Kathy Gibson reports from AfricaCom in Cape Town – Access to the Internet can help people to improve their lives and can uplift economies. But there is controversy around Internet.org’s introduction of free Internet services to previously unconnected users in Africa.
Chris Daniels, vice-president: product of Internet.org at Facebook, says research shows that the GDP of Africa could increase by 92% should everyone become connected to the Internet.
An additional 44-million new jobs could be created, while child mortality could be drastically reduced.
Currently, 2,7-bilion people around the world are connected to the Internet, which leaves well over 4,5-billion unconnected, with Africa having more than its fair share of unconnected people at 80%.
“That’s why we started internet.org,” says Daniels. “It is part of our mission to connect people who are not yet connected.”
Internet.org is a free experience that offers a simple suite of services that can help first-time users to understand the benefits of the Internet.
The controversy comes in because there’s no proof that the service will benefit the operators who offer it as a free service.
“We think it will work for operators if it brings more paying customers on to the networks,” Daniels says. “And we believe that is happening. As people understand the benefits of the Internet they are willing to pay for it.”
The services offered by Internet.org include basic information like news, access to Wikipedia; communication tools; health tools; education; and basic financial services.
Internet.org has been launched in Tanzania and Zambia, in partnership with Airtel, and will debut in Kenya next week.
Meanwhile, as users shift their social media usage to the mobile platform, Twitter believes its service could be a catalyst to drive that change.
Katie Lamper, head of sales operations at Twitter, points out that people have an inherent need to be connected. This affects not only content but behaviour as well.
“Twitter was born mobile,” she says. “And it’s live, public and conversational.”
With a goal of reaching every person on the planet, Lamper believes the medium gives people a voice.
While the high-profile use cases relate to global incidents, Lamper points out that he platform can be used to connect people in more local way, with towns and communities connecting.
With more than 1-billion tweets composed every two days, Twitter has become the single biggest collection of information.
“We can start picking up insights based on what people are tweeting,” she says. “These patterns are interesting for companies and marketers.”
Twitter has worked with Airtel in Nigeria and Ghana to bring people closer to the recent World Cup conversation. “This helped the operators get closer to their customers, but also get the customers more connected.”
In addition, the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) is using the medium to spread information and dispel disinformation about Ebola.
