BMC's OOH ad policy after Maharashtra Assembly Elections 2024

New Delhi: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is poised to release its new advertising policy for the OOH sector in Mumbai. Originally slated for an end-of-August release, sources now indicate that the policy's launch will be postponed until after the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections later this year.

Sources close to the development told BestMediaInfo.com, “As one starts to consider the political background and the operational course of the BMC, this particular issue is a conundrum of factors beyond just the OOH advertising guidelines. Thus, it is very less likely that the draft version will take shape or be implemented before the Assembly Elections later in 2024.” 

The tragic billboard collapse in Ghatkopar, Mumbai, on May 13, 2024, intensified scrutiny of the city's out-of-home (OOH) advertising landscape. The BMC is currently investigating the accident and broader issues affecting Mumbai's OOH environment.  

The Maharashtra government on Monday, July 30, set up a six-member committee to conduct a high-level inquiry into the illegal hoarding collapse tragedy that killed 17 people in the Ghatkopar area of Mumbai, officials said. 

The committee is headed by Dilip Bhosle, former Chief Justice of the High Court, and includes the Director General of Police, Additional Commissioner of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), a structural engineer from IIT Bombay, an Income Tax Officer, and a Chartered Accountant. 

The committee's mandate, as detailed in the order issued by the state Home Department, includes investigating the roles of the entities responsible for the hoarding and the petrol pump. 

The panel will also recommend a hoarding policy review of all railway or police land to avoid such incidents in the future.

In the latest bid to crackdown on billboards, the BMC removed 26 such hoardings along the Western Express Highway (WEH) between Bandra and the domestic airport, encroaching on the 'right of way'. 

This action follows a circular issued by the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways highlighting the distraction caused by roadside hoardings to motorists and pedestrians. As per reports, none of the removed hoardings had obtained the necessary permissions. The civic body has also decided not to renew permits for existing hoardings once their current validity expires.

As some experts closely working on this matter have pointed out, “It is important to consider the industry’s point of view before any arbitrary implementation of policies. This would ensure we are headed in the right direction, such that potential losses can be reduced both for the advertisers and the society at large.”

The BMC OOH guidelines include norms such as putting a ban on footpaths and national highway hoardings and capping the height at 100 feet, among other conditions. 

For DOOH advertising, the draft proposes requiring NOCs from the traffic police for illuminated ads and automatic switch-off for digital screens at 11 p.m.; the consequential proposal is blacklisting advertisers upon violation.

Additionally, the policy enforces insurance requirements, with online permits and renewals being introduced. 

Recently, there were also reports of the Mumbai traffic police having approached the BMC about partially restricting DOOH because of its tendency to create distractions and increase the risk of accidents.  

When BestMediaInfo.com spoke to Tom Goddard, President of WOO, for some expert opinion on this matter, he said, “There are numerous very credible studies done around the world on distraction as a traffic hazard.

Assertions have been made that out-of-home and digital out-of-home increase the cause of accidents. But there is zero evidence of that. It's all very subjective.” 

An interesting remark by Goddard was, “Municipalities have a lot of moving signage around. So, in some ways, it's part of calling the kettle black.” 

He argued that, compared to other forms of visual stimuli in the urban environment, OOH messages are typically glanced at briefly and pose minimal risk. “And it has been extensively researched, such that even municipalities accept there's no foundation in the subjective assertion that out-of-home is a traffic distraction,” he added. 

Thus, the ongoing discussion on this matter involves industry experts coming together with policymakers to understand the efficacy of the new guidelines. Concerns raised by the advertisers include a potential reduction in advertising space and revenue opportunities while operational costs increase. Besides, there is a chance that this could lead to the substantial relocation of existing ads.