Parliament Question: Regulation of OTT Platforms

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF INFORMATION & BROADCASTING LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *153 TO BE ANSWERED ON 30.07.2025 REGULATION OF OTT PLATFORMS *153. SMT. SMITA UDAY WAGH:

MS KANGNA RANAUT:

Will the Minister of INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING be pleased to state;

(a) whether the Government has taken effective measures to regulate Over-The-Top (OTT) platforms in order to curb the spread of explicit, adult, violent or culturally insensitive content and ensure compliance with legal and ethical standards and if so, the details thereof;

(b) the details of the number of complaints received regarding obscene, misleading or harmful content, especially related to children and women on OTT platforms since the notification of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021;

(c) whether any specific OTT platforms have been penalized, warned or issued takedown notices for violations of the prescribed Code of Ethics;

(d) if so, the details of such actions including platform names, nature of violations and penalties imposed; and

(e) whether the Government is considering the creation of an independent regulatory authority or strengthen existing oversight mechanisms to ensure timely redressal of public grievances related to OTT content especially concerning sensitive and adult themes, if so, the details thereof? ANSWER MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)

(a) to (e): A statement is laid on the Table of the House.STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) to (e) OF THE LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *153 TO BE ANSWERED ON 30.07.2025 ON REGULATION OF OTT PLATFORMS The Government has notified the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media, Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 on 25.02.2021 under IT Act, 2000.

 Part-III of the rules provides for a Code of Ethics for digital news publishers and publishers of online curated content (OTT platforms).  OTT platforms are under obligation to not transmit any content which is prohibited by law for the time being in force.

 OTT platforms are under obligation to undertake age-based self-classification of content, based on general guidelines provided in the Schedule to the Rules which contain the provisions related to depiction relating to nudity, sex and violence.

 The OTT platforms are also under obligation to put in place adequate safeguards for restricting age- inappropriate content for children with adequate access control measures. Besides, Section 79(3)(b) of IT Act, 2000 provides for notification by appropriate Governments of unlawful act or content to the intermediaries for removing/disabling access to such content.

Government has issued advisory dated 19.02.2025 to OTT platforms and Self-regulatory Bodies of OTT platforms for ensuring adherence to Indian Laws and the Code of Ethics laid down under the IT Rules, 2021 while hosting of content on their platforms.

After due consultation with relevant Ministries, 43 OTT platforms have been blocked so far. ********