Govt accepts TRAI's recommendations on net neutrality
Published: Jul 12, 2018
By TIOLCORPLAWS News Service
NEW DELHI , JULY 12, 2018: The govt has accepted the telecom regulator TRAI's recommendations to introduce one of the strongest net neutrality protections in the world.
Net neutrality requires service providers to treat all internet traffic equally and prohibits discrimination in the treatment of content, including practices such as degrading, slowing down or granting preferential speeds.
After the Telecom Commission approved the policy, the telecom secretary, Aruna Sundararajan said that the Licence agreements with service providers would be immediately amended and would be subject to principles of net neutrality.
TRAI had backed the basic principles of an open and free internet in its recommendations on net neutrality sent to the telecom department in November. It had then suggested that Internet of Things, as a class of services, should not be excluded from the scope of restriction on non-discriminatory treatment but certain critical services should be exempt from those rules.
DoT would also frame a policy on traffic management practices for service providers and separately set up a body of industry representatives and civil society to monitor and enforce net neutrality norms.
The Cellular Operators Association of India, however, had urged the govt to review industry practices with respect to traffic prioritization to foster 5G-enabled applications and ecosystem in India.
