eli5 What is Internet and why do we have to pay for it?
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It’s a network of connected computing devices that utilize a common language and protocols so devices can “talk” to each other. There’s end users (like your phone or laptop) and lots of intermediaries (like routers and switches) that help direct traffic between the devices. The common protocols tell the intermediaries how to direct traffic and the common language tells each device how to use and display the information received (and sent). The traffic travels on various wires, cables, satellites, etc. – essentially anything capable of carrying and transmitting an electronic signal, and these wires, cables, etc. (and all the various intermediaries) cost money to make, install, maintain, replace, program, etc. For the most part, the people and companies that make, install, maintain, replace, program, etc. do so because they can make money by doing so. That money has to come from somewhere, and in large swaths of the world, that money comes from those who want to use the internet (like you and I). That’s why we pay for it.
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