Telecommunications provider, Orange and the Wikimedia Foundation have announced a partnership that will grant over 70 million subscribers of the mobile network free access to Wikipedia.
The companies say the partnership will provide Orange customers in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) with mobile access to Wikipedia without incurring data usage charges. They add that the initiative will be gradually introduced throughout 2012 across 20 MEA countries in which Orange operates.
The latest partnership follows a tie-up between the two companies in 2009 to expand the reach of Wikimedia's projects through channels on Orange mobile and Web portals in Europe.
According to the Wikimedia Foundation, this latest initiative is part of its mobile strategy, which aims to reach the billions of people around the world who access the Internet solely through mobile devices. "This partnership with Orange will enable millions of people to read Wikipedia, who previously couldn't,” says Sue Gardner, executive director of the Wikimedia Foundation.
Arthur Goldstuck, MD of World Wide Worx, says the venture has real value as it makes a valuable resource more readily available. He explains that people who cannot afford data, but have data-enabled phones, will have access to the useful site without having to buy data bundles.
Goldstuck also points out that Wikipedia is a powerful Web site, as illustrated by the effect of its recent protest against US anti-piracy legislation. He adds that Wikipedia is among the 10 most visited sites in SA.
Orange has networks in a number of African countries, including Botswana, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Niger, Senegal, Tunisia and Uganda.
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