The internet has evolved dramatically since its origins in the 1960s as a small network connecting universities. It is now a global phenomenon connecting billions of people and transforming how we access information and buy goods. Internet speeds have increased rapidly, while mobile access allows "on the move" use. Google remains the dominant search engine, but social media is also a major source of news. Online shopping is hugely popular for various goods, while Amazon's revenue growth demonstrates its dominance in e-commerce. Video consumption also continues rising, especially on platforms like YouTube and Netflix, increasingly via mobile devices. Younger generations are more influenced by online reviews and social recommendations than advertisements.

1. The evolution of
the internet
and its impact
on our lives.
ASHLEY JOUHAR

2. Introduction
The internet originated in the 1960’s as something that
was christened the ‘Galactic Network’ by J.C.R.
Licklider of MIT. What he envisioned was a series of
computers through which everyone could quickly access
data and programs from any site, due to the fact that
they were all globally interconnected.
In 1965, via a low speed dial-up telephone line, the TX-2
computer in Massachusetts was connected to the Q-32 in
California, creating the first (however small) wide-area
computer network ever built.
This concept was expanded upon and by the early 1970’s
it was called the ARPANET, which bit by bit then grew
into what the world uses today. The Internet, as we now
know it, embodies a key underlying technical idea -
namely that of open architecture networking. (Internet
Society, 2018)Image courtesy of slideplayer.com

3. You can see the increase over a 5 year period in the two charts above. The global population has grown from 6.8 to 7.4 billion but the number
of internet users has grown by a staggering 1.7 billion people since January 2012.
That translates to almost 1 million new users each day, or more than 10 new users every second. (The Next Web, 2018)
Access to the internet

4. In the USA, internet speeds have tripled over the last three and a half years. This is in part due to the rise in popularity of
streaming video services like Netflix but also a general increase in the appetite of bandwidth hungry users.
It’s worth noting though that the U.S. as a whole still lags behind much of the rest of the world in internet speed at 12.6 MBps,
with South Korea being the fastest at 20.5 MBps.(Statista 2018)
Access to the internet

5. TV is still the most heavily consumed platform, particularly with 50+ age group. However, digital devices are definitely gaining
traction across the board and the use of mobile devices overall is increasing, particularly with Millennials and the younger ‘Generation
Z’. In fact, across linear and digital platforms, digital comprises 51% of the total average audience among persons 18-34. (The Nielson
Co, 2018). Many consumers are engaged with numerous devices at once, simultaneously texting on a smartphone and surfing YouTube,
whilst the TV may be on in the corner of the room too.
Digital devices used by audiences

6. How customers search for information
Whilst Google remains the world’s most popular
search engine with an 86% market share
(Statista, 2018), Yahoo comes a distant second.
In China and Russia, though, the most popular
search engines are Baidu for the former (where
Google is blocked) and Yandex for the latter.
Over the last decade or so we have seen an
influx of digital communication methods and
choices for the public. In the chart here, (Lori
Lewis, All Access, 2018) we can see a cross-
section of an average minute online around the
world. The popularity of Google is clear - along
with Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Twitter
amongst others, as a means for the world to
search for information on anything and
everything. The most recent research reveals
that 62% of adults get all their news from social
media. (Tech Crunch, 2018).

7. What consumers buy online
You can see here the buying habits of US consumers regarding online vs offline and how and where they do their research before buying any
FMCG goods. Online buying is dramatically on the increase, with Clothing, Books, Movies, Music, Games, Consumer Electronics, Sports Goods
and Toys amongst the most popular.
You can buy just about anything through Amazon, but you won’t find many really high-end brands as they are worried about brand perception
and the Amazon third-party marketplace. (Business Insider UK, 2018).

8. What consumers buy online
Photo showing the scale and capacity of an Amazon warehouse interior. Amazon’s e-commerce revenue rose 15.8% in the last 12
months, with $82.7 billion in sales, compared with Walmart’s $12.5 billion. That chasm in dollars keeps getting wider. (Fortune, 2018).
Photo for Digital Spy - Getty Images

9. Online video consumption
Zenith’s Online Video Forecasts 2017 report has claimed that online video viewing across the globe is set to increase showing
that people will spend an average of 47.4 minutes a day viewing online videos, an increase from 39.6 minutes in 2016. This rise is
driven by popular platforms like Netflix, YouTube, Hulu and Facebook. (The Drum, 2018).
Other factors contributing to its rise in popularity are the increased capacity for live streaming and the rapid multiplication of
video natives who are also content creators and global sharers.
Additionally, the shift to mobile continues with more people watching video on handheld devices - more than 50% of all video
views now occur on mobile devices. (inc.com, 2018)

10. Consumer trends
1. 67% of consumers are Influenced by online reviews. (moz.com, 2018)
2. 28% of consumer’s online time is spent on social networking sites. (Global Web Index, 2018).
3. American adults spent 5 and a half hours a day absorbing video content in 2015. (eMarketer, 2018)
4. Millennials believe word-of-mouth recommendations from friends far more than being influenced by advertisements.
(NR Media Group, 2018)
Photograph: Dado Ruvic/Reuters

