From the Broadcast Bill to Finfluencer Rules: Key Policy Shifts in 2024

This year, India's media and advertising sectors underwent a number of legal and policy reforms. The Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill of 2024 proposed extensive revisions to regulate OTT platforms, digital news broadcasters, and social media influencers.

Similarly, new regulations requiring self-declaration certificates for advertisements caused ripples in the advertising sector, emphasizing accountability and conformity to norms. 

Meanwhile, the government has taken decisive action to reduce surrogacy advertising, improve nutritional labels, and address celebrity endorsements of dangerous items

In the financial sector, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has cracked down on unlicensed financial influencers.

We look back at the biggest news stories of 2024, focusing on the regulatory changes that are transforming India's media, advertising, and finance sectors.

Broadcast Bill 2024

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) has proposed the Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill, 2024, which would replace the Television Network Act of 1995. The Bill sought to classify influencers and social media pages who create material or engage in debates about current events or news online as 'digital news broadcasters.

It wants to include OTT platforms in its regulatory structure. The bill also broadens the definition of intermediaries to include internet service providers, social media platforms, and online search engines.

The draft bill was only given to stakeholders. The initial version, announced in November 2023, attempted to govern material on OTT services. However, the amended draft expanded the definition of "digital news broadcaster" to encompass social media platforms and current affairs, among other areas. 

The draft required previous registration with the government and established criteria for content evaluation.

It also requires that digital news broadcasters notify the MIB of their actions and form a content evaluation committee. 

Failure to comply with these rules may result in hefty penalties, including a fine of Rs 50 lakh for the first violation and Rs 2.5 crore for consecutive offenses within three years.

However, following considerable criticism, the administration withdrew the Bill on August 12. It stated that it would present a new draft of the Bill after thorough comments. It also planned to present it at the Parliament's Winter session. 

Self-declaration Certificates

On June 4, 2024, the Supreme Court required'self-declaration' certificates for all new advertisements. In accordance with the recommendations, the MIB mandated that all new advertisements carry a "self-declaration" certificate beginning June 18.

The MIB has added a new function to the Broadcast Seva Portal that simplifies the submission of self-declaration certificates for TV and radio commercials. Declarations for print and digital ads must be submitted through the Press Council of India portal. 

Advertisers must now guarantee that their advertising do not contain "misleading claims" and that they follow all applicable regulatory rules as part of a statutory declaration.

The new guidelines also require agencies to provide "proof of uploading" the certificate to the appropriate publisher for record-keeping purposes.

Without a valid SDC, no advertisements could be aired on television, printed, or published online. As expected, this sparked a frenzy throughout the advertising sector. 

After nearly a month, the MIB issued a fresh advise clarifying that only advertisers and ad agencies in the food and health sectors are required to upload an annual self-declaration certificate to the specified platforms.

Government vs Surrogate Advertisements

In February, the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) and the Department of Consumer Affairs (DoCA) collaborated to organize an interactive consultation in Mumbai, bringing together industry stakeholders from prohibited categories like alcohol, tobacco, and gaming.

The consultation addressed the pervasive issue of surrogate ads and explored solutions to overcome legislative barriers, with the goal of ensuring stricter adherence to advertising norms in these industries. 

Following that, in July, the government began development on new draft rules to regulate surrogate advertising, which were overseen by the union consumer affairs ministry.

As part of these regulations, manufacturers must submit market reports on the availability and sales quantities of marketed products on a regular basis, as well as sales certificates for public inspection and verification. 

In July, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) approved modifications to nutritional information labelling on packaged food goods, requiring total salt, sugar, and saturated fat to be stated in bold characters and a big font size.

According to Reuters, new government legislation targeting surrogate advertising for alcohol would impose penalties of up to Rs 50 lakh on corporations, while celebrities sponsoring such promotions might face one to three-year bans. 

In August, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare ordered India's Board of Control for Cricket to prohibit athletes from advertising tobacco products.

In a letter to BCCI President Roger Binny, the ministry emphasized that tobacco advertising should be completely forbidden at all board-approved sporting events, including the IPL.

SEBI Takes Aim at Influencers

In June, SEBI issued a guideline barring brokers and mutual funds from using unregulated financial influencers in marketing and promotional campaigns.

Following a board meeting, SEBI issued a statement expressly concerned about "certain persons, including unregulated entities, inducing investors to deal in securities based on inappropriate claims."

The regulation prohibited SEBI-regulated firms and their agents from creating any direct or indirect relationships with persons who provide securities advice or recommendations. 

These new limits on financial influencers are the latest chapter in a regulatory journey that began last year, when the regulator moved to prohibit brokers and mutual funds from utilizing unregulated financial influencers in marketing activities.

In August 2023, the regulator enacted more stringent rules prohibiting registered firms from engaging with financial influencers or exchanging client information.