Free Facebook internet.org all across India

A Facebook service that used to offers free internet services in some parts of India will now be available across the country, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said.

“As of today, everyone in India nationwide can access free internet services for health, education, jobs and communication through Internet.org’s Free Basics app on the Reliance network,” Zuckerberg wrote in a post.

Offered through Internet.org, a non-profit organisation, the controversial Free Basics service allows users on some wireless networks around the world to use certain services, free of charge.

“Today, nearly 1 billion people are currently without internet access in India. Now with Internet.org's Free Basics available to everyone in India, many more people … will have access to the information and opportunity the internet brings,” he said.

The service has been controversial in that proponents of net neutrality maintain that it drives customers into using Facebook-powered apps. This criticism drive some of Internet.org’s partners in India, including travel e-commerce site Cleartrip and media powerhouse NDTV to pull out of the project in April this year.

However, Zuckerberg contended then that even as he favoured net neutrality, he could disregard it if it meant giving access – however restricted – to those that have no access at all.

“I think net neutrality is important to make sure network operators don’t discriminate and limit access to services people want to use, especially in countries where most people are online. For people who are not on the Internet, though, having some connectivity and some ability to share is always much better than having no ability to connect and share at all. That’s why programs like Internet.org are important and can coexist with net-neutrality regulations,” he said in a Q&A post.

The recent move is part of Facebook’s growing India interest, which saw Zuckerberg hosting Indian President Narendra Modi at Facebook’s Silicon Valley headquarters in September, and then him taking a trip to India last month.

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