The regulator for telecom industry in India has floated a consultation paper to seek different models via which service providers can offer free data services.The move comes after the regulatory body rejected the concept of differential pricing by telecom operators. The consultation paper seeks opinions on issues including, providing a transparent level playing field for free data services in sync with ne neutrality guidelines; governance of these platforms; and availability of free data to subscribers of wired broadband apart from mobile internet users. As per TRAI, there is a need to have some telecom service provider platform to help application developers promote their websites by offering incentives to users who bring more traffic to their websites. ”There is a need to enable smaller entrepreneurs to flourish without permitting gate-keeping function in the hands of the TSPs and to give the consumers more choices for accessing the internet,” said TRAI. The different models should enable consumers in the country, who do not have access to internet yet to switch to internet platforms, utilizing a transparent and unbiased data services platform for enterprises and end consumers. ”It also should not hold back innovation and the opportunity to increase internet penetration and usage,” said TRAI. Earlier this year, the regulatory authority rejected the idea of differential pricing which came as a major blow to Facebook’s Free Basics and Airtel zero concept which offered different prices for accessing different internet services.
