Only a fifth of the adult population in India can access the Internet, a considerably low rate in this digital age.
The country has few public Wi-Fi hotspots and poor and rural areas typically do not have the necessary infrastructure that could provide fast broadband connection to people.
The country’s richest man, Mukesh Ambani, hopes to change this and make the internet more accessible with a $20 billion mobile network that would offers free 4G internet to one billion people.
Consumers in India already celebrate the arrival of the billionaire’s new mobile network service Reliance Jio, which promised to provide download speeds that would enable video streaming at rock bottom prices.
The 4G network, which went live on Monday, reaches more than 80 percent of the country and made generous introductory offers such as free use of Jio until the end of 2016. Those who wish to continue using the service after this period would have to pay as little as 149 rupees or $2.25 per month for data.
If Ambani’s network succeeds, millions of Indians would be online in the coming years likely via smartphone.
Other tech giants were also keen in making the internet more available for Indians. Search engine giant Google, for instance, has installed free Wi-Fi at train stations across the country. Social networking site Facebook, on the other hand, tried to offer a free version of its service to users in India.
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