In a move that will have a far-reaching impact, the Union government has brought Over The Top (OTT) platforms or video streaming service providers like Netflix, Amazon Prime and others, under the purview of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. .
Currently, there is no law or autonomous body that regulates digital content. In a newsletter notification issued Wednesday and signed by President Ram Nath Kovind, online movies, digital news and current affairs are now under the purview of the R&B Ministry headed by Prakash Javadekar.
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This will give the government control over OTT platforms, which were previously unregulated. From time to time, the government had indicated the need to monitor these platforms. In October 2019, the government had indicated that it will issue a “negative” list of dos and don’ts for video streaming services like Netflix and Hotstar. He also wanted the platforms to create a self-regulatory body along the lines of the Standard Authority of news stations.
In anticipation of government intervention, in January 2019, eight video streaming services had signed a self-regulatory code that established a set of guiding principles for content on these platforms.
The code adopted by the OTTs prohibited five types of content. This includes content that willfully and maliciously disregard the national emblem or national flag, any line of sight or storyline that promotes child pornography, any content that “maliciously” is intended to violate religious sentiments, content that is “willfully and maliciously” promotes or encourages terrorism and, finally, any content whose display or distribution has been prohibited by law or court.
The government had refused to support this code.
At present, the Press Council of India regulates print media, the Association of News Broadcasters (NBA) represents news channels, the Advertising Standards Council of India regulates advertising, while the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) oversees films.
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