SAMACHAR- OCTOBER, 2023  
 
 
Submission to DoCA on Proposed Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns
The Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) made a submission in October to the Department of Consumer Affairs (DoCA) on the Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns proposed by the DoCA. In the submission, IAMAI highlighted that the existing regulatory framework was more than sufficient to tackle "dark patterns online" and pointed towards how various issues pertaining to the emergence of such "dark patterns" were already comprehensively addressed under the current framework. Existing laws and regulations, such as the Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements, 2022, the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020, the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, and the Information Technology Act, 2000, among others, provide extensive regulatory safeguards against misleading advertisements, deceptive prices, unfair trade practices, etc., and thus comprehensively address the many "dark patterns" outlined in the proposed guidelines. Therefore, in order to avoid regulatory overlap and reduce compliance hurdles for businesses operating in India, IAMAI urged the government to not introduce parallel guidelines to curtail dark patterns.

IAMAI also requested the Department of Consumer Affairs to consider self-regulation as an alternative to address any consumer grievances pertaining to online dark patterns.
 
 
Submission to MeitY on Implementation Timelines for DPDP Act, 2023
Following the first Digital India Dialogue discussions on the recently enacted Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDP Act) held in September, IAMAI in October put forth industry suggestions to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) regarding timelines for the implementation of various provisions of the DPDP Act..

In its submission, IAMAI highlighted that data fiduciaries would need to undertake significant technical, product, policy and process-level changes to comply with the standards and requirements under the DPDP Act. For instance, data fiduciaries may be required to modify their privacy programs, execute new addendums/contracts with data processors, set up new operational processes, change existing or add new notice and consent user interface (UI) flows for their products and services, etc. Building, testing and implementing such new processes and infrastructure in a safe and secure manner would require time. Further, IAMAI noted that without reviewing the prescriptive and granular requirements that are proposed to be prescribed via the rules made under the Act, it would be difficult for organisations to comment on the potential compliance-related challenges and assess precise timelines that would reasonably be required to implement the necessary product and policy changes.

IAMAI sought an overall 24-month implementation period for the Act, in line with the recommendations of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the Personal Data Protection Bill 2019. Regarding the drafting of the various rules under the Act, IAMAI urged the government to maintain the same transparent and consultative approach that characterised the development of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 under the Information Technology Act, 2000.
 
 
DPCGC Submission to MIB on Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act
IAMAI wrote to the Department of Telecommunications arguing for allowing digital display of information related to Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) value and other safety precautions in smartphone booklets provided by mobile manufacturers. Listing the many advantages of a shift to digital display of such information, IAMAI also highlighted that the use of digital modes of accessing important regulatory information had already been adopted by various other ministries and regulators in India. Accordingly, IAMAI requested the Department of Telecommunications to extend a similar regulatory allowance for permitting information related to SAR value and safety precautions to be made available online or through QR Codes/e-labels.
 
 
PCI Submission to RBI Urging Timeline Extension for ALT ID Solution Rollout
The Card Networks Committee of the Payments Council of India (PCI), which functions under the aegis of the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), held a meeting with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to update RBI on the industry's readiness for the ALT ID solution rollout. Subsequently, PCI also made a submission to RBI requesting a timeline extension to avoid customer disruption and inconvenience. The submission highlighted the progress made according to the previously submitted plan, noting that four out of two phases from implementation plan had been completed. It emphasized the unique and first of its kind solution the Indian industry is introducing, which would require a significant real-world testing before full scale implementation. The submission also stressed a tech freeze during the festival season among merchants to avoid customer disruption. The submission pointed out that government merchants and long-tail merchants would require more time for onboarding. Due to these reasons, the industry has requested more time for a successful ALT ID rollout.
 
 
DPCGC Launches Awareness Campaign for Consumers to Enhance Viewing Experience
The Digital Publisher Content Grievance Council (DPCGC) initiated a year-long all-India awareness campaign. The campaign aims to make law enforcing agencies and consumers of OTT platforms aware of the various tools that the law provides for an enhanced viewing experience, and to foster collaboration between parents, law enforcement agencies, and educational institutions, promoting responsible content consumption practices for all. The campaign began with a virtual workshop involving officers of cyber cells of 22 states and two union territories across the nation, on October 25, 2023. Shri Vikram Sahay, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India, and Justice (Retd.) A.K. Sikri, former judge of the Supreme Court of India, and Chairperson, DPCGC, were also present at the workshop.
 
