“Over the a year ago Facebook has been exploring ways to use aircraft and satellites to beam internet access down into communities from the sky”, he said in aFacebook post. Facebook says it will work with “local partners” across Africa to help deliver services, using both satellite and terrestrial capacity.
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But in an open letter sent in May, 67 online rights’ groups said the project threatened freedom of expression, privacy and the principle of net neutrality – the idea that all data is treated equally online – because only selected services could take advantage of it. The initiative has reached regions like India and South Africa, as well as countries in Asia like the Philippines.
But unmentioned in Zuckerberg’s announcement was the fact that the currently-under-construction satellite, the AMOS-6, will be built by Israel Aerospace Industries.
Governments will be able to use the surge in access to bring better services to people in rural areas: health and social services, education facilities and development capacity.
A partnership with French-based Eutelsat will see Facebook get shared access to the satellite.
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“Facebook’s mission is to connect the world and we believe that satellites will play an important role in addressing the significant barriers that exist in connecting the people of Africa”, said Chris Daniels, VP of Internet.org. It plans to provide free access to 14 African countries including Nigeria, Tanzania and the Ivory Coast. Eutelsat will expand its paid broadband connections in the region for businesses and well-off individuals. This is a technology initiative aimed at bringing the internet to billions of people around the world who can not afford-many of whom live in direly impoverished parts of the planet like sub-Saharan Africa. The app was recently renamed “Free Basics by Facebook” in an attempt to distance it from other Internet.org projects. Zuckerberg also states how the launch is just one in a series of missions that he has planned with Internet.org to “connect millions of people”.
