Internet activists and experts flayed the operator for “Airtel Zero” service along with Facebook’s internet.org service, now renamed “Free Basics”. Only 252 million of India’s 1.3 billion people have Internet access, making it a growth market for firms including Google and Facebook.
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India is the battleground over the right to unrestricted access to Internet, with local startups in the tech industry joining on the front line against the likes of Mark Zuckerberg the founder of Facebook and the plan he has of rolling out free access to Internet for the masses.
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While the reason behind Egypt’s ban is still unclear, it more than likely has to do with the criticisms concerning Free Basics and net neutrality. Egyptian officials haven’t said why they halted the program, but critics in India say it violates net neutrality. “How supporting Free Basics help me (TRAI) in answering the questions which we had asked for ‘whether differential pricing should be permitted or not”, Sharma said.
Egypt has joined India in blocking Facebook’s initiative.
Not satisfied with such “invalid” answers, TRAI has now chose to ask such respondents (who sent comments on Free Basics) to send comments on specific questions pertaining to differential pertaining, rather than supporting “Free Basics”.
Facebook announced that Free Basics, its program for providing free internet for over 30 developing nations, will no longer be available in Egypt. Authorities in Egypt effectively suspended the service when a required permit was not renewed after it lapsed on Wednesday.
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Earlier this month, telecom regulator Trai has asked Reliance Communications to keep services of Facebook’s free Internet platform, Free Basics, in abeyance, till the issue on differential pricing is sorted out.
