.com .net .org .gov .co .me .mobi .mil .us .uk .eu .en .com .net .org .gov .co .me .mobi .mil .us .com .net .org .gov .co
T
hirty-five years ago, the number of Internet users could fit into a large lecture hall. In 2011, it is estimated that more than two billion people used the Internet, almost 30 percent of the world’s population. The Internet is now the foundation on which almost every global multi-billion dollar business is built. However, things could have gone very differently if the U.S. government had not decided to allow domain names to be expanded beyond government and university researchers, and sold to companies and institutions. N AMES , N UMBERS , AND N ETWORK S OLUTIONS : T HE M ONETIZATION OF THE I NTERNET (by J. Robert Beyster and Michael A. Daniels) recounts the gripping story of the commercialization of the Internet in the ‘90s and highlights the role of a then-small business by the name of Network Solutions that had the task of making these domain names available to the general public. It is a riveting read of near misses and hard-won successes, leading to a dramatically changed global commerce landscape. Shortly after Network Solutions received the domain name contract from the U.S. government; it was purchased by SAIC (Science Applications International Corporation) in 1995 for $4.7 million. Five years later, SAIC sold Network Solutions to VeriSign for $19.3 billion (with a B). Drawing from exclusive interviews with many of the key and lesser-known figures in the birth, development, and operational side of the Internet, authors Dr. Bob Beyster (founder, former CEO and chairman of SAIC) and Mike Daniels (former chairman of Network Solutions) provide an insider’s view of the immense challenges faced, and the unsung heroes who tackled them. The book describes the complex and evolving roles of the U.S. government in seeding this technological revolution, and of the private sector players who transformed a little-known computer network into the vast commercial infrastructure that fills our lives today.
"Names, Numbers and Network Solutions tells the fascinating story of a small technology company that played a central and pivotal role in helping transform the Internet into a global commercial powerhouse. This book is essential reading for anyone who has an interest in how the US government and the private sector in America can work together to create life-improving technological advances and innovation." -- GEORGE ALLEN, FORMER GOVERNOR AND U.S. SENATOR, VA
In addition to looking back in time, N AMES , N UMBERS , AND N ETWORK S OLUTIONS offers a glimpse into the future challenges of Internet regulation, security, and privacy issues. The next chapter has already begun. N AMES , N UMBERS , AND N ETWORK S OLUTIONS is published by The Foundation for Enterprise Development (FED), which has more than 25 years of direct experience in research, education, and consulting. FED Productions publishes curricula, books, films, and multimedia programs that promote broad-based employee participation, ownership and governance in 21st century entrepreneurship, and science and technology innovation.
NAMES, NUMBERS, AND NETWORK SOLUTIONS: THE MONETIZATION OF THE INTERNET BY J. ROBERT BEYSTER WITH MICHAEL A. DANIELS | NSIBOOK.COM
NAMES, NUMBERS, AND NETWORK SOLUTIONS: THE MONETIZATION OF THE INTERNET ENDORSEMENT MASTER LIST
Names, Numbers and Network Solutions tells the fascinating story of a small technology company, headquartered in the Northern Virginia technology community that played a central and pivotal role in helping transform the Internet into a global commercial powerhouse. This book is essential reading for anyone who has an interest in how the US government and the private sector in America can work together to create life-improving technological advances and innovation as well as spread our principles of freedom and individual liberty! -- GEORGE ALLEN, FORMER GOVERNOR AND U.S. SENATOR FROM VIRGINIA The Internet is one of the world's most transformational innovations. Names, Numbers, and Network Solutions is a compelling, front row look at the evolution and growth of a critical part of the Internet, the domain name system. Center stage is the role that Network Solutions and its corporate parent SAIC played in its ultimate success. It is a history of technology, but mostly it is a story about the innovative and entrepreneurial accomplishments that resulted in this core part of the Internet. Bob Beyster is a perfect guide for telling this history, as he has been a pioneer in developing and promoting employee owned, entrepreneurial organizations. It is also a story about how government organizations and commercial enterprises can work together to create enormous new societal value. The proper roles for each are often confused. Bob Beyster shows how these partnerships can be successfully accomplished. -- CURTIS R. CARLSON, PH.D. PRESIDENT AND CEO SRI INTERNATIONAL Dr. Beyster and Mike Daniels provide a unique and fresh perspective on how a key business enterprise contributed to the development of the Internet from its beginnings to what it is today. A valuable and substantive contribution to the historical record of the Internet, as well as providing key insights about its future, this book will be of great interest to (and should be required reading for) both business leaders and technologists. -- JOE PASQUALE, PH. D (CS), UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO
Updated 07/10/13
Names, Numbers, and Network Solutions is the fascinating story of the exponential growth of the internet and one company’s (SAIC) role in taking domain names from a government funded program into a multi-billion dollar industry. Robert Beyster the founder and CEO of SAIC together with his coauthor Michael Daniels recount the detailed history of this critical phase of the success of the internet in a very readable story. We should all hope that the success that SAIC had with the commercialization of domain names can be replicated over and over again with other government funded developments. -- J. CRAIG VENTER PH.D. Names, Numbers, and Network Solutions is a fascinating look at the revolutionary transition of the Internet from the domain of researchers and scientists to the powerful and pervasive engine of economic growth that it is today. As one of those researchers who primarily used the Internet to send data between labs and research groups, we were oblivious as to how important this engine was to become for science and for the economy as a whole. It's clear from reading this book that the strong entrepreneurial spirit that guided Network Solutions, Inc.—along with its ability to continually innovate and stay nimble in the face of the domain name system’s tremendous growth—played a significant role in the ultimate success of this transition. --THOMAS ZURBUCHEN PROFESSOR, SPACE SCIENCE AND AEROSPACE ENGINEERING; ASSOCIATE DEAN FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
Updated 07/10/13
4