The Karnataka High Court (“Karnataka HC”) on August 07, 2019 refused to admit a writ petition asking for regulation of content on online platforms like Netflix, YouTube etc. The petition claimed that the content available on such platforms was inappropriate for children and that there was a need to control it. The petitioner sought a direction that the content to be displayed on online platforms shall require certification under the Cinematograph Act, 1952 till a specific legislation is put in place to deal with online platforms.
Karnataka HC noted that content on online platform is as requested by individual users, it is not openly available for the public at large, thus, content available over it does not fall under the purview of the Cinematograph Act, 1952.
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This decision has rightly drawn a distinction between the content available on internet and that available in movie theatres. The object of the Cinematograph Act, 1952 is only to make provision for the certification of cinematograph films for exhibition to the public, Karnataka HC has correctly pointed out that content on online platforms is made available to individual users on request and not exhibited to the public at large. Presently, there is no legislation that governs online platforms, however, they have voluntarily agreed to self-regulate their content by signing the “self-regulatory code of best practices” prepared by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI). The self-regulation code is a set of guiding principles for online platforms to regulate their content.
Disclaimer: This post has been prepared for informational purposes only. The information/or observations contained in this post does not constitute legal advice and should not be acted upon in any specific situation without seeking proper legal advice from a practicing attorney.