Facebook looks to provide the world with internet access

Graeme Parton +

Social media giant Facebook has outlined its plans to work in collaboration with a number of other major tech firms to provide more than five billion individuals in developing countries with internet access.

Mark Zuckerberg’s company has agreed to work with Samsung, Opera, Nokia and a number of other organisations to limit the costs associated with mobile data.

In a collective statement, the companies explained that they wanted to make it possible for those in poorer areas of the world to become involved with the online community.

The group claimed that currently, around a third of the world’s population – 2.6 billion people – have internet access, with adoption rates growing by no more than nine per cent each year.

The group is said to be focusing its plans around data efficiency – limiting the amount of data which is used to open web pages and launch applications. It said in its statement:

“Potential projects include developing data compression tools, enhancing network capabilities to more efficiently handle data, building systems to cache data efficiently and creating frameworks for apps to reduce data usage.”

Dr Michael Jennings from the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies explained that while the companies’ efforts are welcome, there are other issues in these markets which need to be addressed, such as a lack of power. He said:

“It’s something of a misnomer that the five billion aren’t connected.

“Most people have made a call or used a mobile phone, and the success of things like mobile money service M-Pesa has shown just how many people are using these things.”

No doubt the techniques which Facebook plans to use – most notably, data compression – will have a significant effect on the content produced by brands across the world. As files get smaller and data prices begin to drop, business owners and marketers may find that they’re able to provide even more immersive and engaging material for consumers.