Trai to provide clarity on licensing regime for OTTs by Aug-end: Officials

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) is set to provide its recommendations on whether communication over-the-top (OTT) services such as WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Telegram should be brought under an authorisation or licensing regime similar to telecom operators like Reliance Jio, and Bharti Airtel, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) officials said.

Tech and startup industry bodies have been at loggerheads with telecom operators on efforts to bring OTTs under a licensing regime, which will open them up to taxation.