Delhi High Court directs Information & Broadcasting Ministry to finalize OTT accessibility guidelines for disabled persons within three months
Ministry has released draft guidelines for public consultation; court ensures inclusive input from stakeholders
The Delhi High Court has recorded an undertaking from the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) to finalize accessibility guidelines for hearing and visually impaired users of Over-The-Top (OTT) platforms within three months. The assurance was given by Central Government Standing Counsel Sandeep Mahapatra during a hearing before Justice Sachin Datta.
The petitioners, visually impaired individuals, had challenged the lack of accessible features in recent Bollywood releases on OTT platforms. On hearing, Advocate Rahul Bajaj, representing the petitioners, pointed out flaws in the draft guidelines released by MIB, emphasizing that consultations lacked sufficient involvement of persons with disabilities.
The Court granted liberty to petitioners to submit responses on the draft, which is available for public comments until October 22, 2025. It also clarified no further directions were needed currently, but petitioners could pursue legal remedies if dissatisfied with the finalized guidelines.
The draft guidelines require OTT platforms to provide content with accessibility features like Closed/Open Captioning and Audio Descriptions or Indian Sign Language within six months for new releases. However, live events, audio-only content, and advertisements are excluded from these mandates.