Panel quizzes officials on OTT
NEW DELHI: The parliamentary panel on information technology on Wednesday asked the ministry of information broadcasting (I&B) how it plans to regulate OTT platforms, people familiar with the matter said. “The regulation was a concern for some MPS,” said a person familiar with the matter. “There is no easy solution on how to regulate OTT platforms. It is a very complex issue as a single algorithm may also not work.”
The ministry on November 11 decided to bring OTT platforms streaming films and other entertainment programmes, as well as digital news and current affairs content, under its ambit. OTT platforms include entertainment websites such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hotstar, Sonyliv, Zee5 and Eros Now. The ministry faced backlash due to its move, with many arguing that it would lead to unnecessary censorship of content. HT reached out to the spokesperson of the ministry but did not receive a response immediately.
The panel on Wednesday met the representatives of the I&B ministry and CBFC (it functions under the ministry) on the “Review of functioning of Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC)”. Officials from both the departments, including CBFC chairperson Prasoon Joshi, attended the meeting.
Another concern for MPS, including panel chairperson Shashi Tharoor and TMC parliamentarian Mahua Moitra, was that why there should be censorship in the first place. “The issue was raised by (independent MP) Sumalatha Ambareesh,” said the person quoted above. “She suggested that a warning be given or appropriate certification be awarded instead. Why should the scenes be cut by the CBFC instead?”
Officials from the CBFC, however, said censorship was necessary keeping in mind the sensitivities of people. “Violence, coarse language, nudity, all need to be flagged. CBFC officials said that most people who are given such warnings normally censor the content on their own,” said a second person familiar with the matter.
BJP MP Nishikant Dubey said “under the Constitution, freedom of expression is provided with reasonable restrictions,” the second person said.
Congress MP Karti Chidambaram, said the first person mentioned above, questioned the validity of an overarching mechanism to regulate OTT platforms. “He (Karti) was of the view that there is no-one-sizefits-all solution to the matter. VPNS can be changed and the vast amount of content available may regulated with great difficulty,” the first person said.
Ambareesh, Moitra, Dubey and Chidambaram are all part of the panel.
Another issue raised was that while OTT platforms could broadcast films with certain liberties, the same were censored for movies released in theatres. “While one film may get a certificate for being on an OTT platform, another is denied the same permission for being released in a theatre,” the first person said.
The person added that CBFC officials responded to the issue by making a distinction between collective and private viewing. “They said that what may be appropriate for private viewing may not necessarily be appropriate in collective space,” the first person said.