basics - study iq•india’s department of telecommunications has approved net neutrality rules...
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BASICS
BASICS
• India’s Department of Telecommunications has approved
net neutrality rules that ban blocking, throttling, and
zero-rating internet data, with some exceptions.
•The framework, published last year as a
recommendation from the Telecom Regulatory
Authority of India (TRAI), is the culmination of a
years-long campaign for net neutrality in India.
BANDWIDTH THROTTLING
•Bandwidth throttling is the intentional slowing or
speeding of an Internet service by an Internet service
provider (ISP).
• It is a reactive measure employed in communication
networks to regulate network traffic and minimize
bandwidth congestion.
ZERO-RATING INTERNET DATA
• Zero rating is the practice of not charging customers for data use
on specific websites and services by Internet service providers
(ISPs) and mobile service providers (MSPs).
• Zero rating can be used by providers to create more tempting
limited data plans for customers while favoring their own, affiliate
or popular sites. Websites and services in this arrangement can pay
the provider to be zero-rated and generally receive an influx of
traffic from otherwise limited data customers.
•The new rules prevent “any form of discrimination or
interference” with data, including “blocking, degrading,
slowing down, or granting preferential speeds or
treatment to any content.”
•But they don’t apply to “critical IoT services” or
“specialized services,” including autonomous vehicles
and remote surgery operations
BACK IN THE US, USERS ARE STILL FIGHTING
• The Obama administration had strongly advocated net
neutrality rules in the US but in 2015, US telecom regulator
Ajit Pai announced rolling back of those rules, which treated
internet service providers like public utilities.
• This is when the discussion started worldwide about what a
free internet is, including in India. Despite enough public
discourse and uproar over the last three years, the US
repealed net neutrality rules in June. Activists are working
tirelessly in the US to make their internet free and fair as well.
