Colombia becomes the first Latin America country to access Internet.org app
After internet org was launched in Zambia, Tanzania and Kenya, Facebook Inc Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg has launched the free Internet application in Colombia as part of a drive to bring developing markets online.
Colombia is the first nation in Latin America and the fourth in the world to receive the new Internet.org service, in partnership with local mobile phone provider Tigo.
In a statement posted on his Facebook page, Zuckerberg said, “I just met with the President of Colombia, Juan Manuel Santos – Presidente, and we announced the launch of Internet.org in Colombia to connect the whole country.”
He also added that only about 50% of Colombians had access to the internet and by launching the Internet.org app on the Tigo network, people will get free access to basic internet services for jobs, health, finance and communication.
“By partnering with the Colombian government, we’re also able to include e-government services for the first time, for education and agriculture,” he concluded.
The mobile app, is aimed at low income and rural users, offers more than a dozen tools via the Android operating system – like encyclopedia Wikipedia, weather websites, job listings and health information, as well as Facebook’s own social network and messaging service – without the user incurring any data charges.
Internet.org is a Facebook-led initiative with the goal of making affordable internet access available to the two thirds of the world who are not yet connected and to bring the same opportunities to everyone that the connected third of the world has today.
Facebook’s Internet.org app makes the internet more accessible through a set of free basic services – enabling people to browse useful content and websites without incurring data charges.
