OTT Services Regulation
Source : The Hindu
GS II : Governance
Overview
- News in Brief
- Need for regulation
- What are OTT platforms?
- About TRAI
Why in News ?
Almost three years after it first recommended against creating a specific regulatory framework for over-the-top (OTT) communication services like WhatsApp, Zoom, and Google Meet, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is revisiting its stance and starting consultations on how these services can be regulated.
News in Brief
- In a consultation paper released Friday (June 7), the TRAI has asked stakeholders to send suggestions about regulating services.
- Regulating such services has been a long standing demand of telecom operators advocating for same service same rules.
- The sector should be monitored and intervention should be done at an appropriate time.
- In 2022, the Department of Telecommunication (DoT) wrote back to the authority, requesting it to reconsider its recommendations
- Also suggest a suitable regulatory mechanism for selective banning of OTT services.
Need for regulation
- Although OTT platforms like WhatsApp and telecom providers provide comparable services, they are not subject to the same
Photo by Sara Kurfeß on Unsplash regulations, necessitating the need for regulatory parity.
- OTT communication service providers offer voice call, and messaging and video call services similar to the services provided by TSPs.
- No license required for the services provided by OTT.
- Regulating laws
- Indian Telegraph Act, 1885
- The Wireless Telegraphy Act 1933
- The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, 1997
- All the above said laws are not applicable for OTT.
- OTT not paying Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) like operators.
- The draft Indian Telecommunication 2022 Bill was released by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to govern Internet-based OTT (Over-The-Top) telecom services.
What are the challenges?
- The economy of a nation may be significantly impacted by the shutdown of telecommunications or the Internet.
- Also interferes with essential services like healthcare and education.
- The country’s residents’ lives and way of life are impacted by the closure.
- Websites using volatile IP addresses and cloud servers might make traditional blocking techniques difficult.
- Website security and encryption provided by the HTTPS protocol make it challenging for service providers to ban content on these websites.
- For these reason selective banning of OTT apps .
What are OTT platforms?
- The term OTT (Over-The-Top) refers to content providers who allow customers to access media without the usage of traditional cable or satellite TV services directly through the internet.
- These platforms provide a variety of content and using artificial intelligence to recommend to users the material they are most likely to watch based on their prior platform usage.
- From 2017 to 2022, 46% of the overall increase in India’s media and entertainment sector was attributable to over-the-top (OTT) video streaming.
- Growth of OTT platforms
- High-speed mobile internet at affordable prices
- Flexibility to stream movies anywhere any time
- Cultural changes in media consumption
- Both regional and global content accessible.
TRAI
- The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), which was established in 1997 by an Act of Parliament.
- Aims to regulate telecom services, including fixation/revision of tariffs for telecom services which were earlier vested in the Central Government.
- Create and nurture conditions for growth of telecommunications in the country.
- To provide a fair and transparent policy environment
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