India’s Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of India is creating rules allowing “free mobile data” offers in rural India, after having already ruled that zero rating of some content and sites is impermissible for such purposes, and with an eye to preventing mobile internet access providers from acting as “gatekeepers” when free data is supplied.
TRAI seems to suggest that one way of doing so is to separate the ability to offer free data plans (prepaid, for the most part) to third parties, effectively eliminating any ability of the leading mobile ISPs to gain direct benefit from doing so.
TRAI recommends 100 MB “free data” packages would be sufficient for rural users.
