Trai begins consultation process to regulate OTT apps

livemint.com:

NEW DELHI : India’s telecom regulator has started the process of consultation for regulating over-the-top or OTT services such as WhatsApp, Signal, and Telegram, where it has sought stakeholder views on selective banning of some services. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has asked stakeholders’ technical challenges in selective banning of specific OTT services and websites in particular regions of the country for specific periods, and also which classes of OTT services should be covered under this move as well as the provisions and mechanism for creating such a regulatory framework.

“Whether there is a need to put in place a regulatory framework for selective banning of OTT services under the Temporary Suspension of Telecom Services (Public Emergency or Public Safety) Rules, 2017 or any other law, in force," the regulator said in its consultation paper on Friday. The regulator also asked whether there is a need for a collaborative framework between OTT communication service providers and licensed telecommunication service providers.

This will be Trai’s second attempt to regulate OTTs following the telecom department’s letter to the regulator to reconsider its earlier recommendations given that OTT services had seen a huge growth in the past few years, reaching a mature stage which needed a holistic relook. Trai had first attempted consultation on regulating OTTs prior to 2020 but decided at the time that it wasn’t the appropriate moment to engage in regulatory activity.

“The Authority is of the view that a fresh consultation process may be initiated to frame suitable regulatory framework for OTT. In this regard, a consultation paper on regulatory mechanisms for OTT Communication Services, and Selective