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Introduction Various governments across the world have sought to regulate online content. The need for regulating online content has arisen due to a number of factors. These include posting content which depicts live terror attacks or contains hate speech, child pornography, cyber bullying material and fake news. The following table highlights how various countries censorRead more

The media & entertainment industry has witnessed a steady growth across the world. The recent trend of the use of the internet for media consumption has catalyzed this growth.[1] Today, many online media platforms or over-the-top platforms (OTT / OTT platforms) offer curated video content[2] suited to the needs and demands of individual consumers. TheRead more

Vantage Point This is a compilation of selected posts on our LinkedIn page from October and November 2019. Alco-tech In a major setback for the alco-tech industry, the Karnataka High Court recently delivered a judgment deeming the online sale and delivery of alcohol illegal. A significant development for not just the liquor industry, it mayRead more

Possible Regulation The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (“MIB”) has said that it will issue a list of prohibited content for online curated content providers (“OCC Providers”) such as Netflix, Hotstar, and Amazon Prime. This list of prohibited content will include content that portrays women in a “denigrating” manner or displays the incorrect map ofRead more

Has the Delhi High Court effectively asked intermediaries to track user location data? On 23rd October, 2019 the Delhi High Court passed a judgement on whether content take-down and blocking orders passed by it would be global in nature or would they be limited to operating in the territory of India. The court concluded thatRead more

Preliminary On 26 September 2019, Medianama organised a roundtable discussion on online content regulation at the India Habitat Centre in New Delhi. It was well attended with over a hundred people in attendance representing stakeholders such as Netflix, Jio, Hungama, content creators notably Gursimram Khamba, journalists, researchers, policy professionals and lawyers. The session was ledRead more

A. Preliminary: On 09 August 2019, the Centre for Communication Governance (CCG) at National Law University (NLU), Delhi had organized a closed-door roundtable discussion on online content regulation, with a focus on video on demand (VOD) services. This post is based on our notes from the event. As the event was organized under Chatham House Rules, weRead more

 1. Preliminary  1.1 On 2 September 2019, the Centre for Policy Research organized a lecture on hate speech, with renowned journalist Mr. Salil Tripathi as the guest lecturer. In addition to his work as contributing editor for the Mint and Caravan, Mr. Tripathi has won many awards for his contributions in the fields of human rights. TheRead more

A client-museum asked us whether shooting a documentary with a glimpse of a copyrighted photograph in the background amounts to copyright infringement? Well technically yes, as would singing a snippet of a song authored by someone else or cutting a cartoon strip and hanging it on your fridge. But is it enough to prosecute youRead more

1. Introduction This blog post outlines the current regulatory framework applicable to online content and the platforms which host such content. Online content regulation is a hotly debated topic and with due reason. India has seen a surge in online content providers in the past few years. This coupled with the seeming absence of anyRead more