Principle

Advertising may support independent publishing, but it must not weaken reader trust, obscure commercial influence, or interfere with editorial judgment. DeshiApp accepts advertising only where the advertiser, message, placement, destination, and data practices can be presented lawfully, transparently, and consistently with the publication’s standards across India’s digital ecosystem.

Readers must be able to distinguish advertising from independent editorial content without examining hidden metadata, searching for a disclosure, or interpreting an ambiguous design. Commercial communication is identified through clear language, prominent placement, and visual treatment proportionate to the format.

Scope

This policy applies to display advertising, native advertising, sponsored placements, newsletter advertising, video and audio advertising, affiliate promotions, branded pages, paid recommendations, event sponsorships, commercial widgets, promotional links, political and issue advertising, and any other paid or materially supported communication displayed or distributed under the DeshiApp name.

Editorial and Commercial Separation

Advertising does not purchase editorial influence. An advertiser, agency, sponsor, or commercial partner does not receive a right to determine independent conclusions, approve unrelated reporting, suppress accurate criticism, select independent authors, obtain confidential source information, prevent a correction or retraction, or receive favorable treatment in a review. It also does not receive a right to require DeshiApp to ignore a relevant conflict, obtain advance access to an unrelated investigation, dictate the classification of an independent article, require removal of public-interest reporting, influence election coverage, or purchase an undisclosed editorial link.

Commercial personnel may discuss campaign format, lawful claims, design, timing, placement, technical delivery, audience, pricing, and contractual requirements. Final decisions concerning independent reporting, classification, corrections, and editorial standards remain with the responsible editorial function. Where one person performs both commercial and editorial duties in a compact operation, the roles remain distinct and the decision is documented accordingly.

Advertising Identification

An advertisement is identifiable before a reasonable reader could mistake it for editorial content. Suitable labels include Advertisement, Sponsored, Sponsored Content, Partner Content, Paid Promotion, or Commercial Message. Phrases such as Presented by, In association with, Special Feature, Brand Story, or Promoted are not used alone where they fail to communicate clearly that material is paid or commercially supported.

The disclosure appears close to the headline or principal commercial message, before the reader consumes the material as independent content, in readable and accessible text, consistently on desktop and mobile, and in social, newsletter, or syndicated presentation where practicable. A disclosure hidden in a footer, Terms of Use, author biography, hover text, or metadata is not sufficient for material designed to resemble editorial content.

Native Advertising

Native advertising is commercial material designed to resemble or appear alongside editorial content. Where DeshiApp accepts native advertising, the format does not deceive readers concerning who paid, who produced the content, whether DeshiApp independently reported it, whether the sponsor reviewed or approved it, whether claims were supplied by the advertiser, whether links generate commercial benefit, or whether the content forms part of the independent newsroom.

Native advertising does not use an ordinary editorial byline, article label, or page design in a manner that conceals commercial origin. Visual consistency may support accessibility and usability but is not used to erase the distinction between advertising and journalism.

Advertiser Identity and Verification

DeshiApp may require an advertiser or agency to provide information sufficient to establish its legal or trading identity, responsible contact, ultimate client, beneficial commissioning party where relevant, business location, destination ownership, authority to advertise the product or service, applicable licenses, payment source, campaign purpose, material subcontractors, and relationships requiring public disclosure.

An agency may not conceal the actual advertiser where concealment would mislead readers, evade restrictions, or prevent conflict review. DeshiApp may decline advertising where identity, ownership, destination, or funding source cannot be understood with reasonable confidence.

Accuracy and Substantiation

Advertisers are responsible for truthfulness and legality. DeshiApp may require evidence before accepting or continuing a claim. Heightened review applies to health, medical, financial, investment, environmental, safety, security, privacy, artificial intelligence, comparative superiority, user numbers, market leadership, awards, certifications, discounts, charitable benefit, scientific claims, and testimonials.

A claim is not presented as independently verified merely because DeshiApp reviewed it for publication suitability. Terms such as best, safest, most trusted, guaranteed, risk-free, clinically proven, carbon neutral, official, certified, number one, or world-leading require evidence appropriate to the claim and jurisdiction. An advertiser’s own report or testimonial may form part of the evidence but is not automatically independent substantiation.

