The transport part of the information industry-information networks-is emerging as the critical infrastructure for commerce in the twenty-first century, similar to the role of ships and railroads in the 1800s and automobiles and airlines in the 1900s. Information networks will transport the primary commercial commodity of the next century-digitized information-and information appliances will put it at your fingertips. This article explains the sequential evolution of three phases of networking-the Arpanet, the Internet, and the Information Network-and explores the barriers to realizing the new information network paradigm. The realization of a next-generation information network will have far-reaching effects on the lifestyle and livelihoods of millions of individuals and businesses around the world. Users will soon be offered services that transparently use the information network, a paradigm shift that will bring a wave of innovation, creating new businesses and business systems that will drive global economic growth during the next century.
