We're reporting from the TRAI seminar on regulation of OTT services (rather, Internet services). Details of why this seminar is being held, here. For context, read this and this. Please pardon the typos (and some paraphrasing). One97 MD Vijay Shekhar Sharma on regulation of Internet services, that telecom operators are pushing for: "OTT is something that is selling something to the consumer, where telcos are playing a role as an accessing pipe, and providing charging relationships. Earlier, content and services needed them (telcos) for marketing and go-to-market. Now, work like defining the product roadmap, deciding the product lifecycle, is taken care of by the App player. I have examples of other platforms: PC, where Microsoft decides their rules. In web-based, everyone is open and free to place, and we have toll gatekeepers like Google. Incredible innovation has taken place online. Facebook has delivered as a social platform, and allowed services to be provided to consumers, but ever since Zuckerberg decided to take a closed approach (reduced reach of updates), social as a platform (for providing services) has evaporated. App store is the biggest platform today, and App store rules are decided by who owns the App store. Google and Apple (with the biggest app stores) decide. The (Telecom) operator as a platform has happened in the world, and today is also an opportunity. The role that telcos play (in case of OTT) is about providing charging and access. Government now allows mobile wallets to pay for anything on the mobile phone. I remember when BPL mobile had…
