Censorship of OTT platforms – Right or Wrong?

OTT platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hostar etc. are gaining viewers at a
rapid rate, especially during the pandemic, when people are forced to stay at homes.

The Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI)’ proposed the Universal Self-
Regulation Code in January 2019 and a revised version in September 2020. But I&B
ministry rejected the code stating that it is not clear and brought the recent
notification.

Right:

1) Censorship helps in preventing anti-social, hateful and explicit

content from reaching the audience and thereby social order can be
maintained.
2) Censorship can protect the sentiments of people by preventing the
content that is hurtful to some cultures or communities.

Wrong:

1) To get the certificate & a clearance, sometimes producers are forced to

struggle, especially when the content criticises government & their policies.
This will discourage diverse opinions, innovation & creativity. So, there will be
a threat to freedom of expression.
2) Power & money may control the content to pursue their goals and political
propaganda.
3) For some people, a film may seem offensive but for some others, it may seem
progressive. So, it is unfair to dictate what to watch and what not to watch.
4) We already have laws such as the ‘Information & Technology Act, 2000‘ to
deal with hateful and explicit content. And hence there is no need for
censorship.
5) These days, people are preferring OTT content over television content,
because of the quality of content. But if it is censored, the content may stoop
to the same level as television content. This may discourage investment in
OTT platforms. OTT platforms created many employment opportunities, and
lack of investment may reverse the progress.
6) Unlike Television, people can choose what to watch on OTT platforms. And
OTT platforms mention the appropriate age to watch that content. So, there is
no need to censor them.
7) There is so much explicit content present on the internet. Censoring only OTT
platforms leaving the entire internet seems unfair.
8) Self-regulatory bodies are better than government censorship because the
audience can watch diverse content rather than narrow views.

Conclusion:

OTT platforms are gaining so much user base nowadays. They are promoting
varied opinions and thoughts. Indian directors and producers are creating content on
OTT platforms, which are competing with international content. Censorship of OTT
may discourage investments and diverse content. And hence, self-regulation code is
much better than censorship in the case of OTT platforms.

2) Challenges Faced By Startups In India

1. Insufficiency Of Talent
Although skilled personnel is not quite bad in India, startups just cannot afford them
all the time. Often, however, the multi-skill required to make start-up success stories
are very rare to find.

2. Lack Of Risk-Taking
Experiments can provide answers to many questions, which are badly required by
any start-ups. However, either due to turn around time or due to financial situations
they are often omitted or stymied.

3. Financing
Accumulation of funding relies upon a few elements. Individual financial
dependability just as that of accomplices, the business size, associations and finding
the ideal time to contribute. While it’s a challenging task for most startups, a
fortunate few don’t confront numerous issues with it.

4. Management
As the business starts to take shape, it requires every bit of awareness to sustain the
flow. Indeed, even from the beginning, an unmistakable outline ought to be as a top
priority to maintain a strategic distance from any irregularity in the inflow which can
enhance itself medium-term to make things wild.

5. Recruitment
This is specifically relative to your entrance to the capital. As I’ve stated, funding is a
test for most startups, so procuring talented labor with a top to bottom learning of the
concerned field, frequently ends up troublesome. Experienced people, then again,
don’t want to include themselves with the hazard inclusion of new companies. It’s a
tough issue and a lasting issue except if you have a committed and similar pack of
friends.

6. Right Mentor
Having the business sharpness dependably keeps one a stage in front of others.
This is, maybe, a significantly more serious issue than the gathering of financing.
Cash can’t concede you vision and shrewdness, however, its essential for different
things. So watchful and little strides at once can enable you to assemble energy in
the end over the long haul. Ability, persistence, and strategies are the 3 aspects to
remember.

7. Lack Of marketing  strategies

Lacking information in marketing systems. In India, each state is interested in
culture, food, and customs, language, outfit, etc. So what is moving
in Maharashtra like hotcakes may stay immaculate in Tamilnadu? An exhaustive
learning of area insightful need and a down to earth advertise overview is of most
extreme significance before venturing into the hazardous ocean of new companies.

8. Government’s Involvement
India lacks a clear long-term start-up roadmap, as economic liberalization is quite
new to India. Given the size of the nation and the priorities, the government seems
to keep the road-map on the back burner.

9. Peer pressure
Peer pressure is far more visible in a connected/gossip-loving society like India’s.

10. Investment Prospects

When guys of the caliber of Sequoia are investing in eye hospitals and retail chains,
you have to realize how weak the venture system here is.