Netflix Censorship

The Hungarian media censor has said it was investigating Netflix for potentially violating an anti-LGBT law, citing several complaints over a cartoon showing girls kissing.

The National Media and Communications Authority said it was checking whether an episode of a Netflix kids series named Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous had violated a law which prohibits the portrayal of homosexuality or transgender people in content shown to minors.

The Netflix series, rated for 7-year-olds and above, shows one of the main characters confessing her love to another girl and kissing her.

The censor said that if it found Netflix to have violated its law, it would have to inform the Dutch media authority, which oversees Netflix because the firm's European headquarters are in the Netherlands. The Dutch censor would in turn have the final say.

Last year Turkey refused permission to film a locally adapted version of the Netflix series If Only. The licence was refused after discovering that one of the lead characters was gay.

Netflix decided not to write out the gay character and have now decided to film the series in Spain. The adaptation will now be titled Si lo hubiera sabido (If I Had Known), and will be scripted by Irma Correa with Yörenç acting as consultant.

Starring HBO series 30 coins actress Megan Montaner, If I Had Known will tell the story of Emma, who is entering her thirties with the feeling that life has become dull after 10 years of marriage. A supernatural twist allows her to inhabit her younger body and, ironically, rewrite the script.

Yörenç told Variety magazine:

Turkey's Ministry of Culture has the power to cancel a series depending on the image it gives of the country. Although it hadn't used this power before, it applied it to my series though it didn't give any explicit reason. But we know that it's because the series has a gay character. They hoped we'd change the screenplay, adapting to the moral norms they expected. But I, along with Netflix didn't agree to making any change to the original screenplay and we finally decided to cancel the series. But I really want now to focus on the project, which is very exciting. I want to forget the past.

Netflix has reported on the moves and TV shows that it has banned at the request of governments. Netflix writes:

We offer creators the ability to reach audiences all around the world. However, our catalog varies from country to country, including for rights reasons (i.e., we don't have the rights to show everything in every country where we operate). In some cases we've also been forced to remove specific titles or episodes of titles in specific countries due to government takedown demands.

Below are the titles we've removed to date, as of February 2020 -- just nine in total since we launched. Beginning next year, we will report these takedowns annually.

• In 2015, Netflix complied with the New Zealand Film and Video Labeling Body to remove The Bridge . The film is classified as "objectionable" in the country.
• In 2017, Netflix complied with Vietnamese Authority of Broadcasting and Electronic Information (ABEI) to remove Full Metal Jacket.
• In 2017, Netflix complied with the German Commission for Youth Protection (KJM) to remove Night of the Living Dead . A version of the film is also banned in the country. There's a discussion of exactly which version is banned in a German language article from schnittberichte.com
• In 2018, Netflix complied with the Singapore Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) to remove Cooking on High (TV series about cooking with cannabis) , The Legend of 420 (a comedy documentary about cannabis) , and Disjointed (TV series about cannabis) from the service in Singapore only.
• In 2019, Netflix complied with the Saudi Communication and Information Technology Commission to remove one episode -- "Saudi Arabia" -- from Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj (comedy TV news, talk show) .
• In 2019, Netflix complied with the Singapore Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) to remove The Last Temptation of Christ.
• In 2020, Netflix complied with the Singapore Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) to remove The Last Hangover . This is the Brazilian TV comedy about a gay Christ that proved controversial in Brazil.

The First Temptation of Christ (A Primeira Tentação de Cristo) is a 2019 Brazil comedy short film by Rodrigo Van Der Put.
Starring Evelyn Castro, Gregório Duvivier and Fábio Porchat.

Jesus, who's hitting the big 3-0, brings a surprise guest to meet the family.

A judge in Brazil has ruled that a film depicting Jesus as gay must be removed from the TV streaming service Netflix.

The film, The First Temptation of Christ, infuriated some Christians in the country.Two million people signed a petition calling for it to be banned, and the production company was attacked with Molotov cocktails last month.

In the ruling against Netflix, the judge said: The right to freedom of expression... is not absolute.

The ban is a temporary injunction whilst a final decision is made by a higher court.

Update: Injunction overturned

10th January 2020. See article from bbc.com

Brazil's Supreme Court has overturned a ruling that TV streaming service Netflix must remove a film depicting Jesus as gay.

The film, The First Temptation of Christ, infuriated fervent Christians in the country. But Supreme Court president Dias Toffoli said on Thursday that Netflix should be allowed to continue streaming the show, stating that freedom of speech was fundamental in a democracy. The judge said:

One cannot suppose that a humorous satire has the ability to weaken the values of the Christian faith, whose existence is traced back more than two thousand years, and which is the belief of the majority of Brazilian citizens.

Netflix has surprised the tech community, and perhaps some of the world, when it announced at a CES, a US technology show, that its streaming service is now available everywhere in the world except for China, North Korea, Crimea, and Syria.

And altering its original content to some of the more censorial of the new territories is something Netflix may have to confront. So far, however, Netflix hasn't censored any of its content, Anne Marie Squeo, a Netflix spokesperson, told Tech Insider:

We're an on-demand service that allows people to choose to sign up and decide what, where and when to watch, Squeo wrote in an email to Tech Insider. The service includes ratings guides and episode synopses to help people decide, and we also provide a PIN-code system to ensure children can't view certain content.

