Internet should be open, free: TRAI

TRAI Chairman R S Sharma on Tuesday called for the Internet, an important platform for India, being kept open and free, and not cannibalised. "No one owns Internet... so, it should be open and accessible to everyone," Sharma said, suggesting that service providers should not indulge in gatekeeping of this important platform. TRAI on Tuesday issued the much-awaited recommendations on net neutrality and has sought to bar telecom service providers from any discriminatory practice on Internet access. Sharma said the Internet is an important platform for the country, especially in the context of innovation, for startups, for online transactions, for various government applications, and for the Digital India programme. “So, it is important that the platform is kept open and free and not cannibalised," Sharma told reporters. Asked about the Indian regulator upholding principles of net neutrality when, in fact, the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has proposed to roll back net neutrality rules of 2015, Sharma said TRAI has kept the Indian context in mind while framing its recommendations.

"We have 500 million net subscribers and 1.3 billion population... big things will happen on Internet and it is important to keep it open," Sharma stressed. He observed that networks should be neutral to content being accessed. "Networks should not prefer one content over other... should not block or offer fast lane (to certain content)," he pointed out. TRAI, in its recommendations, has however allowed certain exemptions and exclusions, including specialised services and time-critical Internet of Things services (like autonomous cars). These specialised services -- the likes of tele-surgery etc -- will be identified by the telecom department, which will also take a final call on Trai's overall recommendations on net neutrality.