Oh, the complicated rules regarding sponsorship on British television, which insist the branded idents that run before sponsored shows on commercial TV stations are clearly not part of the programme, but at the same time clearly not a conventional advert.

Sky are pissed off with media regulator OfCom, who have just ruled that idents used by Currys as part of its sponsorship of 'The Simpsons' on Sky1 are too like adverts to be inline with the rules. The problem is that the spot specifically advertised some of the electronics chain's services, rather than just saying "Currys pays cash to be associated with 'The Simpsons'" or something similar.

Sky are annoyed because they say they ran the spots by OfCom before they put them on air and initially got the all clear. But the regulator says the idents clearly breach their rules, while adding that anything they may have said about the sponsorship spots before they actually aired can only be considered "general guidance", because they will only ever formally rule on such things once something is actually on TV. Which seems a bit silly when a broadcaster specifically asks for advice, but there you go.

OfCom said in a statement: "[We do] not accept Sky's view that, in advance of transmission, Ofcom had 'confirmed that the [idents] were compliant'. Ofcom is a post-transmission regulator and has always made clear to its licensees that it does not offer pre-transmission clearance or compliance approval".

Homer Simpson was unavailable for comment.