Facebook’s founder Mark Zuckerberg expressed has disappointment with the decision banning differential pricing of data services, which makes Facebook’s Free Basics illegal in the country.
Advertisement
The “Free Basics” project was launched in India by Facebook – in collaboration with Reliance Communications – in November 2015.
Facebook’s attempt to provide free access to a selection of websites in developing countries was dealt a blow today when India’s telecom regulator banned arrangements that charge different amounts for access to different parts of the Internet.
Based on the responses received and the internal deliberations, the authority has now issued these regulations which are aimed at ensuring that consumers get an unhindered and non-discriminatory access to the internet.
But this program began a target for critics quickly, who were saying it was an effort by Facebook to steer new users to the social network and the other services that the company was running. And according to him, it is very important to bring all these people online.
The decision of the new regulation was revealed by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). Once it resumed Facebook embarked on a $45m promotional spree for Free Basics in newspaper ads and on billboards. A regulator just poured cold water on Mark Zuckerberg’s ambitious plan to connect everybody in the world. We are all disappointed that people in India won’t be able to take advantage of Free Basics – but glad that our other work with Internet.org continues.
“The people that reside in cities and therefore are competitive users of the web said: “You cannot order the conditions, give free net to villagers and then tell them how to use it”, he said.
Zuckerberg has acknowledged Facebook’s business would benefit from gaining more users around the world, but he’s also argued that Internet access is a powerful tool for economic development and improving lives in low-income regions.
Advertisement
Many people in India have opposed the service, claiming that by controlling and dictating what internet services users can access, Facebook is going against net neutrality – the idea that internet service providers should treat all users and data the same.
