December 27, 2014
Service part-funded by Facebook rolled out in Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia, offering access to health, jobs and social websites.
The app allows users free access to popular websites such as the BBC and Wikipedia. Browsing local sites, such as Jamii Forums messaging board, OLX classified ads and BrighterMonday job listings, is also free. Other websites provide health advice, including Facts for Life, Totohealth, BabyCenter & MAMA, and Unicef Ebola Information.
Facebooks CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, says his firm is developing drones, satellites and lasers that can connect people to the internet: Weve made good progress so far. Over the past year, our work in the Philippines and Paraguay alone has doubled the number of people using mobile data with the operators weve partnered with, helping 3 million new people access the internet.
Access to search engines, social media and online marketplaces is essential to create businesses and jobs, the group said.
The knowledge economy is the future of the world economy and the internet is its backbone. Yet only about one out of every three people can go online. Internet.orgs goal to make access available to the remaining two-thirds of the world will bring the same opportunities available in the connected parts of the world to everyone, Internet.org said.
With the exception of Facebook, all the companies behind Internet.org are mobile phone manufacturers looking to open up markets for their handsets. Facebook plans to deploy drones that are capable of broadcasting internet connections across poorer countries as part of a strategy to expand its user base.
Source: Internet.org app gets east Africans online for free | Mark Anderson | Global development | The Guardian
Service part-funded by Facebook rolled out in Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia, offering access to health, jobs and social websites.
The app allows users free access to popular websites such as the BBC and Wikipedia. Browsing local sites, such as Jamii Forums messaging board, OLX classified ads and BrighterMonday job listings, is also free. Other websites provide health advice, including Facts for Life, Totohealth, BabyCenter & MAMA, and Unicef Ebola Information.
Facebooks CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, says his firm is developing drones, satellites and lasers that can connect people to the internet: Weve made good progress so far. Over the past year, our work in the Philippines and Paraguay alone has doubled the number of people using mobile data with the operators weve partnered with, helping 3 million new people access the internet.
Access to search engines, social media and online marketplaces is essential to create businesses and jobs, the group said.
The knowledge economy is the future of the world economy and the internet is its backbone. Yet only about one out of every three people can go online. Internet.orgs goal to make access available to the remaining two-thirds of the world will bring the same opportunities available in the connected parts of the world to everyone, Internet.org said.
With the exception of Facebook, all the companies behind Internet.org are mobile phone manufacturers looking to open up markets for their handsets. Facebook plans to deploy drones that are capable of broadcasting internet connections across poorer countries as part of a strategy to expand its user base.
Source: Internet.org app gets east Africans online for free | Mark Anderson | Global development | The Guardian