Facebook In Talks To Provide Free Internet To US

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According to anonymous sources, Facebook is in talks with the government to offer a version of Free Basics in the US. I can't imagine many of the large internet / cellular service providers going for this but you never know.

The social media giant is trying to determine how to roll out its program, known as Free Basics, in the United States without triggering the regulatory scrutiny that effectively killed a version of the app in India earlier this year. If Facebook succeeds with its U.S. agenda for Free Basics — which has not been previously reported — it would mark a major victory for the company as it seeks to connect millions more to the Web, and to its own platform.
 
Cool. Remember Juno dialup back in the old days? Free dialup sponsored by ads. Pain in the ass, but it worked for a lot of people.

It'd be nice, even if it was 256Kb or so per user. Just minimum to check email and very light browsing (job applications, homework, etc.). Even 1Mbps would be good.

I'd definitely like to see this happen. Not fast enough for Netflix and all that, but good enough to do basic things.
 
I'm already a bit apprehensive using Google services, I'm even more concerned about Facebook. You would be paying Facebook in the currency of demographics, would that data be scrubbed of personally identifiable information? Mmmm, maybe.

Ur_Mom said:
Cool. Remember Juno dialup back in the old days? Free dialup sponsored by ads. Pain in the ass, but it worked for a lot of people.

It'd be nice, even if it was 256Kb or so per user. Just minimum to check email and very light browsing (job applications, homework, etc.). Even 1Mbps would be good.

I'd definitely like to see this happen. Not fast enough for Netflix and all that, but good enough to do basic things.
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I used Juno for e-mail, you would type your message in their application, it would dial up, send/receive, and then disconnect; didn't know that they had an internet service.
 
Ur_Mom said:
Cool. Remember Juno dialup back in the old days? Free dialup sponsored by ads. Pain in the ass, but it worked for a lot of people.

It'd be nice, even if it was 256Kb or so per user. Just minimum to check email and very light browsing (job applications, homework, etc.). Even 1Mbps would be good.

I'd definitely like to see this happen. Not fast enough for Netflix and all that, but good enough to do basic things.
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This. I used Juno while going through college and being a young independent adult. I actually still use my juno email account for some stuff.

I was very great full for the service back. And I wasn't on welfare.
 
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Juno and NetZero both had Free dial-up. It connected using their program which was similar to AOL's dialer. Only it kept the ads on display at all times above everything else. I remember "hacking" it to get around using their dialer so you didn't have to worry about the ads. Only did this for gaming as the ads would ruin the experience. (couldn't see most of the action)

I support a company doing this. As long as it's not Tax Payers paying for it.
 
westrock2000 said:
This. I used Juno while going through college and being a young independent adult. I actually still use my juno email account for some stuff.

I was very great full for the service back. And I wasn't on welfare.
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Internet access was quite limited/expensive back in the AOL days compared to what it is now, and you had to tie up a phone line to use it (Dial-up). $30-60 a month gets you Internet today, or you can use public WiFi that's pretty much available anywhere.
 
Internet was $20 a month back then from many providers (back when there were actually multiple ISP's in a city).

If you are low on income and have to choose between home internet or cell phone service, you take the cell phone obviously. This lets you also get home internet without additional cost. Facebook will spy on you just as much as Juno and NetZero were back then. We know it now, we knew it then.

I don't see the hate for this.
 
Taking conspiracy theories into account, the "at odds" problem here is that the government wants people to use Facebook/Twitter so they can easily track them. But getting people on the internet is what opens their eyes to new ideas and viewpoints not shown to them through traditional media. The Internet is at the same time the greatest spy tool to government while being the biggest threat to government.
 
westrock2000 said:
Internet was $20 a month back then from many providers (back when there were actually multiple ISP's in a city).

If you are low on income and have to choose between home internet or cell phone service, you take the cell phone obviously. This lets you also get home internet without additional cost. Facebook will spy on you just as much as Juno and NetZero were back then. We know it now, we knew it then.

I don't see the hate for this.
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I don't remember an assumption or discussion that they (juno / netzero) spied on you. It was about how annoying ads were.
 
Well sure, of course they are. When you own the network, you can collect any and all data at all - no matter the laws in the land.

This isn't about "free" service.

This is about data mining, and nothing more.
 
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Frobozz said:
I don't remember an assumption or discussion that they (juno / netzero) spied on you. It was about how annoying ads were.
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Well, they were monetizing you. That's all most companies want to do. Targeted advertising.

Wikipedia said:
NetZero's model was free Internet access to attract an audience for highly targeted advertising. The ad serving technology has over nine patents and NetZero was the first company to invent real-time URL targeted advertising based on surfing patterns under US patent 6,366,298 Monitoring of Individual Internet Usage.
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So... this means the feds would officially own the book-face and all the personal data people plaster all over it. I can definitely see this ending well...
 
atp1916 said:
Well sure, of course they are. When you own the network, you can collect any and all data at all - no matter the laws in the land.

