The Google Station has made its debut with the launch in
Lagos, to provide free high speed Wireless Fidelity (Wifi) to millions of
Nigerians, reports ITRealms.
This came at the second Google for Nigeria event hosted at Landmark Event Centre, Lagos, which the firm used to unveil a number of big announcements aimed at helping more people in Nigeria, and across Africa, benefit from the opportunities the web has to offer.
In a bid to make the internet more easily accessible to
people in Nigeria, Google is launching Google Station for Nigeria: a program to
provide high quality, high-speed Wi-Fi hotspots in partnership with 21st
Century, one of the largest fibre network providers in Nigeria.
“Google Station will be rolling out in 200 locations in five
cities across Nigeria by the end of 2019, bringing Wi-Fi to millions of
people,” says Google Nigeria Country Director, Juliet Ehimuan-Chiazor. “Sites
include markets, transport hubs, shopping malls, universities, and more.
Nigeria is the fifth country to get Google Station, after India, Indonesia,
Thailand and Mexico.”
Google is also making search more powerful for ordinary
Africans. Job search launched in March in South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya, and
is now rolling out in 29 new countries. In Nigeria, Google is launching a
search experience that allows users to explore health conditions based on
symptoms, as well as recipe search for anyone who needs a little food
inspiration.
StreetView’s Discover Nigeria gallery has been expanded to
include more of Nigeria’s wonders including the National Museum in Lagos, Olumo
Rock in Abeokuta, Millenium Park in Abuja, and Lekki Conservation Centre.
Additionally, Google announced the
update of several products from its “Go” initiative, which were launched in the
past year. The Go product suite aims to give people with low bandwidth
connections and low-RAM devices the best possible Google experience. These new
features include:
Google Go: will soon read web pages out loud and highlight
each word so users can follow along.
YouTube Go: users will be able to browse downloaded YouTube
Go videos, saved as .yt files, right from the gallery on their phones.
Google Maps Go: will now provide users with turn-by-turn
directions, whether they’re travelling by car, by bus or on foot.
Android Go: Launched in Nigeria and 29 other African
countries earlier this year, the Go OS gives people coming online for the first
time a powerful and reliable smartphone experience. Across Africa, Transsion,
Nokia, Huawei, and Mobicel have launched various devices, starting at just over
17,000 Naira.
Chuks Egbune/GEE
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