ashis kaul vocal for adult content on dth

[rana_tigrina2002]

Zee Telefilms made a strong pitch for allowing adult content on television, which should be regulated. Reason: it would help bring about more transparency in the system.

Making a case for the move, Zee telefilms vice-president Ashish Kaul said, "This will bring about transparency in the business as, like it or not, adult content is a part of our lives. It is there on the Internet and on MMS on mobile phones.

Speaking at a session on content regulation at the Ficci Frames, Kaul said, "Covers of magazines, sometimes, have provocative pictures. Newspapers too, are no less bold."

"If a consumer pays for DTH, and he wants adult content why should he be restricted when he has paid for it?" Kaul asked, adding to the debate whether adult content should be allowed on Indian television or the country continues to wear the moral fig leaf, closing its eyes to developments happening all over the world.

Universal McCann India president Chintamani Rao said it was undesirable for a proposed Communications Commission of India to be appointed as a super regulator. "It goes against our cultural ethos. Instead, we should have a structured and formalised self-regulatory body like ASCI is for advertising, he opined.

Information and broadcasting minister joint secretary R Parasuram, offered the government perspective saying the ministry is looking into various aspects of content regulation, including setting up a semi-governmental autonomous body for this purpose. Another provision that is being considered is imposing a ban on a channel that shows offensive material. This is being discussed with the law ministry, Parasuram said.

Star India VP Karan Kuljeet Singh said broadcasters have internal control rooms for monitoring purposes, but a central regulatory body is needed. According to her, Star has designed a universal rating system and it is important for broadcasters to respect viewers' sensibilities.

Legal firm TSG Associates' Tamali Sengupta gave delegates an overview of content regulation in different countries. "Most countries have self-regulation, although a fine or a penalty can be imposed," she pointed out.

The main reason for regulation is that broadcasters must meet acceptable community standards.

Should content owners be liable for retransmitted content? Should there be pre-censorship in TV as there is in films? These are some of the issues, according to her, haunting regulators worldwide.

Sengupta added that the US position is that a cable company is not Subject to government interference as the investment is entirely private. For terrestrial TV, however, the government insists on controlling some spectrum. Industry self-regulation has worked in the US.

In the UK, Ofcom is the regulatory body, which has proposed a new draft code for content. Section One states that content that will impair a child's psychological and emotional development can only be screened in the watershed hours of 9 pm-5.30 am. Violence, sex, unjustified nudity are not allowed outside the watershed period.

"As far as India is concerned we need to look at whether content codes are compatible with acceptable community standards", Sengupta concluded.


U GUYS PLZ LEAVE UR COMMENT SO THAT WE CAN UNDERSTAND WHAT THE PUBLIC WANTS

[alian1980]

LOL....Thats good news..... But I don't think anything will transpire so quickly!!!.... The Talks as usual may go on. I strongly feel that in a democratic country people should be given the chance to view what they want. And in the DTH age its high time that they allow adult contents to be transmitted.

[Dish]

Wow this is great news for us. I think IT department should allowed this option for DTH platforms.