The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has approved the Digital Advertising Policy 2023 to empower the Central Bureau of Communications to conduct campaigns in the digital media sector. CBC operates under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and coordinates various government programs, schemes and The CBC is responsible for creating awareness and disseminating information about policies. CBC is committed to adopting new technologies to reach larger audiences in the changing media landscape.
Key Policies under Digital Advertising Policy, 2023
Expansion to digital platforms
- CBC may issue advertisements through social media, over-the-top (OTT) platforms, digital audio platforms, mobile applications and websites.
- It mandates that the website, mobile app, OTT platform and digital audio platform must be at least one year old to be eligible to apply under the scheme.
Advertising rates and transparency
- To ensure transparency and efficiency, advertising rates will be linked to subscriber base and viewership, which will be determined through competitive bidding.
- The rates obtained through this process will remain valid for three years.
OTT platform participation
- OTT platforms may be empaneled not only to serve advertisements during regular content but also to present embedded/in-film advertisements, promotional or branding activities as per CBC’s letter of intent.
Funding sources
- CBC usually uses 2% of the total outlay of government schemes for publicity and outreach activities and these funds are used for advertisements and campaigns.
Importance of Digital Advertising Policy, 2023
- This policy marks an important campaign in CBC’s mission to disseminate information and create awareness about various schemes, programs and policies of the Government of India in the context of the emerging media landscape and increasing digitalization of media usage.
- This policy is designed for huge customers in the digital world.
- Aadhaar will facilitate effective delivery of targeted citizen centric messages with technology enabled messaging options through digital advertisements resulting in cost efficiency in conducting people centric campaigns.
- This represents a significant shift towards the digital sphere given the media consumption by audiences in recent years.
- The Digital India program of the Government of India has resulted in a significant increase in the number of people connecting to the Internet, social and digital media platforms across the country.
- As of March 2023, internet penetration in India was over 880 million people and the number of telecom subscribers was over 1172 million, according to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s Indian Telecom Service Performance Indicator January-March 2023.