All you need to know about internet.org, net neutrality and Facebook profile picture row

What is Facebook's internet.org? What has it got to do with net neutrality? What is the controversy around Facebook display picture with tricolour filter all about?

Mark Zuckerberg

What is Facebook's internet.org?

 "Connectivity can't just be a privilege for some of the rich and powerful. It needs to be something that everyone shares and an opportunity for everyone." - Mark Zuckerberg, Founder Chairman and CEO of Facebook. 

Facebook, the social networking platform that stands for connecting people globally, seems to be extending this vision by offering internet connectivity to those who can't afford it. What seems more like a philanthropic project by Zuckerberg and his Facebook was flagged off on August 20, 2013. He pitches internet connectivity and affordable internet services as a basic human right.

But before getting into what Internet.Org is, you should know about net neutrality.

What is Net Neutrality?

1) All content available on the internet is equal and all websites must be equally accessible to everyone.

2) Once you pay for an internet plan, you should be allowed to access any website you want, without discrimination or restriction.

3) No matter which telecom operator is providing you internet services, you should be able to access all date on the internet at the same speed.

Here's a video of All India Bakchod explaining net neutrality

What has internet.org got to do with net neutrality?

What Zuckerberg's internet.org (in collaboration with Reliance Communications, which means only Reliance users are eligible) offer is 'free access' only to Facebook with a few partnering platforms, which basically means internet.org is a project to get people on Facebook than provide internet access. This very restriction of access, letting users use only Facebook and those 50 odd affiliates, is a villain to net neutrality in disguise. It means those companies who pay Reliance communications more will be made available to users who use internet.org and those who choose not to will be inaccessible.
Breaking down, internet.org will force telecom operators to lobby against net neutrality.

What is the Facebook tricolour filter display picture controversy?

As a gesture to offer his support PM Narendra Modi's Digital India programme and vision, Zuckerberg made possible a tool with which people can put a tricolour filter for their Facebook display pictures. Zuckerberg changed his display picture, followed by Narendra Modi himself.
The tricolour filter that took Facebook by storm, after the famous rainbow filter Facebook provided to celebrate the historic ruling by the Supreme Court of the United States of America legalizing gay marriages, also made some people frown.

Why?

The source code of the tool enabling tricolour filter had the word internet.org and articles surfaced stating this and linking it to Zuckerberg's idea to indirectly make people support internet.org.

Whoever masks their profile picture with the filter is considered to have voted for internet.org, many articles said.

Is it true?

Facebook has come out with a clarification on Tuesday. "There is absolutely no connection between updating your profile picture for 'Digital India' and Internet.org. An engineer by mistake used the words 'Internet.org profile picture' as a shorthand name he chose for part of the code," a Facebook spokesperson said.

Many ethical hackers have come out against this rumour stating 'internetorgprofilepicture' is just a class name used in the code, and it might have been to indicate 'original profile picture' and the 'pride avatar' could be a reference to the earlier used rainbow filter for LGBTQ ruling.

It is true that Facebook uses data to study online human behaviour as they had come out with a finding when people masked their profile pictures with rainbow filter saying majority of users did it due to peer pressure and not because they believed in the cause.

So, it is quite probable that Facebook used the tricolour filter to see the response and behaviour of Indians towards Digital India, and indirectly to internet.org.