Government Approves Digital Advertisement Policy, 2023

GS Paper II Governance and Social Justice

Context:

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting approved the Digital Advertisement Policy, 2023 to enable and empower the Central Bureau of Communication (CBC) to undertake campaigns in the digital media space.

The Digital Advertisement Policy has been formulated after wide-ranging discussions with multiple stakeholders and outlines the roadmap for enhancing the Digital Outreach of the Government of India and improving information dissemination to the Citizens.

Empaneling Digital Agencies: CBC can now impanel digital media agencies to engage podcast listeners, YouTube, OTT viewers, and social media users.
Inclusive Campaign Platforms: The policy extends campaigns to mobile applications, requiring eligibility for websites, mobile apps, OTT platforms, and digital audio platforms with a minimum one-year existence.
Transparent Advertising Rates: Advertising rates will be linked to subscriber base and viewership, determined through competitive bidding for transparency and efficiency, with rates valid for three years.
Competitive bidding: It introduces competitive bidding for rate discovery, ensuring transparency and efficiency. Rates discovered through this process will remain valid for three years and will be applicable to all eligible agencies.

CBIC: Central Bureau of Communication is the Media Unit of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting which is the designated organization for issue of advertisements through all forms of media.

CBC will also be able to leverage the growing number of listeners to podcasts and digital audio platforms through the empanelment of digital audio platforms.

Internet and Telecom Data: As of March 2023, India boasts over 880 million internet users and 1172 million telecom subscribers, according to TRAI’s Indian Telecom Services Performance Indicators.
Shifting Allocations: Government spending on traditional media drops from Rs. 1,200 crore in 2017-2018 to Rs. 264.78 crore in 2021-2022, emphasizing the importance of the 2% outlay for publicity and outreach activities.

News Source: The Indian Express