Revised OOH policy draft released for Greater Bengaluru

Will OOH advertising policy in Bengaluru finally enter a phase of collective consensus, certainty and clarity? This is the question on everyone’s mind as the State Government releases a new advertising policy draft.

The Government of Karnataka has released the Greater Bengaluru Area Advertisement Rules 2025, a comprehensive framework statedly designed to regulate outdoor advertising across the expanded metropolitan region.

It may be recalled that the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) introduced a new outdoor advertisement policy in July this year, which had raised concerns among industry stakeholders about the framework being unrealistic, leading to monopolistic control.

The new draft policy seeks to consolidate permissions, introduce uniform standards, and define procedures for tendering, installation, maintenance and monitoring of all advertising formats within the Greater Bengaluru Area declared under the Greater Bengaluru Governance Act, 2024.

The draft has been opened to the public for objections and suggestions for 30 days from the date of notification, after which the final rules will be issued.

Revised permissible display area across road categories
The revised draft seems to allow more space for advertising, introducing a revised calculation for the total permissible advertising display per 200 metres of road length. Depending on road width, the permissible area now ranges from 1,000 sq. ft on 18–24 m roads to 1,600 sq. ft on stretches wider than 45 m. Circle areas may accommodate up to 3,000 sq. ft of paid advertising per one lakh sq. ft of circle area.

Zone-wise tendering and exclusive rights
Bengaluru is divided into notified stretches, circles and zones for tendering under the KTPP Act. Each location will be auctioned separately, with the successful bidder receiving exclusive rights to install and operate advertisements within the assigned area. Only licensed advertisers may participate.

Fee structure and minimum floor rates
It also appears that the minimum advertisement fee per square foot has been rationalised, ranging from ₹45 to ₹75 per sq. ft per month depending on zone classification. These floor values may be revised periodically by the Corporation.

As per the new policy draft, the bidder is required to pay the full advertisement fee applicable to the zone and additionally negotiate any ground rent or access fee with landowners or building owners on which the structures are installed.

Regulation of advertisements on private property
The new rules clearly state that no commercial advertisement may be installed on properties lacking a valid A-Khata. Earlier provisions related to penalties on B-Register properties have been removed. Properties must complete Khata conversion before applying for advertisement permissions.

Digital OOH standards and illumination norms
Digital displays are formally regulated under the 2025 rules. As per the draft, all illuminated and digital formats must comply with prescribed brightness limits, automatic dimming controls, and illumination-angle requirements designed to avoid glare and distraction.

As per the draft, restrictions apply to digital screens near schools, hospitals, places of worship, heritage precincts, traffic junctions and high-speed corridors. Standards include refresh-rate norms, approved sizes, safety certifications, and integration with the Corporation’s monitoring system.

The policy draft also lists down rules with respect to prohibited locations and sensitive zones; public infrastructure; legacy advertisements and existing agreements; online permission and monitoring system (all applications, approvals, structural drawings, renewals, fee payments and compliance submissions will now be processed through a single-window digital system), structural safety and construction requirements; maintenance, cleanliness and removal obligations; environmental standards and prohibited formats; penalties, enforcement and blacklisting; exemptions and special permissions.