MIB convenes media and ad industry meeting to discuss self-declaration certificates

The meeting is scheduled for June 11, under the chairmanship of MIB secretary Sanjay Jaju.

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) has scheduled a meeting with media and advertising industry bodies on June 11, as mentioned in a report by The Economic Times. The agenda is to address the upcoming requirement for advertisers to provide self-declaration certificates (SDCs) for broadcasting and publishing ads across TV, print, digital, and radio platforms starting June 18.

Through these self-declaration certificates (SDCs), which must be provided to broadcasters and publishers when issuing ads, advertisers will need to certify that their advertisements do not contain misleading claims and adhere to regulatory guidelines.

The meeting, chaired by MIB Secretary Sanjay Jaju, will also include secretaries from the Ministries of Health, Ayush, and Consumer Affairs. Attendees will comprise representatives from the Indian Newspaper Society, Indian Broadcasting and Digital Foundation, Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA), Advertising Standards Council of India, Internet and Mobile Association of India, Association of Radio Operators of India, Digital News Publishers of India (DNPA), CII, and FICCI.

The MIB has requested that each industry body nominate their seniormost representative by June 10. Google and Meta India have also been invited to participate.

As per the report, Industry bodies such as the Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA) and the Digital News Publishers of India (DNPA) have been requesting a meeting with the ministry to discuss the practical challenges of implementing the self-declaration certificate (SDC) mechanism, given the high volume of daily advertisements.

On June 3, the MIB announced that from June 18, an SDC will be mandatory for all new advertisements across TV, print, digital, and radio. Without an SDC, advertisers will be unable to broadcast or publish their ads.

Also Read: Self-declaration certificate: Industry voices mixed reactions to the new ad mandate by MIB