Skydiamond’s ads were deemed misleading for failing to disclose that their diamonds are synthetic, not natural.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has banned ads for Skydiamond, a British diamond manufacturer, for misleading consumers by not clearly indicating that their diamonds are synthetic. The ads, which appeared on social media and the company’s website, included phrases such as “Say hello to the world’s first and only diamond made entirely from the sky” and described their process as turning atmospheric carbon into diamonds. However, the ASA determined that these ads gave the impression that the diamonds were naturally occurring, rather than laboratory-created.

The ads claimed the diamonds were “real” without clarifying that they were synthetic, leading to complaints from the Natural Diamond Council. The ASA ruled that the wording of the ads failed to provide the necessary distinction between natural and synthetic diamonds, which is crucial for many consumers when making purchasing decisions.

Although Skydiamond argued that the ads were clear in stating that their diamonds were not mined from the earth, the ASA emphasized that the term “diamond” on its own is typically understood to refer to naturally occurring minerals. The ASA concluded that the omission of the term “synthetic” or “lab-grown” misled consumers about the nature of the product. The firm has been instructed to avoid using terms like “real diamonds” for synthetic diamonds in the future.