Govt has examined suggestions on Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill: minister tells RS

New Delhi, Dec 5 (PTI) The government has examined suggestions on the draft Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill, Union Minister L Murugan told the Rajya Sabha on Friday.

The draft Broadcasting Service (Regulation) Bill-2023, which kicked off a storm and was put in cold storage by the government, sought to place digital content creators and traditional broadcasters under a strictly regulated common regulatory framework.

Murugan, the Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, said the Bill was placed in the public domain on November 10, 2023, and views, comments, suggestions from the general public and stakeholders were sought till December 9, 2023, which was later extended up to January 15, 2024.

He said that based on the diverse suggestions received from stakeholders, including media and entertainment industry associations, the government extended the comment period until October 15, 2024.

"The suggestions received from all stakeholders have been examined. The government believes in wide and extensive consultations," the minister said in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha, without elaborating.

Last year, informal consultations on the draft Bill and some suggested changes triggered concern among digital publishers and broadcasters about the expansion of censorship powers, and burden smaller players with compliance norms similar to traditional TV networks.

After the furore over the Bill, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, in August last year, had put the draft legislation on hold, contending that the measure would require extensive consultations. PTI SKU SKU MNK MNK