RSSSkype, Google, Yahoo Facing Scrutiny in India over Illegal Net Telephony
Categories: Google, MSN, Mobile 2.0, Mobile 2.0 India, Skype, Yahoo, Yahoo India
Written By: Vardaan
PC to PC telephony is one such service that every big companies are providing it for free to its customers and companies such as Skype, Yahoo, Google, MSN and Net2Phone.com are prominent ones in India with its net telephony services, all you need is PC, headphones with mic and software (online or downloadable such as Skype).
Internet Service Providers Associations of India (ISPAI) are alleging that internet companies mentioned above are eating market share of Indian companies and thats too illegaly i.e. without any licensed net telephony services. ISPs also allege that voice chat through Google, MSN and Yahoo is resulting in revenue leak for the government.
Internet telephony, estimated at 200 million minutes a month in which use of illegal net telephony without valid license is estimated at 10 million minutes a month.
ISPAI had alleged that an ISP licence or a unified access services licence (UASL) is required to provide Internet telephony, which these companies do not possess.
However, MSN and Yahoo denies such claims by putting a point that they offer free service so levying a service tax through licencing is not an issue anymore.
In India, companies like Skype, Vonage, Packet 8, Go2call, Lingo, Impetus, Dialpad and Net2Phone have been offering unlicenced net telephony services, which is mostly illegal. If they don’t opt for a licence the government should block them,” said ISPAI president Rajesh Chharia.
The director general, Central Excise Intelligence, has written to ISPAI, directing it to furnish the local addresses and overseas offices of firms provinding Internet telephony service, with details of revenues and major service receivers.
References – ISPAI.in
October 3rd, 2007 at 10:52 pm
Hi,
Strollby has get a news and given some additional information on the same topic
October 31st, 2007 at 9:09 am
[...] recent scrutiny faced by Skype in India over free Internet PC-o-PC call service might have something to do with India not being considered [...]
February 28th, 2008 at 9:39 am
Iam a retired professional Manager,age 72,living with my wife in Mumbai.Skype was aboon to both of us as we used to contact several interesting people throughout India.We have been deprivedof such precious service.Why doesn’t Skype authorities thrash out this problem with Government of India so that oldies like us can network again.Thanx
.
August 19th, 2008 at 10:40 am
[...] (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) has broken the ice finally after all that scrutiny over illegal Internet telephony in India in last year’s October when big names such as Skype, Google, Net2Phone has to go under [...]
May 7th, 2009 at 7:56 pm
resp Govt. supporter, i really appreciate ur statements but, do you think we are not paying money and still using internet? o c’mon don’t be rediculous govt. is getting their money through internet. and more over other countries is giving skype and google talk freely why can’t we indian do? we are one among developing countries we can afford it. And about money, are we really paying tax in every aspect? some people they hav millions billions rupees in their account nobody cares, do you think everybody pays tax to the govt? i don’t think so…
skype and google can be a tool for poor people in future don oppose it, rich people can make calls by their phone, what about poor?