(Representational Photo)
(Representational Photo)

Another government move looking to tame messaging apps

Telecom service providers want OTT calling and texting apps under the licensing regime, as the latter provides the same services as the former.

The new Draft Telecom Bill has opened Pandora’s Box by proposing that over-the-top (OTT) Whatsapp, Telegram and Signal will need a license to operate as they offer both text and call services. Telecom service providers want OTT calling and texting apps under the licensing regime, as the latter provides the same services as the former.

While the draft bill is still far from becoming a law and the extent of restrictions that may be put on these apps is still unknown, the government is certainly planning to finally put the OTT service providers on a leash. The move raises concern on multiple fronts. Besides privacy and transparency, the decision to bring OTT platforms under a licensing regime could also undermine innovations.

The move should be seen in the context of the government’s tussle with messaging app Whatsapp on the ‘traceability’of chats, with the latter refusing to let the government know the origin of messages. The government is in favour of regulating these apps for ‘national security’ and ‘public interest’.

However, activists take these claims with a pinch of salt, arguing the government may use these regulations to crush dissent. Whatsapp has moved court against the government, claiming that asking the messaging app to trace the chats is an attack on people’s privacy.

On its latest proposal to ask OTT messaging apps to seek a license to operate in India, the government might say it gave in to the long-pending demand of telecom service providers. Still, it might just be the right excuse for the government to have better control over these apps. Apart from privacy concerns, the requirement for a license may make it cumbersome for tech companies and many start-ups, to develop and innovate these apps. The cost of business and compliance would go up, making it commercially unviable to run those apps, and they may be forced to charge users for the services that were free until now. Even if there is a need to regulate these apps, the extent of the regulations could make and mar them. The good news, though, is that the government has a difference of opinion with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (Meity) that is opposing the Department of Telecommunication’s proposal to bring these apps under the licensing regime. This gives some hope that the actual law might be a watered-down version of the draft bill.

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The New Indian Express
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