The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is not looking to regulate the OTT (over-the-top) communication players like WhatsApp, Telegram and more. This comes as the telecom operators were requesting the government to bring OTT players under regulatory regime as well. Telcos have argued that since these apps also offer similar kind of services, they should be brought under regulation regime. The OTT players and tech companies have strongly opposed such a notion. Platforms like WhatsApp can be used to make calls and send texts, all of the services that the telcos provide. Yet, they don't have to follow the regulations around these services.
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The tech companies have argued that this is a baseless comparison as the telcos also have access to uniterrupted spectrum bandwidth which OTT companies don't. Now, according to an ET report, the telecom department is not at all looking to regulate the OTT players. The OTT players already come under regulation under the information technology act, and thus, they don't need to be regulated under the telecom act as well.
This is a positive development for the OTT players who would have been worried about coming under telecom regulation. In the past, telcos have also requested that the government push OTT players to share a slice of their revenues with the operators. But the tech companies have opposed that too. Telcos argued that they have to make investments to carry to the traffic of OTT, and thus it is only fair that they get a share of the revenue. But the government isn't likely going to side with the telcos on this one as well.
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For now, the tech companies and OTT players can relax as the telecom department is not looking to either regulate them or ask them to pay a share of their revenues to the telcos.
