(Image source from: Netizens United for Net Neutrality in India!})
The ongoing online war for net neutrality between the telecom operators and the telecom users or subscribers, has been supported by the Indian cinema fraternity and the media for ending the ‘VIP racism over internet’.
The demand for #netneutrality aroused because of the operators who allow their subscribers to access some websites at fairer fares and other sites at higher rates rather than the data consumption. The intensity of the movement can be understood by the popularity of the websites like netneutrality.in and savetheinternet.in which took birth weeks ago, and more than 800,000 Indians have demanded India's telecom regulator TRAI to take steps towards free and fair internet.
The movement is not originated in India, there were many incidents across the world, but the British comedian John Oliver's show on net neutrality changed the debate in the US last June, which forced the US regulator for net neutrality.
The implication of neutral net or ‘net neutrality’ includes equal treatment to the traffic by the service providers, and all the users can access the websites with same speed and cost. While the latest apps or services like Skype and WhatsApp would become popular as they are available free or at lowest tariffs, which threaten the survival of the telecom providers.
TRAI published a paper of 117 pages titled ‘Consultation Paper on Regulatory Framework for Over-the-top (OTT) services’ regarding this, and the top service provider Airtel planned the extra charges for internet calls (viz WhatsApp, Viber, skype, etc) in last December - but withdrawn the move following users’ protest.
The fresh issue is likely more about the ‘Airtel Zero’ which enables the users to access certain apps and sites free of cost, where the charges would be borne by the apps or sites’ managements. The zero-rated deals have been trending in Google and some other platforms, where the owner of those sites will pay the charges, and users are free to access.
There is another version explained by the technological experts about the ‘net freedom’, which allows the users to access all the sites including adult, provocative, and anti-social kind as the perceptions are different and users’ may get knowledge and information or may spoil the internet, society, and lives.
If the net neutrality is achieved in India, most of the mobile users will be having access to the digital world. Currently India is having over 950 million mobile users; among them the compatible mobile users will get free or equal rated access to all sites.
The telecom service providers, who have taken the spectrums and invested much on the installations and other areas, may have to forget the returns that are expected through internet services.
However, Airtel and other telecom majors announced that they are favouring netneutrality, following the departure of flipkart from a deal.
-Kannamsai
