End of world wide web may be nigh due to overuse

THE end of the world wide web may be nigh, top technology companies warned yesterday.

Predicting a future which would horrify many businesses and email addicts, some experts fear the internet's infrastructure could soon crumble under the weight of its users. And the problem will only get worse as more and more people from developing countries start to sign on to the information superhighway.

Patrick Gelsinger, the chief technology officer for computer company Intel, delivered the warning at his company's technical conference. "We're running up on some architectural limitations," said Mr Gelsinger.

Other computer and communications companies, including Cisco, Hewlett-Packard and AT&T share the fears and are working to find a solution.

The collapse of the world wide web would cripple many businesses which rely on it for communication.

The internet has transformed the way many people in developed countries work.

And it has become a must-have leisure and information accessory in many homes.

Mr Gelsinger recommended building a new network over the current internet, which is based on technology developed in the 1970s. The new network would monitor and direct online traffic and fight security threats or surges in net traffic.

Such a model already exists in the form of a system called PlanetLab a collection of 429 computer "nodes" in 181 sites around the world. PlanetLab, which is funded by Intel, has won support from 150 universities, including Cambridge and Princeton, and corporations including Hewlett-Packard and AT&T.

But while such a model is based on Intel hardware and software, much of the internet infrastructure is controlled by another computer giant, Cisco.