The World Wide Web Turns 30

March 12 was the 30th anniversary of the World Wide Web. That was when Tim Berners-Lee submitted his first paper describing a networked hypertext system for sharing documentation at CERN. It took a few years for it to become reality. I first saw the Web in action sometime in late 1992, using a text-mode browser called Lynx, but it wasn't until Mosaic (the predecessor of Firefox) came out in 1993 that I saw it's potential. It was like a lightbulb going off; it was obvious that it was a game changer.

Thirty years on, Tim Berners-Lee writes about the future of the Web. He starts out by describing some of the problems that the Web is facing, and what can be done to solve them.

Governments must translate laws and regulations for the digital age. They must ensure markets remain competitive, innovative and open. And they have a responsibility to protect people’s rights and freedoms online. We need open web champions within government — civil servants and elected officials who will take action when private sector interests threaten the public good and who will stand up to protect the open web.

Companies must do more to ensure their pursuit of short-term profit is not at the expense of human rights, democracy, scientific fact or public safety. Platforms and products must be designed with privacy, diversity and security in mind. This year, we’ve seen a number of tech employees stand up and demand better business practices. We need to encourage that spirit.

And most important of all, citizens must hold companies and governments accountable for the commitments they make, and demand that both respect the web as a global community with citizens at its heart. If we don’t elect politicians who defend a free and open web, if we don’t do our part to foster constructive healthy conversations online, if we continue to click consent without demanding our data rights be respected, we walk away from our responsibility to put these issues on the priority agenda of our governments.