Conference Embargo Policy

In the case of the 16th World Conference on Tobacco or Health, as with most scientific/medical conferences, all conference abstracts are released to delegates and media under a strict embargo policy. A detailed breakdown of the embargo variations for different types of abstracts is available below. All regular delegates, presenters and media are asked to respect this policy.

  • Oral Presentation Sessions
    Information about the oral presentation abstracts may not be published or presented before the start of the session in which the abstract is being presented at this conference. 
     
  • Poster Discussion Sessions
    Information about the poster discussion abstracts may not be published or presented before 08:00 (Gulf Time Zone) on Thursday, 19 March 2015.

Embargo Breaks for Presenters

A committee will analyse potential cases of embargo break by presenters. These will be studied on a case-by-case basis and as an ultimate consequence it could lead to the abstract being withdrawn from the conference. 

Authors may publish the fact that their abstract has been selected for inclusion in the WCTOH programme, but may not publish the results of the study before the lifting of the embargo (as detailed above). 

If you have any questions, please contact press@wctoh.org.

Embargo Breaks for Media Reporters

As well as having access to the materials detailed above, the media is also given prior access to the speakers' slides. However access is only granted to media onsite at the conference, and the same embargo rules apply -- meaning the information in speaker slides cannot be referenced or published before the start of the presentation. 

Breaking of the embargo policy by a reporter will lead to one or more of the following measures:

  • Immediate suspension of the reporter's media conference credentials
  • Immediate barring of the reporter from the meeting premises
  • Removal of the reporter's name from WCTOH Media Distribution List for two years
  • No access to the next WCTOH Conference

Any breaches in the embargo by media will be brought to the attention of the Media Embargo Committee. If you have questions, please contact the WCTOH communications team at press@wctoh.org.