But Reed Hastings, the company's CEO, hasn't ruled out censoring its programming in the future. The Verge's Ross Miller asked Hastings about the company's policy with regard to such censorship, and he didn't exactly give a straight answer:

As to your question about... different versions like airplane cuts, we'll have to see and we'll have to learn, Hastings said, according to The Verge . I think entertainment companies have to make compromises over time... the thrust of what we're trying to do is have the artistic vision be consistent through the world.

The Bangkok Post outlines some of the issues about localised censorship requirements where the standard definition package costs 280 Baht ( £ 5.30) a month for 1 screen.

While opening the doors to Thai viewers , Netflix has not added any new Thai-language content beyond the small selection of films it already had. And while the company on Thursday added support for three new languages, Thai was not among them. Neither the website, app or subtitles are available in Thai yet.

Another significant difference Thailand viewers may not look forward to is the same type of censorship used for movies showing in Thai movie theaters.

Netflix already applies censorship to movies showing in different markets around the world to adhere to local media laws. Eg Netflix already sanitises content in Japan, pixelating full-frontal nudity seen, for example, in the Marco Polo series produced by Netflix as well as other content .

In Thailand, the service could follow standard practice at movie theaters (cinemas) by pixelating smoking, drinking and bloody violence , as well as censoring nude scenes .

Update: Indonesian censors are the first to whinge about worldwide Netflix

11th January 2016. See  article from en.tempo.co

Netflix's expansion to Indonesia has agitated the Indonesian Censorship Agency (LSF).

LSF Chairman Ahmad Yani Basuki, together with the agency's members, held a meeting to discuss the online streaming service. During the meeting, Ahmad said that some of the movies provided by Netflix are not appropriate for Indonesian viewers There are some movies that we have forbid from being screened in the cinemas, Ahmad said, without mentioning the titles.

Several scenes that must be cut out from a movie before it can be screened in Indonesia include scenes that exhibit violence, gambling, drug abuse, pornography, scenes that may well lead to sectarian conflict, blasphemy, encourage criminal acts, and degrading human rights. Ahmad said too many of the abovementioned scenes in a movie will resulted in a ban.

In relation to Netflix, Ahmad underlined that Law No. 33/2009 on Movie Industry stated that movies that are going to be screened in Indonesia must first obtain a censorship letter from LSF. On the other hand, the American-based online streaming service company is yet to file a request for censorship. Without the requirement, we will recommend the Communication and Informatics Ministry to block the service, Ahmad said.

Update: Kenyan film censors bid to censor Netflix turned down

13th January 2016. See  article from telecompaper.com

The Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) has differed with the Kenya Films and Classification Board (KFCB) over the handling of US online movie streaming service Netflix, which has launched operations in Kenya.

The CA said Netflix will not be asked to apply for a local broadcasting licence, meaning the US firm is exempt from local broadcasting censorship rules that are part of the licensing conditions.

Previously KFCB had announced that the US firm would not be exempted from the censorship law because it will be selling foreign content, adding that it had identified inappropriate programmes hosted by the on-demand service provider that are wrongly rated for children aged 13 years.

Update: Vietnam is none too impressed

15th January 2016. See  article from english.vietnamnet.vn

Netflix's video-streaming service is winding up Vietnam's censorial authorities. Lawyers have apparently raised questions about the legitimacy of Netflix's service providing in Vietnam and how it would affect Vietnam's own pay-TV market.

Ngo Huy Toan, inspector of the Ministry of Information and Communication, affirmed that all foreign firms which provide services to Vietnam but do not register their business and do not have licenses are violating Vietnamese laws. Also according to Toan, the government of Vietnam allows foreign firms to team up with Vietnamese to provide pay-TV services. However, the firms must complete business registration in Vietnam, pay tax to Vietnam and respect Vietnamese laws.

Vietnam sets very restrictive regulations on TV program content editing, translation and content censoring. This means that movies and TV shows all must go through censorship before they can be shown in Vietnam.

Update: Malaysia considers censorship a must

15th January 2016. See article from themalaymailonline.com

Netflix's movies and television series that are streamed online will still have to comply with local regulator Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commision (MCMC)'s content censorship minister Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak has said.

According to the New Straits Times (NST), Salleh told the paper that the MCMC can take action against Netflix if it makes offensive content available in Malaysia and breaches the regulator's content rules.

The communications and multimedia minister said MCMC will be asked to meet with Netflix to notify them of local content standards and their obligations.

Netflix still has to meet the local regulator's content standards even if it is exempt from getting a license as an over-the-top content application (OTT) provider like Facebook, Salleh said.

Malay Mail Online reported a US-based Netflix staff as confirming that there will be no censorship of television series and movies made available here, although certain content may be unavailable due to regional licensing restrictions.

Update: Indonesian censors block Netflix

27th January 2016. See  article from cnet.com

Indonesian 's largest telco, PT Telkom Indonesia, announced that as of 12 a.m. Wednesday morning they had blocked access to the Netflix streaming service on all of its Internet platforms.

Dian Rachmawan, Telkom's Director of Consumers, said the ban was put in place due to Netflix not following the country's broadcast laws and for having violent and pornographic content. Rachmawan told Daily Social that he didn't want to ban Netflix completely from the country ...BUT... rather wants to ensure they follow local regulations.

This blocking action will not have an impact to our customers. They [Netflix] are still small here. While they are still small, we will teach them to follow the rules here.