iWorld
Airtel launches ‘Airtel Zero’
MUMBAI: Bharti Airtel, has announced the launch of ‘Airtel Zero’ – an open marketing platform that will allow customers to access mobile applications at zero data charges. Akin to the established concept of toll-free voice calling, ‘Airtel Zero’ will allow everyone from big marketers to small-time application developers to make parts or their entire mobile app free for customers – thus reviving interest of dormant customers, attracting new potential users and increasing retention. The platform will be a big win for customers as it will allow them to access their favourite mobile applications at no data charges, and also encourage them to try out new applications.
“We are excited to launch ‘Airtel Zero’, which is an open and non-discriminatory marketing platform for all developers in India – irrespective of the size of their business. We believe that this platform is consistent with India’s Digital Inclusion agenda and also contributes to the government’s ‘Make in India’ vision by providing a platform to millions of small businesses to reach out to the end consumer,” said Srini Gopalan, Director – Consumer Business, Bharti Airtel (India).
Specifically, ‘Airtel Zero’ can work as a highly efficient marketing mechanism for small developers or startup shops that face budget constraints towards driving promotions and app downloads. “The results of our pilot program indicate that ‘Airtel Zero’ can deliver the same results as traditional digital marketing channels at 1/3rdthe cost – thus underscoring the immense value it can deliver for developers across. Following an extremely successful pilot phase, we are seeing a lot of interest from businesses across the board (including several small startup firms), and expect a large number of applications to sign on. We invite all application developers to register their interest in ‘Airtel Zero’ and see the compelling reach it can deliver to Airtel’s 200 million plus customers across India” added Gopalan.
iWorld
UK races towards under-16 social-media ban and tighter leash on AI chatbots
Ministers eye Australian-style curbs within months, vowing to close loopholes that expose children to risky AI and online harms
UK: Britain is sprinting towards a social-media ban for under-16s and a clampdown on AI chatbots, as ministers scramble to get ahead of fast-moving digital risks to children.
An Australian-style prohibition on under-16s using social platforms could arrive as early as this year. At the same time, the government wants to shut a loophole that leaves some AI chatbots outside existing safety rules.
Keir Starmer’s government launched a consultation last month on banning social media for under-16s and is now working on legislative changes that could land within months of the consultation closing.
The push comes amid a broader international shift. Spain, Greece and Slovenia are exploring similar bans after Australia became the first country to block social-media access for under-16s. Scrutiny of AI has intensified since Elon Musk’s flagship chatbot, Grok, was found to be generating non-consensual sexualised images.
Britain’s 2023 Online Safety Act is among the world’s toughest regimes, yet it does not cover one-to-one interactions with AI chatbots unless content is shared with other users. That gap, Liz Kendall said, will be closed.
“I am concerned about these AI chatbots… as is the prime minister, about the impact that’s having on children and young people,” Kendall told Times Radio. Some children, she said, were forming one-to-one relationships with AI systems “that were not designed with child safety in mind.”
Proposals will be set out before June. Tech firms, Kendall said, would be responsible for ensuring their systems comply with British law.
Ministers are also consulting on automatic data-preservation orders when a child dies, allowing investigators to secure vital online evidence — a measure long sought by bereaved families. Other ideas include curbs on “stranger pairing” on gaming consoles and blocks on sending or receiving nude images. The changes would come as amendments to crime and child-protection laws now before parliament.
The child-safety drive is not without friction. Such rules can have knock-on effects for adults’ privacy and access to services, and have already stirred tensions with the United States over free speech and regulatory overreach.
Some large pornography sites have chosen to block British users rather than conduct age checks. Those blocks are easily sidestepped with virtual private networks, which the government is considering restricting for minors.
Many parents and safety advocates favour a ban. Yet some child-protection groups fear it could push harmful behaviour into darker, less regulated corners of the internet or create a sharp cliff edge at 16. Ministers still need to define, in law, what counts as social media before any ban bites.
The direction of travel, though, is clear: faster rules, fewer loopholes, and a shrinking tolerance for digital wild west. For tech firms and teenagers alike, Britain’s online free ride looks set to end at speed.
