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Thanks Renata.<br>
<br>
Indian government too seems to be coming around to a good net
neutrality (NN) position, that would be announced soon.<br>
<br>
see
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/telecom/net-neutrality-department-of-telecom-pushes-for-disallowing-telecom-companies-zero-rating-plans-in-its-report/articleshow/47873783.cms">http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/telecom/net-neutrality-department-of-telecom-pushes-for-disallowing-telecom-companies-zero-rating-plans-in-its-report/articleshow/47873783.cms</a><br>
<br>
It seems that zero rating will be banned.<br>
<br>
However, there are indications that special public service content
could be exempted. <br>
<br>
IT for Change's submission to the government committee on NN<br>
<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.itforchange.net/ITfC_inputs_-_DOT_Committee_on_NN">http://www.itforchange.net/ITfC_inputs_-_DOT_Committee_on_NN</a><br>
<br>
had made a distinction between zero rating as a practice done by
telcos and appropriate 'positive discrimination' that would be
decided and determined by law/policy and administered by the
regulator. We consider it to be zero rating if the decision is in
the hands of the telco, but appropriate 'positive discrimination' if
it is determined and dictated by appropriate law/ policy and the
telco has no discretion in it. We used two examples in our
submission; essential public services (including democratic
consultations) and community (Internet) radio.<br>
<br>
We are not able to accept that if, say, the government policy or
law, as administered by the regulator, forces a 'free of
data-charges' channel on all ISPs for essential pubic services and/
or community radio/media (we can discuss how and what will be
considered community radio - there could be parametres as exist
today in most countries), it should be opposed. <br>
<br>
But perhaps we need a discussion here on this issue.<br>
<br>
The issue of specialised services - rightly highlighted by WWW
Foundation's blog - also needs to be discussed. The demarcation in
this case too has to be clear, made at the public policy level and
administered by the regulator, and not be a discretion of the ISPs,
which would always be used to manipulate the NN nature of the
Internet. That for us is the key principle. But further principles
have to be defined so that 'specialised services' provision does not
become a slippery slope. <br>
<br>
parminder<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On Wednesday 01 July 2015 01:43 AM,
Renata Avila wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote
cite="mid:CAOa=Yc3_dC5fWG-KtYkw1FOu5gY-BksP=Q=VYdnsvGX7tqACBg@mail.gmail.com"
type="cite">
<div dir="ltr">
<div class="gmail_default"
style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">Here our
position: <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://webfoundation.org/2015/06/net-neutrality-europe-slips-into-reverse/">http://webfoundation.org/2015/06/net-neutrality-europe-slips-into-reverse/</a></div>
<div class="gmail_default"
style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">
<div class="" style="color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'Open
Sans',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;font-size:16px;line-height:22px">
<div class=""
style="min-height:1px;padding-left:15px;padding-right:15px;float:left;width:1075px;font-size:1.15em;font-family:Merriweather,serif!important">
<h2 class="" style="font-family:'Open
Sans',sans-serif;line-height:1.1;color:rgb(40,81,122);margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:20px;text-align:center;padding-top:1em">Net
Neutrality: Europe Slips Into Reverse</h2>
<h4 class="" style="font-family:'Open
Sans',sans-serif;font-weight:500;line-height:1.1;color:rgb(149,165,166);margin-top:5px;margin-bottom:40px;font-size:1em;text-align:center"><a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://webfoundation.org/author/" class=""
style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(102,136,33);text-decoration:none">Web
Foundation</a> · <span class="" style="">June 30, 2015</span></h4>
</div>
</div>
<div class=""
style="margin-bottom:20px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'Open
Sans',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;font-size:16px;line-height:22px">
<div class=""
style="min-height:1px;padding-left:15px;padding-right:15px;float:left;width:1075px">
<ul
style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:11px;list-style:none">
<li
style="float:right;height:24px;line-height:24px;font-size:11px;margin-bottom:10px"><a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://webfoundation.org/our-work/projects/web-we-want/"
class=""
style="background-color:rgb(122,163,40);color:rgb(255,255,255);text-decoration:none;float:right;height:24px;margin-bottom:10px;margin-left:20px;padding:0px
10px 0px 12px">Web We Want</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
<div class="" style="color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'Open
Sans',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;font-size:16px;line-height:22px">
<div class=""
style="min-height:1px;padding-left:15px;padding-right:15px;float:left;width:1075px;font-size:1.15em;font-family:Merriweather,serif!important">
<p style="margin:0px 0px 16px;line-height:30px">Following
a mammoth negotiating session that ended in the early
hours of this morning, the European Union (EU) has
released their long awaited rules on Net Neutrality.</p>
<p style="margin:0px 0px 16px;line-height:30px">The <a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://twitter.com/DigitalAgendaEU/status/615892188149489665"
target="_blank"
style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(102,136,33);text-decoration:none">EU
Commissioner</a>’s tweet and <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-15-5265_en.htm"
target="_blank"
style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(102,136,33);text-decoration:none">an
accompanying press release </a>proclaimed the rules as
strong protection for net neutrality, but we’re not so
