Telcos win round one of Net neutrality debate

Big telecom operators have won the first round of the Net neutrality debate with a committee appointed by the Department of Telecom agreeing to most of their demands.

The big win is the proposal to include voice calling apps such as Skype, WhatsApp under a regulatory regime. Telecom companies will, however, be disappointed that the panel allowed other Over-The-Top (OTT) players to operate without any licence or regulation.

Reliance Jio had earlier thrown its weight behind Airtel, Vodafone and Idea Cellular in asking TRAI to bring internet service companies under a regulatory regime.

In a letter to the telecom regulator, Reliance Jio had said that there should be a level playing field between licensed telecom operators and OTT players. (Applications like Google, Yahoo! and Skype are called OTT because they offer service on top of a telecom operator’s network)

While DoT panel batted for Net neutrality, it made a distinction between voice service providers and other internet-based players. “OTT application services should be actively encouraged and any impediments in expansion and growth of OTT application services should be removed. Specific OTT communication services dealing with messaging should not be interfered with through regulatory instruments. For OTT application services, there is no case for prescribing regulatory oversight similar to conventional communication services.

But some telecom companies will take comfort from the fact that DoT panel has taken a view on Facebook’s Internet.org as being against the principles of Net neutrality even as it stayed clear from giving its opinion on Airtel’s Zero rating plan. The panel said that TRAI is best positioned to take a view on zero rating plans.

“Before a licensee launches any tariff plan, the same would need to be filed before TRAI within a reasonable period prior to the launch of the plan. TRAI would examine each such tariff filing carefully to see if conforms to the principles of Net neutrality principles and that it is not anti-competitive by distorting consumer markets,” the panel said.

The DoT committee report will now be considered by TRAI and the Telecom Commission before a final view is taken by the government.

Rajeev Chandrasekhar, MP and ardent advocate of Net neutrality, said the DoT report was disappointing in its vagueness, ambiguity and for failing to clearly define Net neutrality. “It is also surprising that the DoT has blandly accepted level playing field argument of telcos to justify the regulation of VoIP apps. I will challenge DoT’s approach to Net neutrality in the upcoming monsoon session of Parliament."