History of Internet in Timeline

The Internet is a global network of interconnected computer networks using TCP/IP to facilitate communication. Comprising private, public, academic, business, and government networks, it spans local to global scales and uses various electronic, wireless, and optical technologies. The Internet supports diverse information resources and services, notably the World Wide Web (WWW), email, internet telephony, and file sharing, enabling widespread access to information and communication.

1945: Internet Terminology in US 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 started research into packet switching, a fundamental Internet technology.

1967: Symposium on Operating Systems Principles influences ARPANET design

After the Symposium on Operating Systems Principles in 1967, packet switching from the proposed NPL network and routing concepts proposed by Baran were incorporated into the design of the ARPANET.

October 1969: First ARPANET Nodes Interconnected

On October 29, 1969, the 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: 15 Sites Connected to ARPANET

By the end of 1971, 15 sites were connected to the ARPANET, indicating early growth and expansion.

1972: Computer Networks: The Heralds of Resource Sharing Documentary

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

1973: International Connections to ARPANET Established

In 1973, international connections to the ARPANET 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: Proposal for Packet Network Intercommunication Published

In 1974, Vint Cerf and Bob Kahn published a proposal for "A Protocol for Packet Network Intercommunication". Cerf and his students used the term 'internet' as a shorthand for internetwork in RFC 675.

1974: Internet as shorthand of Internetwork

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

1981: IPv4 design to address hosts

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

1981: ARPANET Access Expanded with NSF Funding for CSNET

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

1982: Internet Protocol Suite (TCP/IP) Standardized

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

1986: NSFNet Provided Access to Supercomputer Sites

In 1986, the National Science Foundation Network (NSFNet) provided access to supercomputer sites in the United States for researchers.

1988: NSFNet Expanded to Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Japan

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

1989: Commercial Internet Service Providers (ISPs) Emerged

In 1989, commercial Internet service providers (ISPs) emerged in the United States and Australia, marking a step toward commercialization.

1989: MCI Mail and Compuserve Established Connections to the Internet

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

January 1990: PSInet Launched Alternate Internet Backbone

On January 1, 1990, PSInet launched an alternate Internet backbone for commercial use, contributing to the commercial Internet's core.

March 1990: First High-Speed T1 Link Installed 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, enhancing communications.

1990: ARPANET Decommissioned

In 1990, the ARPANET was decommissioned, marking the end of its service as the Internet continued to evolve.

1990: Tim Berners-Lee began writing WorldWideWeb

Later in 1990, Tim Berners-Lee began writing WorldWideWeb, the first web browser, after two years of lobbying CERN management. By Christmas 1990, Berners-Lee had built all the tools necessary for a working Web.

1991: Commercial Internet eXchange Founded

In 1991, the Commercial Internet eXchange was founded, facilitating communication between commercial networks like PSInet, 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.

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

It is estimated that 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 became the first financial institution to offer online Internet banking services to all 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 restrictions on commercial traffic.

1995: The Internet Impacts Culture and Commerce

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

1996: OP Financial Group Offers Online Banking

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

1998: IPv6 Standardized

In 1998, IPv6, which uses 128 bits for the IP address, was standardized, offering larger addressing capabilities and more efficient routing of Internet traffic.

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

By 2000 this figure had grown to 51%, and by 2007 more than 97% of all telecommunicated information was carried over the Internet.

2000: Internet Users Globally

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

2001: Classless Inter-Domain Routing (CIDR) notation

In 2001, the routing prefix could be expressed in Classless Inter-Domain Routing (CIDR) notation.

2003: Average UK employee spends 57 minutes a day surfing the Web at work

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

2004: Howard Dean Presidential Campaign

In 2004, the presidential campaign of Howard Dean in the United States was notable for its success in soliciting donation via the Internet.

February 2005: YouTube Founded

On February 15, 2005, YouTube was founded and became the leading website for free streaming video.

November 2005: Internet Governance Forum (IGF) Established

On 16 November 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 web-based service to publish individual loan profiles for funding

In 2005, Kiva pioneered this concept, offering the first web-based service to publish individual loan profiles for funding.

