The government has come up with new guide lines to monitor and regulate OTT , Digital news based content , as of now there are 17 OTT platforms under these guidelines . One has to remember that these 17 were the same platforms that had signed the industry self regulation deal with the government . But now the government has made it clear that they need to have stringent complaint redressal mechanism , each platform or digital streaming entity should have a complaints redressal officer who responds to complaints with in 15 days and submits monthly reports for the same . The complaint redressal system is a three tier one . The second tier is a six member committee headed by a retired supreme court judge . If the complaint is not satisfied with the company response , he can take the issue to this second their committee . The committee has the power to fine , reprimand , ask for content removal or ask fro changes in the reported content , ask fro changes in classification and check for relevant parental locks for certain explicit content .
Then there is an inter ministry committee that can reprimand , admonish , ask for an apology for the platform . It can also censure and ask for blocking and removal of certain bytes or peaces of content . These in all form the three tiers of the complaint redressal mechanism the platform have been asked to put into place .
The classification and parental locks on explicit content as per rules and guidelines is paramount . These guidelines have come out after the government asked the supreme court permission through a public interest litigation to bring the OTT platforms and content streaming platforms under a central autonomous body as that they can be regulated . In post corona times the instances of cyber crime and usage of the internment for anti national activities has increased and the government under it’s regulations wants to remove hate related content content that instigates violence and touches on religious issue .This has lead to big budget web series like Tandav and Mirzapur getting into trouble with the courts where the makers and the platform CEO is running around looking for anticipatory bail .
New stories and content ideas are now being screened very carefully so as not to have content atet can insight the wrath of regulators now that the government has taken its first step and announced its guidelines . We cannot have un classified free for all content streaming with now control and screening , unlike movies OTT platform’s do not have a censorship body that regulates or has the authority to remove , block or ask fine a OTT Platform , but now it will have those powers under the three their complaint redress system .
The platforms are pushing back through their associations and body Internet and Mobile association of India and saying that they have not been consulted in the framing of rules and guidelines but will look at the guidelines and work with the government to uphold the law of the land , after all they need to do business here .Their are about 40 digital and OTT platforms beaming content 24 by 7 and it seems time has come for them to be answerable for propagating sex , violence , abusive , derogatory and anti religious content . Really OTT KI AB PHATI !
