Hopeful rules for OTTs will come later: Vittal

THE TELECOM BILL not touching the issue of regulating over-the-top (OTT) communication apps has not come as a disappointment for the telcos, and the industry is hopeful that it would be addressed separately at a later stage, Gopal Vittal, Airtel CEO & MD, told FE in an interview on Wednesday.

- JATIN GROVER & RISHI RAJ

Vittal said that the reform-oriented measures in the Bill, like giving legal backing to right of way (RoW) for laying fibres & ducts and backhaul spectrum to connect cell sites, will ensure that quality of services, data as well as voice, will greatly improve. Further, allocation of spectrum for satellite communications without auctions is path-breaking as these services will help telcos provide services in remote and hilly where regions mobile services are not accessible.

"We are hopeful that regulation of OTTS and fair revenue share with telecom operators will be addressed through separate consultations and recommendations as these were not supposed to be taken up in the telecom Bill,"Vittal said.

GOVERNMENT SOURCES TOLD FE that the department of Telecommunications, which piloted the Bill, looks only at carriers, while OTTS fall in the domain of ministry of electronics & IT, content is overseen by information & broadcasting ministry, and fintechs by finance ministry.