Prices, Offers and Availability

An advertisement states material conditions affecting the offer, including price, tax, subscription renewal, minimum term, cancellation, eligibility, geographic restriction across Indian states, stock limitation, delivery, recurring payment, introductory pricing, trial conversion, financing, exclusions, and expiry where relevant. A discount is not calculated against an artificial reference price, a limited-time statement reflects a genuine limitation, and a free offer does not conceal unavoidable payment, subscription, or data-use conditions.

Testimonials and Endorsements

Testimonials and endorsements reflect genuine experience and do not create a false impression of typical results. Material relationships between the advertiser and endorser are disclosed. DeshiApp does not accept fabricated testimonials, synthetic customers presented as real people, undisclosed paid reviews, selective editing that changes meaning, purchased ratings presented as organic, impersonated experts, false professional endorsements, claims based on an experience the endorser did not have, or deceptive before-and-after material.

A real person’s image, voice, name, or identity is used only with an appropriate lawful basis and authority.

Artificial Intelligence and Synthetic Advertising

Commercial material created or materially altered using artificial intelligence remains subject to the same standards. Synthetic media is disclosed where a reasonable reader could mistake it for a real testimonial, documentary evidence, actual customer, authentic product demonstration, real expert, genuine event, political statement, or actual result.

DeshiApp does not accept cloned voices without authority, synthetic public figures implying endorsement, fabricated experts, fake customer experiences, deceptive demonstrations, synthetic medical evidence, manipulated financial results, undisclosed virtual influencers, non-consensual intimate material, or a real person’s likeness in a materially false context.

Comparative Advertising

Comparative claims use a fair and relevant basis. The advertisement identifies what is compared, the relevant period, geography, product version, criteria, evidence, limitations, and whether the comparison remains current. It does not select an obsolete competitor product, omit decisive differences, or imply universal superiority from a narrow test. Trademark use must be lawful, accurate, and not misleading.

Environmental Claims

Environmental and sustainability claims are specific and supportable. Broad statements such as green, sustainable, eco-friendly, zero impact, climate positive, or carbon neutral are not used without explaining the product or organization covered, lifecycle stage, emissions boundary, calculation method, offsets, certification, independent verification, geography, period, excluded impacts, and distinction between achieved results and future commitments.

Health and Medical Advertising

Health, medicine, and well-being advertising receives heightened review. DeshiApp may refuse unlicensed medical claims, guaranteed cures, claims encouraging avoidance of necessary treatment, unsupported diagnostics, deceptive before-and-after material, exploitation of serious illness, unsafe products, unlawful prescription promotion, fabricated clinical evidence, or fear-based targeting of vulnerable people. Publication does not constitute medical endorsement.

Financial and Investment Advertising

Financial advertising does not create a false impression of certainty, guaranteed return, government protection, or absence of risk. DeshiApp may require disclosure of provider identity, regulatory status with RBI, SEBI, or IRDAI, risks, fees, volatility, capital-loss potential, jurisdiction, target audience, assumptions, leverage, liquidity, and conflicts. Past performance is not presented as a guarantee of future results. Deceptive investment schemes, unauthorized services, market manipulation, and impersonation are not accepted.

Political and Issue Advertising

Political and issue advertising receives heightened review under the Election and Political Coverage Policy. DeshiApp may require disclosure of the payer, sponsoring organization, ultimate commissioning party, jurisdiction, candidate or issue, campaign period, targeting criteria, synthetic-media use, production responsibility, and applicable authorization under Election Commission of India rules. Political advertising is not presented as independent reporting, and acceptance does not constitute institutional endorsement.

DeshiApp may reject political advertising that is deceptive, threatening, discriminatory, unlawfully targeted, suppresses lawful voting, conceals its sponsor, fabricates evidence, or uses undisclosed synthetic media.

Children and Vulnerable Audiences

Advertising does not exploit age, disability, financial distress, health, grief, fear, limited understanding, or another vulnerability. Advertising directed to or likely to be consumed by children does not encourage unsafe behavior, apply inappropriate pressure, exploit trust in parents or teachers, conceal purchase requirements, collect unnecessary personal data, encourage children to bypass adult consent, use deceptive game mechanics, promote age-restricted products unlawfully, or present advertising as educational or editorial content without clear identification.

