Now that you are reading this article, what if I tell you that you will get a gift voucher of Rs. 500 for free from Amazon, but from now onwards anytime you shop from either Flipkart or Myntra or Jabong, you will have to pay double of the original price of the item.
Will you still be interested in taking this free Rs. 500 coupon?
This is exactly what Facebook is doing, the only difference being the second part of the deal is nowhere mentioned. There is not even teeny tiny asterisk mark along with ‘Free Basics’.
What was our first reaction when you read, ‘Get a free’?
It’s always ‘I will take it’.
Facebook knows this pretty well. And that is why it is trying to exploit our mentality of reaching out blindly for anything that is free.
As internet.org didn’t work out the way it was intended, Facebook has come up with something which is harder to reject until introspected properly.
This theory was clearly proved by the reaction of the majority of the people, which was (at least of those whose notification I saw on Facebook), ‘this is free, and that too basic internet which will solve so many basic problems, how can it be wrong, let’s support it.’ Without understanding what it is and how it can change the entire dynamics of internet, a huge section of the population supported it. Some willingly, and some without even knowing about it.
Through ‘free basics’, Facebook is trying to have a monopoly over the internet, which has been free ever since its inception. What makes internet so special and different from other mediums of mass communication like television or radio is its ability to bridge all barriers. Everyone has the right to put up information and access information.
Tim Wu, the man who came up with Internet, always supported unbiased internet usage, and now it is being challenged by policies of Mark Zuckerberg. The worst part, people are falling for the sugar coated trap set by the social networking giant.
In spite of having more than 125 million Indian subscribers, Facebook is aware that there still lies a large untapped market in India, as well as other developing countries. Through free basis, Facebook is trying to get a head start in the uncharted territory. They want to make sure that before anyone else reaches out to them, they are there and practically all doors are closed for their competitors.
They are saying that basic facilities like health and education will be provided free of cost over the internet under free basics. But the reality is those basic facilities will be provided only by a few websites who have joined hands with Facebook. And it will be irrespective of their true potential and problem solving abilities.
They are basically dividing internet into different groups by tying up with telecom companies. Those websites which are on Zuckerberg’s team will be right in the face of the people so that they can easily use it, and the others will be thrown away somewhere in the back.
For a minute, let’s forget that we are educated people with a good knowledge about the internet, and instead, think in terms of the economically backward section of society which Facebook is pretending to target through free basics.
I am a farmer, and I want to know which fertilizer is good for my barley crop. Now when I look for this information through free basics, I will only be getting access to fertilizer companies or websites which have tied up with Facebook. Since I won’t be having access to information about other fertilizers which may be cheaper and better for my crop, I will end up buying the once which is suggested by Facebook. It will not only result in the loss of the farmer, but also put all other fertilizer companies out of the race.
Let alone be other issues, Facebook is not even solving the problem which it is boasting so much about. In the name of free internet, Facebook is marching towards making the internet more expensive than ever.
I need not say more about net neutrality, you must have had enough of it already.
If you are feeling cheated after reading this article, imagine the extent to which you will be disappointed once Facebook starts exploiting your internet rights, because you agreed to it as it was presented as a free gift.
This is a huge thing, and desperate measures call for desperate actions. We had to draw your attention. So stop blindly accepting things because they are free. It’s not always the way it looks. This is a general mindset.
You can try it with your friends too. Share it with them, and see how many of them fall for it. At the end of the day, it’s all about spreading the message.
