Trai releases paper on whether to regulate OTTs

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

regulatory mechanism for over-the-top (OTT) apps such as WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal etc. The regulator will also deliberate on selective banning of OTT services.

Trai has released the consultation paper on regulatory mechanism for OTT communication services and selective banning of OTT services after Department of Telecommunications (DoT) asked the regulator to reconsider its 2020 recommendations, wherein it was proposed that OTT services need not be regulated. The DoT had told Trai last year that in view of the humongous growth of OTT services in the recent past and these services having reached a matured stage, there is a need to holistically look into the various aspects of these services including regulatory, economic, security, privacy, and safety aspects.

Trai has listed out 14 questions in the paper including what the definition of OTT should be, OTT communications services, classification of OTT services, aspects of OTT communication services vis-à-vis telecom services and if such services should be brought under regulatory framework and what should be the right framework to cover aspects like lawful interception, privacy, security, unsolicited commercial communication, license fee etc. ET has reported in its edition today about Trai plans to come out with a paper on OTT communication services.

Through the paper, Trai wants to deliberate if there is a need for a collaborative framework between OTT communication service providers and the licensed telecommunication service providers. The issue of regulating OTT players is a contentious one with most of the internet activists and associations representing these app providers such as IAMAI, Nasscom, and US-India Business Council, opposing any kind of regulatory