Tagged: Internet

What began as a lofty goal to increase access to high-speed Internet has become a reality with Google Fiber. However, questions about the methods behind implementing this service still remain.

Ten years ago, the United States stood at the forefront of the Internet revolution. With some of the fastest speeds and lowest prices in the world for high-speed Internet access, the nation was poised to be the global leader in the new knowledge-based economy.

1,100 other cities wanted it, but we got it: Google Fiber.  Since it was announced that ‘we got it’ about a year and a half ago, Kansas City has been eagerly waiting for details. 

Google Fiber is scheduled to make a "special announcement" on Thursday, July 26, at 11 am CDT.

ICANN, the corporation that rules the Internet's address book, plans to increase the number of "top level" domains from the current 22 to 1,000 domains starting in early 2013. But not everyone is happy with that plan — and many say it's an open call to price-gougers and con artists.

Others complain that with 1,930 applications, ICANN — a non-profit corporation — raised just over $357 million. The U.S.-created entity was also in the news last spring, when it approved the .xxx domain.

As of 2008, the number of inanimate objects connected to the Internet exceeded the world population. Experts predict that by the year 2020, there will be more than 50 billion things, from animals to toasters, connected to the web.