2005: US study shows Internet usage slightly higher for men

In a US study in 2005, the percentage of men using the Internet was very slightly ahead of the percentage of women, although this difference reversed in those under 30.

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, recognizing its significant impact.

2007: Internet Carries Over 97% of Telecommunicated Information

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

2008: Submarine cable disruption causes blackouts

In 2008, disruptions of submarine communications cables caused blackouts or slowdowns to large areas.

2008: Women outnumber men on most social networking services

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

2009: Internet users reach 1.9 billion globally

Between 2000 and 2009, the number of Internet users globally rose 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, 300 million Internet users reading blogs, and 2 billion videos viewed daily on YouTube.

March 2011: Estimated Number of Internet Users Reaches 2.095 Billion

As of 31 March 2011, the estimated total number of Internet users was 2.095 billion, representing approximately 30% of the world population.

2011: Internet advertising revenues surpass cable television in the United States

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

2011: Woman severs most connectivity for the nation of Armenia

In 2011, a woman digging for scrap metal severed most connectivity for the nation of Armenia.

2011: Estimation of overall energy used by the Internet

In 2011, academic researchers estimated the overall energy used by the Internet to be between 170 and 307 GW, which is less than two percent of the energy used by humanity. This estimate included the energy needed to build, operate, and replace laptops, smart phones, servers, routers, cell towers, optical switches, Wi-Fi transmitters and cloud storage devices.

2011: IPv4 address exhaustion final stage

In 2011, the IPv4 address exhaustion entered its final stage, with the global IPv4 address allocation pool being exhausted.

2012: Mobile subscriptions increase

In 2012, the number of unique mobile cellular subscriptions increased to 3.9 billion.

2013: Worldwide e-commerce equates to $16 trillion

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.

2013: Institute for Local Self-Reliance report on employment

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

2014: Controversy over Internet's electricity usage estimates

In 2014, a peer-reviewed research paper highlighted the controversy surrounding estimates of the Internet's electricity usage, noting a wide range of claims published in the preceding decade. The discrepancies were attributed to factors such as the year of reference and the inclusion of end devices in the analysis.

2014: Airbnb valued at $10 billion

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: Global 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

In October 2016, Internet usage by mobile and tablet devices exceeded desktop worldwide for the first time, marking a significant shift in access methods.

October 2016: IANA Stewardship Transition

On 1 October 2016, the IANA stewardship transition occurred, marking a change in the approval process for changes to the DNS root zone.

2016: AP Stylebook Recommends Lowercase Internet

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: Malware variants number

In 2016, the malware variants number increased.

2016: Mobile subscriptions increase to 4.8 billion

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

2017: Internet consolidates human endeavor into singular arenas

In 2017, a book claimed that the Internet consolidates most aspects of human endeavor into singular arenas of which all of humanity are potential members and competitors, with fundamentally negative impacts on mental health as a result.

2017: Malware variants number increase

In 2017, malware variants number increased to 669,947,865, twice as many malware variants as in 2016.

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 connect to the Internet, an increase from 34% in 2012.

2018: Symantec's Internet Security Threat Report

According to Symantec's 2018 Internet Security Threat Report (ISTR), malware variants number has increased to 669,947,865 in 2017.

2018: 80% of world population covered by 4G network

As of 2018, 80% of the world's population was covered by a 4G network.

2018: Asia accounts for 51% of Internet users

By 2018, Asia alone accounted for 51% of all Internet users, with 2.2 billion out of the 4.3 billion Internet users in the world. China's Internet users surpassed a major milestone with 802 million users.

2018: The Shift Project publishes study on global CO2 emissions

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

2019: Highest Internet Penetration

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

2020: Mobile subscription prediction of 5.7 billion users

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

2021: Cybercrime cost the world economy US$6 trillion

In 2021, Cybercrime was predicted to cost the world economy US$6 trillion.

2022: 54% of the world's Internet users were based in Asia

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