Even as the debate over net neutrality is fast becoming a major issue with all stakeholders taking sides with the DoT internal committee studying the matter and likely to finalise its findings by May 2, CEO of Bharti Airtel tells ET Now that the issue is not about net neutrality but of net equality. The present debate on net neutrality has been sparked off after Airtel offered its latest product Airtel Zero that’s been slammed by netizens for violating net neutrality.Edited excerpts:A. No I think we have always supported net neutrality, the internet is open and we believe it should be non discriminatory, transparent and we completely support net neutrality as a concept.A. All I want to ask is how is this even beginning to enter the discourse on net neutrality. The whole genesis of the entire issue is the launch of our product Airtel Zero, which is a very simple product. Toll free voice has been offered for some time now. We are making products free for customers and we are getting businesses to pay for it. Airtel Zero is an innovative platform and similar products are being offered in many parts of the world and is in fact an industry practice. The fact is if the service is free for everybody then people make their choice. I feel this is a great way to get a billion customers on the net and that it exactly what this is about. The debate has to be about net equality and not net neutrality.A. No, we stand committed to the product. We are actually disappointed by the criticism of Airtel Zero. It’s a simple product. At the end of the day if you make stuff free for the customer, it’s a great way to get more and more people on the internet. This cannot be a conversation between rich and poor, this is a conversation about trying to bridge the digital divide and get more people on the net, which is what Airtel is trying to do with the latest product.A. 60- 65% of our incremental growth comes from the growth of the mobile internet. So we love the internet ecosystem. OTT , applications and content is the reason why customers are on the internet. The incredible pace and magnitude of innovation that is happening in the internet space is something that we relish because that is driving our business growth.We wholeheartedly support the ecosystem of Over the Top apps. Infact we work with players in the internet ecosystem which includes device players, OTT companies, software providers in order to grow the ecosystem. So for us net neutrality is non-negotiable and is very important that we allow access to customers without any discrimination. All I am saying is that the nature of the conversation around a simple product that makes products free for customers is unfortunate and is being led by certain specific elements led by an agenda that do not understand what we at Airtel have done.A. We support creativity and innovation on the net. This is the reason why telecom companies are in business. Telecom companies do not do innovation themselves but support OTT companies. In fact a middle path that protects the interests of all stakeholders needs to be identified. Identifying a middle path is the only way that all parties can grow. That’s the only way data growth will continue.