For the first time, on Tuesday, Facebook and Reliance Communications began making the internet available to millions of people in India through the launch of the Internet.org app and free basic services. This is the initial offering of the Internet.org app in the region. According to Internet.org, “This is a big step forward in our efforts to connect everyone to the internet, and to help people share their ideas and creativity with the entire world. We'll continue to improve the experience and roll it out to other parts of the world.” Reliance customers in six Indian states, Tamil Nadu, Mahararashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Kerala and Telangana, will now have free access to more than three dozen services ranging from news, maternal health, travel, local jobs, sports, communication, and local government information. Some of the services offered are:
* Babajob - Search for jobs * BabyCenter & MAMA - Learn about pregnancy and children * Bing Search - Find information * Facebook - Communicate with friends and family * Facts for Life - Find health and hygiene information * HungamaPlay - Listen to music * India Today - Read local news * OLX - Buy and sell products and services * Translator - Translate words and phrases
Reliance customers in India can access these services in the Internet.org Android app, at www.internet.org, from the start screen of the Opera Mini mobile web browser and using the Android app UC Browser for Internet.org. Most of the services will be available in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Gujarati and Marathi.
