Can the internet survive in its present form?

Gartner vice president Steve Prentice came to Computer Weekly's office to discuss the future of the internet. He is speaking to CIOs about what happens if the internet changes radically. "We now treat the internet as a utility - in other words like electricity," he said.During people pay internet service providers fro internet access, much of the content is free and at that time there is the cost of the physical infrastructure ie the cabling, network switches, domain name servers etc.Cloud computing, 3G, 4G, smart meters and the internet of things all rely on a pervasive internet.

What if is not there anymore

But what if is not there anymore, or, like in China, countries block or control access? Prentice does not have any answers, nor is he making predictions as to when the internet will start unraveling.

But it is something businesses and governments should consider. Developing internet-enabled products may seem like a great idea today, however what would happen if the internet evolves into walled gardens: a Microsoft internet; a Google internet; an Amazon internet?It all boils down to the net neutrality debate. As Computer Weekly has reported, for the time being 20% of broadband users and up to half of mobile internet clients have contracts allowing their providers to restrict certain services, just as VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) or file-sharing.