Airtel bludgeons net-neutrality

If you have been following the news, you'll know that I'm referring to the stupid money-grabbing move of Airtel to charge extra for using VoIP services over their network. To the unaware about how this affects them, any app which routes calls over the internet - Google Hangouts, Viber, Skype - uses Voice over IP : VoIP. Airtel will charge users for calling/answering such calls, over and above the charge for data you consume for this type of call.

This logically makes no sense to me. If it were Skype/Viber charging users for the service, I would have unerstood. Is Airtel providing this VoIP service - no. Does it agree to provide internet - yes. Then why are they trying to control what traffic is there on the internet channels by putting differential pricing? It is something like the municipality charging different rates for how we use drinking water. "Hey, you are going to put this water in a filter? It'll cost Rs.1 per litre. But if you put it through RO-purifier, I'll charge you Rs.10 OK?" In fact it is exactly like that.

Airtel and other telcos previously tried to charge for Whatsapp/Facebook Messenger/Hike etc., and were rightly shot down by the TRAI. I hope this move of Airtel is also voided by the authorities. It is at times like this that I feel we need strong and evolving laws to make internet access a fundamental right which will not be held ransom at the whim of the service provider.

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