Facebook drone to bring Internet to developing world
Social media giant Facebook is testing a drone capable of bringing Internet to remote parts of the world, which some are calling a cynical ploy to grow the site’s user base.
Social media giant Facebook is testing a drone capable of bringing the Internet to remote parts of the world, which some are calling a cynical ploy to grow the site’s user base.
The drone, with a wingspan of a Boeing 737, can stay airborne for 90 days at a time and offer Internet speeds of 10 gigabits per second. Designed in the UK, it will be tested in the US later this year.
Jay Parikh, vice president of global engineering and infrastructure at Facebook, said: “Our goal is to accelerate the development of a new set of technologies that can drastically change the economics of deploying Internet infrastructure.
“Our intention is not to build networks and then operate them ourselves, but rather to quickly advance the state of these technologies to the point that they become viable solutions for other partners to deploy.”
The drone is the latest initiative in Facebook’s Internet.org scheme, a project aiming to bring connectivity to the developing world. Some have called the it a cynical ploy to grow users and keep investors happy, citing the project’s rollout in India, where it offered free mobile access to only a handful of websites.
