History of Internet in Timeline

The Internet is a global network of interconnected computer networks communicating via TCP/IP. It's a network of networks encompassing private, public, academic, business, and government entities, linked through various electronic, wireless, and optical technologies. The Internet supports a wide array of services and resources, including the World Wide Web, email, internet telephony, and file sharing, facilitating global communication and information access.

1945: Use of the word 'Internet' in a War Department manual

In 1945, the word 'Internet' was used by the United States War Department in a radio operator's manual.

1965: Packet Switching Research at the UK's National Physical Laboratory

In 1965, Donald Davies at the United Kingdom's National Physical Laboratory (NPL) independently began research into packet switching, one of the fundamental Internet technologies.

1967: Symposium on Operating Systems Principles influences ARPANET design

After the Symposium on Operating Systems Principles in 1967, packet switching and routing concepts were incorporated into the design of the ARPANET.

October 1969: ARPANET Development Begins

On October 29, 1969, ARPANET development began with two interconnected network nodes between the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and the Stanford Research Institute (now SRI International).

1971: ARPANET expands to 15 sites

By the end of 1971, 15 sites were connected to the young ARPANET.

1972: Computer Networks: The Heralds of Resource Sharing

In 1972, the early years of ARPANET were documented in the film Computer Networks: The Heralds of Resource Sharing.

1973: International ARPANET Connections

In 1973, connections were made to Norway (NORSAR and NDRE) and to Peter Kirstein's research group at University College London (UCL), forming the first internetwork for resource sharing.

1974: Publication of "A Protocol for Packet Network Intercommunication"

In 1974, Vint Cerf and Bob Kahn published a proposal for "A Protocol for Packet Network Intercommunication", using the term 'internet' as a shorthand for internetwork.

1974: Internet as shorthand for Internetwork

In 1974, the word Internet was used as the shorthand form of Internetwork.

1981: IPv4 Designed

In 1981, Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) was designed to address up to approximately 4.3 billion hosts.

1981: ARPANET access expanded with NSF's CSNET

In 1981, access to the ARPANET was expanded when the National Science Foundation (NSF) funded the Computer Science Network (CSNET).

1982: Standardization of the Internet Protocol Suite (TCP/IP)

In 1982, the Internet Protocol Suite (TCP/IP) was standardized, facilitating worldwide proliferation of interconnected networks.

1986: NSFNet provides access to supercomputer sites

In 1986, the National Science Foundation Network (NSFNet) provided access to supercomputer sites in the United States for researchers, first at speeds of 56 kbit/s.

1988: NSFNet expands internationally

In 1988, the NSFNet expanded into academic and research organizations in Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Japan.

1989: Emergence of Commercial Internet Service Providers

In 1989, Commercial Internet service providers (ISPs) emerged in the United States and Australia.

1989: MCI Mail and Compuserve Connect to the Internet

In mid-1989, MCI Mail and Compuserve established connections to the Internet, delivering email and public access products.

January 1990: PSInet Launches Alternate Internet Backbone

On January 1, 1990, PSInet launched an alternate Internet backbone for commercial use.

March 1990: High-Speed Link Between NSFNET and Europe

In March 1990, the first high-speed T1 (1.5 Mbit/s) link between the NSFNET and Europe was installed between Cornell University and CERN.

1990: Decommissioning of the ARPANET

In 1990, the ARPANET was decommissioned.

1990: Tim Berners-Lee writes WorldWideWeb

Later in 1990, Tim Berners-Lee began writing WorldWideWeb, the first web browser, and by Christmas 1990, he had built all the tools necessary for a working Web.

1991: Commercial Internet eXchange Founded

In 1991, the Commercial Internet eXchange was founded, allowing PSInet to communicate with CERFnet and Alternet.

1992: Internet Society (ISOC) Founded

In 1992, the Internet Society (ISOC) was founded with a mission to assure the open development, evolution and use of the Internet for the benefit of all people throughout the world.

1993: Internet Carries 1% of Two-Way Telecommunication Information

In 1993, the Internet carried only 1% of the information flowing through two-way telecommunication.

October 1994: Stanford Federal Credit Union offers online Internet banking

In October 1994, Stanford Federal Credit Union was the first financial institution to offer online Internet banking services to its members.

1995: Internet Fully Commercialized in the U.S.

