Tim Berners-Lee is a well-known computer scientist. If you have never heard of him, you at least know what he invented. Tim Berners-Lee is known as the man who invented the World Wide Web. Now in 2018, almost thirty years after he wrote the first web client and server, Berners-Lee is creating ‘the new Internet.’ He believes that the (old) internet has evolved into “an engine of inequity and division; swayed by powerful forces who use it for their own agendas.” Is this true? And who are those powerful forces?
Berners-Lee stated in an article published on Medium that he always believed the web is for everyone. In the last couple of years, the changes he and his colleagues made, managed to create a better and more connected world. But to his horror, he saw the internet changed into a malicious inversion with fake news, hate and Internet-giants (Facebook, Google, Amazon for example) as the operating factor. Berners-Lee is done with these high-tech companies and wants to return the power to the users.
How does he want to do this? Well, by creating the new Internet: Solid. Solid is an open-source project and changes the current model where users hand over their personal data in exchange for value. As Berners-Lee says, “Solid is how we evolve the web in order to restore balance — by giving every one of us complete control over data, personal or not, in a revolutionary way.”
Technically seen, Solid is a decentralized platform based on linked data principles. Every user of Solid will be able to choose where to store their data and with whom they will share their data.
This ‘new Internet’ can be an interesting way to overcome certain privacy and power issues. However, an important question is if the Internet-giants such as Google and Facebook will accept Solid. What changes will they make according to their business strategies? And will users leave the well-known social platforms and start to make use of Solid? Will the network-effects change? Time will tell.
How do you think business and society will transform?
References
Berners-Lee, T. (2018). One Small Step for the Web… Retrieved 06-10-2018 from https://medium.com/@timberners_lee/one-small-step-for-the-web-87f92217d085.
Invests. (2018). Tim Berners-Lee is Creating the New Internet. Retrieved 06-10-2018 from https://www.invests.com/2018/10/05/tim-berners-lee-is-creating-the-new-internet.
Shankland, S. (2018). Interest surges in Tim Berners-Lee inrupt startup to remake the web. Retrieved 06-10-2018 from https://www.cnet.com/news/interest-surges-in-tim-berners-lees-inrupt-startup-to-remake-the-web/.
Verhagen, L. (2018). Week in techno: macht weer bij de gebruikers. Retrieved 06-10-2018 from https://www.volkskrant.nl/wetenschap/week-in-techno-macht-weer-bij-de-gebruikers-~b92f5b15/.
