On 1 January 1983 the ARPANET adopted TCP/IP as its standard protocol suite, the technical birth of the interconnected Internet. In 1991 Tim Berners-Lee, working at CERN in Geneva, released the World Wide Web, with its HTTP protocol, HTML and the first browser and server, making the network navigable by ordinary users. Together they created a global, openly addressable system for sharing information across previously separate computer networks.
By decoupling much information work from physical location, the Internet reshaped demand for offices and retail and reopened debate over why proximity and the dense city still matter for innovation, services and face-to-face exchange.