11. Summary
Internet speeds have tripled over the last three and a half years, and mobile devices are catching up with laptops as
the preferred means of accessing the internet, showing that ‘on the move’ use is the future. Larger screens and
increased mobile data storage are fueling this.
With an 86% market share, Google is still the most popular search engine on earth (Statista, 2018) but 62% of adults
get all their news from social media. (Tech Crunch, 2018).
The public are embracing online shopping increasingly, with categories such as Clothing, Books, Movies, Music,
Games and Consumer Electronics enjoying huge popularity. Customers read online reviews, and peer to peer
recommendations before buying goods. Amazon’s e-commerce revenue rose 15.8% in the last 12 months. (Fortune,
2018).
Online video consumption is also on the increase, as people are spending an average of 47.4 minutes a day viewing
them. (The Drum, 2018). Video is increasingly accessible, due to an increased capacity for live streaming and the
rapid multiplication of video natives adding and sharing content continuously to and from popular platforms like
Netflix, YouTube, Hulu and Facebook. (The Drum, 2018).
In conclusion, the human race has always had a thirst for knowledge and the internet and the lightning advances in
technology are fuelling it. These advances are having a huge impact on our hunger for information; in fact the
number of internet users since 2012 has grown by a staggering 1.7 billion people. That’s 1 million new users each
day. (The Next Web, 2018).
A word of warning though; a Global Web Index report shows that the average person is using the internet around 6
hours each day currently– that’s roughly one-third of their waking lives. (We Are Social, 2018). It remains to be seen
what the impact of that will be on us.

12. Reference list
(Internet Society (UK) 2018). Available at: https://www.internetsociety.org/internet/history-internet/brief-history-internet/ (Accessed 9 June 2018)
(The Next Web (US) 2018). Available at: https://thenextweb.com/insider/2017/03/06/the-incredible-growth-of-the-internet-over-the-past-five-years-explained-in-detail/(Accessed 9
June 2018)
(Statista, 2018). Available at: https://www.statista.com/chart/4290/where-does-the-uk-rank-in-internet-speed/(Accessed 9 June 2018).
(Nielson (US 2018). Available at: http://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/news/2016/the-digital-age-young-adults-gravitate-toward-digital-devices.html (Accessed 10 June 2018).
(All Access (US) 2018). Available at: https://www.allaccess.com/merge/archive/28030/2018-update-what-happens-in-an-internet-minute#sthash.IKyiTou1.uxfs (Accessed 10 June
2018).
(Tech Crunch (US) 2018). Available at: https://techcrunch.com/2016/05/26/most-people-get-their-news-from-social-media-says-report/ (Accessed 10 June 2018)
(Business Insider (UK) 2018). Available at: http://uk.businessinsider.com/brands-you-cant-get-on-amazon-2017-11?r=US&IR=T (Accessed 10 June 2018).
(Fortune (US) 2018). Available at: http://fortune.com/2016/06/08/online-shopping-increases/ (Accessed 10 June 2018).
(Digital Spy (UK) 2018). http://www.digitalspy.com/tech/best-tech-deals/news/a813829/amazon-reveals-details-of-its-mammoth-black-friday-sales-and-its-all-starting-very-soon/
(Accessed 10 June 2018).
(Marketing Charts (US) 2018). Available at: https://www.marketingcharts.com/digital-69304/attachment/zenith-global-online-video-consumption-by-device-2016-2018-jul2016
(Accessed 11 June 2018).
(The Drum (UK) 2018). Available at: http://www.thedrum.com/news/2017/07/17/global-online-video-consumption-and-advertising-increase-fifth-2017 (Accessed 11 June 2018).
(Inc. (US) 2018). Available at: https://www.inc.com/glenn-leibowitz/why-2017-will-be-the-year-of-online-video.html (Accessed 11 June 2018).
(Inbound Marketing Agents (US) 2018). Available at: http://www.inboundmarketingagents.com/inbound-marketing-agents-blog/6-important-stats-on-how-consumer-behavior-has-
changed-in-the-digital-age (Accessed 11 June 2018).
(Moz (US) 2018). Available at: https://moz.com/blog/new-data-reveals-67-of-consumers-are-influenced-by-online-reviews (Accessed 11 June 2018).
(Global Web Index (US) 2018). Available at: https://blog.globalwebindex.com/chart-of-the-day/daily-time-spent-on-social-networks/ (Accessed 11 June 2018).
(E Marketer (US) 2018) Available at: https://www.emarketer.com/Article/US-Adults-Spend-55-Hours-with-Video-Content-Each-Day/1012362 (Accessed 11 June 2018).
(NR Media (US) 2018). Available at: https://www.nrmedia.biz/blog/identifying-latest-trends-in-millennial-marketing (Accessed 11 June 2018).
(We Are Social (US) 2018). Available at: https://wearesocial.com/blog/2018/01/global-digital-report-2018 (Accessed 12 June 2018).