A group representing commercial broadcasters said Tuesday it will urge the industry to refrain from airing consumer loan commercials during prime time.

The Broadcast Standard Review Board of the National Association of Commercial Broadcasters in Japan announced that "it is desirable to avoid" consumer loan commercials between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m., when children constitute a large portion of the viewing audience.

According to the group, advertisements that alert viewers to the dangers of accumulating multiple debts will be exempt from this policy.

The review board has also asked broadcasters to stop airing loan commercials during breaks in children's programs and to avoid the use of expressions that encourage people to take out easy loans.

It told them to ensure that commercials show loan conditions, including interest rates and age limits, for at least three seconds, using relatively large characters.

"In principle, it is up to each broadcaster to decide, but for the time being, we will seek improvements in the commercials' display, and we would like them (broadcasters) to consider radical measures for October," when the programming season changes, one board official said.

The Broadcasters Council for Youth Programs, a third-party body made up of representatives of NHK and commercial networks, announced late last year it would seek voluntary measures to combat the airing of these commercials during prime time.

Some commercial broadcasters have complained that the matter should be handled by each firm.

The National Association of Commercial Broadcasters in Japan is a private, nonprofit corporation.