OTTs refuse telcos' call for regulation, claim existing laws are sufficient
telcos' demand to bring OTTs under a licensing or authorisation regime, stating that apps are already regulated under the Information Technology Act (2000).
Industry bodies representing the OTT players, in response to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) consultation paper seeking inputs on service authorisations under the newly passed Telecommunications Act, have cautioned against bringing the apps under regulation.
“From a technical perspective, TSPs (telecom service providers) operate on the network side, while OTT providers operate on the application layer. Therefore, there is a clear distinction in the operational and technical and nature of OTT service providers and TSPs,” said the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) in its counter comments to the consultation paper, adding that OTT services do not fall within the scope of the telecom act.
Trai will host an open discussion on the paper on August 21.
The counter comments come after Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea called on Trai to overhaul the existing telecom licensing regime and bring a pan-India single licence, demanding even communication OTT players to be regulated under the same since they provide similar services like the carriers.
Also opposing the mobile phone operators, the Broadband India Forum (BIF) said different services require different terms and conditions and a single authorisation will be arbitrary and greatly damage the regulatory framework.
“This would essentially create a completely different
