Industry bodies urge MIB to address overreliance on delegated legislation in Broadcasting Bill 2023

Various industry groups and civil society organisations have expressed concerns about the Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill, citing its excessive reliance on delegated legislation, unclear definitions, the establishment of a pre-censorship system through content pre-certification, and the failure to differentiate between streaming services and traditional broadcasters, among other issues, as reported by Hindustan Times.

The feedback was provided to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting regarding the November 2023 version of the Bill. Access Now, an international digital rights organisation, along with DIGIPUB, a coalition of digital media organisations formed in response to the IT Rules, 2021, urged the MIB to completely withdraw the Bill.

DIGIPUB and the News Broadcasters and Digital Association (NBDA), which includes members like NDTV, TV Today, and Zee Media, expressed concerns over vague definitions in regulatory clauses. DIGIPUB criticised clause 20 for potentially encompassing all individuals sharing news online, raising fears of "unchecked censorship powers" for the executive through the Broadcast Advisory Council. NBDA highlighted that the mandate for a content evaluation committee (CEC) to pre-certify content could result in pre-censorship.

The Indian Newspaper Society, which includes HT as a member, requested an exemption for websites and news portals operated by registered newspaper publishers, in addition to the existing exemption for e-replicas like e-papers on platforms such as Magzter. They argued that these websites often act as natural extensions of their traditional publications, providing additional relevant news articles and utilising the same journalistic resources.

DIGIPUB, NBDA, Access Now, Broadband India Forum, the US-India Business Council (USIBC), and the Cyber Cafe Association of India (CCAOI) raised concerns about the excessive reliance on delegated legislation.

Access Now criticised the bill for imposing unreasonable restrictions on free expression, increasing government control over online content without oversight, and curbing press freedom by applying content regulations to news. They argued it grants the central government excessive power to restrict content on vague grounds.

Access Now said that internet based services should not need registration or any kind of licensing as they differed from traditional media broadcasting services. All industry bodies, including USIBC, IAMAI and BIF said that the bill did not distinguish between streaming services (’pull’ service) and other conventional types of broadcasting (’push’ services), something they said are regulated differently across the world.

The Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) raised concerns about the bill overlapping with the IT Rules, 2021, which could stifle investment and innovation in OTT platforms. They highlighted that the Content Evaluation Committee (CEC) would create a heavy compliance burden, undermining self-regulation. The US-India Business Council (USIBC) and Broadband India Forum (BIF) also called for the CEC to be scrapped, deeming it overly prescriptive.

The US-India Business Council (USIBC) and IAMAI argued that the bill should follow the National Broadcasting Policy consultation by TRAI. They, along with NBDA, CCAOI, and BIF, urged the government to consider outcomes from related consultations before proceeding. They highlighted the broadcast sector's excessive regulations and noted that the bill does not clarify TRAI's jurisdiction.

Other comments came from DeepStrat, CIVIS, and Yuva Jagran Manch. An anonymous individual, whose details have been redacted by either the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) or the Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF), stated, “Please stop corporate ownership of media companies. The functioning of channels like Aaj Tak and Zee News speaks for itself. Instead of targeting digital news media, which is doing commendable journalism, consider adopting a BBC model for Doordarshan to enhance its viewership. Transform DD into a comprehensive platform for news, web series, movies, and more.”