According to the official ESC rules, product placement is not allowed in any of the competing entries, i.e. the song lyrics cannot mention any brand names. For example, San Marino's 2012 entry had to be edited to remove its references to Facebook.
However, in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest (JESC), there does not seem to be such a rule. I realized this when I listened to Portugal's 2017 entry, titled "Youtuber", which clearly mentions YouTube (a brand name) in its lyrics several times. Surely this would not be allowed at the senior contest, right?
Besides, I also checked out Romania's 2006 entry, titled "Povestea Mea" (My Story), which mentions several pop culture characters, like Harry Potter and Spider-Man, in its lyrics. Nothing seems amiss here, as Netta referenced Barbie, Pikachu and Wonder Woman in "Toy", but what caught my attention was that the performers even dressed up as these characters!
This has led me to wonder: Are product placement rules in JESC different than in the ESC? If so, why? Is it due to the fact that children do not have a strong understanding of trademarks and copyrights?
Please share your thoughts!