“As of today, everyone in India nationwide can access free internet services for health, education, jobs and communication through Internet.org`s Free Basics app on the Reliance network,” Zuckerberg said.
The expansion in India follows an effort on the part of Zuckerberg to bolster the company’s relationships in India.
Activists contend that the service, because it could drive users to Facebook-provided applications, violates the principle of net neutrality, which dictates that all traffic on the Internet should be treated in the same way. That criticism has cost the company: local partners on the project dropped out after the net neutrality concerns were raised earlier this year.
Zuckerberg fought that argument at the time, saying that these “two principles — universal connectivity and net neutrality — can and must coexist.” Then, this September, he met with Indian President Narendra Modi when the leader made a swing through Silicon Valley. Zuckerberg made his own trip to India in October.
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