Question 1: Is it too early to establish a regulatory framework for Internet/OTT services, since internet penetration is still evolving, access speeds are generally low and there is limited coverage of high-speed broadband in the country? Or, should some beginning be made now with a regulatory framework that could be adapted to changes in the future? Please comment with justifications.
Answer: There is no question of it being too early or late to create a framework as telecom players should not be given the power to decide on behalf of the user. It's better if rules are set right in the beginning. A person should have the right to use the Internet however he/she wants and telecom companies should stay out of it.
Question 2: Should the Internet/OTT players offering communication services (voice, messaging and video call services through applications (resident either in the country or outside) be brought under the licensing regime? Please comment with justifications.
Answer: No. This will affect customers' consumption behavior and they will unknowingly favor online sellers who are easily accessible online. This is an unfair trade practice - unfair to the seller's competitors and unfair to the customers.
Question 3: Is the growth of Internet/OTT impacting the traditional revenue stream of Telecom operators/Telecom operators? If so, is the increase in data revenues of the Telecom Operators sufficient to compensate for this impact? Please comment with reasons.
Answer: Well, farmers are not taxing supermarkets for taking away their business. Newspapers are not taxing websites for eating into their advertising revenue. How can telecom operators take away a customer's freedom of choice just because their competition has entered the market? This way, they're playing out of their field.
Question 4: Should the Internet/OTT players pay for use of the Telecom Operators network over and above data charges paid by consumers? If yes, what pricing options can be adopted? Could such options include prices based on bandwidth consumption? Can prices be used as a means of product/service differentiation? Please comment with justifications.
Answer: No, that should not be an option. Such practices are a threat to what is now considered a strong eco-system of start ups that India is being recognized for.
Question 5: Do you agree that imbalances exist in the regulatory environment in the operation of Internet/OTT players? If so, what should be the framework to address these issues? How can the prevailing laws and regulations be applied to Internet/OTT players (who operate in the virtual world) and compliance enforced? What could be the impact on the economy? Please comment with justifications.
Answers: The Internet treats all players equally. As mentioned earlier, telecom operators cannot retort to unfair practices claiming that competition is eating into their revenue. They are financially equipped to consider fair practices of overcoming the situation and innovating to suit the new market.
Question 6: How should the security concerns be addressed with regard to Internet/OTT players providing communication services? What security conditions such as maintaining data records, logs etc. need to be mandated for such Internet/OTT players? And, how can compliance with these conditions be ensured if the applications of such Internet/OTT players reside outside the country? Please comment with justifications.
Answers: They must not breach data privacy. The laws should not allow law enforcement authorities to access a user's personal conversations and other data unless there is a matter of national security.
Question 7: How should the Internet/OTT players offering app services ensure security, safety and privacy of the consumer? How should they ensure protection of consumer interest? Please comment with justifications
Answer: OTTs should take measures to ensure only the sender and the recipients are able to view or delete their messages and pictures. Programmers or database administrators should not be able to access that kind of information. Encryption keys and algorithms must be known only to computers. In case of legal authorities requiring access they need to obtain an order from the supreme court asking the OTT provider to do so. In that case special algorithms can be run to extract the required records.
Question 8: In what manner can the proposals for a regulatory framework for OTTs in India draw from those of ETNO, referred to in para or the best practices? And, what practices should be proscribed by regulatory fiat? Please comment with justifications.
Answer: Right to privacy is extremely important in the information age. Hence, the framework should not be applicable.
Question 9: What are your views on net-neutrality in the Indian context? How should the various principles be dealt with? Please comment with justifications.
Answer: The Internet is already neutral. Don't hand the authority over to telecom operators who will treat paying-customers and other very differently. They will also start charging customers despite no value-add. As for paragraph 5.47 the transparency aspect is just a set of vague outlines. They need to be re-worded using more concrete terms.
Question 10: What forms of discrimination or traffic management practices are reasonable and consistent with a pragmatic approach? What should or can be permitted? Please comment with justifications.
Answer: The OTTs should not have any control over what can be transmitted through their services, because that kind of control can be misused by OTTs in the same way regulation laws can be exploited by TSPs in ways that are completely against the concept of net neutrality.
Question 11: Should the Telecom Operators be mandated to publish various traffic management techniques used for different OTT applications? Is this a sufficient condition to ensure transparency and a fair regulatory regime?
Answer: They are not capable of following a regulatory regime as they will find ways around it.
