India says yes to net neutrality, no to Facebook's Free Basics

In a significant move, India's telecom regulator has officially banned the practice of charging different rates for different kinds of data, over the principle of net neutrality. This means zero-rating initiatives — in particular Facebook's Free Basics platform, which offers a small set of services free of cost — will not be allowed in the country.

See also: India’s telecom regulator accuses Facebook of running an 'orchestrated opinion poll' for Free Basics

“Given that a majority of the population are yet to be connected to the Internet, allowing service providers to define the nature of access would be equivalent of letting TSPs (telecom service providers) shape the users’ Internet experience,” the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) said in its release.

The new set of regulations bars any service provider from offering or charging discriminatory tariffs on the basis of content and and imposes a fine of Rs 50,000 ($735) per day on violators.

"While formulating the regulations, the authority has largely been guided by the principles of net neutrality seeking to ensure that customers get unhindered and non-discriminatory access to the Internet," TRAI said in its statement. However, it has exempted reduced tariff plans in times of emergency.

The order concluded TRAI's consultation paper issued on Dec. 9, 2015, which invited stakeholders to send their views on the differential pricing of different content, until Jan. 14, 2016. This period saw a massive advertising campaign by Facebook to promote Free Basics, which was countered by a volunteer-led coalition called Save the Internet, that was supported by major Indian startups. Last month, TRAI also criticised Facebook's lobbying campaign as a "crudely majoritarian and orchestrated opinion poll." In December, it had asked Facebook's sole telecom partner Reliance Communications to stop the Free Basics service,

"Our goal with Free Basics is to bring more people online with an open, non-exclusive and free platform. While disappointed with the outcome, we will continue our efforts to eliminate barriers and give the unconnected an easier path to the Internet and the opportunities it brings," a Facebook spokesperson said.

On Twitter, several CEOs, politicians and journalists praised TRAI's order.