Me
and my wife had gone to Gangtok and Darjeeling to celebrate our 31st
Wedding Anniversary. Coming back, I was just prodding over the newspapers of the last week and
found a new issue Net Neutrality dominating headlines and editorials of all newspapers. Flipkart had broken dialogue with Bharti Telecom
on Airtel Zero plan and entities like Cleartrip.com, Times Group and NDTV had walked away from internet.org. Telecom Regulatory Authority of India released a
formal consultation paper on Regulatory Framework for Over-the-top (OTT)
services, seeking comments from the public. Over 300,000 emails had been received by TRAI demanding Net
Neutrality. As a responsible citizen of the country, I thought it my duty to
participate in the dialogue considering all aspects.
India
has no laws governing net neutrality, which would promise all the internet
users to be treated equally on the internet, not discriminating or charging
differentially by user, content, site, platform, application, type of attached
equipment, or mode of communication. The debate on network neutrality started after Airtel announced to charge additional
rates for making voice calls from its network using apps like WhatsApp, Skype
etc.
It
is being feared that net providers will
charge extra for navigating a particular site, higher speed , clear voice, free
sites etc, thus giving benefit to big corporate whereas the consumers and the
start-ups will be affected adversely. It is also observed that they allow users to access a variety of
mobile and internet applications for free; thus restricting the ‘free’ access
to a select group of websites and apps and therefore sabotage the entire
concept of keeping the Internet free. It
will not allow the new ideas to take birth due to higher cost to small entrepreneurs and start-ups for availing this infrastructure facility.
The
other argument is that Net is like a
public park whose access roads have been privatized – by a 20 year lease via
auction – at a huge cost to the firms that are leasing it. If they now want to charge the vendors who are squatting on it, what is so wrong with that?. It is the
exercise of legitimate right and then
Constitution also allows everyone to carry on a trade or business in whatever
way one likes – including giving things away for free.
Network
is nothing but an infrastructure like road, rail, airport, port etc. On roads,
different types of vehicles, including commercial vehicles ply; some are air-conditioned, deluxe, semi deluxe and
normal. In railways too, there are different trains - Shatabadi, Rajdhani,
express and normal having different speed, facilities etc. Within the same
train, different classes - AC First Class, two tiers, three tiers, sleepers and
unreserved. Within the same class there are normal fare, tatkal, tatkal
premium. (If someone wants to travel in AC First Class, how can we compel him to travel in sleeper class). Same is the case with airlines- different timing different fare – seat
preference pay extra. In fact, airlines have refined the art without anyone
protesting. It is only a matter of time before they charge for boarding and disembarking
via the ladder and using the toilet.
In
fact, it is left to the consumer, depending upon his pocket and requirement to
use a particular mode, facility or class of infrastructure. It also encourages competition
in the market and forces the service providers to improve and provide better
services. If government interferes with the market, facility providers will never improve their services. Ideally, market should take its own course, but, then, in reality whether market is allowed fair deal by the manipulators.
Like
the other infrastructures, internet is also a mode on which different telecom
companies ply their vehicles and provide services – different types, classes and facilities. If they charge differently, what
wrong they do. As I have already said, it is the exercise of legitimate right
but, again, can be exercised whimsically. In case they cartel or restrict
access via restrictive practices, there is forum for that - Competition
Commission. Government may make other stringent laws so that consumers and
start-ups are not adversely affected. But, then, from experience we do not have faith on our politicians, governments and implementation of the laws.
I
request all my viewers to publish your rational suggestions in the comments below
this blog which can be sent to TRAI in a consolidated form. Simply sending
email of ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ to TRAI will not serve the purpose. It is not a
referendum. Government is going to take a decision in the interest of the
nation, consumers, small entrepreneurs and start-up; of course the interest of service
providers will also not be ignored.
Please
hurry-up. Time is short.
(The views expressed in the article are merely for academic purpose and are not subscribed by the organisation where the author is working)
(The views expressed in the article are merely for academic purpose and are not subscribed by the organisation where the author is working)
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ReplyDeleteTRAI published email address of million of responders, hackers pull down the site.
ReplyDeleteAn example of "ETHICAL HACKING"...
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