Ole J. Jacobsen, CISCO, USA

The Internet has already been around for more than 30 years, but it was not "discovered" by the general public until the early 1990s. Today, the appearance of a URL is almost as common as the appearance of a telephone number, yet many argue that the Internet from a USER's point of view is still a frustrating experience and that it does not compare to the reliability and ease of use of the telephone system.

So, what impact has the Internet had on society, on business and on the user so far? What developments are either needed or in the process of being delivered that will make Internet life easier? What technologies and services are still missing?

In this talk we will review a snapshot of today's Internet and look at some innovative applications which combines Internet-centric technologies. We will look at what is possible today and what will be possible in the future, while keeping our focus on the end user experience. We will discuss the new business models that the Internet allows, (and some that have failed miserably) and present a list of enablers and obstacles --- ranging from legislation to processing power --- in our connected world.