(a) Any form of advertising (including verbal or written statements, promotional materials, brochures, leaflets, newspaper and magazine ads, yellow page ads, radio and television publicity, receipts, internet web pages, pop up ads or any other medium which makes reference to the internet pre-licensing course) by a sponsor must conform to the following:

1. (1) Advertising must reflect the serious nature of the internet pre-licensing course and, in no manner, either through the text of the advertisement or through the name of the course, diminish the subject matter or serious nature of the course. Advertising must not refer to gimmicks or enticements, such as comedy or free gifts, or to any benefits other than eligibility to take a road test upon completion.
2. (2) No sponsor may make reference to the department, other than to reference that the course is approved by the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles. Words which convey partnership, such as in cooperation with, supervised by, recommended by, or endorsed by the department may not be used. No sponsor may advertise or imply that it is associated with or is an agent or employee of the department. No representative of the sponsor shall knowingly allow the use of advertising that could lead the public to believe that they or the sponsor are an employee, representative, or agent of the department.
3. (3) No sponsor shall be permitted to conduct business or advertise under any name that has not been approved by the department. No sponsor may use the words driving school, drivers’ school, or any variation thereof in its name in advertising unless it is licensed in accordance with Part 76 of the commissioner’s regulations.
4. (4) No sponsor may advertise approval to administer an internet pre-licensing course in any manner until the course has been approved by the department. No organization shall advertise in any manner that such organization can provide students with eligibility to take a road test until such time as the sponsor and the course have been approved by the department.
5. (5) All advertising must indicate that the course includes a minimum of 270 minutes of instruction.
6. (6) If a language other than English is used in the course, all advertising related to such course must contain this fact.
7. (7) Internet pre-licensing course advertising shall not be combined with any other advertising, such as driving school or insurance agency advertising, unless it has been approved by the department, in accordance with this section, in order to protect the public from potentially confusing or misleading information.
8. (8) No sponsor may publish, advertise, or imply that the completion of the course conducted for pre-licensing will result in erasing, masking or deleting any information from a motorist's driving record, the reduction of points, or successful completion of a road test or driver education.
9. (9) No sponsor or employee may make false or misleading claims or statements in any of its advertisements.
10. (10) All course advertising must identify the sponsor and the internet pre-licensing course.
11. (11) Any material contained in literature produced by the department may be quoted without attribution, provided the quote retains its original meaning. Any presentation of departmental material which implies or creates a meaning other than the meaning intended by the department is prohibited.
12. (12) No sponsor, or employee shall falsely advertise or represent itself to be an agent or employee of New York State unless the sponsor is a State agency offering a department-approved course to its employees.
13. (13) No sponsor shall conduct business or display or distribute any advertising material within a building owned or leased by the State or a county in which motor vehicle registrations or licenses are issued to the public.
14. (14) A copy, recording, or video of any advertisement shall be kept on file by a sponsor for five years from the date it was last used or distributed to promote the internet pre-licensing course, along with a record of when and where it was used or distributed.
15. (15) Permission to re-publish any content of the department’s website shall be obtained by the sponsor from the department in writing prior to re-publishing such content. The department will provide an image to use as a link to the site. The department’s website may not be placed within any other website frames.
16. (16) Comparative statistics or claims that state or imply that one sponsor is more effective than another are prohibited. The effectiveness of one sponsor’s approved course may not be statistically compared to another approved course for advertising and promotional purposes.
17. (17) No implicit or explicit claims that are not supported by documentation are permissible. Such documentation and the proposed advertising must be reviewed and approved by the department in accordance with the standards of this section before they may be used.
18. (18) The department may require a sponsor to modify or discontinue advertising that the department deems inappropriate, false, or misleading.