Contributions to the Net neutrality debate

ITfC has made submissions to Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in response to the two consultation papers it released, one on free data and another a more general pre-consultation on net neutrality.

Following TRAI's historic ruling that prohibits the discriminatory tariffs for data services, Parminder Jeet Singh, in this op-ed in the Deccan Herald, discusses how TRAI has asserted its regulatory control over the internet by ensuring data services are not discriminated based on content and are provided as regulated public utility.

Following Face book’s aggressive campaign to gain public support for Free Basics, Parminder Jeet Singh, in this article, "What Free Basics Did Not Intend To Do" argues how while the campaign utterly failed in its intended purpose, its unintended consequences may have done a lot of good to India. Firstly, it helped make a case for governments providing a basic data package as an entitlement to everyone.

In the light of the growing media focus on Facebook's 'Free Basics' and the overwhelming response to the TRAI consultation paper on differential pricing, Parminder Jeet Singh argued how differntial pricing will invert the basic egalitarian design of the Internet with very harful consequences to the society in this article in Deccan Herald.

The Telecom Regulating Authority of India (TRAI) released a consultation paper to gauge public sentiment over differential pricing of data services. The paper evoked intense reactions in the media especially on Facebook's 'Free Basics' initiative with Reliance, which was widely publicised. You can read our submission to TRAI here.

In this QnA, Parminder Jeet Singh talks about the social underpinnings of the Net Neutrality discussion and the principles that should guide any regulation in this area. The segment was a part of the cover story Net Equality, published on June 1, 2015, in Down to Earth, a science and environment fortnightly.

The Telecom Regulating Authority of India (TRAI) released a consultation paper to test waters and the public sentiment over regulating the at-present loosely defined OTT (over-the-top) services. One of the most important issues in the paper was of net neutrality and its various pros and cons. The paper saw intense public engagement with media and politicians pitching in with pro net neutrality views, and telcos putting out defensive views on their side of the story.

The recent public consultation by TRAI has catapulted the issue of 'net neutrality' into mainstream consciousness. In this article for the Economic and Political Weekly Parminder Jeet Singh delineates precisely what net neutrality is, and the important criteria it must meet to be truly egalitarian.

A workshop on 'Regulating the Internet in public interest - Net neutrality and other issues' was organised by IT for Change at the India Islamic Cultural Centre, New Delhi on May 2, 2015. The aim of the workshop was to engage with progressive actors on the key policy area of net neutrality. Following this workshop, IT for Change, developed a comprehensive response to the consultation paper by TRAI on the issue.

The workshop photos can be accessed here

IAMCR's 2014 took place in Hyderabad, India from 15th-19th July. The conference theme was Region as Frame: Politics, Presence, Practice. Anita Gurumurthy was invited to be a part of the panel on 'Governing Digital Spaces: Issues of Access, Freedom and Privacy'.