Facebook and Google unveil new efforts to tap into the 'unconnected' population (FB, GOOGL)

The companies new partnerships support their respective connectivity initiatives: Facebooks Express Wi-Fi is aimed at providing affordable internet access to rural areas of developing markets through partnerships with mobile operators and internet service providers (ISPs), while Google Station works with partners to provide free Wi-Fi connections at railroads, universities, and other public areas.

Heres the latest on Facebooks and Googles efforts to tap into the unconnected population: Approximately 4billionpeople globally or around half of the global population are without internet access.

Facebooks forging ahead to extend public Wi-Fi to more regions and to make deployments at scale easier.Facebook added CellC in South Africa, Vodafone in Ghana, and Globe in the Philippines as new partners launching Express Wi-Fi. It also partnered with Nokia, Aruba, and Edgecore Networks to build hardware and software powering Express Wi-Fi. And lastly, Cambium Networks is adding Facebooks self-organizing mesh access (SOMA) tech to its Wi-Fi products to make Wi-Fi network deployments easier.
Google Station and Cisco are teaming up to enable sustainable public Wi-Fi access to communities with limited connectivity.Cisco partnered with Google Station to offer it networking technology, finance capabilities, and global reach to scale Wi-Fi access.

Facebook and Google arent operating out of purely altruistic tendencies, though. Becoming the first point of contact for the unconnected in developing markets is a large part of their growth strategies.Over time, as infrastructure and internet connectivity reach these disparate locations, tech companies will be able to monetize these users.

Moreover, by reaching communities that are otherwise unconnected ahead of the rest of the market, Facebook and Google are likely hoping to capture mindshare, thereby encouraging loyalty to their platforms in the years to come.