Mattress brand fined for shirtless men ad on Hanoi metro

A group of shirtless men wearing Santa Clause pants on the Cat Linh - Ha Dong metro line, December 2021. Photo by Vua Nem

A mattress brand has been fined VND137 million ($6,000) for running an "inappropriate" ad campaign featuring young, shirtless men on the Cat Linh-Ha Dong metro line.

The Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports said Tuesday that it issued a decision to fine the owner of the Vua Nem brand for three reasons: the advertisement was not aesthetically pleasing and was contrary to Vietnamese customs and traditions; the brand had yet to notify the competent state agency about advertising content and format or the product it was promoting, the number of participants in the ad and the time and implementation schedule; and the advertisement affected "urban beauty, traffic order, and safety."

Vua Nem (Mattress King) has admitted to the violations and complied with the decision, it has been reported.

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