Not just net neutrality: Trai's technology musings can kill innovation as well

By Rajesh Pandathil and Sulekha Nair The discussion paper on over-the-top (OTP) services floated by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India is a bizarre piece of literature that seeks to throttle not just net neutrality but all technology-based innovations that happen in India. The paper has already become a hot topic of discussion with a section even accusing the regulator of favouring corporates over consumers. The heated debate has, however, mostly centred around the net neutrality issue, ignoring the ideas and conclusions that betray Trai’s paranoia about technology and the impact they can have on the spirit of entrepreneurship in the country. For instance, take a look at what it says about mobile apps. [caption id=“attachment_2200992” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  ThinkStock[/caption] “Most applications can trace the user’s location for underlying processes (such as GPS apps finding the nearest restaurants). This information may be used to commit a crime, or the location itself may be the target of a crime. Such threats can impact the nation’s security and financial health,” the Trai paper says. While the concerns raised are indeed important, what is worrisome is the attempt to link them to national security, a tool the governments use to oppress everything from general discontent to liberal business. Not only this, Trai has also taken a leaf out of the authorities’ actions on Uber, the taxi hailing app, after the horrific rape incident in Delhi. The paper says the apps like Ola, Uber and other e-commerce ones “are an easy solution for customers, (but) there can be attendant risks”. “For example in the case of conventional (non-OTT) taxi services, the regulatory framework has a licensing regime for taxis in India-local (the black and yellow) taxis, radio taxis and tourist permit taxis. But, OTT apps for taxi services entirely bypass this licensing regime,” the paper has said. It goes on to fret about the non-level playing field, which these companies are benefiting from. These comments directly hit at the entrepreneurial spirit that is thriving in the country. Naturally, start-ups are worried. “It is the free flow of information that has led to the explosive growth in internet users and unparalleled innovation in business models as startups have found ways of providing disproportionate value to consumers by disrupting age old business models,” Rathin Lahiri, chief marketing officer of Meru Cabs told Firstpost. The company, one of the first radio taxi services in India, is focussing on mobile technology and apps to expand its footprint and regain the leadership position. Positing firmly on the side of net neutrality, Shirish Deodhar, Co-Founder, Sapience Analytics, reminds that start-ups are an inevitable part of Indian economy. “They brought in technology disruption across businesses bringing in more agility in business processes,” he says. As Rishabh Gupta, COO, Housing.com, points out the country has seen emergence of entrepreneurs from across sectors like e-commerce, lifestyle, banking, mobile payments and real estate. “In a country where start-ups will lead innovation, rejecting the principles of net neutrality will prevent the growth of entrepreneurs,” he says. According to Nasscom, the industry body of software companies, India is home for about 3,100 technology start-ups and is the third largest base in the world. It says India sees more than 800 start-ups being set up annually. What this means is that so many job seekers are turning into job providers. Interestingly, Trai seems to understand the importance of this very well. “The impact of OTT (over-the-top) on business creation, employment and output is expected to increase dramatically, contributing to the annual growth rate,” the discussion paper says. “It is estimated that these services will improve the efficiency of an average employee by nearly 2.1%. It also helps in reduction of carbon emissions by 30% for large establishments and as much as 90% for smaller and the least efficient business establishments. This will also help business establishments, save billions of dollars in energy bills; create new jobs through development of a number of new small and medium size enterprises,” it adds. It doesn’t stop there. “The growth of OTT services can also help the economy recover from a severe downturn,” it says. Then, pray, why is the Trai spreading such fears about technology and in turn killing the entrepreneurial spirit at a time when the economy is still struggling to get out of a protracted slowdown? The reason could either be its enthusiasm to protect the Big Telcos’ interest or the general paranoia the authorities usually have about technology. No matter what the reason is, one can only hope that the purportedly entrepreneur-friendly Narendra Modi government will dump the Trai’s ideas at the earliest.