Ubiquitous 'always on' web access promises a new type of Internet

By: Jonathan Briggs

March 9, 2006

As the BBC points out in Wi-fi promises internet shake-up, what happens when people are connected to the web 24/7 will change the way they use it.

We are used to "going to the web" in search of information or to make a purchase. This has traditionally been via slow dial-up connections or more recently via broadband.

But new methods of access such as WiFi and 3G offer the promise of being connected all the time, not just at work but at home, in the street and while travelling.

This has big implications for companies wishing to interact with their employees, customers and partners in real time, all the time.

The first companies to change may be the broadcasters and we are seeing podcasting, streaming and time-shifting becoming part of the media landscape.

Ubiquitous computer may have other far more powerful applications in health, security, surveillance and entertainment that only become possible when the web (or as the article points out, a new version of the web) is always there.