Microsoft Corporation has launched a new fund to cultivate companies with solutions that bring affordable Internet access to underserved markets.
The fund is part of Microsoft’s Affordable Access Initiative, which invests in new last-mile access technologies, cloud-based services and applications, and business models that can reduce the cost of Internet access and help more people affordably get online.
“Today there are approximately four billion people globally without Internet access,” said Peggy Johnson, Executive Vice President of Business Development at Microsoft. “The ability to close that gap is more achievable than ever with technology that is readily available and affordable in many parts of the world. Through this fund, we hope to kick-start the entrepreneurial process by identifying promising ideas that we can help nurture, grow and scale.”