The inventor of the internet, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, is calling for everyone to get it for free reports the Silicon Republic.
During his keynote speech at Nokia World in London, Berners-Lee stated he wants to see everyone given a low-bandwidth connection “by default,” as it could be vital in giving people access to critical services.
“I initially assumed you should get them water first, you should get them healthcare and then it is the luxury of getting the web,” he said.
“But it is not actually like that. The web can be pretty instrumental in getting them access to healthcare.”
Berners-Lee noted it would result in a different kind of healthcare than the West has, however, it would provide a step change in many regions of the world which have none.
“There is no AIDS vaccine, so what are you going to do about it?” he asked.
“Getting that message across in their own tongue on the web is something that isn’t happening now.”
photo by Ananta Bhadra Lamichhane