As the Web Turns 25, Its Creator Talks About Its Future

In 1989, Tim Berners-Lee, a software engineer, sat in his small office at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research near Geneva and started work on a new system called the World Wide Web.

On Wednesday, that project, now simply called the web, will celebrate its 25th anniversary, and Mr. Berners-Lee is looking ahead at the next 25.

But this moment comes with a cloud. The creators of the web, including Mr. Berners-Lee, worry that companies and telecommunications outlets could destroy the open nature that made it flourish in their quest to make more money.

Today, more than two people in five are connected to the web. Every minute, billions of connected people send each other hundreds of millions of messages, share 20 million photos and exchange at least $15 million in goods and services, according to the World Wide Web Foundation.

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/03/11/as-the-world-wide-web-turns-25-fear-about-its-future/