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"OUR GOAL IS TO CONNECT THE WORLD"
Facebook began in 2004 as an online social networking service for students at Harvard University. Since then, it has grown into a global enterprise worth over $200 billion, with more than 1 billion active users. In July 2014, the company launched Internet.org, with telecom and other industry partners, in an effort to broaden access to the Web and develop more efficient and cheaper technology. In a recent e-mail conversation with AQ editors, Javier Olivan, Facebook's vice president of growth, described how the initiative is faring in Latin America, and why greater connectivity in the region still remains a challenge.
AMERICAS QUARTERLY: How will Internet.org change the lives of users in Latin America and elsewhere? Where are you seeing the biggest gaps in usage?
JAVIER OLIVAN: We've rolled out free basic services to more than 500 million people around the world, and the results are encouraging: Nearly 7 million people are connected who previously weren't. Nine out of 10 people in the world live within range of a data-capable 2G or 3G network, but only a little more than a third of the world's population accesses the Internet. This tells us that for many people, the barriers to connectivity are economic and social. Many just can't afford data, especially those at the bottom of the pyramid-or, even if they could, many of those people don't know why they would want the Internet.
If we can find ways to give people free access to basic services like messaging, Wikipedia, search engines, and social networks, it will allow people to experience the Internet and understand why it's valuable for them. That's why we launched the Internet.org app. With this app, people can browse a set of useful health, employment and local information services without data charges. By providing free basic services via the app, we hope to bring more people online and help them discover valuable services they might not have known about otherwise.
AQ: Where does Facebook see the highest growth potential for connectivity in our region?
JO: There is plenty of room for growth across Latin America. Take, for instance, the three biggest nations in the region: Brazil, Mexico and Argentina. Of a combined population of 365 million...