Five years of Reliance Jio: From disruption to data revolution

The strident opposition that met Facebook’s launch of ‘Free Basics’ in 2015 offering limited free internet – critics said it violated net neutrality — forced Mark Zuckerberg to withdraw but it has turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
 
The motive behind Free Basics was to expand the Indian market and bring the next billion online. Yet, despite the failure, Facebook’s growth has continued to an unprecedented degree.
 
Its user base in India doubled from 205 million in 2016 to 425 million now. During the same period, WhatsApp became the default messaging platform for millions of Indians;