sure. In fact, our initial response is one of
disappointment. <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://edri.org/blurry-ambiguous-net-neutrality-deal-is-an-abdication-of-responsibility/"
target="_blank"
style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(102,136,33);text-decoration:none">As
others</a> have pointed out, the proposals are
unclear. At best they will lead to disputes and
confusion, and at worst they could see the creation of a
two-tier internet. If enacted, these rules would place
European companies and citizens at a disadvantage when
compared to countries such as Chile and the USA.</p>
<p style="margin:0px 0px 16px;line-height:30px">The good
news is, there is still time for decisive action. In the
coming days, the EU will debate and release
clarifications on important areas. Then, the full
European parliament has to ratify the text later this
year.</p>
<p style="margin:0px 0px 16px;line-height:30px">If you’re
worried about the future of the Internet in Europe, <a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://twitter.com/home?status=A%20real%20%23DigitalAgenda%20would%20stand%20up%20for%20true%20%23netneutrality%20%40EU_Commission%20%40europarl%20%40EUCouncil%20%23SaveTheInternet%21"
target="_blank"
style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(102,136,33);text-decoration:none">send
a tweet to tell European lawmakers to stand up for
true net neutrality!</a></p>
<p style="margin:0px 0px 16px;line-height:30px">We’re
still digesting the details of the deal, but here are
two points of immediate concern to us:</p>
<p style="margin:0px 0px 16px;line-height:30px"><b
style="">1. “Specialised services” mean we could see
the creation of internet fast lanes. </b>The EU’s
proposed deal allows so-called “specialised services” –
as long as they don’t interfere with the “open
Internet”. On the face of it, this sounds reasonable.
The EU gives the example of telesurgery – and we can all
agree that doctors should be able to work using the
internet with a higher level of service in life-critical
situations.</p>
<p style="margin:0px 0px 16px;line-height:30px">Unfortunately,
though, opening the door to “specialised services”
creates a large grey area which is open to abuse. For
instance, the EU has suggested that Internet TV be
classified as a specialised service. So where do, say,
educational videos on YouTube fit in? When does a
service become specialised? Also – we can’t imagine now
what the future will bring. What if the email, search or
web of tomorrow is classified as a “specialised service”
that we have to pay more to access? Opening up this can
of worms is sure to lead to legal disputes and ongoing
uncertainty for everyone.</p>
<p style="margin:0px 0px 16px;line-height:30px">Ultimately,
the only way to stop this is to be bold and pass strong
net neutrality laws that preserve the Internet as it
should be – an open platform for innovation. If the EU
is determined to press ahead with exceptions for
“specialised services”, such services should be tightly
defined after broad public consultation, and take place
in very limited exceptional circumstances, rather than
becoming commonplace.</p>
<p style="margin:0px 0px 16px;line-height:30px"><b
style="">2. “Zero rated” services are to be allowed –
with unclear safeguards. </b>Zero-rating plans
typically involve internet companies and telecoms
operators teaming up and offering a particular service
or bundle of services for free. The EU has decided to
allow the practice of zero rating, because “zero rating
does not block competing content”. That’s true, but
misses the point that any rational person will choose to
get something for free, rather than pay for something
else presented as a close alternative. But in this case,
the free service could well be just a tiny slice of the
open internet, with content closely controlled by
commercial interests, where the highest bidder can pay
to have individuals see their content for free. Or, it
could be something like a particular internet telephony
or music streaming service.</p>
<p style="margin:0px 0px 16px;line-height:30px">As our
founder and Web inventor Tim Berners-Lee said when he <a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/2014-2019/ansip/blog/guest-blog-sir-tim-berners-lee-founding-director-world-wide-web-foundation_en"
target="_blank"
style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(102,136,33);text-decoration:none">wrote
on this topic</a> in February: <i style="">“Of course,
it is not just about blocking and throttling. It is
also about stopping ‘positive discrimination’, such as
when one internet operator favours one particular
service over another. If we don’t explicitly outlaw
this, we hand immense power to telcos and online
service operators. In effect, they can become
gatekeepers – able to handpick winners and the losers
in the market and to favour their own sites, services
and platforms over those of others. This would crowd
out competition and snuff out innovative new services
before they even see the light of day. Imagine if a
new start-up or service provider had to ask permission
from or pay a fee to a competitor before they could
attract customers? This sounds a lot like bribery or
market abuse…”</i></p>
<p style="margin:0px 0px 16px;line-height:30px">Simply
allowing zero rating on a blanket basis, with no clear
guidelines as to what it can be used for, and how it
will be regulated, seems like a retrograde step to us.
The EU should ban zero rating unless ‘free data’ can be
used to access any part of the Open Internet.</p>
<p style="margin:0px 0px 16px;line-height:30px"><i
style="">We’ll be following this topic closely in the
weeks ahead. If you agree with our concerns, <a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://twitter.com/home?status=A%20real%20%23DigitalAgenda%20would%20stand%20up%20for%20true%20%23netneutrality%20%40EU_Commission%20%40europarl%20%40EUCouncil%20%23SaveTheInternet%21"
target="_blank"
style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(102,136,33);text-decoration:none">send
a tweet today!</a></i></p>
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