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Facebook’s Internet.org In The Line Of Fire In Its Indian Operations
by Retta Matson Technology and Finance Writer Social media giant claims win for users and telecom operators, but the critics say that the plan is not “net neutral”Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) did not expected to face a good deal of hatred amongst its critics for its Internet.org operations in India, which has led to the troubled CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, publicly defending the program.
Facebook has touted the benefits of this corporate social responsibility program by pointing out that it is a win for users to get free Internet facilities, for telecom providers to fetch new customers who would otherwise have to purchase new data plans, and most importantly, for the social media giant to get more Facebook users from markets where Internet penetration is low and potential users are getting their first taste of the Internet. The underdeveloped markets include India, Kenya, Indonesia, etc.
However, critics, on the other hand, contend that it is “economic racism” to stand to benefit Facebook and telecom operators in the future, more than the users. They also point to the fact that Internet.org provides limited access to just a few selected sites, such as Wikipedia, Facebook, Yahoo, etc. – something that is dubbed as non-net neutrality, which is the belief that internet users should be equally treated and accessible.
In late March, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India issued a consultation paper focusing on the issue of net neutrality. The issue was primarily focused on Internet.org, and has invited mostly negative comments. In fact, those comments were so strong that Indian tech companies withdrew their services acquisition from Internet.org.
For starters, providing free Internet will be less motivating for Indian tech operators to develop an alternate social media site. Another is that the social media giant is using the so-called corporate socially responsible only to boost user growth at the expense under the guise of philanthropy.
It did not take long for CEO Mark Zuckerberg to ‘hit back’ at his critics and responded that Facebook is committed to an open market, and that the launch of Internet.org in February this year represents a step in the right direction. In response to legation of non-net neutrality claims, Facebook says that it has opened its Internet.org service to all developers early this month, which means that any developer can apply to include his/her Facebook app or website.
However, the social media giant did admit some limitations too. The internet is available on a Facebook version, instead of an IP platform, meaning that downloading of video might not be allowed due to data capacity constraints, and some of the websites and links have to pass through Facebook's censor laws.
Facebook’s stock price ended the day at $80.42, down 1.20% since yesterday.
Facebook has touted the benefits of this corporate social responsibility program by pointing out that it is a win for users to get free Internet facilities, for telecom providers to fetch new customers who would otherwise have to purchase new data plans, and most importantly, for the social media giant to get more Facebook users from markets where Internet penetration is low and potential users are getting their first taste of the Internet. The underdeveloped markets include India, Kenya, Indonesia, etc.
However, critics, on the other hand, contend that it is “economic racism” to stand to benefit Facebook and telecom operators in the future, more than the users. They also point to the fact that Internet.org provides limited access to just a few selected sites, such as Wikipedia, Facebook, Yahoo, etc. – something that is dubbed as non-net neutrality, which is the belief that internet users should be equally treated and accessible.
In late March, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India issued a consultation paper focusing on the issue of net neutrality. The issue was primarily focused on Internet.org, and has invited mostly negative comments. In fact, those comments were so strong that Indian tech companies withdrew their services acquisition from Internet.org.
For starters, providing free Internet will be less motivating for Indian tech operators to develop an alternate social media site. Another is that the social media giant is using the so-called corporate socially responsible only to boost user growth at the expense under the guise of philanthropy.
It did not take long for CEO Mark Zuckerberg to ‘hit back’ at his critics and responded that Facebook is committed to an open market, and that the launch of Internet.org in February this year represents a step in the right direction. In response to legation of non-net neutrality claims, Facebook says that it has opened its Internet.org service to all developers early this month, which means that any developer can apply to include his/her Facebook app or website.
However, the social media giant did admit some limitations too. The internet is available on a Facebook version, instead of an IP platform, meaning that downloading of video might not be allowed due to data capacity constraints, and some of the websites and links have to pass through Facebook's censor laws.
Facebook’s stock price ended the day at $80.42, down 1.20% since yesterday.
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About Retta Matson 
Technology and Finance Writer
37 connections, 0 recommendations, 102 honor points.Joined APSense since, March 19th, 2015, From South Brentwood Blvd, United States.
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