This isn't about "free" service.

This is about data mining, and nothing more.
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What about all the data mining Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Apple and everyone else is already doing? It's rather arbitrary to call this particular one out without talking about all of it.
 
Ur_Mom said:
Cool. Remember Juno dialup back in the old days? Free dialup sponsored by ads. Pain in the ass, but it worked for a lot of people.

It'd be nice, even if it was 256Kb or so per user. Just minimum to check email and very light browsing (job applications, homework, etc.). Even 1Mbps would be good.

I'd definitely like to see this happen. Not fast enough for Netflix and all that, but good enough to do basic things.
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My ISP caps me at 64kbps if I exceed my monthly quota.
 
Streiw said:
If you can't afford Internet, you have bigger problems to worry about. I'm looking at you, welfare leeches.
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wow. so if you are poor or just strapped for cash and need to make a decision between internet and I dont know...food/clothing/shelter/transportation? you are a welfare leech...even if you arent on welfare. got it. must be nice up there, eh?
 
The people I knew with free dial up always had trouble connecting. Where I live we couldn't use any of them because all the numbers to use were long distance.
 
Hi! We are partnering with major ISPs to provide free Internet!

YAY!

We're just taking ownership of every bit and byte of traffic you generate!

Huh?

And we'll be using it to create a better experience by creating hyper-targeted ads!

Yeah, fuck that, I'm outta here.

Plus, for national security, we'll be sharing unanonymized data with the US government ...

Okay, where'd I put my minigun?
 
maademperor said:
wow. so if you are poor or just strapped for cash and need to make a decision between internet and I dont know...food/clothing/shelter/transportation? you are a welfare leech...even if you arent on welfare. got it. must be nice up there, eh?
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You know what I'm sick of? Apologists like you that think that it's okay for multiple generations of families to sit on their asses, do drugs all day and collect money for contributing absolutely zero to society. It sickens me that people are okay with tax dollars going towards this shit. Are there people that legitimately need assistance? Sure. But it should be assistance, not fucking support for a lifetime.
 
htpc_user said:
The people I knew with free dial up always had trouble connecting. Where I live we couldn't use any of them because all the numbers to use were long distance.
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When I first gone onto the "internet" (not BBS's, etc.), I was dialing into Chicago, then Seattle. At least we had those "10 cents a minute!" deals from Sprint or AT&T or whoever it was we were with at the time for home phone. We had 2 lines (one for home, one for gun business). I was always on that home line. I eventually got cut off because I was only working minimum was in high school and in 93/94 it was $4.25 or something.... :/
 
Streiw said:
You know what I'm sick of? Apologists like you that think that it's okay for multiple generations of families to sit on their asses, do drugs all day and collect money for contributing absolutely zero to society. It sickens me that people are okay with tax dollars going towards this shit. Are there people that legitimately need assistance? Sure. But it should be assistance, not fucking support for a lifetime.
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Ha ha:

Him: What about working poor people NOT on welfare?
You: I am so sick of you defending people on welfare who don't work.

Communication!
 
My parents and I were sent cease and desist letters for bypassing their ads. Oops lol. Man was that a while ago
 
tetris42 said:
Ha ha:

Him: What about working poor people NOT on welfare?
You: I am so sick of you defending people on welfare who don't work.

Communication!
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Welfare comes in more forms than just Food Stamps. Getting 3-4k back per child on a tax return when you're making ~20k a year is asinine. Idiocracy at it's finest.
 
Streiw said:
Welfare comes in more forms than just Food Stamps. Getting 3-4k back per child on a tax return when you're making ~20k a year is asinine. Idiocracy at it's finest.
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Its the government investing in a future possible taxpayer from which they will get >20x their ROI.
 
Streiw said:
Yeah, at the expense of people that make more money and are responsible with their procreation.
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If I could legally make you give me money to invest in stocks to which I could benefit from, I would totally do it too! :p
 
Streiw said:
If you can't afford Internet, you have bigger problems to worry about. I'm looking at you, welfare leeches.
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While I generally agree with you, at the same time we no longer live in a world where you can get a decent paying job that has a legitimate chance at getting someone off welfare without internet. Nor do we live in a world where the library is close enough to be a reasonable alternative to many. So while I generally dislike programs that give things away that aren't necessary to live, The internet is no longer not a need in modern society.
 
Mark is a genious! the internet.org thing was brilliant idea. Many people who don't have access to the Internet deserves it, sometimes its finding people with skills that needs our help. They should also come up with free over the air wifi (that is not like public resto/shopping mall kinda wifi, but better), cause providers are charging too much for so little bandwidth limits.
 
