NEW DELHI: The government has prohibited transmission or re-transmission of satellite channel 'Free X-TV' in the country as the content breaches the programming code.

In a statement, the information and broadcasting ministry said yesterday that the channel has been banned as the content is "against good taste or decency" and "likely to adversely affect public morality."

An order prohibiting transmission/re-transmission of Free X-TV has also been forwarded to the Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF), cable operators, MSOs and state and union territories officials concerned.

The decision has been taken under the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995.

The government said some cable operators in the country were are transmitting/re-transmitting Free X-TV channel and complaints have been received against it.

The ban on Free X-TV follows earlier bans on channels such as Ren TV. It may be recalled that in May the government clamped down on erotic channels beaming over Indian skies. Three adult channels BlueKiss, BlueKiss Express and BlueKiss Promo beaming off Asiasat 3, and TBL came under the government scanner in this regard.

Earlier to that, the government had cancelled the uplinking permission for an English movie channel, Cine World, for a month over programming code violations.