India has become the first country in the world to regulate anti-tobacco warnings on OTT platforms with the Union Health Ministry on Wednesday issuing a notification in this regard on the occasion of “World No Tobacco Day” that would be applicable after three months.
It notified the amended rules under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2004, making it mandatory for OTT platforms to display anti-tobacco warnings as are seen in movies screened in theatres and TV programmes.
Soon after the issuance of notification, Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Regional Director, WHO South East Asia Region, welcomed the move saying, India has become the first country in the world to regulate anti-tobacco warnings on OTT platforms.
“Today’s move demonstrates India’s unstinted commitment to protect the health of people from the harmful effects of tobacco. I commend the country’s strong leadership and all stakeholders for this landmark step,” she said.
According to the notification, publishers of online curated content displaying tobacco products or their use will be required to display anti-tobacco health spots each of a minimum of 30 seconds at the beginning and middle of the show.
They shall also be required to exhibit an anti-tobacco health warning as a prominent static message at the bottom of the screen when tobacco products or their use are displayed during the show.
Also, an audio-visual disclaimer of a minimum of 20 seconds on the ill-effects of tobacco use will also have to be displayed at the beginning and in the middle of the programme, the source stated.
“The anti-tobacco health warning message as specified in clause(b) of sub-rule (1) shall be legible and readable, with font in black colour on white background and with the warnings ‘Tobacco causes cancer’ or ‘Tobacco kills’,” the notification stated.
Besides, the anti-tobacco health warning messages, health spots and audio-visual disclaimers will have to be in the same language as used in the online curated content.