India has banned 18 OTT platforms from publishing and distributing vulgar, obscene, and adult-rated content. For violating the IT Act, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B) has taken action against 19 websites, 10 applications, and 57 social media handles. Google Play and Apple App Store have also been ordered to remove the respective apps.
OTT platforms that contain vulgar and nude content have previously been warned by Union Minister Anurag Thakur. Content like this violates the Indian IT Act of 2000, which protects women’s and children’s rights in the media and entertainment industry.
Here is the list of Apps:
- Dreams Films
- Voovi
- Yessma
- Uncut Adda
- Tri Flicks
- X Prime
- Neon X VIP
- Besharams
- Hunters,
- Rabbit
- Xtramood
- Nuefliks
- MoodX
- Mojflix
- Hot SHorts VIP
- Fugi
- Chikooflix
- Prime Play.
On the Google Play Store, many apps had over 50 lakh downloads, with one app having over 1 crore. Additionally, these apps used external links to redirect users to explicit media content on Facebook, Instagram, and X (formerly Twitter).
It was estimated that these platforms had a cumulative reach of 32 lakhs on social media, according to the ministry’s notification.
As part of the same regulations, these platforms’ social media handles have also been blocked. In a 2015 ruling, the Supreme Court of India also prohibited the sharing and distribution of adult media.
