The online news portals and content providers such as Netflix will now come under the Information and Broadcasting Ministry said an order issued by the government.
Presently, there is no law or autonomous body governing digital content.
The Press Council of India takes care of the print media, the News Broadcasters Association (NBA) monitors news channels, and the Advertising Standards Council of India is for advertising while the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) takes care of films.
OTT platforms include news portals and streaming services such as Hotstar, Netflix and Amazon Prime Video which are accessible over the internet or ride on an operator's network.
According to the petition, the OTT/Streaming and different digital media platforms have surely given a way out for film makers and artists to release their content without being worried about getting clearance certificates for their films and series from the censor board.
The top court had on earlier informed by the Information and Broadcasting ministry that there is a need to regulate digital media and that the court may first appoint a committee of persons as amicus before laying down guidelines with respect to the regulation of hate speech in the media.
