Facebook launches Internet.org in India where it will be available in six states. People from these states can gain access to free basic Internet services that revolve around education, health, jobs and communication.
It was in late 2014 when Facebook hosted the first Internet.org Summit in India's capital city of New Delhi. The discussion focused on addressing Internet barriers and how India's more than a billion people can have Internet access and become connected.
That dream is now a reality through the partnership of Facebook with Reliance Communications, an Anil Ambani-owned company that currently has around 60 million subscribers of its non-data services. The free Internet service aims to entice such customers to become data services subscribers.
"More than a billion people in India don't have access to the Internet," said Mark Zuckerberg in Facebook. "That means they can't enjoy the same opportunities many of us take for granted, and the entire world is robbed of their ideas and creativity. Today's announcement is just one step towards changing that. People on the Reliance network in the states of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Kerala and Telangana will now have free data access to more than three dozen services."
Together with the announcement, Zuckerberg also posted a "groupie" taken from his visit at the northern Indian village of Chandauli in October 2014. He said that only recently the village was connected to the Internet for the very first time.
Apart from India, Internet.org is now available in Ghana, Colombia, Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia. Other Internet services that are being made accessible range from sports, travel, maternal health, news and local government information. Internet users can access these services through an Android app, the start screen found in the Opera's Mini browser and the UC Browser app from UCWeb.
The Internet.org project is made up of three parts. These are the Internet.org app, which provides the free Internet service; the innovation lab, which is handled by the app developers; and the connectivity lab, which incorporates the use of satellites, lasers and high-altitude drones.
Some Facebook users have also commented on the page. While many expressed gratitude to Zuckerberg, there were also others who suggested that maybe he could also bring Internet.org to their respective countries. These include Pakistan and Bangladesh.
"One day, we will connect everyone, and the power of the Internet will serve every community across India and the world. That day is coming," said Zuckerberg.
