This week marks the one-year anniversary of the introduction of the Internet.org app in its first country, Zambia.
Over the past 12 months we’ve worked closely with more than a dozen mobile operators across 17 countries to give people access to relevant basic internet services without data charges, and today Internet.org is available to more than a billion people.
By providing people with access to free basic services through Internet.org, our goal was to bring more people online and help them discover the value of the internet — and it’s working.
Internet.org brings new users onto mobile networks on average over 50% faster after launching free basic services, and more than half of the people who come online through Internet.org are paying for data and accessing the internet within the first 30 days. These points show that Internet.org is not only a successful tool in helping bring people online, but it is successful in showing people the value of the internet and helping to accelerate its adoption.
As we approach year two, we’ve taken everything we’ve learned from working closely with our partners and are now ready to scale Internet.org free basic services. We’ve made it easier for any mobile operator to turn on Internet.org in new countries through a partner portal that includes technical tools and best practices, improving the process to offer free basic services to the unconnected. New operator partners can get started at www.internet.org/operators.
With our recently announced Internet.org Platform, we’ve also made it easy for any developer to create services that integrate with Internet.org. Our goal is to work with as many mobile operators and developers as possible to extend the benefits of connectivity to diverse, local communities around the world.
In the past month people using Internet.org accessed health services more than a million times, which speaks to the ultimate goal of Internet.org — helping to make an impact in people’s lives.
We look forward to working in partnership with more mobile operators and developers to bring internet access and relevant basic internet services to the unconnected.