Dekoth-E- said:
While I generally agree with you, at the same time we no longer live in a world where you can get a decent paying job that has a legitimate chance at getting someone off welfare without internet. Nor do we live in a world where the library is close enough to be a reasonable alternative to many. So while I generally dislike programs that give things away that aren't necessary to live, The internet is no longer not a need in modern society.
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Sure, but the whole hand out mentality is what is keeping these people in poverty. How do I know? I grew up poor as shit and busted my ass to get to where I am today. If I could do it, there's no reason others can't do it. I've had my share of shit jobs, and you best believe I used that as motivation to get into a career that allows me to be self sufficient.

It just chaps my ass because when people are given free stuff constantly, they become lazier. When in actuality, they should be able to better themselves with the amount of money they are saving with cheap rent, free food, and free health/child care.
 
Streiw said:
Sure, but the whole hand out mentality is what is keeping these people in poverty. How do I know? I grew up poor as shit and busted my ass to get to where I am today. If I could do it, there's no reason others can't do it. I've had my share of shit jobs, and you best believe I used that as motivation to get into a career that allows me to be self sufficient.

It just chaps my ass because when people are given free stuff constantly, they become lazier. When in actuality, they should be able to better themselves with the amount of money they are saving with cheap rent, free food, and free health/child care.
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Honestly, just because you did it does not actually mean everyone can. I've seen parents let their children starve almost to death because the handouts stopped. There really is no black and white answer to the problem. Some people really will just never have a career or make something of themselves, should we as a 1st world country, just let them die? Of course we can help them and they can surf the free living wave all they can, but hell, if they are buying things, it really is generating tax money anyways. All money has to do is change hands to be of use in the country. I don't know the solution myself but generalizing that they are all lazy losers, or all full of ambition is ignorant either direction. I see lazy people in companies that will fire hard workers or just mooch off the job, are they really better people?

There really should be a tier based income. Losing everything when you get a job paying less than welfare, is dumb. makes you want to stay on welfare.
 
Streiw said:
You know what I'm sick of? Apologists like you that think that it's okay for multiple generations of families to sit on their asses, do drugs all day and collect money for contributing absolutely zero to society. It sickens me that people are okay with tax dollars going towards this shit. Are there people that legitimately need assistance? Sure. But it should be assistance, not fucking support for a lifetime.
Click to expand...

While I can understand your frustration to a degree, the factors that contribute to poverty are complicated, and only in part, are explained through self determination. Structural inequality (which most often manifests itself as lack of access to amenities to things like internet, good public schools, social services etc) serves to perpetuate inequality. So yes, you get generations of people who "sit on their ass", but I'm more interested in the question of what has lead to these circumstances?

Denying poor access to the internet on the premise that their lazy does nothing to ammeliorate poverty - if anything, it exacerbates it. You need to be investing in the communities if you hope to achieve transformative change that will positively affect subsequent generations.

Much of my own research (I'm a prof at a local university in Toronto), explores how socioeconomic inequality manifests itself in issues surrounding access to public goods. What I can tell you from first hand experience, is that if your a 5 year old, living in the "ghetto", the chances of social mobility and success are limited, regardless of personal gumption and work ethic. Go to a public school in Detroid, and you will feel sick. These kids are being "educated" in places that look like they were pulled from the pages of some dystopian nightmare. They are handicapped from the get go - the only positive examples of affluence they see in their communities are among drug dealers.

Invest in these communities, in our education system, and you will see what these kids are capable of. I believe with all of my heart that if you give a kid three square meals a day, a stable home and a decent public school, they will go on to achieve greatness.
 
Streiw said:
Sure, but the whole hand out mentality is what is keeping these people in poverty. How do I know? I grew up poor as shit and busted my ass to get to where I am today. If I could do it, there's no reason others can't do it. I've had my share of shit jobs, and you best believe I used that as motivation to get into a career that allows me to be self sufficient.

It just chaps my ass because when people are given free stuff constantly, they become lazier. When in actuality, they should be able to better themselves with the amount of money they are saving with cheap rent, free food, and free health/child care.
Click to expand...
There's cases on all sides is the thing. There are people like you're describing who will just sit on their ass and do nothing. There are others who try to get out, but can't because they don't have all the advantages you did (didn't have to support family, had serious medical conditions, etc.). The thing is though, the slack-ass-do-nothings are the MINORITY. Do you realize the majority of welfare recipients are already working?

Get a Job? Most Welfare Recipients Already Have One

They're less visible though, because they're cooking your burgers rather than sitting on their doorstep drinking beer.
 
tetris42 said:
There's cases on all sides is the thing. There are people like you're describing who will just sit on their ass and do nothing. There are others who try to get out, but can't because they don't have all the advantages you did (didn't have to support family, had serious medical conditions, etc.). The thing is though, the slack-ass-do-nothings are the MINORITY. Do you realize the majority of welfare recipients are already working?

Get a Job? Most Welfare Recipients Already Have One

They're less visible though, because they're cooking your burgers rather than sitting on their doorstep drinking beer.
Click to expand...


They're quite visible. They're the asshats that are demanding to be paid $15/h to flip burgers at McDonald's.
 
Look can we please make a welfare thread and let this just be about internet...
 
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