 
IAMAI’s Digital Advertising Council Appoints New Chair and Co-Chairs
Following elections in October 2023, Mr. Vivek Malhotra, Group CMO, India Today Group, was appointed the new Chairperson of IAMAI’s Digital Advertising Council (DAC). Mr. Bharat Gupta, CEO, Jagran New Media and Mr. Arun Srinivas, Director & Head – Ad Business, Meta, were appointed Co-Chairs of the DAC.
 
 
IAMAI’s Digital Advertising Council Meeting with MIB on Future of Online Advertising
IAMAI’s Digital Advertising Council held a couple of meetings with the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India in October. These meetings discussed the shaping of the future of online advertising in India, emphasizing collaboration and alignment with evolving regulatory measures.
 
 
IAMAI’s Digital Advertising Council Task Force Meeting on Unified Measurement
In a meeting of IAMAI’s Digital Advertising Council (DAC), held in August 2023, it was decided to create a Task Force Group to open a dialogue on unified measurement. The first meeting of the Task Force was held in October. The task force discussed the future of measurement and attribution for digital platforms and as next steps the group has decided to identify the right partners to take this process forward.
 
 
PCI Forms Audit Standardisation Task Force
The Payments Council of India (PCI), which functions under the aegis of the Internet and Mobile Association of India initiated an Audit Standardization Task Force to standardize the scope of various audits that a PSO must comply with while partnering with the bank. The meeting was held on October 31, 2023, with a small working group. The participating members discussed the scope and next steps for the group.
 
 
PCI Prepaid Payment Issuers Committee Discusses PPI UPI Interoperability with NPCI
The Prepaid Payment Issuers Committee of the Payments Council of India (PCI), which operates under the aegis of the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), facilitated an industry discussion with the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) on PPI UPI interoperability. The discussion focused on the challenges faced by the PPI players with interoperability and presented the industry concerns to the NPCI.
 
 
PCI, FCC Hold Annual General Meeting
The Payments Council of India (PCI) and Fintech Convergence Council (FCC), both of which operate under the aegis of the Internet and Mobile Association of India, held their annual general meeting (AGM) on October 6, 2023. The meeting began with a work review for the year 2022-23, followed by remarks from the PCI and FCC chairs and co-chairs. The PCI secretariat appealed to all members to participate and support the adoption of Project Pratima. The Governing Council of PCI and FCC unveiled its annual report and the AGM concluded with an open house followed by a vote of thanks.
 
 
9th Edition of India Affiliate Summit Held in Gurugram
The 9th edition of the India Affiliate Summit (IAS), India's premier affiliate marketing conference, was held on October 11-12, 2023 at Gurugram. The conference was organised by Digital Advertising Council of the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) in collaboration with vCommission, powered by Valueleaf, and was ‘brought to you’ by Shoogloo, in association with Admitad and Admattic. IAS 2023 drew under one roof some of the finest minds and leading brands in the affiliate marketing landscape, registering a footfall of more than 7000. 

With more than 90 booths, and representation from more than 16 countries, showcasing over 600 brands, IAS 2023 collaborated with over 1000 agencies, and engaged with over 2000 ad networks and more than 3000 affiliates. A thought leadership report titled India Affiliate Marketing: The 2023 Primer, produced jointly by IAMAI and KANTAR, was launched at the conference. The report provides a holistic picture of how the strategy of Affiliate Marketing is poised to pay rich dividends and contribute meaningfully to the sales of companies.

Among the key speakers at IAS 2023 were Harini Surendran, Regional Manager, New Business Sales, Google India; Nitin Chopra, Group Head – Edtech, HealthTech, Consumer Devices, Telecom & Gaming, Meta; Nitin Sethi, Joint President, Chief Digital Officer- Consumer Businesses, Adani Group; Badrinath Mishra, Vice President- Network Expansion, Open Network For Digital Commerce (ONDC); Vinay Kumar, Director Artificial Intelligence, Azure and Search Partnerships, Microsoft; Parul Tarang Bhargava, Co-Founder & CEO, vCommission; Srikanth Bureddy, Co-Founder, ValueLeaf; Neha Kulwal, Managing Director APAC & India, Mitgo; Varun Sakhuja, Director Product & Innovation APAC, Mastercard; Vivek Malhotra, Group CMO & COO Consumer Revenue, India Today; Rajni Menon, Chief Solutions Officer, Dentsu Solutions; Nimish Agrawal, Executive Vice President & CMO, Niva Bupa Heath Insurance; Jade McDade, Director APAC Skimlinks and Abhishek Kumar, Vice President - Business & Product, Paytm First Games.

