data must be proven with scientific tests, reports or documents. The third paragraph of Article 9 raises the bar further, requiring that compared claims be evidenced in every case by documents from universities or from accredited or independent bodies. Article 10 separately bans disparagement. That one slide carrying a rival logo can turn into the most expensive piece of artwork in the show.
Three new prohibitions from 1 August: awards, green claims, AI
The July 2026 amendment touched three subjects that run through event communication. First, awards. A thirteenth paragraph added to Article 27 bans using information about awards that are granted in return for a benefit and that do not rest on objective criteria announced in advance. A plaque bought for a fee is no longer promotional material. Second, environmental claims. The revised third paragraph of Article 17 requires certificates and approvals cited in a green claim to be evidenced by documents from competent authorities, universities or accredited bodies. A new fifth paragraph bans general expressions such as environmentally friendly from being used without explanation, and the sixth paragraph requires the advertiser to state which part or which stage of the life cycle the claim refers to, and to make the measurement method reachable through a link or a pop-up. Brands that market sustainable events should reread their copy here. Third, artificial intelligence: the twelfth paragraph of Article 27 now bans advertisements that give the false impression that an AI-generated digital replica of a real person has used a product or is recommending it.
Who pays the fine, and how much in 2026?
The file usually lands on the brand's desk. The twelfth paragraph of Article 77 of Law no. 6502 on Consumer Protection lets the Advertising Board order a halt, a correction by the same method, an administrative fine and, where needed, a precautionary suspension of up to three months against advertisers, advertising agencies and media outlets, applying these sanctions together or separately. The amounts are revalued every year, and the communiqué published in Official Gazette no. 33116 on 23 December 2025 raised the 2026 figures by 25.49 percent. A breach that occurs over the internet carries a fine of 1,083,706 to 10,837,065 lira; one that occurs through other media, such as a brochure or outdoor signage, carries 108,370 to 1,083,706 lira. Online there is a second exposure: if the content is not removed within twenty-four hours of notice, the Board can order access blocking, and the decision goes to the Access Providers Association for enforcement. For a sense of scale, Anadolu Agency reported on 22 July 2026 that the Board had decided more than 21,000 files during seven months of 2026 and imposed over 185 million lira in administrative fines.
Five checks before the launch
One, the claims sheet. Put the source and measurement date next to every numerical sentence in the stage script, the press release, the LED artwork and the brochure. Two, the creator contract and brief. Make the Reklam or Tanıtım wording, the brand name, the position of the label on the first screen and ahead of other tags, and its repetition in every part of a multi-post campaign written obligations rather than polite requests. Three, the hospitality log. List who received a ticket, a hotel night or a gift, because the trigger for disclosure is the benefit provided, not whether money changed hands. Four, the comparison slide. Strip the rival name and logo, and keep the supporting report on file. Five, award and sustainability lines. Drop any award without published criteria and any green claim without documentation. Tales Event works out of Istanbul and runs launches, dealer meetings, gala nights, openings and year-end events across Turkey, with staging, sound, lighting, LED screens, decor and creative production handled by one team. Send us your launch date and guest profile, and we will build the run of show, the visual content and the press plan around these rules.
Let's talk about your event
Tell us your idea and we will prepare the concept and quote.