TRAI betters US’ FCC on net neutrality: Says content is king, belongs to all

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India on Tuesday one-upped the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) of the United States by broadly supporting the idea of a free and open Internet.

The regulator explicitly stated that all content should be available to consumers without any discrimination or restriction.

This has left its American counterpart, the FCC, looking a shade partial in the debate on net neutrality.

The regulator’s much-awaited recommendations, issued on Tuesday, clearly state that blocking, degrading or granting preferential speed to one content over another (higher speeds to one kind of content against another) will be treated as discriminatory.

This is at odds with the US regulator, which seems to be moving towards dismantling rules on net neutrality. The new rules, said to favour Internet service providers, will be put to vote next month in the US.

Furthermore, TRAI barred service providers from entering into any kind of arrangement with any entity that would result in discriminatory access.

Making an exception for specialized services, the regulator said such services could be provided as long as the service provider wasn’t resorting to them as a replacement for “Internet Access Services’ that are at the heart of net neutrality.

Telemedicine, e-learning and government services meant for common citizens are counted as specialized services.

The regulator has not exempted services classified as ‘Internet of Things’ but said the department of telecommunications, which is the ultimate approving authority of these recommendations, could classify some of the critical IoT services as ‘specialized’ to give them exemption.

IoT is a new emerging concept in technology that enables various machines and devices to connect with each other and transmit data – for example, a user being able to control his washing machine with his mobile phone.