Airtel launched Airtel Zero which is an open marketing platform that will allow customers to access mobile applications at zero data charges, according to Airtel website. A lot of customers showed their wrath against Airtel for the same saying that it was against the concept of Net Neutrality. Flipkart, which had initially partnered with Airtel Zero platform, has now pulled out of it saying that it supports Net Neutrality. This happened after the users downrated Flipkart app.
Airtel Zero allows customers to access certain apps and websites without paying data charges as long as the makers of those apps and services pay Airtel for this free access. Flipkart has now issued the following statement –
We at Flipkart have always strongly believed in the concept of net neutrality, for we exist because of the Internet. Over the past few days, there has been a great amount of debate, both internally and externally, on the topic of zero rating, and we have a deeper understanding of the implications. Based on this, we have decided on the following:
– We will be walking away from the ongoing discussions with Airtel for their platform Airtel Zero.
– We will be committing ourselves to the larger cause of Net Neutrality in India. We will be internally discussing over the next few days, the details of actions we will take to support the cause.
– We will be working towards ensuring that the spirit of net neutrality is upheld and applied equally to all companies in India irrespective of the size or the service being offered and there is absolutely no discrimination whatsoever.
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