In this report, we outline what industry bodies Association of Competitive Telecom Operators (ACTO), ISPAI and cable/broadband provider Hathway said about TRAI’s public consultation on the regulation of OTT services. OTT Service Providers are abbreviated to only OTTs in the report. Some of these points have been edited and paraphrased. Read what telcos, Indian internet companies, streaming services, and COAI and IIMA-Idea TCOE said in their submissions. Q.1 Which service(s) when provided by the OTT service provider(s) should be regarded as the same or like service(s)being provided by the TSPs. Please list all such OTTservices with descriptions comparing it with services being provided by TSPs. ACTO OTT services can be defined as communications and content delivery services and applications that end users access using their own internet connections. The list of same or similar services as being provided by TSPs and OTTs may be prepared today, and it will not be valid tomorrow. Preparing a list in this regard will be a futile exercise. Hathway: No Comment ISPAI OTT providers directly interconnecting with ISPs and other non-ISP entities and providing them with access to Internet based content is equivalent to the OTT playing the role of a backbone ISP albeit without the necessary licenses of ISP, ILD & Gateway Approval. The existing regulatory framework does not allow for such direct interconnections between OTT, Indian ISP, foreign telecom operators and other non-telecom entities which bypass the licensing and taxation regimes of the country and posing threat to national security as well. Such…
