In a meeting with stakeholders on June 11, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) insisted that all new advertisements on TV, digital, print, and radio be self-declared by June 18. MIB secretary Sanjay Jaju chaired the meeting, and attendees included Madison World chairman Sam Balsara, who represented the media agencies, Indian Broadcasting and Digital Foundation secretary Sidharth Jain, Manisha Kapoor of the Advertising Standards Council of India, and Satya Raghavan of Google India.

It all started with the revelation of Patanjali’s misleading advertisements. The industry people voiced their dissatisfaction and thought that their recommendation could have been more helpful in resolving some of the practical problems with the plan. However, the MIB declined to consider any recommendations and declared that on July 9, it would give the high court an affidavit outlining the actions it has taken so far on SDC.

Advertisers are rushing to reschedule campaigns

Companies are expected to release fewer new advertisements for three weeks starting on June 18, the day on which advertisers and advertising agencies should begin to submit a self-declaration before any advertisement is published, aired, or displayed (under the Self-Declaration mechanism mandated by the Supreme Court). All currently airing advertisements are free to keep running. However, the mandate will be applicable to new advertisements. As a result, it is reported that many advertisers have advanced the release of new campaigns and advertisements before June 18.

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ASCI asks to refrain from ad releases until SC clarity on SDC mandate

Given this, observers feel that there was a significant oversight in MIB’s execution of the order. To allow the Supreme Court to clarify the self-declaration certificate (SDC) requirement for new advertisements—which is expected to happen only after June 9, when the matter is brought before the SC—the ASCI has asked advertisers and broadcasters to hold off on releasing advertisements between June 18 and July 9.

The implementation of the SDC for all ads published on digital, radio, broadcast, or print presents several practical challenges that have been brought to the attention of various stakeholders in the media and advertising industries. As a result, the ISA, IDBF, and INS have requested that the MIB postpone the process until the Supreme Court addresses their concerns and provides clarification. To compile and share information with the MIB, ASCI has requested that its members notify it of any challenges they encounter when carrying out the SDC mandate.

The Indian Society of Advertisers, which is the governing body of the advertising industry, has advised its member organizations to hold off on launching new advertising campaigns until further clarification is provided. “Advertisers and broadcasters can also consider avoiding airing new advertisements in this period till we get some clarity from the Supreme Court,” the ISA stated in a carefully worded memo to its members.

Concerns and difficulties for advertisers and broadcasters

The self-declaration certificate (SDC) mandate for advertisements, imposed by the Supreme Court, has put the media and advertising industries in a difficult position. The SC issued an order requiring all ads to provide SDC prior to the ad’s release in an effort to combat the threat of deceptive ads. The directive states that older advertisements are free from the requirement. The self-declaration criteria will only apply to the new ones.

The order’s ambiguities have left stakeholders perplexed and searching for clarification. Furthermore, in an increasingly complex, creative, velocity-driven, volume-driven adscape where print ads and programmatic advertising coexist, the viability of the self-declaration mechanism in its current form has been seriously questioned. Advertisers have labeled it “unviable,” and the business community is concerned that the system will hinder creativity and replace it with “extreme bureaucracy.”

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Industry bodies’ letter to the MIB

Many industry organizations, including the Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA) and the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), are considering intervening in the dispute between the Indian Medical Association and the Union of India. The Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA), Indian Broadcasting and Digital Foundation (IBDF), and Indian Newspaper Society (INS) had requested that the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) postpone the implementation of the SDC mandate to allow the industry enough time to meet the new regulatory norms, citing reasons ranging from technical glitches to overall clarity about the process.

The Indian Newspaper Society wrote a letter to the ministry pleading for the adoption of the existing regulatory frameworks and highlighting how well they work. Given that the SC issue concerns deceptive medical advertisements, it was suggested that the SDC mechanism be restricted to these types of advertisements. For TV and radio advertisements, advertisers will need to generate SDC via the Broadcast Seva portal; for print and digital ads, they must use the Press Council of India (PCI) portal.

Obtaining SDC’s through PCI and Broadcast Seva portal

The ISA has also requested a delay in the implementation of the SDC mechanism, citing concerns about asset confidentiality due to the public’s access to advertising materials uploaded to the PCI and Broadcast Seva websites. The ISA also observed that there are often technical problems with both platforms, which could lead to delays in the creation of SDC.

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MIB stubborn on SDC mandate implementation

Nevertheless, on June 11, at a stakeholder meeting, the MIB made it clear that, per the Supreme Court’s directive, the SDC requirement for all new advertisements on television, digital, print, and radio would take effect on June 18. Despite this, the MIB made it clear at a June 11 stakeholders’ meeting that, per the Supreme Court’s directive, the SDC requirement for all new advertisements on television, digital, print, and radio would start on June 18. Given the scope and intricacy of the self-declaration requirement, the advertising industry has voiced serious concerns regarding the self-declaration mechanism.

What’s next?

Several industry associations are thinking of asking the Honorable Supreme Court to grant them relief from the burdensome requirements in the event that the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) is unable to provide any clarification regarding the implementation timelines. In the Indian Medical Association versus Union of India case, the Supreme Court ordered on May 7, 2024, that the MIB set up portals for the submission of advertisements for print and digital media. 

According to reports, MIB has instructed that all suggestions and concerns be submitted in writing, and it has promised that a list of all these issues will be included in the affidavit that MIB will present to the Supreme Court on July 9 for the next hearing. The ISA, for its part, had counseled its members to schedule their advertising campaigns with consideration of any deadlines that might be necessary to adhere to the self-declaration procedure.

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