SAMACHAR - FEBRUARY, 2022       Concerns with JPC Report on PDP Bill Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), made a submission to the government raising a number of concerns regarding the Joint Parliamentary Committee's (JPC) report on the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019 (PDP). Collectively the JPC recommendations fundamentally altered the structure of the bill from that of a personal data protection bill to a generic data protection bill. In its submission it was suggested that stringent data localization requirements would lead to difficulties in compliance and restrictions on cross-border flows might lead to higher business failure rates, create barriers on the growth of start-ups, increase costs of compliance for companies and slow down socioeconomic benefits expected from the digital economy.     Suggestions to GNCTD's Motor Vehicle Aggregators Scheme, 2021 In a submission to the Transport Department, Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD), on the draft Motor Vehicle Aggregators Scheme, 2021, Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) on behalf of its members welcomed the government's policies to encourage EV adoption in last mile delivery business models. However, in its submission IAMAI requested for more feasible targets. It suggested that the target should be reduced to 10 percent by the end of 2023, so that the same could be achieved with minimum disruption to the economy. IAMAI suggested that an aggregator licence for operating in the NCT of Delhi should not be a regulatory mandate, particularly for aggregators who did not transport passengers. If, however, it must be implemented the duration of validity should be at least five years.     TRAI Consultation Paper Underlines Importance of Accessible Infrastructure Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) responded to the TRAI Consultation Paper, which identified the immense economic potential in Data Centres, Content Delivery Networks and Internet Exchanges. IAMAI's submission underlined the importance of accessible infrastructure and the role of emerging infrastructure technologies in expanding the digital economy.     India EdTech Consortium Members Form Independent Self-Regulatory Mechanism A large number of Edtech companies, which are members of the India Edtech Consortium (IEC) that functions under the aegis of Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), came together to formulate an independent and autonomous self-regulatory mechanism. The IEC members affirmed their commitment to observe and adhere to a common 'Code of Conduct' and to establish a Two-tier Grievance Redressal Mechanism. The three areas of focus for the Code of Conduct are ethical sales practices, marketing communication and robust financing mechanisms. The IEC Management Committee is led by Mr. Mayank Kumar from upGrad as the Chair and Ms. Divya Gokulnath from Byju's as the Co-Chair. Among other members of the committee are Mr. Mahesh Peri from Careers360, Mr. GV Ravishankar from Sequoia Capital and Mr. Krishna Kumar from Simplilearn.     Gift Cards & Voucher Committee Submits Representation to CBIC on GST Issues The Committee on Gift Cards and Vouchers, which has been newly formed under the aegis of Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), submitted a representation to the Central Bureau of Indirect Taxes (CBIC). In its representation the committee has sought clarification from the CBIC regarding the applicability of GST at the time of issuance and redemption of gift cards. This was the newly formed committee's first initiative.     Feedback on NITI Aayog's Digital Banks Proposal The Fintech Convergence Council (FCC) has shared detailed feedback on NITI Aayog's discussion paper, titled 'Digital Banks: A Proposal for Licensing & Regulatory Regime for India'. The discussion paper is based on inter-ministerial consultations, and has been prepared in consultation with experts in the fields of finance, technology and law. After examining the global scenario, the paper recommends a new segment of regulated entities: full-stack digital banks. It proposes a detailed architecture and sequencing reform, with the primary objective to undertake stakeholder consultations. NITI Aayog also hosted a closed-door roundtable discussion on the paper in order to exchange views and ideas on the subject.     HealthTech Committee Engages with The Health Ministry on Telemedicine Guidelines Internet and Mobile Association of India's (IAMAI) HealthTech Committee, in February, engaged extensively with the government and facilitated fruitful dialogue between the Government of India's Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and the HealthTech industry. Welcoming the government’s telemedicine guidelines, 2020, industry members shared with the government suggestions for certain amendments to the guidelines, which were required to make them more effective. Dr. L. Swasticharan, Addl. DDG and Director-EMR thanked industry members for reaching out to the government with new ideas and suggestions.     FCC and AWS Jointly Host Roundtable on Credits The Fintech Convergence Council (FCC), in association with Amazon Web Services (AWS) hosted a roundtable to discuss key trends in, as well as challenges and opportunities before organizations offering credit across India. Topics discussed at the roundtable included, how fintech solutions were resolving issues to democratise credits, major trends shaping the future of credit in India, and challenges that needed to be addressed for creating opportunities ahead.     Day-long Conference Discusses NFT Issues Threadbare NFT Forum, which functions under the aegis of Internet and Mobile Association of India (AMAI), organised a day-long virtual conference, titled NFTIndia, on February 24, 2022. Speakers from various fields, including the Non-Fungible Token (NFT) sector, Bollywood and cricket, addressed the conference. During the day, experts held 360-degree discussions on the issue. Questions such as why NFTs were valuable, why we needed them, and what were the regulatory impediments on the way of the industry's growth were discussed at length.     Day-long Conference Discusses NFT Issues Threadbare NFT Forum, which functions under the aegis of Internet and Mobile Association of India (AMAI), organised a day-long virtual conference, titled NFTIndia, on February 24, 2022. Speakers from various fields, including the Non-Fungible Token (NFT) sector, Bollywood and cricket, addressed the conference. During the day, experts held 360-degree discussions on the issue. Questions such as why NFTs were valuable, why we needed them, and what were the regulatory impediments on the way of the industry's growth were discussed at length. Among the speakers who addressed the conference were, Zaheer Khan, Former Cricketer, Shantanu Mukherjee (Shaan), Singer and Bollywood Artist, Harsh Jain, CEO, Dream 11, Om Malviya, President, Tezos India, Jaideep Reddy, Law Practice, NDA, Tarusha Mittal, COO and Co-Founder, Unifarm, Sharat Chandra, Vice President - Research and Strategy, Earth ID, Musheer Ahmed, Founder, Finstep Asia, Vishakha Singh, VP, Wazirx NFT Marketplace, Bishwarup Chakrabarti, Head Legal, Eros, Shehnaz Ahmed, Senior Resident Fellow and Lead, Fintech, Vidhi Centre, Atharva Sakharkar, Product Designer, ITSMYNE, Vikram Rangala, Chief Ohana Officer, ZebPay and Addie Wagenknecht, Director of Ecosystems, Algorand Foundation.     Affiliate Committee Sets Up New Task Force The Affiliate Committee, under the Digital Advertising Council (DAC) of Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) in February set up a task force to work on validation of performance marketing activities. The task force will create a standard operating procedure (SOP) on validating performance marketing campaigns. This apart the Affiliate committee, as part of its regular monthly activities, also conducted billing and payment process (BNPP) for affiliate members.