Decrypt: Can India drive Web 3 via policy?

CHENNAI: The future is world of Web 3. India has missed the Web 1 and 2 bus but this is our chance to take pole position in the space the world is talking about - Web 3 - a brand-new internet where data is secure, private, and only shared with people who “need to know.”

Now, not only do I think we are going to board the bus but we are going to drive it firmly into the future, not just become a powerhouse, but set the pace for a new Web 3 policy.

Western influence was predominant during this time and Web 1 and Web 2 phases of the internet and were driven by western narrative at the time of its inception. India lacked the economic or consumption weight to take part in the development of policies relating to internet governance and the potential of the internet.

India can take a lead here as standards and protocols for the blockchain still need to be established in order to speed up its commercial adoption.

Governments have experienced a mix of legitimate worries and anxieties stemming from a fear of “losing political authority.” Emerging digital technologies’ intrusiveness, which could put the State’s sovereignty to the test, consumer data misuse, privacy concerns, and any bias in the algorithms that could influence unfair means are some of the problems with a safe society that plague policymakers and in this digital age, policymakers do not have the luxury of time to build rules around emergent technology with a status quo mentality.

I believe, India has the chance to choose if it wants to sit at the head of the international table and choose the standards, protocols, and policy ideas surrounding Web3 that the rest of the world will adopt and this is where decision-making and policy-thinking need to move quickly.

In contrast to Indian crypto policy discussion, which has dragged on for a long time without a resolution. We continue to be concerned about Web 3 applications like NFT and crypto tokens as they raise concerns about licencing, operating in a global market, tax issues, IP concerns, residency, issues with treating these as financial assets and related securities laws, money laundering, issues and how to treat these assets in the event of geopolitical economic sanctions. Concerns with Metaverse also center on these entities’ governing structures and how their intellectual property would be handled. Additionally, the often used End User License Agreement (EULA) will raise questions about the national jurisdictions in which they are enforceable. More critically, privacy issues are still a problem for both legislators and this industry.

According to a NASSCOM report, the Indian Web 3 sector might add more than 8 lakh new jobs by the year 2030. Industry analysts are concerned that this could be hampered by unclear regulations and a lack of aggressive policy development for Web 3. Indian Web 3 business owners have already begun relocating to Dubai and Singapore, which provide superior regulatory environments for setting up and growing such companies.

India may be a significant leader in the Web 3 economy if we can define what we want as a country from technology and take part in global policy discussions. We have the intellect and talent, but we now need to highlight our policymaking prowess. Web 3 policies would be a key component of the Indian trust-based policy thrust. Because Web 3 can now serve as our strategic economic moat for the digital economy of the twenty-first century.​

(The writer is Founder, India Blockchain Alliance)