in Focus MEITY Technical workshop on fostering a responsible synthetic media ecosystem On February 27, 2024, nasscom held a closed-door technical workshop for the Government of India on the theme of minimising user harms from the use of AI, with a specific focus on synthetic media. Nasscom hosted several industry experts who presented on the state of the technology on detecting malicious synthetic media and on content provenance initiatives. We were joined in the discussions by academics and by officials from MEITY, DOT, and the office of the Principal Scientific Adviser.

SUBMISSIONS AND REPRESENTATIONS Karnataka Government Feedback on the new cab-fare structure We submitted feedback to Karnataka Government asking them to review the newly notified cab fares for Bengaluru region. We highlighted the concern changes in cab-fare structure are not compatible with the business model of app-based taxi aggregators and would ultimately result in poor outcomes for aggregators, drivers, and riders. Read More RBI Feedback on the draft SRO Framework We submitted feedback on the draft SRO framework for regulated entities of the RBI. Our feedback focussed on suggesting that: (1) functions of SRO should not overlap with regulator or industry associations, (2) SRO being set-up as a non-profit company should be a mandated only after an in-principle approval by RBI and (3) the membership criteria should be unambiguous. Read More

DIALOGUE & DISCUSSION Competition Roundtable on regulating competition in digital markets We conducted a roundtable with IPCIDE and ADBI to discuss the possible solutions to effectively address competition harms in digital markets. This involved sharing experience of regulatory approaches in countries like Europe, South Africa, and Brazil. In the Indian context, one clear takeaway was the need to strengthen enforcement capacity of CCI to improve effectiveness of ex-post investigation. Also, views were exchanged on whether India needs a new law to regulate competition concerns in digital markets. GST Roundtable on Building a brand-new GST Appellate Tribunal We conducted a roundtable along with DAKSH to deliberate upon the operational aspects of GST Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT), the transition plan and the institutional structure when GST starts functioning. GSTAT presents a unique opportunity to build a completely online dispute resolution system that can significantly ease doing business and resolve tax disputes. Some of the initiatives taken by the government to formulate and operationalise the GSTAT like setting up of state benches, rules for appointment of president and members of GSTAT, etc. were also discussed. The session was attended by the key stakeholders from Government, industry, legal practitioners, and policy researchers. Export Controls Discussion with Head of Secretariat, Wassenaar Arrangement On February 6, 2023, we participated in an interaction with the Head of the Secretariat of the Wassenaar Arrangement facilitated by the Ministry of External Affairs. India was mentioned as a key contributor to discussions at the WA. The WA Head of State mentioned that he looks forward to proposals and non-papers led by India to strengthen the multilateral export control regime. Read More Data centres Virtual roundtable on data centres in GIFT IFSC On February 22, 2024, IFSCA in partnership with nasscom and ASSOCHAM held a virtual roundtable on the theme of promotion of data centres in the GIFT IFSC. Nasscom steered the open discussion session and facilitated an industry consultation between the IFSCA and various firms on how to make GIFT IFSCA a preferred destination for data centre businesses. MEITY The DPDPA and Engaging Data Processors & Third-Party Service Providers At a webinar hosted in partnership with Deloitte, we discussed key considerations that should inform third-party risk management and the allocation of roles as data fiduciaries and data processors between organizations as they work towards complying with the DPDPA. The experts highlighted several best practices for both data fiduciaries and data processors, including in terms of the contracts that they will need to enter into to ensure compliance. NEW & UPCOMING Startups & MSMEs Workshops on IPR filing and government procurement: for start-ups and MSMEs On March 13, 2024, we are conducting 2 workshops on the following topics: (1) Patents for start-ups and MSMEs: filing process, common challenges and commercialisation; and (2) Procurement from start-ups and MSMEs: understanding the GeM portal, key features, and processes. For more information or registration, write to garima@nasscom.in .

OTHER UPDATES Govt. of Karnataka Kannada Language Comprehensive Development (Amendment) Act of 2024 The Karnataka Government has notified the Kannada Language Comprehensive Development (Amendment) Act of 2024 on February 26, after it was passed in both the State Legislative Assembly and the State Legislative Council. The Act mandates that establishments (like, commercial, industrial, business undertakings, hotels, trusts, counseling centers, hospitals, etc.) ensure their nameboards display 60% of their content in Kannada, prominently placed in the upper half of the nameboard. Read More MOCI Clarification on creating a separate category of rights under IPR regime for AI-generated content On February 09, 2024, the Minister of State, the MOCI, in response to a parliamentary question in Rajya Sabha, clarified that, at present, there is no proposal to create any separate IP right for AI-generated content. On the question of using copyrighted works to create AI-generated content, the response stated that users of Generative AI are required to obtain the permission of the rights holder if such use is not covered under the fair dealing exception of the Copyright Act. Read More Parliament of India Standing Committee Report on the actions taken by MEITY on citizen data security and privacy The fifty-fifth report of the SCCIT was presented in the Parliament on February 08, 2024. In their report, the SCCIT recommends that MEITY (1) expediate the process of formulating rules under the DPDPA, and ensure such rules are simple and are easy to understand and administer (2) develop a mechanism to prevent the exceptions under the DPDPA from becoming the norm; and (3) complete the formulation of the Digital India Bill for public consultation. The report also notes that MEITY is to roll out amendments to the Information Technology Act of 2000 to ensure coherence with the DPDPA. Read More Ministry of Personnel Public Grievances and Pensions Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024 The Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act has come into force from February 12, 2024. The Act places several obligations on service providers that are engaged by public examination authorities to conduct examinations. As per the Act, service providers are required to report any incidence of unfair means or commission of other offences to the relevant police authorities and public examination authorities. For offences committed by service providers, both civil and criminal penalties are prescribed under the Act. Read More RBI Principle-Based Framework for Authentication of Digital Payment Transactions On February 08, 2024, during the Bi-Monthly Monetary Policy Statement, the RBI Governor has proposed to put in place a principle-based framework for authentication of digital payment transactions. The Statement noted that while RBI has not specified any mechanism for securing digital payments, SMS-based OTP have become popular. The RBI has now proposed to put in place a principle-based framework to facilitate the adoption of alternative authentication mechanisms that have emerged in the recent years. Read More WTO The Ministerial Decision related to extension of customs moratorium On March 1, 2024, at the 13th Ministerial Conference of the WTO, member countries decided to continue not imposing customs duties on electronic transmissions until the next Ministerial Conference or March 31, 2026, whichever is earlier. The decision also refers to holding periodic reviews on the e-commerce Work Programme and present recommendations for action to the Ministerial Conference. Read More

List of Acronyms ADBI Asian Development Bank Institute CBDT Central Board of Direct Taxes CoSS Code on Social Security DEI Diversity Equity Inclusion DGFT Director General of Foreign Trade DOT Department of Telecommunications DPDPA Digital Personal Data Protection Act DTA Domestic Tariff Area GST Goods and Services Tax IFSCA International Financial Services Centres Authority IPCIDE ICRIER-Prosus Centre for Internet and Digital Economy IPR Intellectual Property Rights IT Information Technology IT Rules The Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 MCA Ministry of Corporate Affairs MEITY Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology MIB Ministry of Information and Broadcasting MOF Ministry of Finance MOCI Ministry of Commerce and Industry MSME Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises RBI Reserve Bank of India R&D Research and Development SCCIT Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology SRO Self Regulatory Organisation WTO World Trade Organisation

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