Facebook Brings Internet.org To India With Reliance Communications Partnership

Facebook has partnered with Indian Internet access company Reliance Communications to provide selected online services to India.

The move is part of Facebook’s Internet.org project which aims to connect the so far unconnected parts of the world to the Internet.

India is the world’s second-largest smartphone market. The country has a population of 1.2 billion, with around 120 million smartphone owners. There are more than 900 million people in India with a mobile subscription of some sort.

Internet.org app

The partnership will work to release the Internet.org Android mobile application and is aimed at poorer users or those in developing areas. The app offers more than 30 services, such as education information, healthcare information and job listings. Naturally, Facebook is also included in the app.

Internet.org was launched in August 2013 with the goal of “making the Internet available to every person on earth”. Last year, Tesla CEO Elon Musk is revealed his ambition of manufacturing smaller, cheaper satellites that could provide Internet access around the world. Musk is reportedly working with Greg Wyler, formerly of Google and founder of WorldVu Satellites, on the project, and the two have held talks with potential industry partners to add their expertise to the venture.

Facebook’s Internet.org services have previously been rolled in Zambia, Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania and Columbia.

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