A policy to extend government control over the OTT platforms (Over The Top platforms, a catch-all for commercial entertainment that reaches viewers through the internet) is being formulated to instill discipline in the sector, information minister Hasan Mahmud said Friday.

“The draft has been completed. If the policy is passed, the platforms will have to follow it and in case of any deviation, action will be taken as per the law.”

The minister said this while inaugurating a program marking the 23rd anniversary of private television broadcaster Channel I at the office of Impress Group in Tejgaon on Friday.

Regarding the operation of mobile courts to implement 'clean feed' or advertisement-free broadcast of foreign satellite channels from Friday, the minister said, "Thousands of crores that could have been invested behind domestic channels were invested in foreign channels in the form of advertisement.”

Read: BTRC shuts 59 unregistered, illegal IPTVs

“If advertisements are not broadcast in foreign satellite channels, this would benefit the home-grown channels and trickle down to the entire economy,” he added.

Meanwhile, Association of Television Channel Owners – ATCO and Broadcast Journalist Center (BJC) welcomed the Information Ministry’s move to implement clean feeds in the country.

However, operators say that it is not possible to cut off just the advertisements from programmes being broadcast on foreign channels

As an apparent protest, cable operators have decided to stop broadcasting foreign channels in Bangladesh on Friday, although this act of seeming rebellion corresponds to exactly what the authorities asked.

Read: BTRC reminds users of least-promoted service: 'Do Not Disturb' for promo texts!

Earlier on Thursday, Hasan Mahmud announced that mobile courts will carry out drives to ensure cable operators broadcast advertisement-free foreign TV channels in Bangladesh.

“We will conduct mobile courts from October 1 across the country. If the serial determined for television on cable lines at the tripartite meeting of the Ministry, the Television Owners’ Association and cable operators is not maintained and advertisements are shown, legal action will be taken against the distributors, operators who have the downlink approval of those channels," he told reporters.

"In countries like India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Nepal, cable operators can't broadcast foreign TV channels without clean feeds," the information minister said. “The operators were already informed in August about the drive. The excuse of foreign channels not sending clean feeds will no longer be tolerated.”