The thought leadership report titled ‘India Affiliate Marketing: The 2023 Primer’ is being released at IAS 2023.
 
 
Roundtable on Unleashing the Power of Professional Digital Communications
The Digital Advertising Council of the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), in collaboration with Messagebird, organsised an insightful roundtable on the theme titled ‘Unleash the Potential: Transforming Your Marketing Strategy with a Silent Super-App Giant’, on October 11, 2023, at Gurugram. The focus of the roundtable was to ‘demystify’ the power of digital communication, particularly emails in successful professional correspondence. Industry captains, subject-experts and thought leaders examined and explored 360 degrees the delicate balance of dedicated versus shared IP addresses, which is a crucial yet often overlooked factor that can make or break email deliverability.

The roundtable discussed several crucial issues pertaining to professional digital communications including ‘scaling up for new-age startups’, ‘marketing products of startups in today's era’, ‘expanding communication channels by segmenting the audience’, and ‘providing customer power to talk by integrating all the channels together.’

Among those who addressed the roundtable were Abhishek Singh, Founder, GoCore Superfoods; Ajay Chaurasia, Vice President: Marketing, Product & Business, RupeeRedee; Gagan Tahiliani, VP-Digital, CarDekho Group; Harman Saluja, AGM, NetMeds; Lekshmi V, Assitant Vice President, Max Life Insurance; Paritosh Bindra, Vice President Ecommerce, Blackberry Menswear; Punit Chahar, Asia Head of Digital & Performance Marketing, OLX Autos; Pushkar Sinha Head of Product- Neo Banking, RapiPay; Saikat Sinha, APAC- Social & Digital Lead, Lenovo; Vishwanath Divya, Head – Marketing, India Post Payments Bank.

Speakers at the roundtable on ‘Unleash the Potential: Transforming Your Marketing Strategy with a Silent Super-App Giant’
 
 
Webinar on Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2023
The Payments Council of India (PCI) and Fintech Convergence Council (FCC), both of which operate under the aegis of the IAMAI, in collaboration with the PwC organized a webinar on the Digital Personal Data Protection Bill (DPDP), 2023, on October 9, 2023. A team from the PwC made a presentation, discussing at length various provisions of the DPDP 2023, such as who the law applies to, the rules to follow, rights over personal data, and consequences for not following the rules. Over 120 industry professionals took part in the webinar, which was participants.
 
 
Webinar on ‘Unlocking the Future of Financial Services and Gift Cards’
The Payments Council of India (PCI) and the Fintech Convergence Council (FCC), both of which function under the aegis of the IAMAI, in collaboration with the Open Network For Digital Commerce (ONDC), organized a webinar on October 18, 2023, on 'Unlocking the Future of Financial Services and Gift Cards with ONDC'. Over 130 industry professionals attended the webinar. It was Hrushikesh Mehta, SVP, Financial Services, ONDC.
 
 
Webinar on the Impact of DPDP Act, 2023 on the Insurance Sector
The Insurance Committee of the Fintech Convergence Council (FCC), which functions under the aegis of the IAMAI, in collaboration with PwC, hosted a webinar, on October 19, 2023, discussing the impact of the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act of 2023 on the insurance industry. The presentation of the PwC team during the webinar covered various topics, including an overview of the DPDP 2023 and, the categories of regulated entities, their respective roles, the responsibilities of data fiduciaries and how it impacted the insurance sector. Forty industry professionals took part in the webinar.
 
 
Workshop on 'Account Aggregator: Growth Accelerator for the Lending industry'
The Lending Committee of the Fintech Convergence Council (FCC), which operates under the aegis of the IAMAI, in collaboration with Sahamati, held a workshop on October 25, 2023, to explore how the Account Aggregator (AA) framework greatly benefitted the lending industry, as well as individuals and businesses. The workshop included a comprehensive presentation on the AA framework, and an interactive session. The second half of the session included presentations by tech service providers, delving into the in-depth uses and functionality of the framework. Over 100 professionals joined the workshop.