Question 12: How should the conducive and balanced environment be created such that Telecom Operators are able to invest in network infrastructure and CAPs are able to innovate and grow? Who should bear the network upgradation costs? Please comment with justifications.
Answers: The TSPs alone should be responsible for network maintenance. Making CAPs pay money to TSPs in return for network usage is counter-productive because a large chunk of the TSP's income come from the users of OTT services.
Question 13: Should Telecom Operators be allowed to implement non-price based discrimination of services? If so, under what circumstances are such practices acceptable? What restrictions, if any, need to be placed so that such measures are not abused? What measures should be adopted to ensure transparency to consumers? Please comment with justifications.
Answers: No. Because they will be able to restrict the usage of a particular service to users as well as throttle the bandwidth of CAPs as a way to coerce more money from them.
Question 14: Is there a justification for allowing differential pricing for data access and OTT communication services? If so, what changes need to be brought about in the present tariff and regulatory framework for telecommunication services in the country? Please comment with justifications.
Answer: When you allow providers to regulate some of the Internet-based services you are opening a Pandora's box. It means providers can control any Internet-based activity and that will be the end of Internet freedom as we know it.
Question 15: Should OTT communication service players be treated as Bulk User of Telecom Services (BuTS)? How should the framework be structured to prevent any discrimination and protect stakeholder interest? Please comment with justification.
Question 16: What framework should be adopted to encourage India specific OTT apps? Please comment with justifications.
Question 17: If the App based/OTT communication service players are to be licensed, should they be categorised as ASP or CSP? If so, what should be the framework? Please comment with justifications.
Answer: No, that would mean (eventually) we're back to making users pay for the data that they already paid for. In addition TSPs will be able to control the data traffic based on the source which would mean that net neutrality is violated. Also stopping TSPs from incentivising their own services or double-dipping is going to be an impossible task both in theory and in practice when they have complete control over the traffic; and especially so with the state of corruption in our bureaucracy.
Question 18: Is there a need to regulate subscription charges for App based/OTT communication services? Please comment with justifications.
Answers: This should not even be adopted for reasons stated above.
Question 19: What steps should be taken by the Government for regulation of non-communication App based/OTT players? Please comment with justifications.
Answers: The government should not regulate non-communication OTT players either.
Question 20: Are there any other issues that have a bearing on the subject discussed?
Answer: There is no question of it being too early or late to create a framework as telecom players should not be given the power to decide on behalf of the user. It's better if rules are set right in the beginning. A person should have the right to use the Internet however he/she wants and telecom companies should stay out of it.
Question 2: Should the Internet/OTT players offering communication services (voice, messaging and video call services through applications (resident either in the country or outside) be brought under the licensing regime? Please comment with justifications.
Answer: No. This will affect customers' consumption behavior and they will unknowingly favor online sellers who are easily accessible online. This is an unfair trade practice - unfair to the seller's competitors and unfair to the customers.
Question 3: Is the growth of Internet/OTT impacting the traditional revenue stream of Telecom operators/Telecom operators? If so, is the increase in data revenues of the Telecom Operators sufficient to compensate for this impact? Please comment with reasons.
Answer: Well, farmers are not taxing supermarkets for taking away their business. Newspapers are not taxing websites for eating into their advertising revenue. How can telecom operators take away a customer's freedom of choice just because their competition has entered the market? This way, they're playing out of their field.
Question 4: Should the Internet/OTT players pay for use of the Telecom Operators network over and above data charges paid by consumers? If yes, what pricing options can be adopted? Could such options include prices based on bandwidth consumption? Can prices be used as a means of product/service differentiation? Please comment with justifications.
Answer: No, that should not be an option. Such practices are a threat to what is now considered a strong eco-system of start ups that India is being recognized for.
Question 5: Do you agree that imbalances exist in the regulatory environment in the operation of Internet/OTT players? If so, what should be the framework to address these issues? How can the prevailing laws and regulations be applied to Internet/OTT players (who operate in the virtual world) and compliance enforced? What could be the impact on the economy? Please comment with justifications.
Answers: The Internet treats all players equally. As mentioned earlier, telecom operators cannot retort to unfair practices claiming that competition is eating into their revenue. They are financially equipped to consider fair practices of overcoming the situation and innovating to suit the new market.
