SC Issues Notice On PIL Seeking Setting Up Of An Autonomous Body To Regulate Online Streaming Platforms

The Supreme Court on Friday (16 October) agreed to hear a plea seeking setting up of a body to regulate online streaming platforms like Amazon Prime and Netflix, reports Bar and Bench.

The three-Judge SC bench comprising of Chief Justice of India (CJI) S A Bobde and Justices A S Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian issued notice to Centre in the PIL filed by Shashank Shekhar Jha through Advocate Manju Jetley Sharma.

The apex court while issuing the notice observed, "We don't know if this is possible, but we are issuing notice."

The petition seeks the formulation of a body, which it suggests may be called the Central Board for Regulation and Monitoring of Online Video Contents (CBRMOVC), to monitor and filter the contents and "regulate" the videos on various platforms for viewers in India.

The board may be headed by an IAS officer and may consist of members from various other fields, the petition suggests.

Stressing on the need for a regulatory mechanism for streaming platforms, the PIL said that the content creators are opting for the digital medium as the cinema theatres are unlikely to open for normal functioning anytime soon amid the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

"This makes it necessary for the content on these platforms to be regulated and monitored, as opposed to the current setup, where unfiltered content is available for the public at large in the absence of an autonomous body," the petition states.