Should India follow China in banning foreign social media apps to support its local apps, like China does?

[Rupesh]

Whether India should adopt China's approach of banning some foreign social media apps to promote local alternatives. With the recent shutdown of Indian apps like Koo and Hike Messenger, concerns arise over the dominance of global tech giants and the challenges faced by domestic platforms. Would such a policy boost India's digital ecosystem? What do you think?

 

[Anants]

Yes we could. Any affected employees could be readily absorbed in tech start ups with initial govt seed funding. But doing so US shall create export hurdles to hw for data centres and hit our service sector with tariff and sanction. So it's precisely why india has been shy of implementing hard rules wrt Data privacy or Social media.

 

[Suga]

Whether India should adopt China's approach of banning some foreign social media apps to promote local alternatives. With the recent shutdown of Indian apps like Koo and Hike Messenger, concerns arise over the dominance of global tech giants and the challenges faced by domestic platforms. Would such a policy boost India's digital ecosystem? What do you think?

Yes . We should. It not only good for our home grown industries but also for national security and narrative control

 

[shade2]

Yes we should.
But Govt fears the US response and will roll back the ban anyway assuming they have the cojones to ban in the first place

You can see the drama after "Laptop import ban" of 2023 for reference

 

[Rupesh]

Yes we should.
But Govt fears the US response and will roll back the ban anyway assuming they have the cojones to ban in the first place

You can see the drama after "Laptop import ban" of 2023 for reference

yeah but If the US can ban TikTok and other foreign apps in the name of national interest and data security, India can certainly take similar measures to protect its own digital sovereignty and promote local innovation. The argument that the government might roll back such a ban due to fear of US retaliation is valid, but it also highlights the government need for a stronger, more self-reliant approach to technology and policy-making. The laptop import ban of 2023 was a step in this direction, even though it faced backlash. It’s time to prioritize our national interests and create an ecosystem where Indian apps can thrive without being overshadowed by foreign giants. If we don’t take bold steps now, we risk remaining dependent on foreign platforms that often operate without sufficient accountability to Indian laws and values.