Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has clarified to ET Telecom that the newly enacted Telecommunications Invoice 2023 is not going to embody over-the-top (OTT) apps or providers. This assertion follows the latest passage of the brand new telecom invoice by Parliament, which supersedes three earlier legal guidelines, together with the Indian Telegraph Act, which is 138 years previous. The brand new invoice curtails the authority of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and grants the federal government extraordinary powers, corresponding to the power to grab management of telecom providers for nationwide safety functions.
Following the passage of the Telecommunications Invoice (2023) on Thursday, there have been issues about potential elevated authorities oversight and intervention if OTT communication apps like WhatsApp and Sign had been included underneath the brand new telecommunications invoice, which is presently awaiting the President’s approval to grow to be regulation.
The minister assured the publication that the brand new telecom invoice handed by Parliament doesn’t embrace OTT. He defined that these OTT apps are presently ruled by the Info Know-how Act, 2000 and can proceed to be regulated underneath the identical regulation, which falls underneath the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Electronics and Info Know-how (MeitY).
Earlier this week, Meta reportedly voiced issues in regards to the telecom invoice in an inner e mail from Shivnath Thukral, Director and Head of India Public Coverage at Meta. The up to date model of the telecommunications invoice handed by Parliament doesn’t particularly point out OTT or OTT platforms. Nevertheless, it does embrace phrases corresponding to ‘telecommunication providers’, ‘messages,’ and ‘telecommunications identifier,’ which may probably apply to OTT platforms.
The telecom invoice is now awaiting the President’s approval to grow to be regulation. It was endorsed within the Rajya Sabha by way of a voice vote on Thursday, following its approval by the Lok Sabha the day prior to this. The invoice is slated to supersede the Indian Telegraph Act of 1885, the Wi-fi Telegraphy Act of 1933, and the Telegraph Wires (Illegal Possession) Act of 1950.
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