Netizens want Orkut & Hi5 resurrected as Twitter & others face compliance wrangles

Amidst speculation that social networking sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter may fact action in India over iffy compliance with the government's new IT laws, people on social media recalled good times on social media forerunners like Orkut and Hi5. The development comes after the government of India has served an ultimatum to various social networking platforms for not complying with the rules put in place by the Centre, the deadline for which has now been reached. Earlier, sources had even indicated a 'ceasing of operations' if platforms like Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and others do not comply with the new set of rules. The three-month deadline given by the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MEITy) to accept these guidelines ended on May 25 but none of the giants had accepted the new regulations, with Facebook only thus far saying it intends to comply.

Orkut trends amidst doubts over Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter

Following this report, people on Twitter turned nostalgic and started sharing their memories of Google's now-defunct social networking site Orkut. Some called Orkut the best ever social media site, while some shared how Orkut connected them with their life partners. 

This is what netizens have to say:

Orkut was launched on January 22, 2004 by Google. Orkut Büyükkökten, a Turkish software engineer, developed it as an independent project while working at Google. While previously working for Affinity Engines, he had developed a similar system, InCircle, intended for use by university alumni groups. Orkut was one of the most visited websites in India and Brazil in 2008. However, the social networking site started losing its shine as other social networking sites including Facebook started getting prominence. On June 30, 2014, Google announced it would be closing Orkut on September 30, 2014. 

Facebook and Google Assure Compliance With Centre's New IT Rules

After Facebook assured the Government of India it would comply with the new set of rules, Google on Wednesday also assured that it will comply with the rules drafted by the Centre. The technology giant also asserted that it will continue to build on its existing approaches and keep the policies as transparent as possible. This comes as the new IT rules come into effect from Wednesday. In addition, Google also cited the company's 'long history' of managing content as per the local laws to assure the Indian government of its efforts to ensure legal compliance. 

Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code 

The Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021 were framed by the Centre on February 25 in exercise of powers under section 87 (2) of the Information Technology Act, 2000 and in supersession of the earlier Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules 2011. The rules came into effect from May 26. The new rules put forth by the Centre demanded a grievance redressal system for over the top (OTT) and digital platforms in the country. 

India's Minister of Electronics and Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad during his press briefing had stated that the government of India welcomes criticism and the right to dissent. However, he also asserted that a forum was needed to raise issues against the misuse of social media.

(Image Credits: @Rajnish1Midas/Twitter/Shutterstock)