NEW DELHI : The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) today begun to prepare framework for Over-The-Top (OTT) services like internet-based telephony provided by players like Skype, Viber, WhatsApp and Google Talk etc.
“Worldwide, there is an ongoing debate among Governments, industry and consumers regarding regulations of OTT services and net-neutrality.
“In this background, TRAI today released a consultation paper on regulatory framework for OTT services,” the regulator said in a statement.
The issues which TRAI covers in the paper are policy and regulatory environment and need for regulation, current policy dispensation for OTT players and security concerns of OTT players providing communication services. It also covers issues related to security, safety and privacy of the consumer, network discrimination and traffic management practices and non-price based discrimination of services and ensuring transparency to consumers. Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) offering fixed and mobile telephony are currently being overwhelmed by online content, known as OTT applications and services, it said. The rising penetration of smartphones and the up-gradation of access networks by the TSPs are among the important factors contributing to OTT growth, it said. (AGENCIES)
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