Given the rapid growth in the field of latest technologies, one expects that there will be greater interaction between people and the Internet technologies in the future. And the netizens now have mixed feelings for the future of Internet revolution; Whereas some may not use these technologies ever, for some the boundaries between real life and collaborative web technologies are already blurring.

Speedier bandwidth is becoming common (using 56Kbps modems and telephone lines seem painfully slow now) and everyone is expected to have real-time link to everyone. Once this happens, “the concept of who is online and who is offline will melt away,” says Bradley Horowitz, Yahoo’s director of media and desktop search.

As a result, conventional devices and skills are either disappearing or seem to have been put on hold. The Internet is changing the way people work, share knowledge, entertain or socialize.

Here are some of the ways the technologies are changing and shaping the society. It is suggested that there will be better and much wider media coverage. No matter what, people will keep making more money from the Internet in a variety of ways: more information in any language (real-time language translation will be available), more and efficient searching and more focused marketing.

On the other hand, new threats are also being introduced. Service disruptions, viruses, security and privacy, the web’s vulnerability and lack of robustness have all become issues of enormous importance as the role of the Internet grows in the global economy and society. Even spam that used to be a minor irritant has become a hazard which can cost heavily.

Monopoly over the control of the Internet, lack of access among a large majority of people, affordability, censorship and levels of education are just a few of the more serious problems.

What is more, in his book The future of the Internet and how to stop it, Zittrain warns of a possible “cyber 9/11”, referring to the Sept 11 attacks. Such an attack, he fears, may prompt governments to curtail the accessibility and openness of today’s Internet, a move that would undermine the creativity — or the generativity — of the network.

The nature of changes taking place due to the advent of Internet is persuading policy-makers to make new regulations with an eye on the virtual developments and how society is adopting them. China’s censorship rules are a recent example.

So what do people think about the future of the Web Technologies? For those who are interested, there is an online interesting time study by Elon University and the Pew Internet and American Life Database.

As more people discover the power and value of the collaborative web technologies for commerce, communication and entertainment, the role of the Internet and its challenges will grow. Meanwhile, all stakeholders should build the infrastructure and take extensive confidence-building measures for using these useful technologies.
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