The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (MIB) has extended till January 15 the submission date for comments on draft Broadcast Services Bill that aims to replace old regulations with new and updated ones.

The government in an advisory announced the extension that was sought by most stakeholders. The draft Bill was put in public domain for consultation almost a month back.

Earlier, media reports had stated that big streaming companies, including the likes of Netflix, JioCinema, Disney+ Hotstar, were planning to lobby the government to either delay the introduction of the Bill or revamp it as the present draft raises fears of censorship and stringent regulations for OTT platforms, which is being brought under broadcast services, amongst other issues.

The government, however, has maintained that the Bill is largely aimed at making contemporary existing rules that are fairly old.

Some of the highlights of the draft Bill includes the following:

• Consolidated legal framework for the entire Broadcasting sector.
• Content Evaluation Committees for adherence to Programme Code and Advertisement Code. 
• Broadcast Advisory Council to replace existing Inter Departmental Committee.
• Penalty structure linked to financial capacity of the defaulter.
• Accessibility measures for persons with disabilities.