With the government’s new IT (Intermediary) Rules coming into force from May 25, Google has assured commitment to comply with the guidelines laid down by the Ministry of Electronics & IT even as several social media platforms have expressed reservations in some form or the other. Backing the government’s bid to ‘scrutinize and adopt the regulatory framework,’ Google’s CEO Sundar Pichai asserted that the multinational Internet & technology company respects the local laws and complies with government requests, which is also highlighted in the firm’s transparency reports.
“It’s obviously early days and our local teams are very engaged… we always respect local laws in every country we operate in and we work constructively. We have clear transparency reports, when we comply with government requests, we highlight that in our transparency reports,” Google CEO Sundar Pichai said in a virtual conference with select reporters from the Asia Pacific on Thursday.
Google CEO said the company respects the legislative processes, and in cases where it needs to push back, it does so. “It’s a balance we have struck around the world,” he added.
“So, we fully expect governments rightfully to both scrutinize and adopt regulatory frameworks. Be it Europe with copyright directive or India with information regulation etc, we see it as a natural part of societies figuring out how to govern and adapt themselves in this technology-intensive world,” Pichai said, adding that Google engages constructively with regulators around the world, and participates in these processes.
It is to be noted that Pichai’s comments come at a time when Twitter and WhatsApp has claims that the new IT Rules violate freedom of expression and the right to privacy.
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