Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook, today announced the launch of…a global partnership with the goal of making internet access available to the next 5 billion people…In order to achieve its goal of connecting the two-thirds of the world who are not yet online, internet.org will focus on three key challenges in developing countries…making access affordable…using data more efficiently, and…helping business drive access.
This is a good development for the next five billion. It is also a good long game strategy, if you are a tech company targeting the next 5 billion.
Facebook, Ericsson, MediaTek, Nokia, Opera, Qualcomm, Samsung and other partners will build on existing partnerships while exploring new ways to collaborate to solve these problems.
Google and Microsoft’s absence from this line-up, considering that they are involved in direct accessibility efforts via white spaces and more, not some indirect paper partnership (hopefully it’s much more), is conspicuous.
Technology Leaders Launch Partnership to Make Internet Access Available to AllMENLO PARK, CA, — Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook, today announced the launch of internet.org, a global partnership with the goal of making internet access available to the next 5 billion people. “Everything Facebook has done has been about giving all people around the world the power to connect,” Zuckerberg said.
