WWW founder slams Facebook’s ‘Free Basics’ move
08 Oct 2015
Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web, has come down heavily on Internet.org or Free Basics, an initiative by Facebook that provides free access to limited websites and apps to users in developing countries.
The initiative has been widely criticized on the ground that it violates the rules of net neutrality.
In an interview with The Guardian, Berners-Lee said, people in countries where Internet.org is provided should just say no to the project.
''In the particular case of somebody who's offering … something which is branded internet, it's not internet, then you just say no. No it isn't free, no it isn't in the public domain; there are other ways of reducing the price of internet connectivity. Giving something … (only) giving people data connectivity to part of the network deliberately, I think is a step backwards'', Berners-Lee said.
Internet.org is facing severe criticism in countries where Facebook launched the project. Critics say that providing only selected websites is against the principles of net neutrality.
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg had said that discussions should be there about net neutrality, but governments should also consider new business models like Internet.org. The service was renamed as Free Basics last month.
The program provides some selected sites on health, employment and local information to over a billion people in 17 countries without data charges.
On the 800th anniversary of signing Magna Carta, Berners-Lee and the Web We Want initiative have convened to create a Magna Carta for the 21st century.
The key principles promoted by Web We Want campaign for the future of the web are freedom of expression online and offline, affordable access to the net, protection of user data and privacy, a decentralized and open infrastructure and net neutrality.
(Also See: Net neutrality not relevant to Free Basics: Zuckerberg)