By 1995, the Internet was fully commercialized in the U.S. when the NSFNet was decommissioned, removing the last restrictions on use of the Internet to carry commercial traffic.

1995: Significant Impact on Culture and Commerce

Since 1995, the Internet has tremendously impacted culture and commerce, including the rise of near-instant communication and the World Wide Web.

1996: OP Financial Group becomes first online bank in Europe

In 1996, OP Financial Group became the first online bank in Europe.

1998: IPv6 Standardized

In 1998, IPv6 was standardized, utilizing 128 bits for the IP address and providing vastly larger addressing capabilities and more efficient routing of Internet traffic.

2000: Internet Carries 51% of Two-Way Telecommunication Information

By 2000, the Internet carried 51% of the information flowing through two-way telecommunication.

2000: Global Internet Users Reach 390 Million

In 2000, the number of Internet users globally rose to 390 million.

2001: IPv6 Address Specification

The IPv6 address specification 2001 includes a large address block with 2 addresses, having a 32-bit routing prefix, as specified in 2001.

2003: Cyberslacking Statistics

According to a 2003 study by Peninsula Business Services, the average UK employee spent 57 minutes a day surfing the Web while at work, representing a drain on corporate resources.

2004: Howard Dean's Presidential Campaign

In 2004, Howard Dean's presidential campaign in the United States became notable for its success in soliciting donations via the Internet.

February 2005: YouTube Founded

YouTube was founded on February 15, 2005, becoming the leading website for free streaming video.

November 2005: Establishment of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF)

On November 16, 2005, the United Nations-sponsored World Summit on the Information Society in Tunis established the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) to discuss Internet-related issues.

2005: Kiva Pioneered Peer-to-Peer Lending for Charitable Purposes

In 2005, Kiva pioneered the concept of peer-to-peer lending for charitable purposes, offering the first web-based service to publish individual loan profiles for funding.

2005: Gender Differences in Internet Usage in the US

In a US study in 2005, men and women had nearly equal Internet usage, though men logged on more often and spent more time online. Men were more likely to pay bills and download music/videos, while women favored communication via email.

November 2006: Internet Included on USA Today's New Seven Wonders List

In November 2006, the Internet was included on USA Today's list of the New Seven Wonders.

2007: Internet Carries 97% of Two-Way Telecommunication Information

By 2007, more than 97% of all telecommunicated information was carried over the Internet.

2008: Submarine Cable Disruption

In 2008, disruptions of submarine communications cables caused blackouts or slowdowns to large areas, highlighting the vulnerability of internet infrastructure.

2008: Gender Distribution on Social Networking Services

In 2008, women significantly outnumbered men on most social networking services like Facebook and Myspace, though the ratios varied with age.

2009: Global Internet Users Reach 1.9 Billion

By 2009, the number of Internet users globally had risen from 390 million to 1.9 billion.

2010: Internet Usage Statistics

By 2010, 22% of the world's population had access to computers, with 1 billion Google searches conducted every day and 2 billion videos viewed daily on YouTube.

March 2011: Estimated Number of Internet Users

As of March 2011, the estimated total number of Internet users was 2.095 billion (30% of world population).

2011: Internet Advertising Revenues Surpass Cable TV in the US

In 2011, Internet advertising revenues in the United States surpassed those of cable television and nearly exceeded those of broadcast television.

2011: Estimate of Internet's Overall Energy Usage

In 2011, academic researchers estimated the overall energy used by the Internet to be between 170 and 307 GW, less than two percent of the energy used by humanity. This estimate included the energy needed to build, operate, and periodically replace the estimated 750 million laptops, a billion smart phones and 100 million servers worldwide as well as the energy that routers, cell towers, optical switches, Wi-Fi transmitters and cloud storage devices use when transmitting Internet traffic.

2011: Internet Blackouts and Censorship

In 2011, an Internet blackout in Egypt, where approximately 93% of networks were without access, occurred as a form of Internet censorship to stop mobilization for anti-government protests. Also in 2011, a woman digging for scrap metal severed most connectivity for the nation of Armenia.

2011: IPv4 Address Exhaustion Enters Final Stage

In 2011, the global IPv4 address allocation pool was exhausted, marking the final stage of IPv4 address exhaustion due to the Internet's explosive growth.

2012: Mobile Subscriptions and Internet Usage Growth

In 2012, mobile cellular subscriptions reached 3.9 billion, and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) reported that 34% of individual users connected to the Internet regularly.

