Mallika Dureja
Anurag Thakur, the Union Minister for Information, Broadcasting, Sports, and Youth Affairs, criticised over-the-top (OTT) media platforms on Sunday for the “increasing obscenity and abusive language in shows,” saying that the government is taking the matter seriously. These platforms include streaming services like Netflix, Hotstar, Amazon Prime, and Zee Video, among others.
According to Thakur, using abusive language “in the name of creativity” is not acceptable. The ministry released a statement quoting him as saying, “The government is serious about the complaints of increasing abusive and obscene content on OTT platforms.” He was speaking to reporters in Nagpur, Maharashtra.
“The ministry is prepared to take that into consideration if it is necessary to make any adjustments to the rules surrounding this. These platforms were allowed discretion to foster creativity rather than profanity. And when someone goes too far, abuse and rudeness committed in the name of creation cannot be tolerated in any way. The government will not relent on taking whatever steps are required in this regard.
The majority of the grievances received to date, according to the minister, must be resolved at the producer level. They make the required changes to nearly 90 to 92% of the complaints, according to Thakur. “The level of their organisation is where most complaints are resolved, which is the next level of complaint resolution. The government level, where decisions are made in accordance with established guidelines at the departmental committee level, is the final level. But somewhere in the last few days, complaints have begun to rise, and the department is taking this very seriously. We are ready to give a change careful consideration if it is necessary.
The intermediary rules, which were unveiled in February 2021, are the first step in placing OTT platforms under the control of the government. Platforms are required to uphold a code of behaviour and guarantee that content complies with the regulations. Additionally, it establishes a three-tiered redressal system that requires platforms to consider user complaints. The government currently has the information for more than 80 platforms. The information and broadcasting ministry issued a stern warning last year warning that the government wanted satellite TV and streaming services like Netflix, Hotstar, and Amazon Prime Video and other digital media outlets to stop immediately airing advertisements promoting gambling and betting targeted at the Indian audience or face penalties.
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The ministry “has observed that promotional content and advertisements of betting platforms are still visible on some news platforms and OTT (over the top) platforms,” the advisory stated. Some “online offshore betting platforms have started using news websites as a surrogate product to advertise betting platforms on digital media,” it added.
