MIB to convene meeting with media and ad bodies to discuss self-declaration: Report
The meeting to be held on June 11 will be chaired by MIB Secretary Sanjay Jaju, said a news report
Days after the Supreme Court issued a directive on advertisers and ad agencies to submit a “self-declaration certificate” before publishing, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has convened a meeting for the industry bodies, according to a news report.
MIB has reportedly called a meeting of media and ad industry bodies on June 11 to discuss the issue of self-declaration certificates or SDCs for broadcasting and publishing ads on TV, print, digital and radio from June 18.
The meeting will reportedly be chaired by MIB Secretary Sanjay Jaju and will also see attendance from secretaries of ministries of health, Ayush and consumer affairs.
The news report also adds that members of the Indian Newspaper Society, Indian Broadcasting and Digital Foundation, Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA), Advertising Standards Council of India and Internet and Mobile Association of India, Association of Radio Operators of India, Digital News Publishers of India (DNPA), Confederation of Indian Industry and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, apart from Google and Meta.
The bodies have been reportedly instructed to appoint their seniormost persons as representatives for the meeting.
Industry bodies like ISA and DNPA have reportedly sought counsel about the impracticalities of implementing the SDC due to the number of ads issued daily.
This week, the SC issued a directive stating that advertisers must provide proof of uploading the SDC to the relevant broadcaster, printer, publisher, or electronic media platform for their records. As per the directive, no advertisement will be permitted to run on television, print media, or the internet without a valid Self-Declaration Certificate
The certificate, signed by an authorised representative of the advertiser/advertising agency, needs to be submitted through these portals.
The portal will be activated on 4th June, 2024. All advertisers and advertising agencies must obtain the Self-Declaration Certificate for new advertisements that will be issued/telecast/aired/published on or after 18th June, 2024.
A buffer period of two weeks has been kept to provide sufficient time for stakeholders to familiarise themselves with the process of self-certification. Ongoing advertisements do not require self-certification currently.
To avoid any disruptions in their campaigns, advertisers and agencies are advised to familiarise themselves with the portals and the requirements during the buffer period provided until the 18th of June, 2024.”
As per a press statement by MIB, “The Hon’ble Supreme Court directive is a step towards ensuring transparency, consumer protection, and responsible advertising practices. The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting urges all advertisers, broadcasters and publishers to adhere to this directive diligently.”
Navneet Kumar Sehgal, the new Prasar Bharati Chairman said, “Our motto is that we should give free sports events to the whole world because no other channel does this. And in the same direction, we should keep the production quality good as well. We should make the games reach the last corner so there will be more interest in sports in the world.”
“In the coming time, we are engaging with different bodies like we are working with the Rugby Association, the Yoga League, and more. This is so that our platform becomes a lively platform,” he added.
Manisha Kapoor, CEO and Secretary General, ASCI, stated, “The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has established new features to their portals to enable advertisers to obtain the self-declaration certificate to comply with the Supreme Court directives. Given the vast number of creatives that now need certification, this is a challenge that advertisers, agencies and media owners will need to gear up for.
ASCI's Advertising Advice service can support advertisers be compliant with the ASCI Code, which forms a key part of the Advertising Code under the Cable TV Network (Regulation) Act. This would help advertisers be more confident of their self-declarations which are now mandated for print. TV and Internet ads. Whether it is small or big advertisers, no ads would now be permitted on any media and channel without such a certification.
