Question: Recently Google has announce to launch “Project Loon” for Internet services in India it was launched by Google as a pilot project in which country?
(a) Australia
(b) New Zealand
(c) Russia
(d) Brazil
Ans (b)
Related facts:
- On 16 December 2015, Speaking at the “Google for India” event, the company’s CEO Sundar Pichai announced to launch pilot project of the “Project Loon”.
- Project Loon began with a pilot test in June 2013 in New Zealand’s South Island and in second phase it was expanded to New Zealand, California (the US) and Brazil.
- It is planned to launch in Indonesia and Srilanka before India by the Google.
- In India Google has offered partnership to the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) for this project.
- The Government of India in December 2015, allowed for the trial phase of this project.
- Earlier Department of communications and IT had expressed his doubts that Google’s Project Loon will interfere with cellular transmissions of mobile operators in India.
- Project Loon is a research and development project being developed by Google X with the mission of providing Internet access to rural and remote areas.
- Loon’s balloon envelopes are made from sheets of polyethylene plastic, and they measure fifteen meters wide by twelve meters tall when fully inflated Helium-filled balloons travel approximately 20 km above the Earth’s surface in the stratosphere.
- Each balloon can provide connectivity to a ground area of about 40 km in diameter using a wireless communications technology called 4G(LTE)
- It may be noted that in terms of internet usages India ranks second in the world after China.
- Through this project, Google in October 2015 announced to providing free WiFi to 400 railway stations of India using Rail wire network.
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