Govt Wants OTT Platforms’ Content To Be Reviewed Independently For Obscenity

The Indian government has reportedly told Netflix, Disney, and other online streaming platforms that their content needs to be reviewed independently for obscenity and violence before being shown online.

Citing a government document and sources, Reuters reported that the proposal was delivered to over-the-top (OTT) platforms during a meeting on June 20 at the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.

However, the OTT platforms objected to the proposal and no final decision was taken, the news agency found out from government minutes of the talks and from an industry source.

The ministry “highlighted concerns regarding obscene and vulgar content on OTT platforms, as expressed by Members of Parliament, citizen groups, and the general public,” as per the minutes that are not public.

During the meeting, which was also attended by Amazon, Viacom18, and Apple TV, officials asked the OTT platform to consider an independent panel to review content so that unsuitable material could be weeded out. 

The government reportedly also highlighted the need for a “more proactive approach” to ensure that streaming content, “including international content”, aligns with a certain code of ethics.

The “vulgarity” shown by OTT platforms has been a topic of debate and discussion for some time now in the country. There have also been calls for censoring the content shown by streaming service providers. 

While all films in Indian cinemas are reviewed and certified by the Central Board of Film Certification, the content streamed online is not. Several online shows and top-tier actors have faced criticism from lawmakers, the government, and general viewers over content that was deemed as ‘vulgar’ or offensive for hiring religious and cultural sentiment.

Earlier this year, Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur had warned OTT platforms saying that vulgarity and abusive language was not acceptable in the name of creativity.

In March this year, legal action was taken against SonyLiv, YouTube, and TVFPlay for streaming web series ‘College Romance’, which had usage of ‘obscene and vulgar’ language and violated IT rules by putting no warning to the viewers.

Besides international players, the Indian OTT market also has presence of a number of domestic platforms, including JioCinema, Zee5, and ALT Balaji.

As per a report, India’s homegrown OTT streaming market is estimated to grow to a market size of $12.5 Bn by 2030.