[Chapter-delegates] Indian Gov proposal for Free Data, no gotchas

[Dave Burstein]

Folks

The Indian regulator is pushing for 100 megabytes/month free for 50M rural
residents. He calculates that would need a budget ~$100M a year, which is
on target with marginal telco costs. India has several $B in a Universal
Service reserve, so the funds are possible. (Article below from Economic
Times.)

I can confirm it is realistic on technology but defer on politics. The
marginal cost of data on today's new networks is less than
$1/gigabyte, falling, if they have good backhaul. (Big if)
​
I'm sending this over to ask our Indian chapters to speak up if they think
this is deserving of strong ISOC support as the cabinet considers the TRAI
proposal. Please inform me, offlist, if I have any of this wrong. I write
about technology more than policy, and am 12,000 miles away.
​
I'm also trying to inspire thinking about how policy should reflect the new
technologies and totally different cost factors. Jennie bought a 100
gigabyte LTE SIM in Paris for $22, another example of what's possible today.

I think ISOC chapters in every country should be asking "Why aren't we like
the best?" U.S. prices are 2-4X the French prices, which I think should be
our primary chapter issue. What would it take for say, Nigeria, to do what
India is doing? How can ISOC move things in that direction.

For example, I believe concerted action against cartel-like
backhaul/transit pricing is a prime international issue. Several Africans
have told me it's the most important international issue driving up the
cost of access.

India has become the most interesting country in expanding access. Mukesh
Ambani's new Reliance Jio is completely state of the art 4G and offers ~10
gigs + free voice for about $5/month. ~ 3 gig is $1.50 and 60 gig over two
months $15.
https://www.jio.com/en-in/4g-plans. They have LTE to ~85% and soon 95%.

Bharatnet is bringing government fiber to 250,000 villages and is finally
building after years of political delay.

There's a lot for all of us to learn from the Indians.

Here's an article with some details. I'd love to hear offlist from anyone
with more data. 100 megabytes isn't enough but it gets you your email,
Facebook, News and a bit more. Topups will start around thirty cents (U.S.)


Trai asks government to consider its 'free data' suggestion to bridge rural
India's digital divide

Lately, the regulator has been vocal on taking policy steps that could
enhance India’s digital profile and eventually facilitate cashless economy
by way of increased broadband penetration.Muntazir Abbas  |  ETTelecom  |
 Updated: October 05, 2017, 09:21 IST
 NewsletterA A

 inShare3
NEW DELHI: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India(Trai) wants the
government to consider its ‘free data’ suggestion in the wake of Internet
being unaffordable to a large number of people residing in rural regions,
saying such an intervention was essential for digital empowerment.

“These (free data) policygoals need to be seen in light of the fact that
the Internet remains to be unaffordable for a vast majority of rural
population, and basic Internet infrastructure continues to remain
inadequate in most rural and remote areas of the country,” Trai chairman RS
Sharma told ET.

Last month, Telecom Commission, the highest decision-making body of the
government, sent back the sector regulator’s recommendations for a rework,
which it had suo moto put forth in December 2016 with a view to provide
free data to bridge the affordability gap.

Sharma said he is yet to see observations made by the commission.

While, the commission sought clarity on how a free data could be
operationalised without infringing the stakeholders’ business model, Trai
said provisioning of Internet access to all sections of the population,
including rural masses, is essential for their digital empowerment and, in
turn, for bridging the urban-rural divide.

“The current situation calls for the adoption of a range of innovative
solutions that will help in enabling the broadest set of users to connect
to the Internet through reliable and ubiquitous networks, access to which
is within their reach and means,” Sharma said.

India’s rural Internet penetration stands at merely 16% with an overall
user base spread across 33% of the service areas, according to the Cellular
Operators' Association of India (COAI) IMC-Deloitte finding.

Lately, the regulator has been vocal on taking policy steps that could
enhance India’s digital profile and eventually facilitate cashless economy
by way of increased broadband penetration, and suggested leveraging cable
television infrastructure and satellite-based connectivity.

Trai had recommended an aggregator model and 100 MB of free data for mobile
phone users in rural or remote areas and suggested that the Universal
Services Obligation Fund (USOF) be used to foot the bill for providing
government-incentivised free data schemes to rural subscribers.

Additionally, to increase participation of other entities for incentivising
free data, a third party, or aggregator, should be introduced to offer
schemes that are telco-agnostic and non-discriminatory in their
implementation and don't circumvent rules that have barred discriminatory
pricing of data services, Trai suggested.

“Since the time we gave our recommendations in December 2016, the data
charges per megabyte (MB) in the country have seen a further decrease,
which would imply a lesser burden on the USOF,” Sharma added. USOF is
derived from a 5% levy on adjusted gross revenue of all telecom companies.
The fund is used for setting up telecom infrastructure in all uncovered
rural and remote areas of the country.

In May 2016, the regulator’s consultation paper explored ways of providing
mobile Internet to consumers for free without violating a ban on
discriminatory pricing of data services and had sought responses on three
suggested models — a toll-free platform for users where browsing will be
free; consumers paying upfront and being subsequently reimbursed; and
applications that reward users with incentives such as recharges for data
or voice usage.

The regulator’s suggestion of an aggregator stems from the third model.

--
Editor, Fast Net News, WIreless One.news, Net Policy News and DSL Prime
Author with Jennie Bourne  DSL (Wiley) and Web Video: Making It Great,
Getting It Noticed (Peachpit)

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