Stanford CIS

Why India should keep an eye on Europe

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"“The law is neither with the telecom companies nor with the activists. It has been overcomplicated and could be interpreted either way,” says Thomas Lohninger, an activist who is a part of the savetheinternet.eu campaign which has nearly 22 digital rights organisations across Europe under its ambit.

The emphatic ‘no’ heard in Indian public consultations for zero-rating — which was marketed as giving the poor ‘some Internet’ instead of ‘no Internet’ — is a lesson for Western politicians who are “worried” about stopping free zero-rated services, says Barbara van Schewick, Director of Stanford Law School’s Center for Internet and Society, whose research has shaped the U.S. response to Net neutrality.

“The Indian response is remarkable, because they saw this as affecting their start-ups and local voices,” she said at the meet. “There was a huge mobilisation, and in the end, the Indian regulatory came up with a nuanced version of zero-rating legislation. It is a model for what we can do here.”"