Jobs, News and Sports the Most Popular on Internet.org, Says Facebook

For Facebook, Mobile World Congress 2015 has been an opportunity to build bridges with carriers and spread the message about how Internet.org can help them by bringing more and more people online for the very first time. This is particularly important when you consider that Internet.org is aimed at developing markets like India, where the relationship between carriers, and the so called Over The Top (OTT) services like Facebook and others have been growing increasingly strained.

That's because the carriers say their investment in building infrastructure is being used by OTT services without proper compensation. Airtel tried launching special data charges for using VoIP services, and that's why carriers tried to lobby the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India to levy special fees on services like WhatsApp. That's also why Facebook's Internet.org, which launched in India in February with Reliance, uses a special version of Facebook Messenger that does not include the VoIP features that Messenger supports.

Chris Daniels, Vice President Product, Internet.org, met us at the sidelines of MWC in Barcelona, where he discussed the importance of providing access, and also about why Internet.org does not necessarily mean Facebook.

"Our plan all along has been to maximise access to data," says Daniels. "We launched in test markets like the Philippines and Paraguay, and based on that, I can tell you that it works. People use these free basic services, and then they use more paid mobile data too."

According to Daniels, the biggest barrier to widespread adoption is not cost, but rather, awareness. "Why are people offline?" asks Daniels. "The biggest barrier is awareness. People don't know what they will do with the Internet. Internet.org gives them a taste of the Web for free, and then they find the things that are worth using for their needs."

While the model might work for carriers and Facebook - the company revealed that there is a 40 percent increase in rate of acquisition of data customers for carriers in global test markets, and that in Columbia, total data usage has gone up by 50 percent - there are some questions it raises as well.

The most obvious elephant in the room is the question of how the sites whose free access is provided are selected. For example, why is OLX free to access on Internet.org while its competitors, such as Quikr, are not?

Daniels tells us that the selection of free access sites (there are 33 free sites for Internet.org users in India, including Facebook and Facebook Messenger) is something that emerges through a three way conversation between Facebook/ Internet.org, carriers, and the government. "The carriers and the government tell us about the different services that would make sense for the country," explains Daniels, "and we take all their inputs on board to give users what is beneficial for each country. We were very impressed with Prime Minister Modi's Digital India initiative, and there are already some e-governance services on Internet.org."

But does this selection of services just drive users to Facebook? Many Facebook users say they don't use the Internet. These are Facebook users, for whom the Internet is reduced to just the social network.

Daniels however is clear that this is not something Internet.org hopes for, and also repeats that Internet.org does not have any goals for profitability that it needs to deliver to Facebook. "I have heard about that study, but at the same time, there is a significant number of Internet.org users who don't log into Facebook," says Daniels. "The uptake for carriers has been good - we haven't shared certain numbers, but what I can tell you is that sites for jobs, for news and for sports related information have been used the most."

"If people say that they only use Facebook, I think that speaks to a larger human need," he adds, "to connect to one another. Connecting to the Internet is a means to an end, which is connecting to people."

And while Internet.org launched in India across six networks on Reliance, Daniels tells us that Facebook is working on research projects to beam access via satellite and drone, but in the meantime, it is open to working with any other carrier too. "It's all about access, and we are open to talking with anyone," he said.

Disclosure: This interview took place at the sidelines of Mobile World Congress 2015 in Barcelona. Ford sponsored the correspondent's travel and stay at Barcelona.

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