| Discovery Communications India
Discovery Communications India
Discovery Communications India prides itself with an “All-Women’s legal team”. The team is currently comprised of five members headed by Mansha Shukla. Apart from Shukla, the team consists of two senior members, one company secretary and a paralegal support. Some of the key team members include Nupur Jain and Daphne Menezes who both work as manager – legal affairs (South Asia), and Shifali Arora, company secretary.
The India legal team has been involved in several significant transactions and litigations ranging from corporate, IP, policy, regulatory, compliances and disputes. The team worked and advised the company on the launch of Discovery’s first Hindi “General Entertainment Channel” in India in 2018. This entailed Discovery India’s original content production extending to over 700 hours in a year. The team, in its first, also negotiated this channel’s launch on Netflix worldwide in form of a licensing transaction. Regulatory litigation against Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) challenging TRAI’s Tariff Order and Interconnection regulations, 2017 on its merits. This litigation is sub-judice before the High Court of Delhi. Discovery Communications India is now the only broadcaster contesting against TRAI in court challenging these economic regulations before the Court alongside other Direct-to-Home distribution platforms. This case has also been widely reported in media. The team is also involved actively in Discovery India’s first ever “Over-The-Top digital platform” known as “Discovery Plus” that is proposed to be launched early next year. Discovery Plus will be unique to India and will include Discovery’s original Indian and global contents ranging from wildlife, lifestyle, travel, food, sports and other factual entertainment contents. As part of the Indian Broadcasting Foundation, Discovery India has engaged with the government and provided its recommendations on revamping the current broadcasting guidelines of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in form and shape of a National Broadcast Policy.
As part of one of the corporate compliances, the team also spearheaded Discovery India’s largest CSR initiative, in partnership with Wold Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), and adopted the Sundarbans regions of West Bengal in ensuring conservation of the Royal Bengal Tigers and decreasing human-tiger conflicts in the surrounding villages. The team advised on the launch of Discovery India’s most awaited television show, “Man vs. Wild with Bear Grylls and Prime Minister Narendra Modi”. The episode features the current Prime Minister of India. This has already become one of the most watched promos of a television show on internet in India. The episode will be exhibited in over 180 countries on Discovery network channels.
Discovery Communications India is a television broadcaster. The biggest change that has taken place during the last one year in the broadcasting sector is the commencement of the new Tariff and Interconnection regulatory regime introduced by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). This has had a major shift in the ways of doing business in India by the broadcasters and the cable operators. The new regime introduced price caps on packaging of television channels and several other limitations and restrictions in the offerings of the broadcasters and distribution platforms. A heavily regulated sector presents itself with myriad challenges for the lawyers advising companies to navigate several restrictions and limitations within which they operate. Discovery India’s legal team has approached the Hon’ble Delhi High Court challenging these regulations on its merits against TRAI. We have also been meeting with the officials of TRAI and writing to them constantly on the challenges being faced by the company and the consumers in general with advent of the new regulatory regime. Simultaneously, the team has also been working on and advising the business teams on implementation of these new regulatory regimes which includes the increased reporting requirements and compliances. With the introduction of Data Protection Bill before the Indian Parliament, Discovery India legal team has commenced its work on creating robust privacy policy, information security policies and measures, terms of use of its websites and proposed digital media platform.
The company’s management has a robust vision and plan for the company in the next 12 months. One of the main focus areas of the company will be to launch its first “over-the-top” digital media application known as “Discovery Plus” early next year. The company plans to become one-stop digital platform with the largest number of hours of factual entertainment content. The legal team is working and advising on creation of Discovery Plus including tying up with several software services vendors, payment gateways and e-wallets, data protection policies and measures. The team will also advise and work on several big ticket B2B transactions pertaining to Discovery Plus such as tying up with telecom operators, smart televisions, and other distribution platforms. The company is also planning to grow inorganically, in which case, the legal team will advise and work on strategic mergers and acquisitions and related transactions. The team’s focus will also be to engage with the government in policy formulation within the digital media and OTT space.
Shukla is a firm believer of technology enhancing the efficiencies of lawyers. The legal team has leveraged technology to improve legal operations. The team has embraced within the company the use of e-signatures using improved technologies. The team is currently working to introduce new technology tools to manage regulatory and corporate compliances and litigations. This will not just help the legal team but will also support our financial and commercial operations functions. The legal team has also introduced semi-locked templates for certain standard contracts to bring in efficiencies within the legal and other operations.
The ethos of the team is summed up in five principles: One team, doing the right thing, consumer obsessed, purposeful and doer. The team is very lean, efficient and cohesive that believes in teamwork. Every member of the legal team is a champion of ethics, governance and compliance within the company. The team is obsessed at ensuring quality of work and keeping their internal clients happy.
