Facebook has announced that, over the coming months, it will be partnering with 18 network operators in 14 countries to provide users with free or discounted data for some of its mobile apps.
Specifically, it’ll let users of Messenger for Android and iOS, and Facebook for Every Phone (the Java app for feature phones), save money on data. Sending messages will either be free, or much cheaper, overseas. So far, Facebook has struck deals with the following carriers:
TMN in Portugal
Three in Ireland
Airtel and Reliance in India
Vivacom in Bulgaria
Backcell in Azerbaydzhan
Indosat, Smartfren, AXIS and XL Axiata in Indonesia
SMART in Philippines
DiGi in Malaysia
DTAC in Thailand
Viva in Bahrain
STC in Saudi Arabia
Oi in Brazil
Etisalat in Egypt
Tre in Italy
There’s currently no news on whether such a deal might roll out in the US—but AT&T is planning some form of “toll-free data” scheme later this year, so something could be in the works. [Facebook via Verge]
Image by west.m under Creative Commons license
