Facebook is going all out in its efforts to garner support for its Internet.org project, with only a week to go before the DoT panel’s report on net neutrality is closed for public comments. The committee is of the opinion that the platform violates the principles of fair access to the web, a charge which the company has denied.
Indian users of the social networking giant have started receiving messages from the site on their profile page. The communication asks them to express their opinion on having access to free basic online services in the nation. It’s part of Facebook’s public campaign to allow for initiatives like Internet.org to continue. The company had introduced the platform as a way for people who cannot afford data charges to access the web for free.
The DoT committee’s report however, stated Facebook had too much power in its role as a gatekeeper and was found to favor its own services over others. The panel further suggested that collaborations between network operators and content providers should be actively discouraged if it allowed an entity to decide what should or should not be featured on a zero-rating platform.
Also See: Facebook tricking users into supporting net neutrality-violating Internet org
Facebook responded to the criticism by saying that Internet.org would only act as a gateway to give users low-cost access to the digital world. The initiative was developed in partnership with Reliance and only featured a few websites as of April 2015. Similar platforms like Airtel Zero were given a pass by the DoT as long as they sought permissions from TRAI for the sites they featured.
According to PTI, the panel’s report has only been viewed 500 times so far, in spite of TRAI getting over 10 lakh messages in support of implementing an ideal system of net neutrality in India. Comments and suggestions on the matter can be submitted until August 15 on the MyGov website.