Prohibited and Restricted Categories

DeshiApp does not accept advertising involving unlawful goods or services, fraud, impersonation, malware, credential theft, phishing, trafficking, exploitation, non-consensual sexual material, child sexual abuse material, hate-based targeting, incitement to violence, deceptive financial schemes, fabricated identity documents, sale of stolen data, unauthorized surveillance, unlawful hacking services, counterfeit goods, dangerous misinformation, harassment services, revenge content, or other conduct creating unacceptable risk.

Lawful but sensitive categories may require enhanced review, age restrictions, jurisdictional controls, or refusal. These may include alcohol, online gaming, financial products, medical products, political communication, dating services, weight-loss claims, cosmetic procedures, age-restricted entertainment, high-risk investments, credit, insurance, legal services, health services, weapons-related material, and controlled substances. Acceptance in one jurisdiction or format does not guarantee acceptance elsewhere.

Advertising Technology and Consent

Advertising technologies comply with the Privacy and Cookie policies. Where consent is required under the DPDP Act or relevant guidelines, non-essential advertising, personalization, and tracking technologies are not activated before a valid choice. DeshiApp provides clear information, no preselected optional categories, similarly accessible acceptance and rejection, withdrawal as easily as acceptance, data minimization, appropriate provider review, limitation of sensitive targeting, and a persistent Cookie Settings route.

An advertiser may not require hidden tracking, device fingerprinting, unauthorized data matching, or another practice inconsistent with the public privacy framework.

Targeting

Targeting is proportionate and does not exploit sensitive information. DeshiApp does not permit targeting based on unlawfully or inappropriately inferred health condition, religion, caste, sexual orientation, political vulnerability, financial distress, precise location, child status, victim status, or another sensitive characteristic. Contextual advertising based on the subject of a page may be used subject to actual implementation and applicable law without implying that it is entirely free from technical processing.

Security and Destination Integrity

Advertisements, scripts, and destination pages do not deliver malware, initiate unauthorized downloads, redirect deceptively, imitate security warnings, steal credentials, evade user choice, conceal the final destination, create unclosable pop-ups, interfere with accessibility, materially degrade the website, collect data beyond the disclosed purpose, or change behavior after approval. DeshiApp may suspend a campaign immediately where security, deception, or reader harm is suspected.

Placement and User Experience

DeshiApp controls advertising placement and may avoid adjacency to death, trauma, disaster, an investigation involving the advertiser, children’s or safety-sensitive content, correction notices, or a context creating implied endorsement. An advertiser does not receive a right to block unrelated lawful coverage.

Advertisements do not imitate operating-system messages, download buttons, cookie controls, navigation, correction warnings, security alerts, private messages, account errors, or official government communication. Close controls are usable, and advertising does not create excessive motion, flashing, sound, obstruction, layout shift, or accessibility barriers.

Changes, Corrections and Withdrawal

An advertiser may not materially change destination, claims, image, price, sponsor, tracking, product, disclosure, data collection, or legal status after approval without review. A campaign may be suspended where a destination changes ownership, becomes unsafe, or introduces unapproved content.

A material advertising error may require suspension, correction, replacement, public clarification, removal of tracking, destination blocking, notification to affected readers, legal review, or termination of the relationship. DeshiApp does not preserve misleading advertising merely because it has been paid for.

No Performance Guarantee and Records

Unless a written agreement expressly states a measurable service commitment, DeshiApp does not guarantee impressions, clicks, conversions, sales, ranking, indexing, newsletter engagement, audience demographics, media pickup, reputation improvement, removal of criticism, Google News inclusion, or AI citation. Commercial estimates are identified as estimates.

DeshiApp retains proportionate records of advertiser identity, campaign, payment, contract, creative material, claims evidence, approval, disclosures, targeting, cookie or tracking arrangement, publication dates, changes, complaints, corrections, and termination. Records are protected and retained for operational, legal, tax, security, and accountability purposes.

Contact

Advertising enquiries may be sent to advertising@deshiapp.in. Complaints concerning misleading advertising, hidden sponsorship, or advertiser influence may be sent to complaints@deshiapp.in. Privacy and security concerns may be sent to privacy@deshiapp.in and security@deshiapp.in.