The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has announced a ban on payment for subscribing to India’s Zee5 online streaming video platform. The organization issued a notice to the presidents and CEOs of all banks, electronic money institutions (EMIs), Payment System Operators (PSOs), and payment service providers (PSPs), and ordered to stop accepting different mode of payments, including credit cards for subscribing to Indian content in Pakistan, specifically mentioning Zee5. The SBP revealed the ban was imposed at the instructions of the federal government. “We are in receipt of a letter from Cabinet Division, Government of Pakistan whereby they have instructed to stop different modes of payment including credit cards for subscribing Indian content in Pakistan including Zee5 video-on-demand service,” read the official letter.
It added, “In this regard, it is advised to ensure meticulous compliance of aforementioned instructions of Government of Pakistan and submit compliance status to PSD, SBP by November 13, 2020.” ZEE5 is an Indian video on-demand service run by Essel Group via its subsidiary Zee Entertainment Enterprises. It was launched in India on 14 February 2018 with content in 12 languages. The ZEE5 mobile app is available on the Web, Android, iOS and Smart TVs, among other devices. Recently, five original Pakistani shows have been produced by the streaming platform. Asim Abbasi’s Churails and Mehreen Jabbar’s Ek Jhooti Love Story have been released on ZEE5 so far. Pakistani entertainment industry insiders took to social media to share their two cents on the latest development.
State Bank of Pakistan has issued a letter ensuring that no one in Pakistan is able to subscribe to Zee 5. This is an informal ban and a reality check for Pakistani artists to be very careful about the upcoming Pakistani OTT platform.
Vlog: https://t.co/Iq8QvwqdtI
— Rafay Mahmood (@Rafay_Mahmood) November 12, 2020
Here we go. Zee5 subscription to get blocked in Pak. pic.twitter.com/CvaETT1UAA
— Hasan Zaidi (@hyzaidi) November 12, 2020
Expected headlines in IK's Pakistan:
1-Government in talks with Bill Gates to revive Windows 95!
2-Dial-up connections to make a comeback.
3-Blockbuster relocates to Pakistan to battle piracy.
4-Black & white films to return to save colour
5-Moenjodaro to be made new Capital!— Omair Alavi (@omair78) November 13, 2020
Omair Bhai, you know I support OTT/Digital exploration in Pk but Zee5 makes a ton of problematic content as well. Also, none of our other content is easily available there. Our artists have been effectively banned from their country. Yes it is damaging in a way that the app has+
— Mahwash Ajaz ?? (@mahwashajaz_) November 13, 2020
Bad Decision by SBP. These useless actions prevent Big Companies like Netflix and Amazon Prime to invest in Pakistani Original Content yet.#Netflix #Pakistan #ZEE5 https://t.co/65P1DK99cz
— Abdullah (@AbdullahSid892) November 13, 2020
“State Bank of Pakistan has issued a letter ensuring that no one in Pakistan is able to subscribe to Zee 5. This is an informal ban and a reality check for Pakistani artists to be very careful about the upcoming Pakistani OTT platform,” tweeted The Express Tribune journalist Rafay Mahmood. Filmmaker and journo Hasan Zaidi wrote, “Here we go. Zee5 subscription to get blocked in Pak,” while attaching a picture of SBP’s letter. Journalist Omair Alvi penned a series of points predicting the “expected headlines in IK’s (Imran Khan) Pakistan.” He posted, “1-Government in talks with Bill Gates to revive Windows 95! 2-Dial-up connections to make a comeback. 3-Blockbuster relocates to Pakistan to battle piracy. 4-Black & white films to return to save colour 5-Moenjodaro to be made new Capital!” Responding to him, Dubai-based journalist Mahwash Ajaz wrote, “Omair Bhai, you know I support OTT/Digital exploration in Pk but Zee5 makes a ton of problematic content as well. Also, none of our other content is easily available there. Our artists have been effectively banned from their country. Yes, it is damaging in a way that the app has.”
Banistan is hilarious. Do they really think they can stop people from consuming content they think is gonna damage their 'values' or whatever?
— Anonymiss (@kitaab_raahi) November 13, 2020
Ban brigade at it again. Khud khuch na karo bus ban kartey raho. This is actually only going to hurt our own industry, nothing else. https://t.co/EbULzUL0Ll
— mehreenjabbar (@mehreenjabbar) November 12, 2020
IK is always looking for new ways to reduce employment opportunities in Pak. Now what if our government decides to ban all Pakistani content on Indian OTTs as a countermeasure.
Further,It’s not that Pakistanis wouldn’t watch Indian content now. There are lot of pirated options.+— Keshav Mittal (@restoringindiaa) November 13, 2020
Indio-Pak collaborations &their inevitable realities. Credit cards can no longer be used to pay for
subscription to Indian online streaming platform #ZEE5; the same platform that has been investing in local original dramas. Because we don’t want our industry to grow of course. pic.twitter.com/UezCqlE1co— Maliha Rehman (@MalihaRehman) November 12, 2020
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Calling it a bad decision on the part of SBP, a user named Abdullah shared, “Bad Decision by SBP. These useless actions prevent Big Companies like Netflix and Amazon Prime to invest in Pakistani Original Content yet. #Netflix#Pakistan#ZEE5.” Questioning the big step, another user added, “Banistan is hilarious. Do they really think they can stop people from consuming content they think is gonna damage their ‘values’ or whatever?” Filmmaker Mehreen Jabbar expressed disappointment in the ban too. Taking to the micro-blogging site, she wrote, Ban brigade at it again. Khud khuch na karo bus ban kartey raho. This is actually only going to hurt our own industry, nothing else.” Another displeased user mentioned, “IK is always looking for new ways to reduce employment opportunities in Pak. Now what if our government decides to ban all Pakistani content on Indian OTTs as a countermeasure. Further, it’s not that Pakistanis wouldn’t watch Indian content now. There are lot of pirated options.” Fashion and Lifestyle journalist Maliha Rehman shared, “Indio-Pak collaborations &their inevitable realities. Credit cards can no longer be used to pay for subscription to Indian online streaming platform #ZEE5; the same platform that has been investing in local original dramas. Because we don’t want our industry to grow of course.”