Trai to hold discussion on Net neutrality on Thursday

Facebook told Buzzfeed News that it had “attempted” to cooperate with TRAI. “Are there alternative methods/technologies/business models, other than differentiated tariff plans, available to achieve the objective of providing free internet access to the consumers?” the TRAI paper asked in another question, in an obvious reference to platforms like Free Basics, that offer a “differentiated tariff” (aka free access) to certain websites. Facebook has spent the past few months encouraging its users in India to send letters to TRAI in support of Free Basics ahead of any regulatory decisions that might keep Facebook’s app out of the country.

Facebook said that during its query, it found that “on December 17 at 5.51.53 GMT, an individual with access to the Trai e-mail account designated to accept comments took action that blocked Facebook from delivering any additional e-mail to that address”. As part of its campaign, Facebook urged its users to email TRAI in support of “digital equality” and supporting Free Basics.

In a letter dated January 13th, Facebook’s director of public policy Ankhi Das said that the TRAI blocked emails coming from Facebook on December 17th.

The Net Neutrality supporters remained anxious about this aggressive campaign from Facebook. TRAI says that it will take into consideration all the responses that are relevant to the process of consultation paper, and that Facebook’s assertions that the responses are appropriate to the process are “wholly misplaced”.

“(10) Neither the spirit nor the letter of a consultative process warrants such an interpretation which, if accepted, has risky ramifications for policy-making in India”.

Trai has also accused Facebook of reducing a “meaningful consultative exercise created to produce informed and transparent decisions into a crudely majoritarian and orchestrated opinion poll”. It is noticed that you have not been authorized by your users to speak on behalf of them collectively.

TRAI is asking people to respond to four specific questions that were generated from its consultation paper. As the most high-profile free internet access platform, it was no surprise that Facebook’s Free Basics was mentioned in all discussions related to the subject, with the Save The Internet campaign effectively becoming a Stop Free Basics campaign. TRAI has gone so far as to ban Free Basics in India. “No disclosure in the act of sending a message to TRAI using your platform to this effect has been issued to users”.

In its Tuesday letter, TRAI said it was concerned that the social network asked for support from its users without letting them known precisely what they’re responding to – a consultation form that TRAI had sent out to the public.

“Equally of concern is your self-appointed spokesmanship on behalf of those who have sent responses to TRAI using your platform”, the agency wrote.

In a statement today (Jan. 20), Facebook said: “We are not aware of a similar request having been made to any of the other commenters who did not answer these specific questions”. No questions posed in the paper were, however, addressed in this campaign.

Reliance Jio Infocomm though has not submitted its comments on the matter.