Last week
Umair Haque wrote this about Google after
Chrome's release: "Chrome is a shared resource that ensures the sustainable growth of a larger ecosystem. There are two key words in that sentence. The first is shared.
Google is investing in a shared resource because it has the potential to expand the pie dramatically for all, and so Google stands to benefit more than by hoarding it. The second is sustainable growth: through Chrome, Google ensures the ecosystem stays a level playing field, amplifying incentives for innovation, quality, and productivity." [Bolding mine]
Then this week, "Google is planning to launch a network of satellites to bring internet access to three billion people in Africa ... Google claims the new technology could cut the cost of broadband by 90 per cent for some of the world's poorest countries. " They're not alone in the deal, but they're leading the way.
Both are examples of the same kind of strategy: The kind that's forward thinking, incredibly rare (companies hate investing money in things their competitors can profit from) and can only come from a market leader (that's how they make money after all).