On Tue, Oct 16, 2012 at 12:33 AM, Sarah <slimvir...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Apologies if this is a stupid question, but I don't understand the > need for a partnership between the Wikipedia Foundation and the Saudi > Telecom Company (STC). > > If STC wants not to charge its customers for accessing Wikipedia, in > what way does it need the help of the Foundation to achieve that? Hi Sarah The partnership is part of a larger initiative[1] - the page provides a list of countries and carriers where this partnership exists, it includes, Orange, in Kenya, Niger, Uganda, Ivory Coast, Telenor in Monte Negro, dtac in Thailand and now STC is KSA. The partnership with the telecom companies provides free access through either Wikipedia Zero or mobile Wikipedia in different languages to millions of users who might not have access to these services. The listed page mentions that the partnership does not involve any financial deal to provide this access. I'm not aware of the particulars but the partnership might have just focused on providing some technical help and a point of interaction to facilitate the deal. It's a good deal considering millions of people get free access, who would have had limited access and use of Wikipedia before. It was part of the focus for the Global Development department and WMF, to provide better access in these countries in the developing world, under the previously-used and inappropriate title of "Global South". Regards Theo [1] https://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Mobile_partnerships#Where_is_Wikipedia_free_to_access.3F _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l
