SC dismisses plea seeking regulatory board to monitor, manage OTT platforms

The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a PIL concerning the need for a regulatory board to monitor and manage over-the-top (OTT) and streaming platforms in India.

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A bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said, "This is the problem of PILs. They are all on policy now and we miss our genuine PILs."

The plea has said that these platforms operate without the same checks and balances that traditional media -- like films and TV -- are subject to.

"Unlike films shown in theatres, OTT content doesn't go through a certification process before release, which has led to a rise in explicit scenes, violence, substance abuse, and other harmful content, often without proper warnings," said advocate Shashank Shekhar Jha who filed the plea.

The Union of India and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting introduced IT Rules 2021 to self-regulate OTT platforms however the same has been inefficient, the petition stated.