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This is an archive article published on May 31, 2023
World No Tobacco Day: Govt makes display of tobacco warnings mandatory on OTT platforms
According to the newly-notified rule, every publisher of online curated content displaying tobacco products or their use shall display anti-tobacco health spots for a minimum of thirty seconds each at the beginning and middle of the programme.
If the publisher of the online curated content fails to comply with the new rules, strict action will be taken, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said in a statement. (Representational image)
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The Government has made it mandatory for OTT platforms to display tobacco-linked health warnings before and during the middle of the streamed content.
The Union Health Ministry made the announcement in a notification Wednesday, which was observed as World No Tobacco Day. The regulation will come to force in three months, it said.
Such health spots and tobacco-related warnings are already displayed by movie theatres during screenings.
“We already have guidelines on restrictions on depiction of tobacco products in TV and films and now we have it for OTT platforms as well. Efforts such as these are important as nearly 13.5 lakh deaths every year in the country can be linked in some way to tobacco consumption,” said Union Health Secretary Rjesh Bhushan at an No Tobacco event.
Bhushan also said that the theme for this year’s World No Tobacco Day — “we need food, no tobacco” — counters the argument that tobacco control will lead to loss of livelihood for farmers.
According to the notification, all publishers of online curated content — other than news and current affairs content — will have to display a health spot for a minimum of 30 seconds in the beginning and middle of the programmes.
When a tobacco product appears on the screen, it will have to be accompanied with a prominent static health warning at the bottom of the screen.
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The platforms have also been asked to run an audio-visual disclaimer of a minimum of 20 seconds on the ill-effects of using tobacco, at the beginning and in the middle of programmes.
The health spots and the disclaimers will have to be in the same language as that of the content.
The Health Ministry notification also cautions against product or brand placement of tobacco products in the content or displaying use of tobacco products in promotional material.
According to the notification, an inter-ministerial committee with representatives from the Health Ministry, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, will be authorised to take action against violators, either suo motu or upon receiving a complaint.
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The committee will identify the publisher of the online curated content, issue a notice providing a reasonable opportunity to explain the failure, and require appropriate modifications to the content, it said.
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