Question 6: How should the security concerns be addressed with regard to Internet/OTT players providing communication services? What security conditions such as maintaining data records, logs etc. need to be mandated for such Internet/OTT players? And, how can compliance with these conditions be ensured if the applications of such Internet/OTT players reside outside the country? Please comment with justifications.
Answers: They must not breach data privacy. The laws should not allow law enforcement authorities to access a user's personal conversations and other data unless there is a matter of national security.
Question 7: How should the Internet/OTT players offering app services ensure security, safety and privacy of the consumer? How should they ensure protection of consumer interest? Please comment with justifications
Answer: OTTs should take measures to ensure only the sender and the recipients are able to view or delete their messages and pictures. Programmers or database administrators should not be able to access that kind of information. Encryption keys and algorithms must be known only to computers. In case of legal authorities requiring access they need to obtain an order from the supreme court asking the OTT provider to do so. In that case special algorithms can be run to extract the required records.
Question 8: In what manner can the proposals for a regulatory framework for OTTs in India draw from those of ETNO, referred to in para or the best practices? And, what practices should be proscribed by regulatory fiat? Please comment with justifications.
Answer: Right to privacy is extremely important in the information age. Hence, the framework should not be applicable.
Question 9: What are your views on net-neutrality in the Indian context? How should the various principles be dealt with? Please comment with justifications.
Answer: The Internet is already neutral. Don't hand the authority over to telecom operators who will treat paying-customers and other very differently. They will also start charging customers despite no value-add. As for paragraph 5.47 the transparency aspect is just a set of vague outlines. They need to be re-worded using more concrete terms.
Question 10: What forms of discrimination or traffic management practices are reasonable and consistent with a pragmatic approach? What should or can be permitted? Please comment with justifications.
Answer: The OTTs should not have any control over what can be transmitted through their services, because that kind of control can be misused by OTTs in the same way regulation laws can be exploited by TSPs in ways that are completely against the concept of net neutrality.
Question 11: Should the Telecom Operators be mandated to publish various traffic management techniques used for different OTT applications? Is this a sufficient condition to ensure transparency and a fair regulatory regime?
Answer: They are not capable of following a regulatory regime as they will find ways around it.
Question 12: How should the conducive and balanced environment be created such that Telecom Operators are able to invest in network infrastructure and CAPs are able to innovate and grow? Who should bear the network upgradation costs? Please comment with justifications.
Answers: The TSPs alone should be responsible for network maintenance. Making CAPs pay money to TSPs in return for network usage is counter-productive because a large chunk of the TSP's income come from the users of OTT services.
Question 13: Should Telecom Operators be allowed to implement non-price based discrimination of services? If so, under what circumstances are such practices acceptable? What restrictions, if any, need to be placed so that such measures are not abused? What measures should be adopted to ensure transparency to consumers? Please comment with justifications.
Answers: No. Because they will be able to restrict the usage of a particular service to users as well as throttle the bandwidth of CAPs as a way to coerce more money from them.
Question 14: Is there a justification for allowing differential pricing for data access and OTT communication services? If so, what changes need to be brought about in the present tariff and regulatory framework for telecommunication services in the country? Please comment with justifications.
Answer: When you allow providers to regulate some of the Internet-based services you are opening a Pandora's box. It means providers can control any Internet-based activity and that will be the end of Internet freedom as we know it.
Question 15: Should OTT communication service players be treated as Bulk User of Telecom Services (BuTS)? How should the framework be structured to prevent any discrimination and protect stakeholder interest? Please comment with justification.
Question 16: What framework should be adopted to encourage India specific OTT apps? Please comment with justifications.
Question 17: If the App based/OTT communication service players are to be licensed, should they be categorised as ASP or CSP? If so, what should be the framework? Please comment with justifications.
Answer: No, that would mean (eventually) we're back to making users pay for the data that they already paid for. In addition TSPs will be able to control the data traffic based on the source which would mean that net neutrality is violated. Also stopping TSPs from incentivising their own services or double-dipping is going to be an impossible task both in theory and in practice when they have complete control over the traffic; and especially so with the state of corruption in our bureaucracy.
Question 18: Is there a need to regulate subscription charges for App based/OTT communication services? Please comment with justifications.
Answers: This should not even be adopted for reasons stated above.
Question 19: What steps should be taken by the Government for regulation of non-communication App based/OTT players? Please comment with justifications.
Answers: The government should not regulate non-communication OTT players either.
Question 20: Are there any other issues that have a bearing on the subject discussed?
Answer: No.
--
