It is interesting to see just how far the Internet has come in the last 20 years.  For most of us, our earliest recollection of the Internet is AOL (America Online) dial-up that opened up and greeted you with, “You’ve got mail”.  Although it took about five minutes to connect and you couldn’t use your home telephone line at the same time, it didn’t matter.  We didn’t care about speed or convenience either; at the time it was the most amazing thing in the world.

Image Credit: Donkey13Farmer

The Internet today is a completely different story.  It has completely changed so many aspects of our lives.  The two most impacted are the ways we interact socially with one another and how we conduct our business.

Socially, with the introduction of sites like Twitter and Facebook, we have become completely obsessed with constantly updating our status, uploading pictures and viewing our friend’s profiles.  We have reached the point to where we rarely talk on the phone with one another because it is easier to send a text or write on someone’s wall.  Social Internet interaction has finally taken the place of personal interaction.

As far as business goes, companies have learned that their business does not have to end on the local or national level… it can go global.  With the introduction of sites like Skype and GoToMeeting.com, businesses can now conduct meetings with someone on the other side of the globe, from the comfort of their office by simply inserting a laptop aircard to their notebook, pad or computer.  Although this, like social media, has all but eliminated personal interaction, it has also eliminated the high cost of traveling and saved a tremendous amount time, which is a definite plus.

Image Credit:  Dave Whamond & DataFunny

Although our obsession with the Internet has changed the way we interact with others, it has also catapulted Internet companies that provide wireless connections, into a billion-dollar corporation.  It has been reported by the GSMA that mobile operators worldwide are seen to invest up $72 billion in the next year on international wireless broadband technologies alone.  With the constant growth of Internet users, it is only right to invest mobile infrastructure to accommodate the rising demand.

As we continue to grow from a national economy into a global economy, the need for international wireless access will grow as well.  There is no denying our growth from AOL to where we are today.  It is interesting to see where we will go next.