2013: Report on Employment by Brick-and-Mortar Retailers

A 2013 Institute for Local Self-Reliance report indicated that brick-and-mortar retailers employ 47 people for every $10 million in sales, while Amazon employs only 14.

2013: Worldwide E-commerce Size

According to International Data Corporation, the size of worldwide e-commerce, when global business-to-business and -consumer transactions are combined, equated to $16 trillion for 2013.

2014: Internet's Electricity Usage Controversy

In 2014, a peer-reviewed research paper highlighted the controversy surrounding estimates of the Internet's electricity usage, revealing claims in literature that differed by a factor of 20,000 over the preceding decade. The discrepancies were attributed to the year of reference and whether end devices were included in the analysis.

2014: Valuation of Airbnb Compared to Hilton Worldwide

In 2014, the 700-employee room rental start-up Airbnb was valued at $10 billion, about half as much as Hilton Worldwide, which employs 152,000 people.

2014: World's Internet Users Surpass 3 Billion

In 2014, the world's Internet users surpassed 3 billion, representing 44 percent of the world population.

October 2016: Mobile and Tablet Internet Usage Exceeds Desktop Worldwide

In October 2016, Internet usage by mobile and tablet devices exceeded desktop worldwide for the first time.

October 2016: IANA stewardship transition

On October 1, 2016, the IANA stewardship transition occurred, transferring final approval over changes to the DNS root zone from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to the Internet community.

2016: Malware Variants Doubled by 2017

By 2017, malware variants doubled compared to 2016 according to Symantec's 2018 Internet Security Threat Report (ISTR).

2016: AP Stylebook recommends lowercase "internet" and Oxford English Dictionary study

In 2016, the AP Stylebook recommended the lowercase form of "internet" in every case. Also in 2016, the Oxford English Dictionary found that "Internet" was capitalized in 54% of cases.

2016: Increase in Mobile Cellular Subscriptions

In 2016, the number of unique mobile cellular subscriptions increased to 4.8 billion, representing two-thirds of the world's population, with the majority in Asia and the Pacific.

2017: Internet's Impact on Mental Health

A 2017 book claimed that the Internet consolidates human endeavors, leading to negative impacts on mental health due to increased competition and pervasive visibility of successes by a few.

2017: ITU Estimates 48% of Individuals Regularly Connect to the Internet

In 2017, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) estimated that 48% of individual users regularly connected to the Internet, a rise from 34% in 2012.

2017: Increase in Malware Variants

In 2017, the number of malware variants increased to 669,947,865, as reported by Symantec's 2018 Internet Security Threat Report (ISTR).

2018: Symantec's Report on Malware Variants

According to Symantec's 2018 Internet Security Threat Report (ISTR), the number of malware variants increased to 669,947,865 in 2017, twice as many as in 2016.

2018: 4G Network Coverage Reaches 80% of World Population

As of 2018, 80% of the world's population was covered by a 4G network, indicating the expansion of mobile internet infrastructure.

2018: Asia Accounts for 51% of Internet Users

By 2018, Asia accounted for 51% of all Internet users, with 2.2 billion out of the 4.3 billion Internet users in the world, and China had 802 million users.

2018: The Shift Project Study on CO2 Emissions

In 2018, a non-peer-reviewed study published by The Shift Project indicated that nearly 4% of global CO2 emissions could be attributed to global data transfer and the necessary infrastructure. The study also found that online video streaming alone accounted for 60% of this data transfer, contributing to over 300 million tons of CO2 emission per year. The study argued for new "digital sobriety" regulations restricting the use and size of video files.

2019: Highest Internet Penetration Rates in 2019

In 2019, Kuwait, Qatar, the Falkland Islands, Bermuda, and Iceland had the highest Internet penetration by the number of users, with 93% or more of the population having access.

2020: Predicted Rise in Mobile Subscriptions

In 2020, the number of mobile subscriptions was predicted to rise to 5.7 billion users worldwide.

2021: Predicted Cost of Cybercrime

In 2021, cybercrime, including malware attacks, was predicted to cost the world economy US$6 trillion, increasing at a rate of 15% per year.

2022: Global Internet User Statistics

In 2022, it was estimated that 5.4 billion people used the Internet, representing more than two-thirds of the world's population, with 54% based in Asia.