800 OTT platforms have shared info under new IT rules: Official
NEW DELHI: Over 800 over-thetop (OTT) platforms, which include video streaming services such as Netflix and Hotstar, and digital news media outfits, have shared details under the new intermediary and digital media ethics rules, according to an official from the ministry of information and broadcasting.
“Most of the top OTT players have done it, Netflix, Amazon, Jio,” said an official familiar with the matter. “More entries have been received from new media houses... both big and small players.”
HT reached out to Netflix and Amazon but did not receive a response immediately.
The government has also issued a point-by-point clarification to concerns regarding the new rules to counter what it said were “misapprehensions” regarding compliance burden on publishers, excessive government control by way of emergency powers, concerns with the oversight mechanism by way of an inter-departmental committee and the suggestions relating to the self-regulating body and its registration by the government.
The new intermediary and digital media guidelines require platforms to appoint officers, grievance redressal officers in case of OTT and digital news platforms, institute a three-tier grievance redressal mechanism with an inter-ministerial panel at its apex and give the I&B ministry takedown powers over the content. The rules, notified in February, have been challenged in the court by several digital news outfits, including Livelaw and Thewire.
While there is no requirement for the digital news media publishers to be registered with the ministry, information pertaining to their grievance redressal officer in India, self-regulating body of which the publisher is a member and details of the editor were sought by the ministry on May 26. Similar information has been sought from video streaming services, with details of the content manager instead of the editor. The ministry had given the platforms two weeks to share the details.
The News Broadcasters Federation, consisting of 78 news channels in 14 languages, representing broadcasters from 25 states, on Friday said that they have complied with the new rules.
In a separate notification dated June 10, the ministry said digital arms of traditional media houses would not be exempt from furnishing details under new rules.
“The rationale for including digital news portals/websites of traditional media houses under the ambit of the digital media rules 2021 is well reasoned,” the ministry has said. “Making any exception of the nature proposed will be discriminatory to digital news media publishers...” HT on February 28 first reported that websites of traditional media houses would be brought under the guidelines, making them subject to section 69(A) of the IT Act that gives the government takedown powers.