New Delhi, March 11 (IANS). The Central Government on Wednesday issued a notice to the messaging platform Telegram asking it to remove pirated (copyright infringing) content from the platform.
This step has been taken following complaints from several OTT platforms alleging that their films and web series are being shared illegally on Telegram on a large scale.
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) has issued a notice to Telegram under the Information Technology Act, 2000 and directed the platform to take action against piracy and remove illegal content.
The action was taken after OTT platforms like Jio Cinema and Amazon Prime Video complained that their copyrighted content was being widely shared on Telegram without permission.
After investigating the complaints, officials identified 3,142 Telegram channels that were allegedly sharing pirated copies of movies, web series and other copyrighted content.
According to reports, some features of Telegram, such as the limit on large file sharing and the ability to hide the identity of users, were misused by some people and shared pirated content on a large scale.
This action has come at a time when just a few days ago the Ministry had banned five OTT platforms, including MoodXVIP, Cuckoo Playpro, Digi Movieplex, Feel and Jugnu, for streaming obscene content.
Earlier in July 2025, the central government had ordered to block the websites and apps of 25 OTT platforms, which were alleged to be streaming obscene, indecent or pornographic content.
These platforms include ALTT, Ullu, Big Shots App, DesiFlix, Boomex, Navrasa Lite, Gulab App, Kangan App, Bull App, Jalwa App, Shohit, Wow Entertainment, Look Entertainment, HitPrime, Fenio, ShowX, Soul Talkies, Adda TV, HotX VIP, Hulchul App, MoodX, NeonX VIP, Fugee, Mozflix and Triflix. Were.
Under the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, online platforms are not allowed to host or publish content that is obscene, pornographic, invasive of privacy, offensive on gender grounds, racially or ethnically objectionable or promoting violence and hatred.
This new action by the government is part of broader efforts to curb online piracy and control objectionable content on digital platforms.
–IANS
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